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Loose skin. The sneaky little thing that no one tells you about when you’re losing tons of weight.
Most people are shocked when I tell them I have loose skin from weight loss. I’ve learned to hide it the best I can.
But whether you’ve had bariatric surgery or lost the weight slowly like I did, through diet and exercise, loose skin is the kryptonite for those of us who have lost a bunch of weight.
On the one hand, you’re grateful that you’ve lost the weight. On the other hand, you’re faced with a problem that no amount of weight training, or water, or vitamins, or special wraps can take away.
I didn’t realize this would be a thing when I was working to lose 160 pounds through lifestyle changes. I had heard about it before, but I had no idea what a big deal it would end up being in my life once I lost the weight.
But here we are. 160 pounds lighter, and dealing with extra skin. When I got to my lowest weight, I really started noticing it.
At the time, I figured that I’d just hurry up and get surgery to remove it. But then there were some roadblocks I found standing in my way. One, it’s expensive. And two, I had two small children (one being less than a year at the time).
The time would eventually be right, and I’d skin removed. But for a while, I just had to deal with it. In the meantime I thought I’d shed some light on the subject. After all, there are tons and tons of people dealing with this issue, but not tons of people talking about it.
Why does massive weight loss cause loose skin?
Essentially it’s because as your body attempts to accommodate your larger size, your skin grows with it. Then, when you lose the weight, the skin doesn’t just shrink back down. So you’re left with skin. Lots of it.
And it. is. so. uncomfortable.
So what’s it like having loose skin?
Ugh. It sucks.
For starters, it’s really hard to look in the mirror after literally working for years to lose weight, and see your body draped with loose skin.
I think a lot of people see a person who has lost a lot of weight and think that under the clothes is this perfectly shaped, perfectly tight body. But it’s just not.
Here are some of the affects of loose skin:
First of all, it can take a toll on you emotionally.
For those of us who have battled our weight our entire lives, it can feel like we struggled through being fat, only to struggle through the weight loss journey, only to find that once again our bodies have failed us (or, that we have failed our bodies). Then we have to struggle through this newfound loose skin.
It takes some diligence and intentionality not to let your lose skin get to you. After all, there’s a lot to be proud of when you’ve journeyed through such a crazy amount of weight loss! It’s so important to keep things in perspective because loose skin can feel defeating at times.
But if you strip away the emotional side of things, loose skin has other pesky sides.
Like exercise. Jumping jacks, burpees, push-ups, lunges, squats, crunches, you name it – our skin gets in the way.
The easiest way to get around this problem is to wear high-waste compression pants. It helps some, but not entirely. Our skin gets in the way, and can pull at our neck and back when we do certain types of exercise.
Running is out of the question these days, at least until I get my surgery; The skin at the lower part of my tummy rests on my legs as I run, and it makes my hips sore.
Then there’s the issue with clothes. Figuring out what to wear is a chore when you have extra skin. Even after years of dealing with loose skin I still don’t have it completely figured out. I spend most of my days in exercise clothes (because I work out almost every day, and because I’m a stay at home mom so workout clothes make sense most days), so it’s high-waste compression pants for me.
But I do have to put on normal clothes from time to time. That’s when it’s the hardest. I can’t wear jeans, for example, without my loose skin giving me problems. Even wearing a larger size doesn’t fix the problem. The only way to alleviate it is to wear compression gear (like Spanx). Most people would only wear compression gear when they have a special occasion, like an event when they need to squeeze into a special dress. I have to wear it at all times. It is very uncomfortable, especially living in Florida where it’s hot all the time.
Normal clothes just do not fit right, and to make it work you have to tuck it into your clothes the best you can.
Breathing can be weird when you have extra skin. It sort of pulls at your organs and can make you short of breath, even when you’re just sitting down chatting with someone. I visited a doctor a long time ago because I noticed I’d get short of breath for no reason. She did a full work-up on me, checked everything and even did a chest x-ray (call me a hypochondriac), before we finally realized that it was because of the way my skin pulls at my insides.
Pain. Believe it or not, loose skin can most definitely cause pain. For my hubby (who has also lost 140 pounds through making lifestyle changes) and myself, it causes us back pain. The extra skin that pulls at our tummies causes pressure on our backs. It can also cause neck pain. I haven’t had to deal with rashes, but a lot of people do have that to deal with as well.
Is it worth it?
Loose skin from weight loss sucks. But yes, it’s worth the massive amount of effort it took to lose 160 pounds. I don’t have a perfect body, far from it! But I can honestly say that I am healthier, stronger, more fit, and more confident as a result of the lifestyle changes I’ve made over the years, and that is truly what matters.
What can you do if you can’t have surgery?
Nothing will make loose skin from weight loss disappear. I know, it’s a sad reality.
For me, I had to realize that even if I lost every pound I wanted to, and got every skin removal surgery possible, I still would not have a “perfect” body. At that point I’d be covered in scars.
Whether it’s fat, or extra skin, or wrinkles, or cellulite, or scars, or whatEVER it is… I truly believe you have to work on loving yourself TODAY, exactly as you are, and just keep working on becoming the healthiest YOU that you can be. Otherwise you’ll spend your whole life hating yourself and that, my friend, is the furthest thing from a full, flourishing life.
Need some help learning to love and accept your body? Try my 10 Body Positive Confessions. Wake up every morning and say them out loud. Then, watch your self esteem begin to soar.
UPDATE! I’ve scheduled my first surgery!
