Surgically, what do your really want to do? I really dont see any flab there or extra skin hanging in my opinion. Your abdomen area looks tight. You have a very small bulge in the belly area, which is some extra fat that still needs to be burned off. It takes time! But you can tone that area up, without going through surgery, its expensive and in your case really a waste of money.. It looks maybe your self esteem is a bit low. Look how far you have come! Your before and after shows your hard work! Now you just have to give it some time to start building the muscle. You really do look great...honestly. Just as someone has stated before. Surgery will leave you with a big scar..and you really dont wany that, unless you really need the surgery..and you dont

wow, you did such a great job!!! i think you look fine just the way you are!!! but i was watching t.v. last night and there was a show about plastic Surgery and they have this new thing for tightening loose skin it was called thermage and there is no cutting no down time or anything its all done by laser the only down side is you have to do it more then once it like a few treatments. so anyway i googled it to see what it was all about and to look at the pictures and from what they show it looks really really good!!! and the best part is you can use it all over you body. so if you really worried about it (which i dont think you should be) i would check it out b4 going under the knife this way seems much more better!! just google it and a lot of stuff will come up so you can see what im talking about.

I don't think you should be TOO concerned about this, probably more abs will fix anything that bothers you, besides I think you look great without a t-shirt.
I didn't even see the problem there! I had to keep reading to figure out what was bothering you.

Good work!

I am 42-years old and worked as an entertainer for many years. I have seen many bodies in all shapes and sizes--especially the musicians I worked with as they tended to completely avoid exercise! You look healthy and handsome. I'd not hesitate to take my shirt off at the beach if I were you!

I DO see the area you feel is a "major problem". It doesn't LOOK the way you think it does though. We don't see ourselves accurately after losing weight. It's wicked hard to balance "getting in shape" with "losing weight". You have had incredible success with the weight loss piece and probably now want to concentrate and the part that's going to take LONGER--getting in shape .

If you concentrate on losing more weight, by the time your belly is flat the rest of you is going to look like a stick figure!!! It's better to do as suggested above and put some protein in your diet-- maybe get some fat free isolated whey powder from GNC or Vitamin World for shakes. Make sure to eat enough FOOD protein as well! Keep the calories in the low maintenace range, and work out really diligently--not JUST your abs. The FORCE of doing some aerobic/cardio work firms up the whole body.

THEN whether you lose OR gain a bit of weight is not an issue. With increased protein, you ought to be building muscle not burning it.

When I was 19, I was EXACTLY in the same shoes and was determined to wear a bikini. It was challenging but I GOT there. You'll acheive quickly because you are YOUNG!!!

Sorry this is so long.

XOXO
Mya

Okay....No doubt all the cardio you are doing is obviously reeping the rewards of weight loss, but consider the damage you are doing to your body- or at least have done for a brief time while fueling yourself with only grapes, applesauce and coffee. You are getting a diminishing effect and actually cheating yourself when you do that, because your metabolism slows down when you eat less and goes into "starvation mode" because your body believes you are starving. Metabolism will slow down to preserve the only fat you have left. If you ate healthily (no processed, empty-calorie foods) and often, you would maximize your results and your body would not struggle or shutdown to preserve itself. That isn't skin, love. Thats the only fat left on your body, and until it is convinced you are not starving, it will try its hardest to preserve that layer.
I eat about 2500-3000 calories a day. Lots of egg whites, tuna, chicken, turkey, pork, vegetables, fruits, powerbars, granola, oats, bran, high fiber bread & wraps, salad, soy protein, almonds, peanut butter, orange juice, cranberry juice, coffee, water (if you drink a lot of water make sure you add in a small salty snack before or after your workout to keep electrolytes balanced)...I make sure my body has sufficient fuel. To maximize your metablosim, eat about 6 small meals per day. Do NOT count anything, just eat until you are full. However, keep an eye on calories relative to the healthy ingredients (protein, fiber, vitamins, etc) to ensure you're not consuming "empty calories"- processed foods that offer high sugar or calories but little else.

Also, when doing cardio, add weight resistance on your ankles or wrists. This burns twice as many calories than cardio alone. But DO NOT starve your body! In return, that concentrated fat on your belly will go away because it is getting the nutrition it needs and will no longer try to hang on to it. Even if you gain a few pounds- it will be MUSCLE because yours are clearly exhausted and need protein to recover and get bigger, ultimately pulling tight any excess skin. I have a feeling that yours need some recovering.

Thanks Guys again..Many of you seem to know what you are talking about. This past month i kind of ran myself into a rut...I read that article (posted on the first page) on how it was my last area of fat so i figured i would be able to burn it off in a month like i have done with the rest of my weight...Doing so i proceeded to run like a mad man and do abdominal work monday through friday while eating once and the rest all liquid based...It didnt do much for me...I tightened up a little but it was kind of discouraging condsidering all the effort i put it...

Parents and my brother are telling me to eat normally..They think with all the cardio im doing, i'd be burning off the fat i consume and have left...Then after the cardio, any weight/muscle based training i do would turn fat into muscle...Its tough...I use dunkin donuts iced coffees as a meal replacement before workouts because i know the calories are the same as a real meal...But i'll take your guys advice (nice posts from everyone...especially the last two)...


I appreciate it...
Joe

Congratulations! You did something a lot of people really, really have trouble doing! I think you look great, and I would encourage you to see the positive of your successes, rather than your perceived imperfections. I think people look more attractive when they're not stick-thin!

The only thing I'd recommend is adding protein to your diet. That's done marvels for me in toning my muscles. After five babies, the only thing that helped me lose weight is going low-carb, adding protein, and walking three nights a week for at least 30 minutes at a time. On the days that I don't walk, I *try* to do some toning exercises but (with five kids) do not always achieve that.

Anyhow, pat yourself on the back for your hard work!! I'm totally impressed.

Personally, I would rather have food. There is nothing nutritional in those coffees; it would be better to get those calories from healthy proteins, etc.

I echo what everyone else has said; the most important being, your perception of yourself is NOT how everyone else sees you.

Quick Question...theres a guy at my work telling me the opposite...Hes convinced that it is loose skin because when i am sitting in a chair...what is left hangs over like a pouch almost...Makes me look extremly out of shape in my opinion...hes convinced that time will heal but i'd say its fat if anything...Something so flabby and loose must be fat correct..

Basically what i am asking is a general consenus here...Do you guys believe in loose skin? I'd like to hear what you think Danielle..When i run, my abdominal area is extremely loose...When i bend over in a chair there is a pouch that sags there...The skin is loose..but is it loose because of it extreme weight loss or is the term loose skin an "excuse" for obese people who crashed dieted and didnt "work" the fat out of them.....

Sorry if im being redundant

I'm no pro...but, I think you look amazing and did an awesome job.

I think if anything it's a small bit of fat, or just loose skin.

One thing I suggest, with any stretch marks or loose skin/whatever- Cocoa Butter.

It's what pregnant women use for stretch marks, it improve elasticity.

So maybe some'a that, and keeping up with your workouts and what not- you'll see it all firm in?

I know your a man-- but I've seen women prevent and rid of stretch marks during/after pregnancy and bing their tummy's back to normal or better...and you would have never known they have a baby in there!

Hey Joe-

I know exactly what you are talking about, and the reason is because I had the same problem. I used to be overweight and I had asthma, and then I had an eating problem and went down to nearly 99 pounds at 5'7". It was gross and even then, I was not tightened in the abdominal area nor did I have anough stamina to last running, I could only do a mile in 8 minutes and could not continue running afterwards. That was a few years back. I have yoyo'ed up and down since then, and about a year ago to the date actually (it was april 28 of last year, my mom's birthday), i decided that enough was enough. I felt like crap, had no energy, could hardly focus...even my hormones and emotions were going haywire. I do totally related everything back to my diet and physical condition. I was not overweight at the time- I was 5'7", 138 pounds, but i certainly didn't feel like I was in shape. I bought fitness magazines, I got fitTV through directv (which is the best channel ever, by the way) and I began a regular exercise program. I did an hour of aerobics 3 times a week and Abs of Steel on the days I didn't do cardio (but just the ab exercises. not the aerobic segment). I started to look and feel better, and my endurance and stamina built up. Once I could do that with no problem, I would add weights to my ankles while I did the aerobics. Around September I started doing TaeBo (the hour advanced workouts, "Get Ripped"). So at that point I was doing 2 hours of taebo every other day, and on the off days I switched to weight training (45 minutes). I would do legs & glutes, or chest & back, or core - Check out Cathe Friedrich workouts. With all this work I was doing, I still had loose "skin," fat..whatever....a combination of the two, on my belly. I have always had it since I was seriously overweight (5'4, 150). Anyways...I noticed my body changing, especially my legs, hip flexors, arms, calves, thighs....my thighs (especially inner thighs) took soooo long to define, as I thought there was extra skin there. But I know now that in order to obtain completely tight skin, it is a matter of diet. Whenever you choose to eat a meal (and I do not endorse liquid diets, as they do nothing for your metabolism and had a tendency to give you cramps), think to yourself : "If I lived in a natural environment, would this food be available to me?" That means no dunkin' donuts, mcdonalds, processed sugars...nothing containing high fructose corn syrup, or hydrogenated vegetable oils...even if whatever you are consuming may be low fat, the unnatural sweetening and processed ingredients will hurt you in the long run, providing no fuel for the muscles or metabolism.

Anyways... My thighs and abs were the absolute last thing to go on my body. I found that Cathe Friedrich's Legs & Glutes is the best workout for my lower half, as well as taebo, and for my abs I trust taebo & Cathe's Core Max Workout. I trust her because she has been a fitness instructor for about 20 years now, and is incredible shape. She does not endorse any surgeries or fad diets, and most importantly- look at her pictures of her during pregnancy. Then, compare it to her pics 6 months after she had the baby. No stretch marks. No extra skin. A healthy person taking in nutritious foods will be able to spring their body back to life. I am walking proof, and so is she. I will try to get pics up of my abdominal area after class today.

For quickest results, try the small 6 meals a day and check out Cathe's "Boot Camp." Incorporating weights into the workouts will burn twice as much *FAT* as opposed to muscle or water weight.

in the second image, I weigh 150..and the first, 138.....I have more muscle mass in number 2 so I weigh more but wear a smaller size.

Don't worry about what your friend at work says. Not everybody has experience w/losing weight & getting back into shape!!! If you've not been through a pretty excruciating process, it's really hard to offer meaningful advice. There's a lot of experience and expertise on the board. I'm gonna hit my favorite point one more time: protein, protein, protein.
XXX
Mya

Wow...thats amazing Danielle....I really appreciate you and the rest of the crew taking the time to answer my questions....You look great by the way and i hope your advice (a long with everyone elses) is going to work for me...Im pretty dedicated when im certain something will work and i think this may be the way out....When i was crash dieting several months ago, i was dazed out...always tired...worried about consuming anything that was solid, and i was loose everywhere...over the past month or so, i've began to eat actual meals and have tried not to skip anything...hopefully its working..


March 19th....











tips..ideas...im still havent cut that one coffee a day yet...but ive done that on purpose to see if it hinders things...i may just have to cold "turkey" those iced coffees for the summer....

first month has been Mnday-Friday...3 - 3.5 7 minute miles with a ton of ab work...workouts generally last close to or a little over an hour

a bowl of mini wheats in the morning (8)
medium ice coffee regular at like (11)
Fruit or Bannana or Grapes at like (130)
Some form of protein like a peice or two of meat (dinner sized portion) pre workout
after workout i have an orange and plenty of water...(this is around like 3:30)

for the rest of the day i'll have sporadic sizes and portions of grapes, apples, appelsauce

and at like 9 i'll have a bowl of farina oatmeal...

not to sure if im eating too much...ive never been good at how much to consume..







thanks again guys and girls

Hey Joe-

You can definitely see more tone in yer abs, awesome! Good food choices too. Mini wheats give me lots of energy. If you like that, check out Kashi GoLean Crunch...it is totally natural & instead of sugar it is sweetened with honey and cinnamon. I usually eat two small bowls in the morning with some skim milk. It is packed with protein and lots of fiber too, not to mention plenty of vitamins. It makes me feel great in the morning. Breakfast, contrary to popular belief, should be the biggest meal of the day to jumpstart metabolism.

Maybe also try to add some eggs into your diet. Either hardboiled (toss the yoke, thats all fat and cholesterol) or make an omelet or scrambled eggs with one egg yolk and 3 egg whites. You get all the protein (24 grams) and only 1/4 the fat. Eggs actually set the basis for protein count in other foods because it's the highest quality protein based on size (size versus protein content). In order to build lean muscle, try to eat the equivalent of your body weight in protein (in grams of course). I weigh 150 so I try to eat around 150 grams a day. It isn't always possible because I just don't have the time but I always try to squeeze lean protein in. A can of tuna has about 32 grams of protein. Kashi's cereal has 10 grams or so per serving. Chicken or fish has about 30 grams per serving. I don't know if you are a seafood buff but fish is absolutely the best thing you can eat. It has lots of Omega-3 fatty acids that hook you up!

Before I forget, just remember that your body is still trying to figure out how to operate with it's new form. The muscles in your abdomen interact with your hip flexor muscles, so the more muscular they all become, the easier it is for them to work together, and subsequently your core will be utilized more. The more you use yer core, they more defined you will notice it becoming (and you'll feel it especially when you run). Your posture has probably even changed since you've been exercising, right? Standing different?


Keep it up!

Danielle