Since I see this question a lot, and I've had more than one PM about it whenever I discuss it, I decided to start a journal for those who need it.

I've lost quite a bit of weight. In Jan. 06, I weighed 375lbs. As of this morning, I am 199lbs. Height is 5'8. I've done a lot of lifting and cardio, and my diet has been a clean one - no keto or anything like that, just 1500-2000ish calories with a fairly common macro formula.

Sorry to say, I've ended up with a LOT of loose skin. I'll post pictures later, but there is a significant amount on my upper arms, chest, back, thighs, and buttocks.

I'm having surgery to correct this - but because of the amount, it will be more the one. My first surgery, on Dec 6th, is the belt lipectomy. This one will remove the stomach area and lift the side and buttocks.

I'm really excited! This isn't cheap (this procedure alone costs $13.5k), but I think it's worth it. The only bad part is that I can't work out (I do Crossfit and Krav Maga) for 3-4 weeks after surgery.

After I do this procedure, there will definitely be one, possibly two more. The upper chest/arms surgery, which I've priced at 6-7k. I possibly might do one for the skin on the inner thighs too; I haven't decided.

Let me know if anyone has any questions about loose skin or anything like that. I know it comes up a bunch, and I thought this could help some people as I document this final phase of my transformation.

Congratulations on your incredible progress! And :gl: with the surgery tomorrow.

CJohnson,
Congratulations on getting from 375 to 199, a real accomplishment. Good luck on your surgery. I once & awhile think of getting surgery for the loose skin under my neck. But I want to get to what I think will be my final weight before deciding. I have seen people who got really great results on their stomach. Again, good luck tomorrow.

Morning after surgery...much, much pain. It's not too bad, really, as long as I don't move or anything. :lol: I can't really tell what it looks like yet; I'm wearing this compression garment. The Dr. told me they took off 7lbs of skin though.

No nausea though, so that's good. I go back on Wednesday for an update.

How long did the surgery take, and are you awake during the surgery?

How long did the surgery take, and are you awake during the surgery?

It was general anastesia, and it took about 5 hours. I was in an out of sleep the whole day yesterday afterwards. It's pretty stiff to move, but no real pain or anything.

Ugh, I am such a slacker. Time to update!

Went to the doc for the 2nd time on Wednesday. He took out two of the drainage tubes, and said I could take a shower. That was very nice.

I am REALLY starting to swell up. The majority on the right side. Makes things kind of uncomfortable - I've been wearing this compression garment since I had surgery, and it really restricts movement. When I swell up, it gets tight. But it goes down a bit - that's the point of the compression thing.

I was hoping I'd be able to at least do some exercise by this point, but it ain't happening. I can walk maybe a couple hundred feet before I start feeling sore. Sitting down sucks a whole lot more than I thought - because they took off so much skin, there's not as much "cushioning" back there. :lol: Certain seats start to hurt after awhile. That'll take some getting used to.

It's still pretty hard to do anything for any length of time - the dull pain and general discomfort makes it hard to concentrate. I have some medication for the pain, but that kills concentration too. My appetite has really gone down - but they told me that would happen. I still eat 1500ish calories, but that used to leave me hungry before. Not so much now

I know I'm making this sound horrible, but truthfully it's not all that bad. I've had a few peeks, and the difference even with the massive swelling is really nice.

Another week and they'll take out the last drainage tube. Hopefully by a week after that I'll start feeling up to doing some workouts. Nothing too heavy, of course. It's amazing - I went years without doing any kind of exercise at all, and now I get ansy after just two weeks of being sedentary. :tucool: