Is 15 st too heavy to come back from??

OP this is from a different angle to simply weight loss and may be helpful.

After a big accident - couldn't walk properly for 8 months - I put on some weight. I was looking in the mirror feeling awful about how I looked naked and then from nowhere my mind said 'instead of thinking how awful your body looks, think about what a wonderful thing it is to have got through this accident'. It was like a lightbulb moment.

I started being more accepting of what had happened to my body and I sort of began to cherish it and move on. I looked at my diet, gradually started doing more walking then exercise back at the gym. Now, although it may sound foolish, I look at feeding my body properly as the ultimate form of self care that it deserves for being such a good body recovering from a big insult.

No too far gone at all. You are very young still and much easier now than later. I want to encourage you. Go for it with small goals at the time. Get active and even walking long distances would start shedding pounds.

It's really not. I started covid lockdown at 15 stone and was just under 10st by the time my second vaccine was given.

My motivation was I was ill and at risk of serious complications with Covid. Weight was one thing I could control to help a positive outcome.

Find ways to eat so you don't feel hungry. Eat smaller portions and wait then eat more if you are genuinely hungry and it's not habit or boredom.

I didn't calorie count. that de-rails me.

You look incredible.

When I left school I worked with horses, so I know exactly how you feel after stopping as I suddenly realised just how much exercise I was doing daily with them!

I did also forget to add that I did not weigh myself daily as some do. I weighed on a Sunday evening after my shower. Same scales, same place.

I no longer have scales because I don't want to become obsessive.

@Wantachangefor2024 do you live in Yorkshire? (Since you went to the alhambra). I know a really supportive women's gym if you are in the right area. I'll pm you.

I’ve found that diets from gym trainers and other PTs can be tough to stick to. Id highly recommend SlimmingWorld if you’ve not tried it already as once you get your head round the plan, the results are brilliant and you can still eat out/ have ‘treats’ without being off-plan. SlimmingWorld is all about treats in moderation and also understands that during life you will be attending events with certain foods that most plans cut out completely and you can account for them. Good luck on your mission, @Wantachangefor2024

I was almost 16 stone. Now I look like this. No issues with loose skin, I mean I’m not ‘toned’ but equally it’s not hanging off me if that makes sense.

Break it down into small chunks. Looking at it and saying "I need to lose 6 stone" is bloody dispiriting and makes it seem difficult. What you can do is find an easier target to achieve. Maybe say "I want to lose a pound a week, so by the end of June to be 3-4 pounds lighter"

That is a achievable and you will feel good for doing it. You'll probably overachieve because weight loss in the first week is usually greater than the steady loss through dieting. Luckily we're just going (hopefully!) into sunnier weather so salads etc are far more appealing!

I've recently dropped from 14 stone to 10st 10 (5'6") through 1200 calories per day plus gym 3 times a week to tone up. You don't need the gym though as there's plenty of YouTube exercise videos you can do. I was referred by my gp to the gym and had 12 weeks free (same scheme you can choose slimming world if you prefer - it's run by OneYou, just google OneYou and your county to see if it's in your area, and you can do self referral).

Every pound off will make a difference to your health, so it's definitely worth doing. Wish you luck xx

You can definitely do it. Loose skin is less likely to happen if you lose weight gradually but even if it does happen it can go. A few years ago I lost over 8 stone very quickly. The top picture is about 6 months after losing it. The second picture is after 2 years. It just snapped back. It took a while but it did happen. I had no strict exercise regime or anything like that (I’m too lazy!). I just kept the weight off and my body seemed to sort itself out. Just to add,I was 46 when I lost the weight. Best wishes to you

I have chronic pain, chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia. I piled on the weight desperately seeking energy and used sugar to create that. My health has slowly improved and last year I was able to start losing weight and cut my need for sugar. I can only do it in the summer and autumn. Winter flattens me resulting in eating sugar again and spring is about regaining strength so I put some but not all back on again. I’m starting to lose weight again. At my heaviest I was 17 stone 4 and now 14 stone 11. I do have an overhang due to multiple major abdominal surgeries and being stitched up tightly on the last one resulting in my belly button being a couple of inches too low. I’m 53. I don’t think I will be getting in normal bmi range this year. Slowly. Steadily. Skin is skin. So far I don’t have saggy skin but I still have a long way to go.

Not at all, I was 20 stone and lost 9 stone in 9 months and kept it off.

No! I'm heavier than you and trying to lose as well. Take up a physical hobby or sport. I started horse riding and lost 1.5 stone in the first 8 months. Its all the core work. Any similar thing where you have to balance and weight bear would do the same. Just pick something fun and it doesn't feel like exercise.

Just wanted to add to the pp who said to focus on small regular losses ... I guarantee you'll feel the difference after you lose your first half stone and that will motivate you to keep going

I can recommend C25k if you are ok to do that after your injury.

You can do this OP.

I'm 5'5 and weighed 14 stone 3 months after my first baby. I lost 6 stone over 1.5 years and have kept it off (other than 2nd pregnancy) for 4 years. Minimal loose skin. I'm lighter than I've ever been.

Every day you wait is one more day you'll have to wait until you get back to 9 stone. You can do it.

Waving from also 15 stone! Hi! I'm 6ft and should be 11 1/2. On an anti-depressant that was initially designed as an appetite stimulant, so here I am. It's possible. Willpower. Water. Walking.

That was me, last April, only I was 12 stone

Like you I had an accident and was immobile and in severe pain for months and yep, I went sofa to bed and bed to sofa, the weight just landed

And like you I caught sight of myself in a mirror and cried

However one difference for me was I was near recovered from my injury and was looking at returning to the workforce. That was my goal, to get myself looking like someone who was employable and fit enough to do the job

Now I was coming 59 then so post menopause so for me the weight loss has been slow, a pound or maybe two a week. I couldnt do any weights due to said injury ( still cant ) so yes I do have sagging skin on the arms and yes my belly is crepey but again, Im post menopause to skin elasticity is much less then someone younger

So my answer to you is yes you can come back and loose skin need not be a problem if you can exercise and build muscle to replace the fat loss

Thankfully my face hasnt suffered, and I put that down to the slow and gradual loss

determinedtomakethiswork · Today 22:30
Can you afford to pay for the injectables? They are life changing.”

that’s brilliant for you but at just 32 OP can maybe suceed alternatively.

I am pretty sure that if you take it slowly (as you should anyway), you will not have loose skin.

The aim is not to lose weight so much as to set yourself on the long road to losing weight. Honestly, just aim to be 14 stone at the end of 2024. If you are lower, then great! Celebrate it and keep going.

I find the best thing of all is just to JUST STOP SUGAR. It is hard, because sugar is everywhere, but when you stop eating sugar and then succumb, you sometimes find that you hate the taste (and, of course, hate yourself for giving in!).

Take it slow. Just aim to make one tiny change every single day, no matter how small (eg. swapping Dairy Milk for 80% cocoa bar). You will do it without even noticing, I know you can!

Good luck xxx

I'm 67, I weighed 160 kg, (over 25 stone) in February 2022, I've lost 67 kg (10.5 stone?) since then.

Last year I noticed flaps of skin hanging from my deflated forearms, like the wrinkled arms of a bedridden geriatric. I couldn't be sure if that's what happens to your arms once you turn 66, or if it was due to weight loss, but I am happy to report that the flaps have all but vanished again now.
My massive double chin got absorbed, and left dangly wattles behind, but they have already shrunk quite a bit.

The padding on my face has been depleted, leaving me with eye bags and jowls. It's too early to tell if this is temporary, or if I'm going to be one of those old ladies who looks like a bloodhound.

A few days ago I noticed that when I stand up and lean forward the skin on my thighs wrinkles above my knees, in a way that makes me think of elephants. So then I checked my elbows with my arms straight and bent backwards, and I have elephant knees on my elbows too.

I don't care a fig. I've finally, after more than two years, hit the target of mere obesity, after being morbidly obese for decades. I can fit into a size 18, I was wearing size 36 trousers before I started following advice heard on the Zoe podcasts. Originally in the hope of reducing my levels of chronic inflammation and being able to walk without pain. The weight loss was completely unexpected, as were all the other health improvements.

My blood pressure is now down from 150/88 to 112/65, my blood glucose is within normal range 98% of the time, and for some unknown reason I now get sleepy in the evenings, after being unable to get fall asleep before sunrise since the early 90's.

So in answer to your question, yes 6 stone is doable, and at your age I'd expect the skin to readjust to your new body size. Perhaps you won't be beach body ready a couple of months after hitting your target, but by the next summer I bet nobody would be able to tell.

Personally I'd never dig into my meager savings to pay someone to knock me out and flay me alive while I was unconscious, I'd rather have elephant knees and bloodhound jowls and save the cash for fun stuff (like replacing broken down appliances). Some people love plastic surgery though, so your mileage may vary.

I’ve lost almost 2st since the 17th March. I haven’t done anything drastic to get where I am now.

1. I accepted I was eating way too much crap. Crisps, sweets, chocolate etc. I don’t eat any of this for six days a week. I can have a bag of crisps and a cake or similar on one day a week.
2. I’m fasting from 7pm to 1pm Monday to Friday. Black coffee and water only. I’m not starving myself because I am eating healthy things during my eating times.
3. I joined a gym. Three times a week I go and do 20 minutes of cardio and 20 minutes of weights. Nothing too strenuous but it’s better than what I was doing before, which was sod all.
4. I’m only having alcohol on one night a week.

I am 5ft 2 and I’m 50 years old. No loose skin. And weirdly I’m not craving crap food. I’m not having that hunger that I used to get when I was eating lots of white bread and junk food. I feel more awake, productive. Less like a tired blob.

I’m treating this like I treated giving up smoking. One day at a time. Cumulative benefits over time. Not beating myself up if I have a Mars Bar on a Saturday. Just carry on, eating better and moving a bit more.

You can do it OP.

I lost 4.5 stone between the age of 27 and 31. Kept it off for a few more years too. The bulk of it came off during the 2nd year when I’d made my newer healthy habits just part of my daily / weekly routine. Start small; it’s a marathon, not a race - walk every day, focus on nutrient dense foods and cut rubbish snacks, drink plenty of water. I had no loose skin at all, in fact quite the opposite but I did a lot of strength training.

I then had kids however and have loose skin from the pregnancy but that’s genetics and to be honest doesn’t bother me in the slightest.
Good luck OP! It really can be done. I was so desperately unhealthy and unfit and I totally changed my life around. I’m also trying to get back to it now (age 39) I’ve gained weight since kids etc but now they’re at school I have the time to get back to looking after me again; I’d far far rather have some loose skin now but feel as energised and fit as I did a few years ago.