An expanding waistline is sometimes considered the price of getting older. For women, this can be especially true after menopause, when body fat tends to shift to the abdomen. Yet an increase in belly fat does more than make it hard to zip up your jeans. Research shows that belly fat also carries serious health risks.
A combination of things happens as we age. We tend to lose muscle mass, so our abdominal muscles aren't as tight as they once were, and the loss of elastin and collagen in our skin allows gravity to have its way so skin starts to sag. Both can cause the waistline to expand.
In fact, you'll add about an inch to your pelvis from age 20 to about age 80. This not only causes your hips to wide but your waistline as well. So if you can't slip into those skinny jeans you wore in high school anymore, it may not be because you're gained body fat.
With the onset of puberty, the male pelvis remains on the same developmental trajectory, while the female pelvis develops in an entirely new direction, becoming wider and reaching its full width around the age of 25-30 years. From the age of 40 onward, the female pelvis then begins to narrow again.
How quickly will you lose weight? The volunteers reduced their waist sizes by an average of 1 inch for every 4lb (1.81kg) they lost. So if you lose 1lb (0.45kg) a week you could hope to reduce your waistline by an inch after four weeks.
Obesity: Sometimes, obesity can cause fat deposits to hang down from the abdomen, causing a large abdominal pannus. Weight loss: If a person loses a lot of weight rapidly, such as from bariatric surgery, they may have an excess of skin that hangs from the stomach.
Most people don't grow any taller after the age of 20, but a recent study published in the Journal of Orthopaedic Research found evidence that the pelvis -- the hip bones -- continues to widen in both men and women up to about age 80, long after skeletal growth is supposed to have stopped.
It might be surprising to see your body changing in so many ways, but that's what it's designed to do. Hips get wider to prepare your body for the future so it's capable of carrying and delivering a baby. And as your hips widen, it may cause your stomach to get a little flatter (although it doesn't always).
Fat distribution also differs by gender, with men having a relatively more central distribution of fat. These differences strongly manifest in puberty and are related to sex hormones. In both men and women, waist and waist-to- hip ratio increase with aging.
The researchers found women's waists on average grew more than 2 inches from 36.3 inches in 1999-2000 to 38.6 inches in 2015-2016, while men's waists on average grew more than an inch from 39 inches in 1999-2000 to 40.2 inches in 2015-2016.
Curves Ahead
In your late 20's you may also notice your body becoming curvier than it was in your early to mid 20's. Due to metabolic and hormonal changes, some women experience increased body fat, making them naturally curvier.
Many women also notice an increase in belly fat as they get older — even if they aren't gaining weight. This is likely due to a decreasing level of estrogen, which appears to influence where fat is distributed in the body.
Body fat proportions continues to change. The ratio of body fat to muscle increases, as muscle mass decreases. Due to the aging factor, weight is being added to our thighs and buttocks.
"Hip dips are entirely caused by genetics and the shape of your pelvis. When someone has hip dips, this means that their hip bone is located higher than their femur, which causes their muscles and fat to curve inwards." Our bodies are what they are.
Losing fat around your hips will help decrease the appearance of hip dips, but you also want to strengthen and tone your outer glutes and thighs. And just like with fat loss, increasing your lean muscle mass will not only help you look and feel great, it will also benefit your overall fitness.
After age 30, people tend to lose lean tissue. Your muscles, liver, kidney, and other organs may lose some of their cells. This process of muscle loss is called atrophy. Bones may lose some of their minerals and become less dense (a condition called osteopenia in the early stages and osteoporosis in the later stages).
Estrogen helps make women curvier than men by making their pelvis and hips wider, and their breast grow. Estrogen is part of your menstrual cycle, helps you get pregnant, and plays a role in helping you develop bones and grow hair. It also helps regulate your moods and impacts your brain development and structure.
Cardio such as swimming, aerobics, running or dancing will burn this excess fat store. HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training) is the fastest way to trim down stomach fat.
Start with a mix of moderate and vigorous exercise to burn off menopausal weight gain. Your routine should include aerobic exercises like swimming, walking, bicycling, and running, as well as resistance or strength training. “What you want to employ now is high-intensity interval training (HIIT),” Dr. Peeke says.
However, it is impossible to spot-treat an apron belly because there are two layers of fat in your stomach. The only ways to reduce or remove your apron belly are through overall weight reduction and surgical and non-surgical options that include the following: Laser to remove some belly fat.