Hey, I am a little over 2 years out, I've gone from 250 to 160-165 and I decided to get to 140-145. Right now at 5'6" I am large for my frame and height. I range from sizes 4-6 and still wear some 8's. What bothers me is that I still have a stomach and loose skin combined. I know I'll need plastics one day but right now I have to save money for my wedding in 3 months!! Anyways, I need some advice on starting over. I haven't worked out in a few months because I got "bored" with my routine and scared to try new things. Should I just start over with liquids? I still have restriction and try to stick no low low carb, like 20-30 a day because it keeps my blood sugar perfect (type 1 diabetic) . I need help with these last 20 pounds.... Please!!! Thank you!

There is no way around it. You are going to have to exercise.

Many people think the "five-day pouch" (or "5 day pouch") approach helps them with new restriction and focus.

Best wishes re your upcoming nuptials.

You can do a search for the Boot camp diet which is basically Protein and green veggies. It works very well for getting rid of carb cravings and losing weight.

I had a lot of success with the 5:2 diet when I regained 15 lbs. The links for that diet are in the Vets forum.

You can do it! Good luck!

I suggest changing your exercise so it's different and fun! For example, you are getting married soon-- how about getting a tandem bike!

Since you still have restriction, I probably wouldn't do the pouch test thing. I think 5:2 is a reasonable choice, or go back to logging... do what worked before. Seems like your size is pretty small, do you really have that much more to lose? Skin has a way of looking like fat...

For exercise, i am a big believer in HIIT - high intensity interval training. You can exercise less hours and get much better results. I did that combined with 5:2 and lost 10# in a month or so last year. I also think just increasing your baseline activity level is helpful, small differences that add up - you know, do more little walks instead of sitting over coffee, don't sit in front of the TV, do something active instead - doesn't have to be "exercise" per se - come over to my house and shovel horse manure and move hay... that sort of thing.

Thanks for all the great suggestions. I know I have to exercise, I said I was bored of my routine and wanted opinions in something new. Maybe I will get a bike?!? Thanks! I think I'm going to do a combo of HIIT like CGJ says as well as protein and veggies like daisy mentioned. I would do 5:2 ladies, but I can't. I'm a type one diabetic . And the one month I did it, my sugar dropped like crazy and I was always weak and my body couldn't handle it. I wish it would've worked for me, but it didn't ;/. I appreciate all the input!! Any other inputs r welcome!

When you google hiit, it normally gives sprint routines. I can't really do that due to knee issues, but I can "sprint" on a spinning bike. Spinning is AWESOME way to really burn calories... especially an instructor led one where they kick your butt! I also like Julian Michael's DVDs like "ripped in 30".

The only issue i have with her DVDs is that I am too old to do such high intensity stuff without a longer warm up so I pull something like a dance routine from youtube to get me warmed up before doing the DVD.

I don't know where you live, but hiking up a steep hill... wow... that is a workout. I need to start doing it alone because most people my age don't wanna sweat and huff and puff that hard so I have to slow up for them. If you are committed to pushing through, you can really get an awesome workout hiking hills.

Great advice CGJ! I wish there were hills here, but I love in Texas, where there is no hills. Just flat land. I will google HIIT and see what I find. You're awesome!

I agree that skin looks like fat a lot of times. I'm a size 4 in 90% of the items I buy- I am definitely not large by any means. I'm 4'11 and weigh between 129-133 depending on the day. I just had a baby 3 months ago and other than loose skin- that looks flabby- I'm exactly where I want to be. What are you hoping to see change with a 20lb loss? Do you want to be a smaller size or are you just wanting to "tone up"? A size 4-6 is pretty tiny .

Oh and as far as HIIT goes- I do body rock TV- it used to be the daily HIIT. It kicks my butt every day, but I do enjoy it

Thanks ash for the reply, I just hope if I lose more it'll help my loose skin, but I'm not sure. I'm so insecure and feel so lost and I feel like I lost all this weight to look saggy and it makes me sad.

Susie, I don't meant to be discouraging, but my loose skin got worse when I lost more weight, not better. I want you to consider counseling or some other way of dealing with the negative emotions because when I was researching plastics I had phone conversations with several ladies. I was astounded at people expressing... regret or lack of satisfcation with what was obviously great results. I noticed that people who didn't develop a level of acceptance of their bodies pre-plastics weren't all that happy with their results either.

That feeling of insecurity and being lost - I had that too. I often felt like people were looking at me. I don't think that plastics fixed any of that... time... time and more time has made me feel comfortable at a slender weight. I just feel normal now which is all I ever dreamed of... It is a great thing.

Susie, I don't meant to be discouraging, but my loose skin got worse when I lost more weight, not better. I want you to consider counseling or some other way of dealing with the negative emotions because when I was researching plastics I had phone conversations with several ladies. I was astounded at people expressing... regret or lack of satisfcation with what was obviously great results. I noticed that people who didn't develop a level of acceptance of their bodies pre-plastics weren't all that happy with their results either. That feeling of insecurity and being lost - I had that too. I often felt like people were looking at me. I don't think that plastics fixed any of that... time... time and more time has made me feel comfortable at a slender weight. I just feel normal now which is all I ever dreamed of... It is a great thing.

CGJ- thank you for such great advice. I was just telling my sister about my dis morphia issues and I have to learn to deal with them or find some kind of support group. It's making me crazy every now and then and I hate the feeling. You probably are right, if I lost more that it may look worst. I'm going to do done research and try to help myself and allow my brain to catch up with my change. Thank you!

Thanks ash for the reply, I just hope if I lose more it'll help my loose skin, but I'm not sure. I'm so insecure and feel so lost and I feel like I lost all this weight to look saggy and it makes me sad.

I agree with CGJ.... More weight loss will likely make your skin worse. The more I lose, the saggier everything gets. Working out, however, may help with toning and maybe improve your appearance by filling up the space with muscle.

I'm sad for you that you are not happy with your results. You should be very proud of yourself. Maybe you could sit down and write down all the positive things you have gained postop instead of focusing on your appearance. I used to have great boobs and now the saggy skin that's left barely stays stuffed in a B cup. And I will never look good in shorts because of the saggy skin on my thighs and knees. Personally, I didn't go through all this to look good. I am eating healthy, I have more energy, I don't get out of breath, my resting heart rate and blood pressure are improved, my ankles and feet don't hurt everyday, and I love being able to shop for clothes in regular stores. I bet you've got a lot of positives, too.

Edited August 13, 201411 yr by Kindle

Kindle- thanks for the reply, I am happy with my results, honestly, I got smaller than I wanted, I just hate that this loose skin gets in my weigh and I still have a stomach because of skin. That's where my insecurity comes from. I knew I wouldn't be perfect and I don't want to be but this stuff bothers me. I have this apron and stomach and certain shorts and dresses I can't wear because of my issue. Thank U for the advice. I'll just have to get over it somehow.