Modest Tightening And Lifting
Non-invasive skin tightening proceduresThese procedures are called non-invasive because they leave your skin intact. You wont have a puncture wound, incision, or raw skin afterward. You may see some temporary redness and swelling, but thats usually the only sign that you had a procedure.
Heres what you can expect from a non-invasive skin-tightening procedure:
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Results: Tend to appear gradually, so they seem natural
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Downtime: Little or none
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Colorblind: Safe for people of all skin colors
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Body-wide use: Can tighten skin just about anywhere on your body
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Side effects: Usually some redness and swelling, but little risk of other side effects when performed by a board-certified dermatologist
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Time commitment: Most procedures take 1 hour or less
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Pain: May have some discomfort during the procedure, but thats usually it
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Makeup: Can often apply immediately after the procedure
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Cost: Varies and not covered by insurance, so ask how much it will cost
If you opt for a non-invasive skin tightening procedure, youll likely have one of the following:
UltrasoundDermatologists are using ultrasound to send heat deep into the skin.
Bottom line: The heat can cause your body to produce more collagen. With 1 treatment, most people see modest lifting and tightening within 2 to 6 months. You may get more benefit from having additional treatments.
RadiofrequencyDuring this treatment, your dermatologist places a device against your skin, which heats the tissue beneath.
Limit Your Exposure To The Sun
Spending time outdoors is good for your health, but exposing your skin to direct sunlight for long periods of time can cause it to lose its elasticity. Spend no more than 15 minutes per day in direct sunlight to prevent skin damage, and to help your skin maintain elastin. When you do spend time in the sun, wear broad-spectrum sunscreen with an SPF of at least 15.
Why You Have Loose Skin
Gaining a significant amount of weight causes your skin to stretch. And if you remain this way for a long period of time before losing weight, your loose skin may be less likely to retract.
In a small January 2015 study published in the Open Access Journal of Plastic Surgery, researchers discovered that the skin of 30 people who experienced drastic weight loss was weak due to lower density and thickness of collagen fibers and damage to its elastic fibers. In other words, the longer you have overweight, the harder it is for your skin to retract after a significant weight loss.
Where this gets tricky, is defining what a significant amount of weight is. Because contrary to what you may believe, there is no magic number of pounds to lose before you will end up with loose skin. Instead, board-certified plastic surgeon Jennifer Greer, MD, tells LIVESTRONG.com that it depends more on your age and skin quality.
The older you are, the less collagen you have, which means you’re more likely to have looser skin following weight loss. Plus, things like sun exposure and smoking cause damage to the quality of your skin. So if you fall into either of those categories, you may find it more difficult to rebound after weight loss.
Read more:How Long Does It Take Before a Body Starts to Lose Weight?
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How To Tighten Sagging Skin Without Surgery
Do you have sagging skin, but arent exactly keen to undergo surgery to correct it?
If you responded with a resounding yes, not to worry: ThermiTight, an FDA-cleared treatment, can tighten and tone sagging skin without requiring surgery. Read on to find out more on how to tighten sagging skin without surgery, all thanks to ThermiTight.
*Individual Results May Vary
Skin Tightening Treatments For Your Stomach
One of the best tips I can give you to minimize your loose stomach skin is to make sure youre well hydrated. Drinking a lot of water can help you maintain the elasticity in your skin.
Your skin is an organ too and its mostly made of water. Its important to keep it well hydrated or else it might lose its natural tightness and elasticity.
Make sure you add strength training to your workout routine. Resistance training will help you maintain and boost your lean muscle mass . This will fill out your loosened skin with new lean muscle.
Eating a diet high in protein and collagen can naturally tighten skin in your stomach. Eating a higher protein diet will help to build muscle mass as well as enhance your fat loss .
Naturally increasing your collagen production will play an important role in retightening your skin. This will not only help to improve your body composition but its also very beneficial to the integrity of your skin.
Taking cold showers could also help keep your skin a little tighter. Theyll improve blood circulation which will help transport nutrients to your skin. Cold showers also promote the release of skin tightening and fat-burning hormones. Plus theyve been found to boost your immune system .
I would also try recommending minimizing the damage done to your skin. Damage to your skin from the UV rays in the sun can make it harder to get rid of your loose stomach skin .
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How To Avoid Having Excess Loose Skin In The First Place
If youâre worried about loose skin and its possible impacts on your health and wellbeing, itâs worth having a chat with your GP. Thinking about losing weight, but keen to avoid getting loose skin? A dietician or nutritionist should be able to help you work out a way to slowly lose weight while staying healthy.
8 June 2020
What Is The Best Home Remedy To Tighten Your Skin
Besides the non-invasive and minimally-invasive options out there that are somewhat effective, theres no magic skin tightening cream or exercise thats going to tighten loose skin after weight loss on its own. Thats what makes excess skin a difficult problem for those with more moderate cases, says Zuckerman.
Rubbing cocoa butter on your skin might sound like a good idea, but while many topical products claim to tighten skin, doctors are skeptical. “There are no efficacious topical products or OTC remedies for excess skin,” says Zuckerman. Jacobs adds that any product youre going to buy for this issue usually will have subtle results at best.
The best home remedy, then? “Taking care of your skin,” says Jacobs. “This includes sun protection, avoiding smoking, limiting alcohol consumption, and eating a diet rich in fruits and vegetables and low in sugar and saturated fats.”
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What Causes Loose Skin On Your Stomach
Some common causes of losing skin elasticity include:
Weight loss
Damaged elastin and collagen fibres can struggle to fully retract your skin to cover your new shape.
Age
At around 35 to 40, our bodies start producing less collagen and elastin. On top of forming more wrinkles, this also prevents our skin from expanding and contracting as well as it did when we were younger.
Pregnancy
As expected, the skin around the stomach is stretched during pregnancy as the baby grows. So, once the baby is born, its natural to have some leftover skin as the fibres struggle to retract quickly.
Illness
Some rare conditions have been proven to cause saggy skin. These include:
- Cutaneous T-cell lymphoma causes slow sagging of the skin around the elbows and knees.
- Ehlers-Danlos syndrome causes a defect in collagen production, which can cause saggy skin.
Lifestyle
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Excess alcohol.
Use Fat Burning Supplements To Get Rid Of Belly Fat
While exercise and diet help you to lose belly fat, youll need another weapon in your arms to fight the fat on your stomach. There are countless fat burners out in the market. But how do you know which product will work for you? Ill give you a few tips thatll help you to choose the correct fat burner
Ingredients:
One of the most important things to consider while choosing a fat burner is to look out for its components. By preference, youll be looking for a product with effective ingredients and have a clinically proven record. Youll also want to look at the amount of each element offered in a dosage. Be on the lookout for artificial ingredients that could be harmful. Finally, consult your doctor to see if any of the ingredients could be detrimental to your health or any other medications youre currently taking.
Price:
Fat burners are also available at many different price points. The cost of a product can depend on the type, formula, number of servings, and even the product manufacturer. To get a good deal, youll have to buy in bulk. The price can range anywhere between 30-60$ per bottle.
Form:
Fat burners are available in many types, including capsules, powders, and teas. While choosing a supplement, pick the one that is most convenient for you. If you dont like taking pills, try taking them in powder or another form.
Why should you try Fat burning supplements?
Lean Belly 3x The Best Fat Burning Supplement
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Coffee Scrub For Loose Skin
Take the coffee out of your mug to your stomach. Beyond waking you up on a slow day, coffee is also rich in antioxidants and serves as an exfoliant. Using the beverage in your skincare routine slows down aging and also removes fat deposits in your cells.
To make this home remedy, combine 1/4 cup each of coffee grounds and brown sugar with 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon. Finish by mixing thoroughly with two spoons of coconut oil in a bowl. Using your fingers, apply the paste to your belly and scrub in circular motions for three to five minutes. Rinse the mixture with warm water and repeat once or twice weekly.
How Can I Tighten Loose Skin On My Stomach
There are different treatments available to help reduce or even remove sagging skin.
Massage
Best for: Small sagging.
Difficulty: Low.
Regular massages are great for improving the flow of blood around your body, which can help stimulate the production of collagen and elastin.
Topical creams
Best for: Small sagging.
Difficulty: Low.
Topical creams and serums that include retinoids may help treat minor cases of sagging. These ingredients can help kick-start your collagen production and hydrate your skin but may not penetrate deeply enough to lift any sagging.
Best for: Small sagging.
Difficulty: Low.
Thermage is a non-invasive radiofrequency therapy to smooth, tighten and contour skin. Its used to treat loose skin across the abdomen, with no downtime, surgery or injections required.
Mini Tummy Tuck
Best for: Small sagging.
Difficulty: Medium.
Excess skin and fat can be removed from your lower abdomen with a mini tummy tuck to improve its shape. Its a surgical procedure and will leave a small scar, with the recovery time taking around six weeks. You may experience some pain and bruising as well.
Laser therapy
Best for: Moderate sagging.
Difficulty: High.
Laser therapy can target your outer layer of skin to boost collagen and improve tone and firmness. However, you usually need multiple treatments before starting to see any results, which arent permanent.
Best for: Moderate sagging.
Difficulty: Low.
Focused ultrasound
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How Loose Belly Skin Occurs
The skin is the largest organ of your body and acts as a protective barrier to the inside organs.
The inner layer of your skin consists of collagen and elastin. Of these two, collagen is the abundant one with 80%. It is responsible for providing firmness and strength to your skin.
On the other hand, elastin as the name suggests is responsible for your skins elasticity.
During the above-mentioned causes of loose belly skin, your skin stretches out to create more room for the extra baby or fat.
This leads to the damage of some of your skin components. Collagen and elastin fibers may end up loosing some of their ability to retract after the extra weight is removed.
The more your weight loss is, the greater the loose skin effect will be.
Tips To Firm Your Belly During And After Weight Loss
In This Article:
- Why You Have Loose Belly Skin
- 8 Tips To Tighten Your Skin Naturally
- The Products I Used That Made A Difference
- Final Thoughts
Why You Have Loose Skin
When you lose weight extremely fast, be it from an illness, disease, diet, or stress, the elastic components of your skin not only lose the layers of fat that keep them connected and tight as it is stretched to be a cover for your lovely body. That elasticity doesnt have enough time to adapt to the reduced new shape and the skin becomes loose and lax. In order to tighten your skin naturally during and after weight loss, there are a few things you can do, the same things I did when I was losing over 60 pounds, that can really make a difference.
Tip # 1 Follow A Healthy Diet
Follow a well-rounded balanced low glycemic diet. When you purchase my skin tightening products like Tighten Up and Slim & Tone, you get a free guide with skincare and nutrition tips you can follow to see faster results.
Tip #2 Stay Hydrated
Drinking a lot of water helps all of your body functions perform better including making sure all the nutrients from your food and supplements nourish your skin. 8-10 glasses of water are often recommended by health professionals.
Tip #3 Exercise With Intent
Follow a full-body exercise routine combining cardio and strength training.
Tip #4 Include Healthy Fats In Your Diet
Tip #5 Take The Right Supplements
Tip #6 Exfoliate Regularly
Tip #7 Dont Lose Weight Too Fast!
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Can You Prevent Loose Skin After Weight Loss
Before we get into some steps you can take to help your body deal with loose skin more efficiently, lets talk about how you can avoid this issue in the first place.
Crash diets and excessive amounts of time spent exercising can rapidly shed both muscle and fat, resulting in a double-whammy on your skin. Meaning that the supportive underlying muscular structure that holds skin against your body is lost along with the fat that keeps the skin stretched tight.
Any weight loss beyond 2-3 pounds per month is likely to be lean muscle, not fat.
Most weight loss programs, even the ones that claim to be slow, aim for 1-2 pounds of fat loss per week. But most people can only lose 2-3 pounds of body fat per month. Any weight loss beyond that 2-3 pounds per month is likely to be lean muscle, not fat.
In a 2008 study, researchers found that small, cumulative changes in diet and activity produced slow but sustainable weight loss. That type of slow, steady weight loss also avoided pitfalls like loose skin.
In conjunction with losing weight slowly, make sure your weight loss program includes some type of resistance training so that you do not lose lean muscle. I have many articles in the Get-Fit Guy archives if you need some guidance on where to start with resistance training.
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What Causes Loose Skin After You Lose Weight
Your skin is a very elastic organ that has to stretch as you move and grow. It also has to shrink if you lose fat and muscle. But your skin is not just one big piece of rubber that covers the entire bodyit’s an organ. Just like all the other organs in your body, it’s made of cells.
Though the skin cells on the outer part of your skin are constantly being sloughed off and replaced with new cells, the skin cells under the epidermis are a bit more permanent.
Different layers of your skin have different types of cells. Though the skin cells on the outer part of your skin are constantly being sloughed off and replaced with new cells, the skin cells under the epidermis are a bit more permanent. These layers of the skin, called the dermis and sub-dermis, are made up of elastic connective tissues, fibers, blood vessels and all sorts of components that can stretch or contract depending on how theyre treated.
When you lose weight, and especially when you lose weight very quickly, these elastic components of your skin not only lose the layers of fat that keep them stretched out over your body, but they also dont have much time for their elasticity to adapt to your new body shape.
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How To Prevent Excess Skin From Forming
If youre about to embark on a major weight loss transformation, dont use any drastic measures. Sure, losing a tremendous amount of weight in the shortest timeframe possible seems appealing. But your health remains the most important thing. Plus, losing a modest amount of weight at a reasonable paceabout 1-2 pounds per weekwill help prevent tons of excess skin.
Incorporate weight and resistance strength training so you can build or maintain muscle mass as you lose weight. If you just diet and do cardio, or diet alone, youll lose the mass that plumps up your skin.
Remember, the accomplishment of having lost a significant amount of weight is an unbelievable feat in and of itself. Accepting your body and feeling content in your skin is huge to your health and happiness.
Prescription Retinoids To Consider
If youre not seeing any results after a few months of using an OTC retinoid, it may be time to see your dermatologist for a prescription version.
Prescription retinoids are stronger and may be more effective than their OTC counterparts at reducing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. This means theyre also more likely to cause side effects.
Your dermatologist may prescribe one of the following prescription retinoid treatments:
- adapalene
- tazarotene
- tretinoin
Tretinoin is considered to be the most widely used prescription retinoid treatment for wrinkles. It comes in the form of a gel. During use, you must wear sunscreen daily to protect your skin from sunburn and photoaging.
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