Rounded bellies on otherwise slim women

[blessemall]

I've always been slim, but with a rounded belly - I remember pushing it out as a child, pretending to be pregnant to impress my friends. This was the late seventies/eighties and I was never called fat or overweight, but always had a belly. As an adult, if I put on weight, it was only ever on my belly. Occasionally people asked me if I was pregnant. Now I'm 53 and menopausal, I've put on more weight around the middle, but not otherwise overweight. I eat healthily and get a reasonable amount of exercise - gym and regular walks.

If you have a body shape like mine, what clothes do you find suit you? I'm conscious of my side profile. I usually find trousers/skirts and loose (but not too long) tops work best - dresses always look like maternity wear.

Also, have you experimented with your diet? I haven't tried giving up dairy or gluten, to see if it helps, but I sometimes think I should give it a go in case I've had a lifelong intolerance without ever realising it.

Only time I lost weight from from my tummy was low carbing. Every other diet and I would lose weight overall but kept my apple shape.

Best outfits I find are something that enhance shoulders and bust - round scoop neck and cap sleeves and bottoms that balance out. So lower rise,hip/ thigh skimming and a bit flared from then on.

Do you find you also have slightly fattier upper arms and thighs? I have this and nothing bar going very underweight will shift it.

I’ve seen a nutritionist who used a machine to measure body fat composition and I seem to hold all mine from the middle outwards, so trunk was red on the scale, upper arms and thighs were amber and my little twig lower arms and legs were green.

I find if I wear things to supposedly cover up the stomach (skater dresses, tunic tops) I end up looking pregnant whereas a slim fit trouser and a smart top emphasise the more slender parts and I just look like a slim woman with a bit of a tum.

As much as I loathe Primark, they do a very comfortable slimming body suit. It doesn’t take you down a size like some claim but it makes a noticeable difference and is comfy enough to wear all day.

Another squishy rounded belly apple shape with slim hips here. My favourite style top is this layered top over slim trousers or skirt.

www.kettlewellcolours.co.uk/clothing/outfit-builders/all/lulu-v-neck-long-sleeve?colourid=185

Brilliant camouflage

My 'tum' looks less pronounced when I eat mainly meat and fat, and lots leafy green veg. I never go hungry but would feel ravenously hungry again a few hours after eating the beige carbs like bread, rice, potatoes or other any padding type of food.

I try to just stick to dark coloured swimwear - and these days only when swimming - I change when I come out of the water. I haven't worn a bikini for about 30 years.

I once bought a "tummy control" swimsuit from M&S and wore it in a water park in Tenerife - in the queue at the top of a huge slide a teenage staff member asked if I was pregnant. It was humiliating, and I didn't wear that swimsuit again - I realised afterwards that the design is similar to maternity swimsuits. A better name for them would be tummy "comfort" not control.

😂
Sorry, the OP pushed belly out to impress friends to think she's pregnant....
I would start with eliminating food allergies and looking at some (serious) stuff to stop bloating and a bit of exercise... depends on how "bad" you think it is.

I have this and am 50. Mine is due to adenomyosis so I have an enlarged uterus.

Mine is purely due to the fact that any weight I put on has always gone on my stomach and the menopause has made it much worse.
I'm slim everywhere else and, despite being in my late 50s, relatively often get mistaken for someone who's pregnant.
I try to console myself by thinking "Well, at least I look young enough to be pregnant" but in reality I realise they were looking at my stomach not my face.
Hoping for tips for dressing from this thread.

LessOfThis
I bet you all look beautiful❤

Hmm...
I'm sure that sort of positive affirmation is kindly meant and helps some, but - however I look - I personally would like to look it while having a smaller tummy 🙂

Thanks. I hadn't heard of this. How old were you when it was diagnosed?

When I was a teen, I had very heavy periods, that had a big impact on my life. I remember my mum taking me to an elderly male GP when I was about 15. He just told me it would get better after having children, which wasn't helpful.😶 Later I was able to manage it a bit better with the pill and, after I had children, I used a Mirena coil. But I do sometimes wonder if there was a connection between the heavy periods my belly shape.

I can look like this if I drink alcohol frequently. Quit booze and the stomach bloat has reduced a little. Unfortunately the only thing I find helps significantly is a lot of exercise. I find cardio like Zumba helps. If I take a few weeks off the bloat returns.

Often it’s fibroids. They can be huge

I have this... Been the same since a child. Never put weight on anywhere but my belly. As per PP I have a thigh gap, am a healthy BMI etc. Ab exercises do nothing. It's just where my fat collects. I don't have diastasis recti.

I tend to live in jeans (or jean shorts in the summer) with a fairly high waist. I always have to wear a belt and do it up on the tightest I can as otherwise they constantly slip down as my bum/hips/thighs are a smaller size than my belly so there's nothing to hold them up.

@blessemall I was diagnosed when I was 47 as I started having very heavy periods out of the blue. I had a Mirena coil fitted which helped to lessen the bleeding.

I have this largely due to bloating, FODMAP diet has helped a bit.

Unlike others, I don’t like trousers, I find them uncomfortable due to bloat. I wear dresses, ones which come in at waist but them fill out in the skirt ( sort of 1950s and swing dress style) work well, or tulip style, and some dresses the cut just works and I am not sure why.

I am 55, if I put on a single pound it goes straight to my stomach

I found some clothes by Bravissimo worked well. The idea is that they are cut bigger over the bust but then come back into the body.
I'm not hugely big bust-wise (34 DD) but this cut accentuates my bust rather than my stomach.
Sadly, Bravissimo don't do clothes any more but I still find some on Vinted.

A lot of style guides say that a bigger stomach often goes with good legs, "So get those pins out, girls!". Well, yes... but I find, if I'm not careful, I look like an egg on stilts.

I used to have a flat belly size 6-8 very toned up i was a stunner.
NOW i just tuck a role when getting dressed like someone putting a sleeping bag in a bag.
I dont know where it all came from or what went wrong lol.

Exercices tailored forxwaist reduction? Strebgthen the abs and other muscles to hold everything in.
Dieting without working on that isn't going to work!

Same here. It's mainly bloating, I seem to start the day okay-ish and then I gradually bloat during the day. Probably some diastasis recti issues there too. And same with the small boobs meaning dresses make me look pregnant. I would LOVE to wear dresses ☹️

Unfortunately you can’t target a specific area for weight loss. You can tone till the cows come home but if that muscle is covered in a layer of fat it will make no difference.

If your personal trainer is telling you that you can, fire them.

PetrichorSoul

You can tone till the cows come home but if that muscle is covered in a layer of fat it will make no difference.

Exactly this.

I am the same as you! I have always been slim but with a massive belly. I have been offered seats on the bus before because people thought I was pregnant. Since having a child it has been worse. As a previous poster said above, a UPF free diet has helped massively and my stomach was noticeably less bloated and smaller within weeks.

I find chickpeas and oats make me look pregnant. Especially if they aren't cooked for long. So much better if I avoid oat cookies, granola and chickpea salads!

Interesting. Is there a common ingredient there or are they two separate sensitivities? Oats are a gluten-free cereal, and chick peas are a legume.

I walk with a bit of a stoop, have underactive glutes and an anterior pelvic tilt. All of that pushes my tummy out. I did resolve it for a while with regular pilates, which really fixed my posture. However I've lost motivation atm and am back to square one.

Egg on stilts describes me perfectly!

Interesting. How much kefir do you have each day? How long did it take for you to notice a difference? Do you tend to drink it at a particular time of day?