weight loss and loose skin

I’ve been exercising lately, trying to rid myself of my excess 50 pounds. I’ve lost about 20 so far since January. So I’m averaging about a 5-10 pound loss per month. I’ve heard that the faster you lose weight, the more likely you are to gain it back, so I’m ok with a slow, steady weight loss. I’m doing more cardio now, because I would like to push my average weight loss closer to the 10 lb/month mark.

I know that people who lose large amounts of weight, like 100 lbs. +, sometimes have to have surgery to remove the excess skin. Apparently your skin only has so much elasticity. I know I won’t need surgery to get rid of loose skin, but will my skin be looser than people who’ve never been heavy? If I speed up my weight loss, will that increase my chances of having loose skin?

i had no problems after losing 40 pounds in one summer. but since i was 20 years old at the time my skin might have been more elastic than yours depending on your age. skin loses elasticity with age.

Skin also loses elasticity with length of time that it’s stretched – if you’ve been overweight for ten years then you’re more likely to have loose skin than if you’ve only been overweight for two.