What To Do About Excess Skin?
Have you worked extremely hard to achieve your goal weight but you aren't happy with the results? Have you been at your goal weight for a while now, but the skin just isn't returning to its usual tightness? It is very common for people who were overweight to have excess skin after losing a significant amount of weight, especially when the weight is lost over a short period of time. Despite losing the fat, sometimes the skin doesn't bounce back and instead of a firm body people are left with unattractive, saggy sections of skin. There are a few non-surgical options to remedy this problem, but there are also surgical techniques that can restore a natural look to the skin when the non-surgical options aren't enough.
Non-Surgical Options
Non-surgical options are the best first-choice when excess skin is a problem. Sometimes, people confuse excess skin and excess fat. Maybe you think that you have lost all the weight, when in reality the saggy belly you are seeing is just a collection of stubborn fat cells. For women, the hips, thighs and buttocks are the most prone to stubborn fat. For men, the abdomen is most at risk for fat that is very hard to get rid of. Having your body fat evaluated can help determine if your problem is truly related to excess skin. Of course, if you have tried to reach your fat loss goals and it feels impossible for you, there are surgical options that can both remove the excess fat and tighten up the skin at the same time so that you can enjoy your body sooner.
One option is to attempt to gain as much muscle as possible to fill the space left by fat cells. If you only have a small amount of excess skin, muscle gain might be enough to pull the skin back to a more acceptable appearance. In order to accomplish this, it is crucial to adopt a very healthy lifestyle that involves muscle-building exercises and a proper diet. Your diet should focus on getting enough protein, avoiding sugars and eating the recommended amount of fruits and vegetables. A healthier diet may replenish the elasticity of your skin so that added muscle can give you the best chance at restoring your physical appearance. Exercising at least three times per week will be necessary for best results and allows for enough recovery time between workouts.
Lower Body
For women, both the upper and lower body are usually affected by excess skin but the lower body tends to be harder to fix with exercise. Surgery for the lower body focuses on three key areas of your body: the abdomen, thighs and buttocks. The most common procedure for the lower body is known as a lower body lift. It is so popular because it treat excess skin of all three key areas. A long circumferential incision above the hip bone allows the surgeon to tighten skin on the abdomen, upper thighs and buttocks. Excess skin is removed and the remaining skin is pulled taught to remove the sagging appearance of the front and back of the patient's torso.
For men, excess skin of the belly is more common and a different procedure known as a panniculectomy can be quite beneficial. This procedure removes excess skin that hangs down below the belly button, which tightens abdominal skin and restores abdominal appearance. Women can ask for this procedure as well, but a lower body lift is a better way to go when the thighs and buttocks are also a concern. The final results of a lower body lift are more dramatic than a panniculectomy alone.
Upper Body
Both women and men experience excess skin in the upper arm region when weight is lost quickly or if there is a lack of muscle tone. A simple arm lift is a great way to show off slender arms after your weight loss journey is complete. For women, breasts and the shoulder blade area are also susceptible to noticeably loose skin. This is accentuated when wearing tight fitting clothing or bras. Since breasts are largely composed of fat cells, significant weight loss can leave the breasts looking empty and less perky than before. A breast lift can remove excess skin to reveal firmer and more youthful-looking breasts. For the back of the shoulder blades, a back lift is a great way to tighten the skin. Loose skin is most noticeable when wearing a bathing suit or bra, since loose skin will fold over these garments. It is especially difficult for women to gain muscle in this area, whereas men can sometimes avoid surgery by exercising their back muscles.
If you feel let down by the final product of your fitness and weight loss plans, there is no need to stop trying to improve one's self. Surgery is sometimes the only option when the skin has been stretched past the point. A quick consultation with a plastic surgeon will help you reach the goals that you had in mind for yourself.
