My arms and shoulders look fantastic (i work out five days a week and my arms are starting to look like a bodybuilder's), but the rest of me looks like Fat Bastard from Austin Powers after he loses a bunch of weight. I was really hoping this wouldn't happen, at least not at this level. Time to spend like $10,000 or more on a tummy tuck, then who knows how much more on an inner thigh lift (or whatever it's called), and something needs to be done about the turkey neck, and the leftover man-boob. I have a butt crack under my belly button!

People say the loose skin is worth it because you're healthier. It's definitely true. I am thrilled to not use my sleep apnea machine anymore and can walk without back pain. That said, the reality for many of us is that we also want to finally look good, which makes us feel good in a way that's different from "yay my edema is gone!". I want to experience what it's like to take my shirt off at the beach and not feel like everyone's looking at me for the wrong reasons. I'm waaaaay better off now than I was eight months ago (in many ways), but now I look like a shar pei. I traded one type of gross for another!

Moral of the story - if you have a lot of weight to lose and get this surgery, be ready for the possibility that you may have to spend a ton of money and spend many extra sick days at work getting skin removed. Also, make sure you work out like a beast to minimize how skinny-fat you look once you do lose the weight. If I wasn't at the gym as much as I am, I'd probably look like complete crap right now.

Edited April 2, 201412 yr by dandeegan

I previously lost 170# and started at 386. My flabby skin was not too bad because like you I worked out like a demon. I did marathons, 1/2 ironman, century rides on bike, MT bike races etc. then I put the weight back on over the next 2.5 years. I am 3 months post surgery and down 80# but I think my skin is way worse now than before and I still have 90# to go! I read some of the posts about the various surgeries and they all sound way worse than getting the sleeve. I may get the skin removed but my thought was to wait until I hit goal weight and kept it there for a minimum of two years. Are you going to wait or just dive right in?

I'll definitely be waiting, but I don't see how it won't be inevitable. In two years I'll be a flying squirrel, based on what my skin is doing so far.

They say to give it some time after you hit your goal wait and show the ability to maintain it, to see what kind of elasticity you do end up having. But, for the most part if you have loose skin you're screwed. You can either deal with it and just be happy you lost weight; stick to the old "loose skin is better than poor health" adage, or shell out the money for surgery. I'll choose the latter. I've seen many pictures of people with loose skin and it's not pretty. I would not feel good.

Edited April 2, 201412 yr by dandeegan

I hear ya man! I was sleeved in May and have lost 105 pounds. I wish I would have seen warning like this on loose skin before hand. It's still been a great process.....but this part has been disapointing. I too have been working out a lot and my arms aren't too bad....but my stomach is horrible. Lately I've been wearing a compression shirt (http://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B005MESREU/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1). It doesn't help when I want to take my shirt off at the beach. But the rest of the times it makes me feel so much more firm. It keeps my stomach skin from hanging there and flapping around.

I hear ya man! I was sleeved in May and have lost 105 pounds. I wish I would have seen warning like this on loose skin before hand. It's still been a great process.....but this part has been disapointing. I too have been working out a lot and my arms aren't too bad....but my stomach is horrible. Lately I've been wearing a compression shirt (http://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B005MESREU/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1). It doesn't help when I want to take my shirt off at the beach. But the rest of the times it makes me feel so much more firm. It keeps my stomach skin from hanging there and flapping around.

I'm with you and the butt crack under the belly button and the Turkey neck at 9 months out but trying to think that with some strength training maybe it too will slowly go away. Starting on the strength training but if the skin is going to shrink it will be very slowly I suspect. Still I have lost 20inches round the waist so has shrunk a lot already and not going to give up those last few inches easily.

I am having the sleeve in 2 weeks but in support group they talk about the excess skin. One person got insurance to pay for tummy tuck because of documented infections and proved it was a hindrance to workouts. That was 18 months after surgery.

that will be something I will fight later. I would rather be lighter with some loose skin than morbidly obese.

It's a fight most of us need to fight eventually. I'm over 140lbs lost now, and I still feel fat cause of this skin thing. I don't think I'll feel right until it's all hacked off, especially in my legs right now!

Edited May 28, 201412 yr by dandeegan

Getting a sleeve on the 19th and hope I have to worry about this in the next year or two.

Getting a sleeve on the 19th and hope I have to worry about this in the next year or two.

Stay focused and you definitely will! Soon you too will be a flying squirrel good sir!

I'm not the young studs like you guys are i'm 61 in September but I never in a million years thought that the excess skin would look like this. I think I look terrible without cloths on. But there is no way in the world I will invest the kind of money you have to do to get rid of it. My good friend across the street from me works for a surgeon who specializes in bariatric skin removal procedures. Maybe I can get her to throw me a bone huh?

You guys have to realize, that the excess skin looks no where near as bad as the excess fat. I still look in the mirror and get a little disappointed as the skin gets looser but then I think about what I looked like with all the fat.

I am 47 so I doubt I will ever consider having the skin removed, so I am going to be happy that I look awesome with clothes on and better than fat with them off.

i'm just going to have to live with it to bud.