When you lose weight, what happens to the markings on your body?

Like, if half of your arm is covered in stretch-marked skin, and the other half isn't... once you lose the weight is more than half of your arm covered in stretch marks now? Do they just get smaller?

What happens to tattoos?

Thanks ahead of time for your help.

I have a HUGE birthmark under my arm that was (prior to toning my biceps) only visible when I raised my arm. Now, I can look down and see part of it all the time. Very weird, but also VERY COOL because it's a constant reminder of how hard I've worked to have toned arms.

As for stretch marks, I tend to ignore mine , but my personal trainer told me they actually develop as you LOSE the weight. The more weight you lose, the more stretch marks you'll have.

I got my tattoo after I lost weight, so I don't know what might happen to tattoos. As far as stretch marks, they are still there, still noticeable. A lot of women have stretchmarks. We are completely brainwashed by the media to believe that women's bodies are smooth, tanned, hairless and blemishfree because every woman in every movie, TV show, magazine ad or billboard is completely airbrushed, digitally enhanced fakery.

I don't think ya get more stretch marks as ya lose weight .. its just they are more noticeable .. stand out more cause they are coming back together and ya skin isn't pulled .. ya ever see a balloon that has been inflated for a long time then ya let the air out? the marks were there before .. ya just didn't see em as much. my skin doesn't do like what you were sayin .. half stretch marks and half w/o ... its just the one area where the stretchmarks were..and honestly they are covering a smaller area ..cause the *air* has been let out.. as far as tattoo's .. eh ... i haven't noticed..other than the lower back piece i have .. the edges are gettin closer to my sides.. maybe by the time i lose the weight .. they will touch on the front?! wishful thinkin i know!! but all my tattoo's were put on when i was bigger.. but also not on fleshy areas.. so i am not overly concerned... my tattoo's are on my shoulder .. lower back ..ankle .. so i don't think they will be disfigured .. and frankly if they are .. i won't worry about it .. maybe just have em touched up a bit .. i would rather have em worked on cause i lost weight ..than cause my skin stretched em out from gainin!!

When I was at my heaviest, my stretch marks were very red and noticeable. Now, they are silvery lines that to me aren't near as noticeable. I haven't seen any new ones. They definitely don't appear as wide as they were. I have never had a tattoo so I wouldn't know about those.

My neighbour actually got tons of stretch marks from losing weight, but I suspect it was how fast she lost her weight. Perhaps the stretch marks should be a reminder of where we've come from? I wonder if I'll ever view it like that.. personally I'd like to be retouched

-Aimee

Stretch marks can be from gaining and losing weight - it's when it all happens a bit too fast for the body to handle.

As for my stretch marks after I've lost weight - they're all quite silvery now and closer together. Like the balloon analogy. I suspect a tattoo would shrink in size after you've lost weight too.

Your personal trainer is wrong on this one. Stretch marks are caused by the "stretching" of the skin-when pregnancy, the deveolping of breasts/hips during puberty, and weight gain simply cause the skin to stretch beyond its elasticity-causing "rips" in the top layers of the skin. This is why they often take on the look of "runners in pantyhose".

They are simply more noticeable when you get smaller/lose weight/have the baby. They were definitely there before-it is just that they were stretched out taut-and the appearance and texture of them is much less. When you lose the weight or have your child-the skin isn't taut there any longer-so the ridgey texture of them is much more apparent. For those of you with reddish or pinkish marks-they will turn to a color close to your skin tone after a while. Not to worry.

I have a pretty large tattoo from my very lower back to mid back, and a smaller one on my hip. I got them 0ver 10 years ago, pre weight gain. They don't appear that changed after losing weight. Though I am sure that if my belly were the one with the tattoo it would be a different story. I also have an ankle tattoo, no change, I think it really relates to where it is. Chose an area that naturally doesn't have the opportunity to sag too much after losing.

Yes, the tattoos depend on where they are...and where you store most of your fat. I have a lower back tattoo, a thigh tattoo, and a chest/sternum area tattoo that are all unscathed. My small belly tattoo is a tad distorted-not bad, though-because of my three pregnancies. It isn't anything bad, though. It was a small tat...I am sure it might be a little worse if it were a larger one.

My massive pregnancy stretch marks are now closer together, and they make kind of a cool texture. Less like a tiger clawed me, and more like seer sucker fabric.

I wear two rings, one on each hand. On my left is my wedding band and on my right is a ring I got for my 10th anniversary. I got the anniversary ring in the Virgin Islands, and it was a hot day and we had walked all over before going to the jewelry store, so my hands had swollen. I knew my wedding band fit either hand, and I wanted the anniversary ring to be the same size, but my hands were so swollen, I couldn't get the wedding band off for measurement. So, they had to take a best guess, which wasn't too good due to my swollen fingers. It turns out that the anniversary ring is too big, but I gained weight shortly after that, and it fit just fine. Now, 8 years later, I'm back down to the weight I was then, and the other day I put the rings on backwards and the wedding band fit on my right hand. This may not seem like much, but when I was at my highest, I couldn't get that ring over my knuckles on the right hand and it was pretty tight on the left where it belongs.

As for stretch marks, I only got them when I was pregnant and they all went away years ago. And I don't have any tattoos.

My tattoos are all pretty much the same as when I got them, but my weight loss is just in the beginning stages, I will have to keep a close watch on them . As for my preganancy stretch marks they are barely noticable now.

Stretch marks occur when the "skin" is stretched too far & it "rips". It can happen due to weight gain of any kind. A friend of mine got stretch marks during her pregnancy - but not on her tummy. They happened on her upper outer thighs.


I don't get "stretch marks." I get cellulite instead.

I wonder if.... cellulite is a FORM of stretch marks.... Hhhhmmmm.....

It's not. It is where the fat and tissues inside your body in fatty areas ends up bunching up and doing funny stuff...