Atkins Diet Questions: Loose Skin
** Graphic Display of loose skin around my stomach near the end — Viewers may want to ensure a bag is available **
Today’s episode I deal with the one of the most common questions people ask me after hearing of my 200 pound weight loss. That is, “do you have much problems with loose skin?” In the end, I have to admit that I do have a bit of loose skin (I affectionately & sometime not so affectionately my “SharPei”) around my torso and legs, but it could be much worse. I could have the sheets of skin some dieters (more often low Calorie big losers) have or even worse be my original weight still living in fear of loose skin. There are times that I actually like my stretchmarks as they server as reminders of what might be if I think I can lax up. It also serves as a talking point like my pathetic driver’s license does for people looking for hope, but most days I am just thankful for shirts.
There are other things that are claimed to help, but I have not tried. Cocoa Butter and Mederma are both used by pregnant women to ease the appearance of stretchmarks. Additionally, I believe the content of this Diet helps in maintaining the elasticity due to protein and fat being featured. The body does not cannibalize its own resources like on other diets, and many report their skin looks as good and clear as it ever had. Good skin health implies good skin elasticity to respond to the weight loss as well.
One final theory about loose skin:
http://www.bodyfatguide.com/LooseSkin.htm
To summarize the above link, there is no problem with loose skin, just a body fat percentage problem. I am at 11-12% body fat, so maybe I need to drop another 2-3 percent yet too. In either case, plastic surgery may be for some people, but it’s not for me.
Duration : 0:3:52
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I’m a single mom. I …
I’m a single mom. I spent a great deal of time in one relationship, had a child and not long thereafter was thrown out for someone much younger and thinner. I don’t consciously obsess to the point where I overlook the dire financial situation I am constantly immersed in- or the stressful management I have to undertake to keep things running. It’s an insidious afterthought that creeps in when I’m in bed alone. Or when I’m eating alone. I hope you understand where this bitterness comes from.
how long do you …
how long do you think it’ll take for lose skin to tighten? i’m 5’5 190 pounds but i don’t look like it, and started the akins today
@lumyn Geesh, …
@lumyn Geesh, Ithink your being a bit hard on yourself, You gotta learn to like you….!!!!
@phoenix1O1 I …
@phoenix1O1 I believe critical to preventing loose skin is to not starve your body of nutrition it needs to rebuild itself during the weight loss phase. If you lose weight while denying your body the essential protein and fats it needs, you are that much more likely to suffer loose skin.
bowulf how do you …
bowulf how do you lose the excess skin in time i was thinking about going on the diet but im not fat i want to loose about 10kg but dont want loose skin does it go in time ?
@lumyn I never …
@lumyn I never thought I was exceptionally blessed in that department either, and count myself as blessed that my wife still finds me attractive daily.
@lumyn Well, I …
@lumyn Well, I would suggest being healthy and living to your 40 is a gift, but these are just opinions. For me to obsess daily about things I can’t change (without depleting kid’s college funds or the finishing the basement fund) just does not seem wise.
If your looks mean that much to you or your sanity, then by all means do something about it. The people in my life (kids, wife, friends) don’t care. Those who may care have never once said anything to me. I wish you peace with your looks.
Then again I wasn’t …
Then again I wasn’t attractive either at my previous weight. Haha. I can’t win. Got a bad roll in this life.
Speak for yourself. …
Speak for yourself. I’m a 25 year old woman who’s lost a good 150 lbs. I am so disgusting it’s unbelievable. I don’t enjoy my life at all. I don’t. I torture myself to keep the weight off and for what? To be as equally aesthetically unpleasing as before? I’d rather die at 40 and be attractive than live longer and look like this. Sorry.
@Armacalypse You …
@Armacalypse You have no idea what you are talking about… I know what fat is and I know what loose skin is. Sheesh.
That’s not just …
That’s not just loose skin, you still have fat on your belly.
Great work man!
Great work man!
I am heartened to …
I am heartened to hear that this video and my thoughts resonated so well with you. You know what it is more about confidence and accepting one’s self and less about the pecularities or foibles everybody’s body. Good job!
Believe me I know …
Believe me I know about excuses… I lived and thought them for many years before finally being convinced myself. Nothing tastes quite as sweet or feels as good as being fit and thin. At some point, being model pretty matters less than being able to play for hours with my kids or enjoying my life with my wife.
You are welcome… …
You are welcome… I just hope others can see that self-sabotage only derails them from achieving their goal.
thanks for doing …
thanks for doing this, it takes an excuse away from people
Thanks so much for …
Thanks so much for posting this!!! This was one HUGE fear that i’ve had! I’ve been losing weight for some time now and after seeing ur video I’m not as nervous! Congrats on your weight loss! I’m 23 and I use to weigh 300, I now weigh (still losing) 198! If my stomach in the end is how yours is i’ll have no problem taking my shirt off in public at the beach!! Thanks again for the post!!
Congrats on the …
Congrats on the weight loss! Thanks for being so honest!
whoah, I do some …
whoah, I do some Aerobics, yoga and some weights training to make myself lean as well. can’t see myself doing a marathon though hehe but I wish i could
creepy. but very …
creepy. but very honest.
I exercised …
I exercised starting one month into the diet and have eventually worked up to running marathons, biking 30-40 miles at a time, and doing weight lifting.
Did you exercise …
Did you exercise during all this weight loss or just lose weight from your Atkins diet alone?
The more I read …
The more I read about dieting, the more I’m convinced that muscle loss can be prevented. The reason why you probably lost a lot of msucle Brushfour was because you didn’t eat enough protein.
One study I read had two groups of people who were placed on 500 calorie diets. One group would have their calories from only protein(125 grams) and the other group would have a mix of carbs and protein. At the end of the study, they discrovered that the higher protein group lost NO muscle.
I think you …
I think you definitely could lose 2-3 pounds average a week all the way to roughly 10-15 pounds from goal. At that point, your weight loss should slow down in the pre-maintenance period.
Honestly at 19 years old, you should not have that much loose skin to worry about if you eat enough healthy fats and protein (not starve your body) and exercise the body (and thereby the skin) as well. The people who have loads of loose skin typically were in severe Calorie deficits all the way down.
Like I said in this …
Like I said in this video, part of me just says there is better uses for my money ($6-10000) as insurance wouldn’t cover it. That is a sizeable amount for something that few people see, and would largely just be for cosmetic purposes. Being happily married eliminates some of that some self-consciousness too.
I am also somewhat nervous about what it would do for my exercise and running life during recovery. I can take the pain, but if it means no running or playing basketball, what’s the point?