Pot Belly/Muffin top - causes?

[Cortina]

My sister and I were discussing this the other day. What are the causes? I hear that there is no way to 'spot' reduce fat?

I have children already and am pregnant but am generally fellow sufferer. Sister is otherwise slim and has a healthy BMI but gets asked if she is pregnant most weeks. Has a sticky out tummy and looks maybe 4 months pregnant plus on a bad day.

So if you can't cure it my questions are:

What causes it? - just where some people store fat?
Why a huge tummy if you are otherwise slim? Could some food stuffs be the culprit?
We were wondering if alcohol makes it worse? Sis looks more 'pot bellied' if she has had a few glasses of wine night before.

Does pregnancy make it worse? (I imagine so as muscles get looser)?
Is it a reason to consider a tummy tuck?
Those I know that suffer have quite a firm pot belly, not lots of loose skin really, it's very odd?

Just musing, any other fellow pot bellies out there? Any tips/solutions?

Genetic, probably; different people have different body shapes. If you've got a distinct pot belly when the rest of you is slim and you've got a good BMI you're probably an "apple shape", and you just have to learn to dress for it. Pilates and swimming will both help to tone your tummy muscles so that it looks flatter.

I'm an hourglass shape, so I don't have a pot belly to worry about, but if I put on an ounce of fat it goes on my upper arms and saddlebags -- ugh. Makes it very difficult to dress nicely when it's really hot. Whereas I bet you and your sister have beautiful slim arms and legs that go all the way up. . . make the most of them I say!

Yes, our arms and legs are slim, never happy with what you've got I guess. I'll happily trade with you for saddlebags and bigger upper arms. Upper arms I find can be trained into suppleness relatively easily though, smaller muscle groups that respond well to weights and dips?

Sit ups do very little for my tummy and pilates the same, they just seem to hurt! Perhaps a minor improvement. My belly seemed to appear in my late 20s seemingly from nowhere, sigh...

If you suck your tummy in does it disappear?
If it does then you can train your muscles to lie back in flat - if not - then there's no hope!
My MIL's theory is that the low waisted trousers are to blame as fat is stored to keep the exposed bits warm!

Love the theory

For my sis, I am pregnant so not going anywhere at moment , it goes in a bit but still looks a bit 'full' if you know what I mean? You can pull a big handful though maybe 8 inches of wedge?

I'd say she was about a 29 to 30 inch waist and 5ft 3 inches. She's pretty fit too, she runs etc. Just can't seem to shift the tum. It does really stick out and she's so self conscious she will never go swimming with my DCs, it's a shame. Literally every time we go out in a taxi the taxi driver will say something like 'when's it due then love, not long left to go I'd say'. After you've heard this every day/most days it gets really wearing! Some things show it more than others and she gets a bit fed up with dressing to hide it all the time.

I've thought about a tummy tuck after finished with DCs but worry about having a false tummy button created, for some reason that freaks me out and also having a serious op for vanity only.

Are you sure it's nothing medical? A colleague had a cyst which turned out to be huge, but the doc wondered why she hadn't been to see him earlier. MIght be worth getting a medical opinion?

Was just about to say that - I had a cyst and it stuck out.
If she lies face down on the floor and tries to do a back extension - does it hurt in her tummy area or feel like theres a tennis ball in there?

Muffin top is nearly always caused by wearing the wrong size jeans! But in a nutshell, if you lose the fat it will go.

No, you can't spot reduce, its like using petrol from one side of the tank only when you drive.

Why in some areas? Hormones can effect where you store your fat, which is why it can change after menopause, when previously hourglass figures suddenly find themselves with a pot belly but their ass has gone down in size. My mother is one of these.

There isn't a lot of evidence that confirms diet is a factor though there is good evidence to support a diet high in good oils is said to reduce levels of visceral fat (that's the kind that accumulates around your organs)

Here's a good muffin-buster for the meantime:

Thanks so much, will get her to investigate the medical scenario just in case.

Could it not also be separation of tbe stomach muscles during pregnancy? Sometimes they don't come back together again after birth. If your sister can press her hand a long way into her stomach, this could be it. You can have an operation to bring the muscles back together again if it is really bad - a friend had the op. and her big flabby tummy disappeared overnight.

It's just fat- I am working on losing 4lb now and it's all on the tum.