Best Exercises to Tighten Loose Skin After Weight Loss
Losing weight is a significant achievement, but one slippery slope many people experience after weight loss is flabby skin. While genetic inheritance, age, and the amount of weight lost all contribute factors, you can build muscle, strengthen circulation, and improve the appearance of your loose skin over time with a few simple exercises. Here are the best exercises that will promote firmer, healthier skin after your weight loss journey.
Best Exercises to Tighten Loose Skin After Weight Loss
Strength Training for Muscle Foundation
Adding lean muscle to your foundation is one of the best ways to reduce the sagging appearance of your skin. When you strengthen the layer of muscles underneath your skin, it will help create a better foundation and allow the skin to appear tighter. Some examples of exercises that you can include in your program are squats, lunges, deadlifts, and bench presses. Compound movements with multiple muscle groups will provide the most toning and burn the most calories.
Core-Focused Working Out
Loose skin often appears most prominently around the abdomen after losing weight. Performing core-strengthening exercises will not only serve to tone the lost skin, but it can also help your posture. Some examples of core-exercises are planks, Russian twists, bicycle crunches, and leg raises can all develop into rigirous core work outs. Since these movements use deep abdominal muscles, you can potentially aid in tightening that part of your body with repetition and muscle improvement.
Training with Resistance Bands
Resistance bands are an adjustable tool that provides consistent tension to a wide variety of muscles. Exercises such as banded rows, banded chest presses, and banded shoulder plane raises may help improve muscle tone in the arms, chest, and back - all body parts that may sag as we lose weight. Resistance band workouts are also very gentle on the joints and can be modified for almost every fitness level.
High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT)
HIIT training consists of short bursts of high activity while alternating periods of rest or very low activity. Research has shown that HIIT training improves circulation, creates collagen in the body, and allows for fat loss while preserving lean muscle. Including HIIT workouts that emphasize the whole body, such as sprint intervals, burpees, or jump squats, will benefit overall skin elasticity to regulate sagging in stubborn areas.
Yoga and Pilates
Flexibility and low impact strength training sessions will also improve muscle tone, timing, balance, and circulation. Asana poses, such as downward dog pose, bridge pose, and boat pose may target and tone the arms, legs, and core. Yoga and Pilates are also mindful practices that help reduce stress in our everyday lives. When we are less stressed, our skin will be healthier over all.
Arm and Chest Workouts
Many people notice loose skin around their arms and chest after weight loss. Arm and chest exercises come in the form of push-ups, triceps dips, bicep curls, and overhead press. When done in an effective way, these muscles will improve over time and will begin to form and keep strength and full more sagging.
Leg and Glute Training
To tighten up skin around your legs and glutes, you will want to incorporate squats, lunges, step-ups, and hip thrusts to your workout. Strong legs and glutes will help overall appearance, and fill out those areas where your skin feels complete loose.
Conclusion
No single exercise is going to completely get rid of loose skin, but as you perform consistent strength training, cardio and flexibility exercises, you will have improvements in the appearance of your skin and your overall body tone. Along with drinking enough water and having proper nutrition you can rely on these workouts to have benefits after some time of following through.
Those of you who want a complete approach will first want to read about how to tighten skin after weight loss naturally, which includes combining fitness, skin-care, and lifestyle practices for an overall improvement the best long term.