Losing weight is an important step towards better health. Even a small decrease in body weight can lower your risk of heart disease, metabolic syndrome, diabetes, and premature death. Unfortunately, the more pounds you lose, the more loose skin you will have.

While you might be at your ideal weight, you might still feel chubby because of sagging skin. This problem affects people of all ages. However, younger individuals have more flexible skin and recover faster. From regular massage and tightening creams to strength training, there are ways to get rid of loose skin and tone your body. Surgery should be your last resort.

What Causes Loose Skin?
Skin flexibility and elasticity depend on a variety of factors, such as your genes, lifestyle habits, diet, and skin care routine. Some people are born with elastic skin that looks amazing even at an older age. Others are prone to wrinkles and fine lines. Nutritional deficiencies, sun exposure, oxidative damage, smoking, alcohol consumption, bad eating, and poor hygiene affect skin health, reducing its elastic and collagen levels.

Excess skin is typically caused by fast weight loss. This problem occurs in those who shed massive weight in a short time. The skin has a limited ability to tighten. If you carry a lot of fat on your arms, waist, and thighs, your skin will stretch. Unfortunately, it can not simply bounce back once you lose excess fat.

How Does Loose Skin Affect Your Health?
Loose skin isn't harmful to your health, but may cause unpleasant side effects, embarrassment, and low self confidence. After all, most people expect to have a tight, toned body after losing weight. They rarely think what their skin will look like. If you have loose skin, sweat can get trapped and cause irritation, redness, rash, and chafing. You might not be able to wear tight clothes, low rise jeans, or swimsuits.

While there is no quick fix for excess skin, you can fix this issue over the course of several months. Lifestyle changes, such as lifting weights, drinking more water, and wearing compression clothing, can help tighten loose skin and improve its appearance. If you have patience, the results will come.

How to Deal with Loose Skin Naturally
The best thing you can do is to prevent loose skin in the first place. This can be done by losing weight in a slow, steady manner. Dropping a lot of weight at a time will shock your system, causing your skin to lose its elasticity. It also damages collagen, elastin, and other nutrients responsible for firmness.

Incorporate strength training into your workouts. Building lean muscle helps improve skin appearance and shapes your body. If you only do cardio, you'll end up looking "skinny fat." Weight training improves body composition and builds muscle tissue underneath your skin.

Smoking is one of the main factors affecting skin elasticity, so ditch this habit. The sooner you do it, the better. Protein, which is a major component of the skin and other tissues, can help too.
Since water is essential to skin health, make sure you stay hydrated throughout the day. A study published in "Nutrition Therapy and Pathophysiology" indicates that dehydration may worsen loose skin. Drink plenty of water, tea, and other fluids to maintain your hydration levels.

Summary

• Loose skin is caused by fast weight loss, sun exposure, aging, smoking, and nutrient deficiencies. 
• The longer you’ve been obese or overweight, the looser your skin will be after shedding those extra pounds. 
• Quick weight loss causes damage to elastin and collagen fibers, which affects skin elasticity. 
• The best way to prevent and reduce loose skin is to shed pounds gradually, drink plenty of water, and make strength training a habit. 
• A high protein intake can help tighten excess skin and restore its firmness.