Muffin Top

        I am not really sure when it happened.  It seems it just came out of nowhere.  Did it creep up on me or did it really just start to develop days after I turned another year older?  I'm talking about my muffin top.  I've never been svelte.  I was once skinny but that was before I went off to college and packed on the freshman 10.  But I shed that weight long ago and looked really good through my 20s and early 30s.  Then one wintry and icy day I took a tumble in a parking lot and sprained my ankle.  But as it turned out the sprain was not just a sprain.   After being on crutches for weeks and demanding to see an orthopedist and not just my GP, we learned that it was actually broken and to repair it I would have to have my foot put into a cast for 5 months.  

     Needless to say, not being able to walk or run or play tennis or any sport and then having my foot put into a cast in the middle of July and not being able to swim or do much of anything for over a year, I packed on some weight and as you women know, it's not easy to drop the pounds once you hit your forties.  But as I approached my mid-forties I worked hard to lose some weight and did drop about 40 pounds.  The problem is that I truly needed to drop 60 to 70 pounds.  But I dropped the 40 pounds and was looking good.  My clothes were fitting better and I was feeling good.  I got a bit lazy about working out.  I didn't gain back the 40 pounds I lost.  I gained back maybe 7 to 10.  I kept telling myself I needed to do something.  I kept telling myself I needed to watch what I was eating.   I was able to maintain my weight and drop a pound here or there and then pick up a pound here or there and then drop a pound or two.  Those of you who get on a scale every day will recognize this as just part of every day living. 

    So I thought I was maintaining and ws thinking about what I should be doing to drop more weight.  I needed to exercise more.  I needed to watch what I was eating.  The funny thing is I never did get too serious about moving on those needs.  And then I hit my 49th birthday.  I thought it's more important than ever to get moving and drop this extra weight I have been carrying around.  But there's something else I have noticed the past few weeks about myself.  It seems that out of nowhere I now have a muffin top.  I don't exactly know where it came from.  I have actually been more active.  I played tennis 4 times last week.  I have tried to cut back on my nightly night caps.  I don't eat a lot of sweets and have cut back on my sugar intake.  But yet that muffin top still sticks with me.  I am not really sure what to do about it or how to rid myself of it.  The funny thing about noticing my muffin top is that I notice it more on other women now.  I never did pay much attention to older women's figures.  I just thought when I saw an older woman - poor old lady should exercise more or what a shame that woman is not in better shape at her age.  But now I am one of those older women and I am frustrated that I am trying to get in better shape and yet that muffin top still hangs over my jeans.  I think I just need to get more serious about exercise and diet and I can lose this muffin top, but I have met other women slightly older than me who seem like they are in better shape and exercise more than I do and yet they too have a muffin top.  So what am I to do?  

   Am I destined to just live with this muffin top?  Do I need to go invest in some more Spanx?  Will diet and exercise help me to reduce this muffin top or will I be stuck with it for the rest of my life?  I am trying to play more tennis.  I have ruled out future dinners at my favorite Italian restaurant where I eat way too much of the baked bread and enjoy the Chianti a bit too much.  I tell myself I need to be better about exercising every day.  I am just having some trouble figuring out the best way to attack the muffin top.