Question:
Does everyone have sagging skin after loosing weight?

   — jonigjoni (posted on August 31, 2009)

August 30, 2009
I think it really depends on your age (which helps determine the elasticity of your skin), your genetics, and whether or not you have exercised as you have lost. Also, I imagine the rate at which you lose your weight is a determining factor. Very rapid weight loss doesn't really give the skin time to adjust to the changes in your body size. I am down 93 pounds. I have been walking 2-3 miles a day and have averaged a 10 pound loss per month. I am almost 43 years old. And so far, the sagging skin hasn't been a problem. I still have another 70 pounds to go. I'm sure that by the time I hit my goal weight I will have some sagging skin, but I am hoping it will be minimal due to the fact that I'm losing slowly and exercising. That's one perk of a slower weight loss. Your skin has time to keep up with the changes. Good luck and God bless you on your journey!
   — PaulaJ

August 31, 2009
I am 3 1/2 months post-op, and I have lost 70 lbs from my surgery date, whcih is pretty fast. I definitely have sagging skin, and I'm 37 years old. I walked quite a bit and do a lot of swimming, but did not lift weights or anything like that until very recently. I'm hoping that this helps a lot, because at this point I am already a candidate for plastics, and I have lost about 1/2 of what I'd like to. It also depends on how long you've been overweight - for me, it's been most of my life so my skin has been expanding for many years now, so I didn't expect it to go back overnight, but I do see it adjustg a little bit here and there, but then I lose a lot after a stall and it seems really loose again. I have several buddies that have been through this one and two years out before me, and they are tiny girls now (started off like me). They have sagging skin, but their bodies have definitely shrank proportionally. They think it's far worse than I do - I think they look great, but they will both most likely go for some loose skin removal as will I.
   — stellarsan

August 31, 2009
I am 25 years old. I have lost 150 pounds so far, and my skin is HORRIBLE!! I still need to lose another 50, so I will def have to get some plastics done. BUTTTT, if I had to, I would deal with the saggy skin. It feels so nice to be thinner, and as long as you dont wear revealing clothing, the skin shouldnt be a problem. Now, I know some people get rashes, and infections, so I can see that being a bothersome. Best of luck to you.
   — jackie L.

August 31, 2009
I am almost 50 years old. I had surgery over 5 years ago. The day the doc released me to exercise, I started doing water aerobics, and then cardio etc...I don't have any sagging skin.
   — Rhonda Q.

August 31, 2009
hello, i am 27 years old and had rny done in the beginning of march and im down alittle over 100lbs and i dont have much extra skin at all. before my surgery i was walking 3-4 miles a day and doing cross fit training (i cant do the full cross fit so i tone it down to me) and then when i was cleared to start back up i started off slow and got back into it and i feel great. i do think that is what has helped me the most!
   — esty

August 31, 2009
Hi Joan... I'm 56, had my surgery in early March (so I'm nearly 6 months out). I've lost 105 pounds, and yes, I have saggy skin. BUT - I've had saggy skin ever since I gave birth to my first baby 37 years ago. She was nine and a half pounds, and no one told me about vitamin E oil or anything like that to make your belly skin more elastic and help stop the stretch marks, so even though I lost every bit of my weight and got back down to 170 pounds (right where I was when I got pregnant), I had a stretched out, hang-ey belly flap. I was exercising at a gym at the time, and my personal trainer told me that in all likelihood, I would never lose the "fat apron" (that's what he called it). My top weight was probably over 312 (at least that's what it was when I quit getting on the scale), and in addition to the loose belly skin, I have the "bat-wings" and the little fat pads that hang over the sides of your bra. I don't think my inner thighs are too bad, or my bottom.... but I've been able to exercise them on the stationary bike, and on the elliptical, and on the weight and strength training machines, in addition to doing the physical therapy for severe lumbar spinal stenosis and arthritis (which involves a lot of leg stuff). I think that they will tone up better than my arms, underarms, and definintely my belly. I'm not sure if my insurance pays for a paniculectomy (removal of the belly skin)... but if you can prove it's a medical neccessity (because you keep getting rashes and infections underneath it - which you MUST have documented and photographed by your physician) then you have a good possibility of getting it covered.
   — Erica Alikchihoo

September 1, 2009
Hi all, according to the plastic surgeon I spoke with before surgery. Skin does not shrink. The more you have of it the more it will look loose and hang. The less you have the less it will hang. Age does help but if your skin is already stretched out because of weight gain or pregnancy it will not shrink back to before the gain. Your fat will melt away and depending on your body structure and the way your fat is deposited will determine how your body will look after the loss. I carry most of my weight from the waist down. My torso looks normal even though it looks like the area of most loss. My legs look terrible and not sure where the turkey neck came from...Mom? Dad? :o) Linda
   — NHGAL58

September 1, 2009
I would take what the plastic surgeon said with a little bit of a grain of salt. The nature of their business would make them inclined to believe that not much gets better without their profession.
   — Janell C.