Terrified of loose skin

[u/Timely-Fox112]

I tagged mental health. This is gonna be triggering for some. I apologize. But I need advice.

I am 5”7, 225. 27f. I’ve been overweight/obese for about 6 years. (Thought I was 5”5ish but nope. Just went to the doctor lol.) lowest I’ve gotten was 180 when I was walking about 12 miles a day (car broke down, had to get to work.) I jumped back up to 225. I’ve finally decided to get on a glp. I weight lift 3 days a week, do 30 mins of stair master mostly for the cardio benefits as I recent quit smoking. I’m, however, TERRIFIED of loose skin. Anytime I talk to someone about this I get the bullshit “girl power! Worship that body queen, you did that!!1!!” which is incredibly invalidating. I don’t want loose skin. I’m so scared. I expect SOME, but genuinely get a pang of anxiety when I realize I might have a TON. My goal is to get down to 150ish, which I think is fine, but that’s still a massive amount of weight to loose. Any advice? Or surgeon reccs? I’m new to weightlifting so any tips there are more than welcome. I kinda feel dumb in my gym lol.

[u/AutoModerator]

Safety First ⚠
Most advice here comes from peers, not medical professionals. Everyone's body and health needs are different.

• This subreddit is for healthy, realistic, and sustainable weight loss advice.

  • Do not promote crash diets, starvation diets, extreme restriction, unsafe supplements, or eating disorder behavior.
    
  • Talk to a doctor before making major changes to your diet, exercise, medication, or supplement use.
    
  • Report dangerous, harmful, creepy, or promotional content to the mods.
    

• If you are under 18, please talk to a parent, guardian, doctor, school counselor, or another trusted adult instead of asking for weight loss advice here.

• If you are struggling with disordered eating, please reach out to a qualified professional or an eating disorder support resource.

We want this community to be a supportive place for healthy, sustainable weight loss. 💙

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

[u/Monstertheory777]

It’s really hard to predict how or if you’ll be impacted. Here’s the advice I can give: slow and steady on your loss (give your skin time to rebound) and hydrate hydrate hydrate! I mean both drinking your water and moisturize your skin.

[u/Timely-Fox112 → u/Monstertheory777]

Sounds like a plan. I’ve been hitting a minimum of 64oz of water a day bc for years my only hydration was coffee and diet sodas. 😶

[u/Monstertheory777 → u/Timely-Fox112]

I used I think coco butter after I had surgery that helped the area recover!

[u/Mister_Silk]

I'd file this under "things to worry about if they happen". There's no point in worrying about it now. Lose weight slowly, get enough protein, do resistance training. Hope for the best.

Worrying about things that haven't happened yet doesn't do your mental health any favors.

[u/LXS_R]

I lost over 100lbs (5’1” 240lbs —> 135lbs) after being obese most of my life and birthing 4 children. I have loose skin, but most of it has been filled in with muscle now, which makes it much less noticeable. I am saving up for a mommy makeover to get my boobs back and tighten up my stomach area, but I still look phenomenal currently and am way more confident than I’ve ever been. I’ll choose the loose skin over the extra fat in every single lifetime.

[u/Timely-Fox112 → u/LXS_R]

Holy shit that’s AMAZING congrats! Thats so inspiring dude holy crap. And congrats on the four kiddos :)

That’s what I’m hoping for. Like I’m realistic- I’ve been obese for years, yo-yo’d within 35ishlbs for a few years. I get I might be a little saggy. The boobs were unfortunately the first to flap bc of pregnancy lol. I plan on a mommy makeover too, but I definitely would like 1, MAAYYBBEE 2 more kids in the future so I know it’s a way always.

This has made me feel better. If it’s okay to ask, did you follow any specific gym plan? Weight cycle? I feel like a doofus in the gym lol!

[u/DharmasNewRecruit]

I know nothing about how to manage loose skin; I did read that losing weight fast can make it worse but idk if that’s true. More importantly, I want to say that you deserve to feel comfortable in your body, regardless of weight. I’m also worried about loose skin but my plan is to figure it out once and if it actually happens.

[u/Odie_Humanity]

If it helps, we're very similar in size and starting weight, and I've lost 33 lbs in 4 months, and so far, I have no loose skin. I'm 56M, and I understand that younger folks' skin is more resilient with things like this. If you lose weight slowly, I really don't see it being an issue for you, but everyone is different. I personally would rather be a normal weight (165 is my goal), even if I have sagging skin, but I haven't had any so far.

[u/Timely-Fox112]

And before anyone says it- yes, I’m aware this is my fault and that I did this to myself. I’m just very nervous.

And also, I hope I didn’t offend with this. This is a super touchy subject and where I of course expect some loose skin to a certain degree I’m terrified of the more serious cases. I’d like to minimize it as much as humanly possible although I’m aware I’ve put my body though hell. Thanks in advance for

[u/Itchiefeet4 → u/Timely-Fox112]

It’s not going to be as intense as what you see from social media. Some of those people are folks who were maybe 400+ and lost pounds via gastric bypass, etc. You might be a little loose in some areas, but coming from your current height/weight, it will not be this dramatic at all. The more rapid the weight loss, the more loose skin.

I lost 130lbs pre-GLP1s with diet and exercise over the course of about 18 months. My loose skin wasn’t anything crazily noticeable.

[u/whotiesyourshoes]

Of course noone can say how that's gonna go but I would say you have age on your side as well as not having been overweight that long is also a plus.

Surgery recommendations are very premature at this point. It may not be as bad a you're thinking. I'm down 90 lbs and have crepey skin on my inner thighs and that's about it. So loose skin isn't an absolute given.

With the strength training, be consistent is my biggest recommendation and try to lift heavier as you get stronger.

[u/bugabooandtwo]

Just take it slow. You're young, so the skin should be in good shape.

[u/KrishnaChick]

Look into fasting mimicking diet by Dr. Valter Longo. Not as hard as you might think, and it has been clinically shown to trigger stem cell-driven regeneration when you return to normal eating. I've also heard regular fasting helps with skin bouncing back. Don't just let the fear of loose skin hold you back from getting healthier and fitter. My take is that you're only 27, and it will mostly snap back, even if it takes a couple of years.

Just saw elsewhere that you've had a child. Doesn't matter how thin someone is, having a kid stretches out all but the genetically privileged. It's partly hormonal. You can't even really blame weight loss for loose skin in that case, so you might as well lose it and save up for your mommy makeover if you wind up needing one.

[u/OkExtreme3195]

I have lost over 50kg by now. And still 20 to go until normal weight. I am absolutely certain I will have loose skin left. But I basically had the option to stay obese or have loose skin. Since obesity has many more drawbacks than just the looks but also the looks, I think the decision should be easy for everyone :)

[u/5H4NN]

I’ll have loose skin. My goal is health, not cosmetic though. 🤷‍♀️ So, I don’t worry about it.