To ask if you lose 5-6 stone and are now a healthy weight, what does your body look like now?

[Bluedabidee]

I have been in a healthy weight range for most of my life but in the last 3 years I've had some extremely stressful life events and have been emotional eating to the point that I am now obese and have 5 stone to lose to get back to a healthy weight range. Tipping into the 15stone bracket (actually didnt realise until I was 15 stone 8) was the kick I needed to sort my shit out and so I've started calorie counting and have already lost 7lbs this week. I feel very determined to stay on track because I want to get back to my former self, for my physical and mental health more than anything. And whilst those things are the most important things to me, I do wonder what my body will look like once I've lost the weight, whether a will have loose skin or not. I know it will be different for everyone but I would love to hear others experiences of this kind of weight loss- how you did it, how you have managed to maintain it, the impact it has had on your body as well as your life and any tips or advice you would give.

I lost 6 stone, I didnt have loose skin but I did alot of weight training to tone up and to also build muscle as I like feeling strong.

It was the stretch marks to be honest that still remain but faded a bit now.

I lost 7 stone. I have loose skin around my lower stomach. But I think that is worse due to having had a cesarean. It hangs over the scar. I was also 53 when I started losing weight so I suspect skin elasticity wasn't kind to me. But it is absolutely not noticeable unless I'm totally naked. I can wear a bikini in some styles with no problem. I wear lovely clothes.

I have a bit of loose skin on my arms and legs but no one notices it. None has a clue about my stomach. Not even DH.

Throughout losing weight and now I exercise a lot. Nothing will take away loose skin. But it really doesn't matter. Being healthy is the most important thing.

How l did it and kept it off for years ? Well I could write a book and it's a bit late for that.. You have to find something that works for you. And make a lifetime commitment to it. If you've been in a healthy weight range you know what that is for you. You have to do it every day. Some days you might eat a bit more than others but you are always mindful of what you eat. That doesn't mean you can never eat a takeaway again, just you always have an eye on things. That's what people of a healthy weight do. Consciously or not. And exercise.

Just take one day at a time.

My weight has been a lifetime struggle. Due to things in my childhood. It doesn't sound as that has been the same for you, but the problem is the same. Good luck xxx P,M me of you want a bit of support cc

Depends on your individual elasticity and so on but I’ve known women who’ve lost a huge amount of weight and be pretty taut, I know them through the gym so I’m guessing there’s a correlation there. I also lost a lot and had a banging bod, but I did a lot of exercise so I’d say that helps, do plenty of resistance exercise so you tone as you go. My knockers were like tube socks when I bent over (after losing three stone) but they did (sort of) recover (eventually).

The main impact was I finally felt comfortable in my skin, and my confidence in all situations improved. I agree with @TherealShuggie that success in maintaining relies on moderation and not getting complacent, my body wants me to be a heavy waller and I can lose/gain weight easily. The best thing for me was discovering exercise can actually be quite enjoyable, it’s painful at first but little wins make it worthwhile, it’s fun to be fit and strong, and useful too.

No loose skin for me, but I did it via weight training as well as calorie counting. Just be careful to not lose it too quickly, you shouldn't lose more than 2lb/wk, in order to do it safely, and help avoid loose skin.

I didn't have that much loose skin on most of my body.. but it was my breasts. Sorry to be crude but they ended up looking like used condoms.. it makes me sad. I suppose its not too bad as I can just wear a moulded padded bra so it's hidden but..
I did loose the weight after having a baby tho and I had been breastfeeding so that may have been why my breasts went like that. So much loose skin.
The rest of my body was OK apart from a little flap at the bottom of my belly which isn't really noticeable day to day tbh Like I'm never going to be able to wear a tiny string bikini but I wouldn't have done that anyway. Looks fine in most normal clothing and normal bikinis
I lost 5 stone
Best thing about it was my joints felt so much better and I have more energy

Thanks everyone for sharing. I should also have asked if people could share their age when they lost the weight as that would obviously be relevant too. I am 36.
I am not trying to loose too fast but the first 7lbs has come off very quickly (it's not even been a week, it was since Wednesday). I have been using the RH Fitness app which gave me a pretty generous calorie allowance based on my current weight so all I have done so far is trying to walk 10000 steps a day (but didn't meet this every day), 1 half hour workout and keep within a 2200 calorie limit. That really doesn't seem like much to have lost so much in the space of time that I have but I will expect much of it is water weight and that it will slow down. Hopefully if it's not too fast that might minimise saggy skin.
I know that my books will be extremely saggy. They are enormous just now (have also been breastfeeding for much of the last 2 years) and once I lose the weight I don't even want to think what they will look like, I've already been looking into breast uplifts.

I lost 5 stone in my early 20s. Maintained in (up and down a bit, along with 2 pregnancies) for over 20 years.

I've been weight training for the past 8 years and this has changed my body a lot. I never thought I'd feel comfortable wearing a vest due to loose skin on my arms but over the past few years, they've transformed. My stomach doesn't have much loose skin, but I'm not super skinny (65-ish kg) so it probably would be if I dropped more weight. My inside thighs are wobbly and there's probably a bit of loose skin there but it doesn't bother me.

In terms of impact - my posture is a lot better. I have more energy. I feel at ease in my body. I've healed my relationship with food (real binge eater and restrictive dieter for years). I'm doing exercise because I enjoy it, not because I'm trying to get "smaller".

It was the weight training that really helped reset my thinking about my body, food and exercise. That and becoming a parent 13 years ago and not wanting to pass on the generational cycle of disordered eating that my mum had passed to me.

Oh and just to add, my boobs are saggy. But weight lifting has helped with this somewhat.

Joining as this is really inspiring. I need to lose much more -(getting to 15 stone would be a current goal 😬) but I'm here for the tips too.

@TherealShuggie I'd love to hear more about your journey and how you did it? (I had traumatic childhood too.)

Joining as I also have 5-6 stone to loose, I was always a healthy weight until I had my daughter four years ago. I’ve since had another two children, never lost weight in between having babies in fact I must be one of the only breastfeeding mums that gained whilst B feeding! I already have a bad over hang from having three caesareans, and I’m so worried as to what it will look like once I’ve lost weight. But I need to loose weight as I feel awful, no energy, sore joints, bad back, and I’m only 32. Does anyone use any apps to track calories, and what’s the best calculator to use to work out how many calories you should be consuming please? Any and all advice appreciated!

I'm using MyFitnessPal to track calories, paired with RH Fitness who calculated my calorie needs and macros.

I lost 6 stone (21 to 15 stone) by running and using my fitness pal over ten months. Because of the exercise i gain lots of muscle, by the end of it I had a bit of loose skin on my inner thighs and my boobs were a bit sad, but nothing very noticeable actually. Unfortunately I then put it all back on when I went through the first couple of years of my nursing degree.

I lost 6 stone when I was mid-30s after being overweight since mid teens and my skin and body looked fine; no sagging etc. I have had stretch marks since early teens and part of that is due to my hyper mobility I was told.

I will say though that my weight loss was largely due to a strict exercise plan and I had fantastic PT (they are not all good) so I think that helped prevent saggy skin etc.

Yes, loosing it fast is a route to loose skin.

Ive only lost 2 1/2- 3 stone so far (17 odd down to 14.8),

I do zero exercise because I’m disabled (which is why I got fat in the first place- disability and medication changed my lifestyle utterly)

I don’t have any loose skin at all. I aim to lose 2lbs a week- sometimes I hit 3, sometimes only 1. 37 if that’s relevant!

A friend is on a similar journey from 17 stone odd- she is 10 years younger than me and has lost a lot more (usually about 6lbs a week), but has a lot of loose skin even though she exercises.

I really think losing fast is the reason for baggy skin.

Placemarking. I'm 18 stone, in my mid 40s, and my knees are feeling it. I've never been very active though. Been on so many failed diets. I can lose a stone too, then fall off the wagon. I would like to be 13 stone initially, then see how I go. I can't do vigorous exercise (health issues) but I could cycle, or walk. There's an outside gym in my local park too. I'll go and look at MyFitnessPal.

So I was 154kg in 2016- lost just over 60kg to 88kg in a year. Didn't really have any loose skin (I did 15hrs exercise a week on average)- squated 160kg and deadlines similar occasionally ran 10km in just over an hour....
Hubby had a brain injury, covid happened, pregnancy and miscarriage and I had reached 148kg in July. I am back on it and now 129.5kg- lots more to loose. Do have some loose skin but I know it will tighten up slightly with time. I am doing box fit twice a week, spin once a week and some other weight/cardio mixed routines- eating about 1900 calories a day and even losing on days I don't do as much.
It's a mind reset for me- reaching for a drink of water before food- and going to the toilet as all of these can be hunger signals for me.
Also eating more protein and less carbs and generally being more mindful in what I eat!! Good luck

I lost 5 stone last year. I had a lot of loose skin on my stomach, but I'd been v fat for a long time, and I'm quite old. Had a tummy tuck and I now look really good. I still 'feel' fat though. Apparently it can take quite a long time for your mind/ eye to align re. how you see yourself.

I lost 7 stone in my late 30’s. I also weight trained in the gym and the added muscle does make my body look far better than it would have done otherwise.
I do have loose skin on my lower stomach. But it’s not that noticeable in clothes and no one else but my husband sees it.
My boobs are saggy and I have a small amount on my upper arms but that is barely noticeable

I’m mid 40s and have lost 3 stone from 15 10 , 1-2 lb per week. I need to lose 2 more stone to get to a healthy weight. BMI now 29.

I have flabbier arms and legs and tummy and a bit of loose skin. If I lose another 2 stone I would have loose skin I think.

Even though I am still 2 stone overweight I am only going to lose another 7 or so lb and then work on weight training and fitness or honestly I would look worse I think.
My view is that the goal does not have to be a BMI of 25, size 12 figure. I’ll be happy with BMI 27 and size 16

Early 60s. Lost 4 stone over last 2 years=25% body weight through Slimming World and gym. Feel fantastic. Do strength and yoga and cardio 4 x week. Proud of myself and new energy it brings

I was ‘average’ post pregnancy at about 8 stone (I’m 4’10) and then during pregnancy I gained over half my body weight, so when I weighed myself post pregnancy I was over 16 stone. During lockdown, I’m not going to lie I didn’t eat correctly but in less than a year and a half I had lost all the weight and ended up at exactly 7 stone. If I didn’t point it out, people wouldn’t notice - but I do have loose skin on the top of my arms and my inner thighs also. I don’t want to comment on my stomach as I had a C-section and I don’t know what is due to surgery or weight loss, but I have a pouch of loose skin.I would say my stomach is probably the worst considering I’m quite skinny and my stomach just really sticks out in odd proportion to my body. I’m surprised, considering I lost a lot of weight in a short amount of time, that I don’t have more loose skin - I guess it’s also based on genetics too.

I had a gastric bypass and lost 7 stone. Not quite in healthy weight range yet, still have a few more stone to lose but I don’t have much loose skin. My arms a little bit wobbly but I can live with that! I feel great though. Bring back in a size 12-14 after years in a 20-22 feels incredible and I have so much more energy now.

20 years ago at the age of 55 I lost 5.5 stone over a year after seeing a photo of myself (I would never let anybody take a photo of me and never had a full length mirror in the house) but somebody took it at an event and put it on FB. I was mortified and did something about it.
I started with water aerobics then stretch and tone classes, zumba gold, nothing too strenuous but did do lots of walking, Got to 10 stone but my torso wasn't looking good, arms and legs fine - overhang on my lower stomach is awful as I have a long Crohns scar there, boobs like Spaniels ears, when I lean forward they hang like empty socks with a golf ball at the end but at my age my skin doesn't have much elasticity.
But good underwear is brilliant - a well fitting bra is a must and when wearing jeans and tops etc as all is fine then when going out in something fitted get something good underneath.