We lose weight to look great and feel good about our bodies. And yet even when we lose a lot of weight and look great in our clothes we can still feel unhappy at how our bodies look undressed.
The problem?
Unwanted loose sagging skin left as a reminder of our former shape. Here are the 5 keys to prevent loose sagging skin when you undergo a weight loss program.
1. Lose weight slowly
Skin has remarkable powers of elasticity and yet it does not snap back instantly into shape if you lose a lot of weight quickly - anyone who has ever had a baby will tell you that one for free!
The more gradually you lose weight the easier it is for your skin to keep pace with your new shape. You certainly didn't put on all those pounds overnight - your skin had time to adapt so don't try to get rid of them all at once either if you want your skin to stay looking good.
Change your habits gradually so that you lose your weight bit by bit and you're far less likely to have problems than someone going on a crash diet and congratulating themselves on losing 100lbs in 6 months.
2. Eat nutrient rich foods
If your meals and snacks consist of junk food (even if you eat it in smaller quantities than before) then you're unlikely to nourish your skin properly and build up its strength.
Choose foods which are high in vitamins and minerals and low in sugar, saturated fat and additives. Include foods high in essential fatty acids such as avocados, olives, oily fish, nuts and seeds and oils made from these and also ensure that you have an adequate supply of lean protein.
3. Preserve your muscle tone
When you lose weight you may find that the skin becomes loose because you have lost some of the underlying muscle which supports it. If you lose more than a pound or two of weight a week then it is very likely you're losing muscle tissue as well as fat and without specific intense exercises to replace that muscle your skin will sag.
In any case, no matter how fast you lose weight (and even just to prevent age-related sagging) it is always helpful to do some toning exercises for all parts of your body including your face to keep skin firm if you care about looking good.
4. Keep skin hydrated
Drink plenty of water to keep skin healthy. If you drink wall to wall fizzy drinks, coffee and tea skin suffers because these drinks cause you to be more dehydrated than ever. And diet drinks full of additives do not help your skin no matter how few calories they contain. Only water and pure herbal teas will do the trick.
You can add lemon or orange slices to your water and you can have it at any temperature you like but drink enough - about 2 litres a day. That's about 8 glasses. If it helps try the rubber band trick and put 8 bands on your wrist or around a pot or bottle on your desk and remove one each drink of water you have.
5. Lose weight sooner rather than later
Don't keep putting off your weight loss program. The older you are and the longer you have been overweight the less elastic and resilient your skin becomes and the more you need to stick stringently to the other guidelines here to prevent skin becoming too loose.
Also don't get too complacent about being able to eat all you want and then lose weight later before you get hugely overweight The constant yo-yo dieting stretching and then loosening the skin will harm your skin's elasticity too.
Copyright 2005, Janice Elizabeth Small
Janice Elizabeth is a weight loss coach, slimming club owner and author of "The Diet Exit Plan". Her system promotes permanent healthy and AUTOMATIC weight loss through making small changes to your everyday habits. Request her FREE 15 page report "How to lose weight without dieting - 7 secrets the diet industry doesn't want you to know" at http://www.SimplySlimming.com TODAY!
» left by Anonymous (2 years 84 days ago.)
Superb article. Just the information I was looking for. This lady knows what she's writing about. Respond to this comment
» left by maria from tn (1 year 189 days ago.)
thanks alot your article had everthing I was looking for Respond to this comment
» left by veronica from ireland (1 year 167 days ago.)
my frien has lost 5 stone in a year shes now left with loose skin the people at the gym say it wont go cos theres to much and told her surgery may be the only option is there any thing she can do Respond to this comment
» left by Janice Elizabeth Small(2,064) Janice Elizabeth Small (1 year 167 days ago.)
Everyone has different skin tone - that's why I advise all of the above WHILE LOSING WEIGHT to give yourself the best possible chance to avoid problems. Once you have the problem it's much harder. Toning exercise can help a bit. Time helps too. But I haven't seen your friend so I couldn't really comment on her individual case.
» left by Vee from Wisconsin (1 year 148 days ago.)
Can you tell prior to losing weight if you will have sagging skin ? What about stretch marks will they improve as well ? Respond to this comment
» left by Janice from Edinburgh (1 year 134 days ago.)
There are a few factors which will increase likelihood e.g. how long you have been overweight, how much weight you have to lose, how old you are, how elastic your skin is (when you pinch a bit does it spring back easily), if you have been pregnant how easily did your skin tone return after birth etc etc. hope this helps. Janice Respond to this comment
» left by lvs from sydney (1 year 134 days ago.)
i have been overweight for 3 yrs, am 1.59 metres tall and weight 86 kilograms. Am i more likely than some to have excess skin? i have started a healthy eating and exercise plan but am worried about the excess skin issue Respond to this comment
» left by Janice Elizabeth Small(2,064) Janice Elizabeth Small (1 year 134 days ago.)
I can't really comment on individual cases since I'm not your doctor. But I would say don't look for every excuse you can find not to lose that weight - after all if you don't like the results we all know it's much easier to put the weight back on again than it is to take it off! If you follow all the guidelines chances are you'll be Ok - if not you can always stop - it's not irreversible. And some people do lose weight, have excess skin and then get this sorted out surgically - not ideal but it is an option for some
» left by Bucko from Anaheim CA (1 year 5 days ago.)
Thank you for your info. Any more suggestions? I'm 46, 6 foot and big boned. 10 Year ago I was 238lbs. 5 - 3 years ago I was ~ 255. 2 Years ago I went to 260. And one year ago I hovering 268 - 270. 6 weeks ago I decided to change my life. Started drinking more water (8 cups/day), got a juicer and now juice fruits and vegetables everyday, limit my intake of food (I still eat when I'm hungry, just smarter and not as much). I've started walking more (4 - 5 miles/day) and started running (2 weeks ago - I can finally do a light jog and keep my heart rate below 75% its max). I'm feeling fitter than before and I've gone from 272 to 240. I'm loosing about 4 lbs a day and think I'll probably end up around 210 - 220. But, I'm starting to get some sagging around my stomach. Are there any exercises I can do (hula-hoop?!?) or any type of teas or diet plan (on the NET) that can help with skin toning? Appreciate any help you can offer (books, links, etc...). Thank you !! Respond to this comment
» left by Bucko from Anaheim CA (1 year 5 days ago.)
Oops - I meant 4 lbs/week - sorry Respond to this comment
» left by Janice Elizabeth Small(2,064) Janice Elizabeth Small (1 year 4 days ago.)
Hi Bucko, You are doing everything I suggest in the article - except losing weight slowly. Only you (and your doctor) can decide whether it's better to slow your weight loss to help your skin. Personally I think you're doing so well at something which is pretty difficult for most people it would be a shame to slow your progress but weight loss normally eases off a little after the first few weeks anyway when much of the original weight loss is water. 4lbs a week of actual fat is too much to lose from a health point of view really. Exercise of the kind you mention will help a little (by toning underlying muscles) but won't deal with the skin issue that much. You may find it gets better over time anyway - my stomach certainly shrank back (twice) after growing enormous in pregnancy but there are no guarantees.
» left by lorraine greer from united kingdom (320 days 16 hours ago.)
I have 7 stone to loose and i have swapped my hi calorie sweet treats for cheery tomatoes which i lightly dip in sea salt.but my friend says i am sucking the eight glasses of water out again with all the sea salt so i am wasting my time drinking eight glasses a day to keep my skin tight is this true. p.s. i eat a lot of tomatoes Respond to this comment
» left by Anna from Hawaii (220 days 6 hours ago.)
Hello, Janice. Excellent article, but I have a few questions.
I have been losing weight the healthy way. I am 5'2" and started out at 160 pounds. My BMR was around 1,500 cals and I restricted to 1,000 to create a deficit. I also exercised everyday. I am almost twenty. I have been overweight for about six or seven years.
In one week, I managed to lose ten pounds (I've been doing a lot of fatburning exercises at the gym and have seen inch losses almost everywhere). I am now 150 and want to get to 120 or 110. Will losing thirty or forty pounds most likely cause me to have loose skin? I know you can't really tell, but I just need your opinion.
The reason I ask is because I am quite young and my skin does snap into place when I pinch it, but thirty pounds is kind of a lot.
well done on losing weight - though 10lbs in one week is excessive! You have to create a deficit of 35,000 calories to lose that amount of fat so I'm not sure what you did .... the equivalent of running more than 10 marathons!
If you want to save skin - don't lose weight that fast because it can't keep up with that kind of pace.
But if you lose 2lbs or so a week you should be fine if you have good skin tone.
The important thing is not to keep gaining and losing the same 20 or 30lbs. If you yo-yo like that you can really hammer your skin. Once you lose weight, do your best to maintain your new size.
Best wishes for reaching your target weight in a healthy way
» left by Dawn Blender from Indiana (207 days 5 hours ago.)
Janice, Thank you for writing this. I have found it very helpful. I'm currently 236 lbs and about 4 months ago I was at 268. I have been doing personal training and doing 1 hour of cardio per day. My goal is to lose 2-3lbs per week. I'm not really sure what my ideal weight is. I've been overweight all of my life. I was around 160 in high school and then in college I started to gain. I spent the better 1/2 of 20 years over 250 and am terrified that when I get the weight off I'm going to look freakish. I'm not opposed to plastic surgery other than the cost. I'm doing 3 days of strength training per week also. I only drink water and juice and I'm wondering what else I can do to make sure I'm doing enough to make my body look even better after the weightloss. Thanks, Dawn
» left by Janice Elizabeth Small(2,064) Janice Elizabeth Small (198 days 14 hours ago.)
Hi Dawn,
you're welcome and congratulations on taking positive action to lose weight. You are doing everything you can at the moment - remember and keep your skin hydrated and to lose weight slowly to give yourself the best possible chance to look your best after you lose the weight. I wish you every success.
Janice
P.S. I also expanded this article on my dietingstop blog with a few other things - seach for loose skin once you find it as I am an unable to add an URL in the comments Respond to this comment
» left by Emma Boyle from Ireland (184 days 15 hours ago.)
Hi im 21 stone and 22 years old,i have been overweight all my life and i have had enough of not feeling good about my body. I joined a gym 3 weeks ago and have been going 3-4 times a week, doing a hr of cardio and some weights for toning my muscles to. i have been losing 2-3 pounds a week, eating very healthy but i just want2 know is this the right way to go and is there chance i could be left with saggy skin? i really want to prevent his fron happening as i would be very dissapointed. please help.
» left by Janice Elizabeth Small(2,064) Janice Elizabeth Small (184 days 7 hours ago.)
Hi Emma, you are doing the right things to lose weight and give your skin the best possible chance to stay toned. If you can stick at the exercise you will end up looking and feeling fantastic. Although you have been losing 2 to 3 pounds weight a week which is normally faster than I recommend, weight loss at the start of a program is often a bit faster than later on and you are not losing excessively for your starting weight. Try and settle down to losing a steady 2lbs a week if you can. You also have a great advantage - you are young and skin tends to be more elastic the younger you are. No guarantees because I don't know your skin as well as you but I would say things are probably looking good for you if you can maintain your motivation. Janice Respond to this comment
» left by holyrolypoly (138 days 12 hours ago.)
excellent - informative - promises truthful hope -
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