So I have a muffin top and it isn't going to disappear in a puff of smoke

[Millie1]

Oh how I wish I could wake up tomorrow and it would be gone but it won't so please share with me your tips to disguise it! I'm of average height (5'7"), a size 8-10, small of boobs but big of tummy, heck there are days I could pass for someone in the early-ish stages of pregnancy! What shape of tops should I be wearing to make it less obvious? I kind of 'spill' over my jeans but have shocking tummy muscles post-pregnancies which certainly don't help!

Any suggestions please?

[FrancesFarmer]

I think the solution lies in holding your stomach in with your jeans rather than your top. I find the Topshop Kerstin jeans good. You can wear pretty much any top with them.

[Millie1]

Thanks Frances ... Shall have a look at them now.

Any other suggestions to get me on the right track??

[HeavyHeidi]

what about some control tops, spanx or the M&S one that was recently praised here?

[monstersX2]

Will 2nd the topshop kerstin jeans, my other jeans dont feel good enough anymore!

[thisisyesterday]

sainsburys do jeans that sit "on the waist" which cover a muffin top. and they'r eonly £10!
M&S also do some, theirs are £12

just look for any that says "on the waist" rather than being on the hips or whatever. they keep your tummy in and then you can wear what you like on top

[TattyDevine]

The Ultimate Bodybriefer is the best muffin-buster I've had - you can wear your own bra, but no rolldown because it has straps that go over your shoulders - okay so you might not want to wear it everyday but if you had a night out or special lunch and you wanted to wear jeans but have a svelt sleek line in any top this does it.

I am usually wearing one of these by the end of the festive season before the January shred begins. I could just get a pair of "fat jeans" I guess but then I'd feel more obliged to grow into them....

[CornflowerB]

Long-term I would seriously think about Pilates. I almost kissed my Pilates teacher when she said 'Now this exercise is to work on the muffin top' .
But yes jeans up to your waist (now in fashion and in Gap!) are great for disguise in the meantime.

[Millie1]

Okay sounds like a rethink of jeans are the way to go ... I'd feel like my mother if I wore some sort of control-wear and couldn't possibly wear it everyday and really, it's every day I want to fix!

[Millie1]

Cornflower is there a oilseed DVD you would recommend? There are no classes within 60 miles of me and I know a DVD is a poor second but maybe better than nothing! Thanks!

[Millie1]

OMG ... autocorrect!! oilseed should have read, and did read, pilates!!!!

[TattyDevine]

Pilates, good, great, but you need to lose the fat, you can't spot reduce. By all means tighten it up but no point having a six pack if its covered in muffin-dough...

Agree about control wear, though sometimes its necessary to NOT look like your mother...

Its not for everyday though that's for sure.

[Bearcat]

You are tiny compared to me, but do you really need bigger jeans?
I have gone from size 16 to 12 in the last 18 months, but don't have a muffin top in my size 12 jeans / trousers, but definately did when I was wearing size 16's which were probably too tight for me.
When I was bigger, I even bought a pair of control pants, but all that did was give me a muffin top over my pants!

[Mabelface]

I bought a size bigger in jeans, that were higher cut.

I do like how high those top shop jeans are, but I need wider leg ones to balance out my apple shape. Skinnies look daft on me at the moment.

[Millie1]

Bigger sized jeans just hang on my hips and generally look a bad shape. I got lovely skinny cargoes from Uniglo and even with their higher waistline I still have problems. Bugger, not sure what to do now - surely there must be a top out there which will disguise a tummy on someone without boobs in such a way that it doesn't look like a maternity top??

Re Pilates, I know I need to lose the fat but the only fat I have to lose is on my tummy, the rest of me is skinny! It would be good to tone up all over anyway - I am sooooo unfit it's unreal!

[cheapskatemum]

To answer your actual query, there are loads of lovely tops in floaty fabrics that flare out from just below the bust. I bought a lovely one in Sainsbury's for about £20 & lots of people have complemented it. You could wear them with any jeans/trousers/leggings because they don't hug the area you're trying to draw attention away from. I think they'd suit you too, because you're quite tall.

[Filofax]

Hi you sound a similar size to me. Have you tried next's ultimate jeans range. All about £28 and dark denim that holds you in bt very comfortable. I have two pairs of skinnies (cigarette in longer sizes) and a bootleg pair. Definitely worth a look. Apart from that think about some sort of toning exercise class, I'm starting to see results after a couple of weeks, and cut down on booze has helped too. Good luck.

[Millie1]

Thanks Cheapskatemum and Filofax.