This molting cycle happens frequently in the lobster's youth, but slows down as it ages. If you find a really big lobster, it probably hasn't shed in years, which means the meat will be tougher.

Molting leaves her in a perilously soft new ... says Diane Cowan, founder of the Lobster Conservancy. When water is warm, lobsters put their energy into growing; when it’s cold—winter water ...