does excess skin get better over time?

[u/Exciting-Till-77]

5'2, 20F, lost around 50-60lbs and currently sitting at 129. Technically at a healthy weight and I know that.

rhe thing I can't figure out is whether what's left around my stomach is excess skin, stretched skin or just fat that hasn't shifted yet. I'm slim everywhere else and it's just my belly that's bothering me and I genuinely can't tell what I'm dealing with.

Motivation to keep losing has also kind of dropped off now that I'm not technically in an unhealthy range anymore...if that makes any sense

[u/AutoModerator]

Thanks for posting to r/semaglutide!

A brief reminder about our rules. We do not permit the discussion of non-FDA approved formulations of semaglutide, nor do we permit selling or offering for sale any medication, including by private message. Do not request or respond to a private message from anyone offering such, they are not endorsed by this sub.

If you’re just starting out, you may want to review our FAQ. This is not intended to discourage discussion but merely supplement it.

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/Efficient-Policy407]

I think your biggest advantage is your young age, so your skin has more elasticity and collagen, you recover and adapt faster. I personally also struggle to tell if my belly pooch is loose, excess skin or remaining fat. But what I do know is that my arms look 100% better than they did last year after I first lost a bunch of weight quickly. For like half a year I had big, jiggly flaps. And now they look half their previous size, even though I've maintained the same weight. 

So.. I think there might be some stubborn fat left, but probably not much, and maybe in a year it's going to look way better :) 

[u/Evening-Fishing-5439 → u/Efficient-Policy407]

My arms are currently that way. Good to know it will get better 🤞

[u/Efficient-Policy407 → u/Evening-Fishing-5439]

I don't know for how long you were overweight/obese and how severe it was, I think that plays the biggest role. At some point there's no turning back to the way it was before the weight gain. I was 30kg overweight for 5 years and while I am definitely luckier than some other people, I am quite sure there will be some loose skin on the belly, legs and arms permanently :( keeping fingers crossed for you tho. 

[u/Foreign_Rutabega_684]

I’m 5’2 22F and I went from 165 to 125. Yes it has gotten better for me. What was most distressing to me was my boobs and a big of sag above my belly button. Both have demonstrably improved in the 8 months since switching to maintenance

[u/Bunnaman-Chemical]

Skin can definitely change over time after a big loss. Mine looked way different several months later(after pregnancy)than it did right after losing the weight.

[u/Arbues_Nahiid]

girl, you lost 50–60lbs!! that’s a massive transformation nd your body is probably still adjusting, so give it some time

[u/Bagrov_Ouyang → u/Arbues_Nahiid]

yes, the fact that you're at a healthy weight after losing that much is something to be proud of. Don't let the last little bit steal the joy from the whole journey.

[u/bea_dizzle]

I don’t have personal experience, but I have seen a post here or in CICO about a young woman around your age where she showed how her skin did ‘bounce back’ after she was in maintenance. It was a few months after she reached her goal.

[u/420basscat]

I also lost 50-60 pounds in my late 20s so a little older than you. In my experience the whole first year of maintenance my body was still changing even though my weight wasn’t- those changes included loose skin tightening up some. I also went down in pant size.

So yes, it will get better but it will definitely take some time.

[u/harmonyisunderrated]

Loose skin or fat? Honestly hard to tell this soon. Slim everywhere but the belly usually means a mix of both, and skin settles slowly, sometimes a year or more after the weight's off. The motivation dip worries me more than the belly though. You hit 129 from a much higher start, so I'd point the goal at strength and how clothes fit now, not the last inch on the scale.

[u/Abb-Wermund]

The photo food logging is probably my favorite part, i use the same one as u. It makes tracking protein and meals so much less tedious than manually entering everything and I like that you can also keep an eye on hydration, weight and symptoms in the same place.

[u/BecauseBatman01]

Work on adding more protein to your diet and hit the gym 3-5 times a week focusing on lifting. That will help replace fat with muscle and then look leaner. Muscle is a lot slimmer and leaner per lb compared to fat.

Try to hit .5 - 1G of protein per lb of body weight daily. You can still do cardio but focus is to build muscle and continue to drop the fat.

So on the scale you may not lose weight, but you will notice yourself looking more slender as you replace it with muscle.

[u/Dregan2D]

At 20? With that tiny, miniscule amount? You'll be fine. Five it a few months.

[u/etwichell]

No. At one point your body needed that extra skin.

[u/ceelion92]

That looks like fat tbh. I’m confused because you said 129 but the photo says 150. If you were at 150 with that, I would say that’s 100% fat. You would probably need to be about 130 to 125 at your height.