Love Handles vs Muffin Top: Are They The Same Thing?

Love handles are the excess fatty areas on the side of the waist, forming a mushroom-like appearance, starting at your lower body.

While body fat spot reduction isn't possible, people want to minimize the appearance of their love handles through natural means such as exercise and diet. It's completely possible; all that is required is consistency!

Love handles are caused by fat retention on the lower body, specifically the hips and abdominal area. They're not dangerous, but if you don't do anything to reduce them, they can imply certain health risks in the long run. Love handles and muffin tops often are used as synonyms. For some people, love handles refer to fat on the sides or flanks of the abdomen, while muffin tops refer to the spillover around the belly. 

More on Love Handles

The term love handles appeared in the 1960s; it refers to any pockets of fat that cause flab at your waist. Love handles are also known as "muffin tops," which describe the shape of a muffin that's formed above the waistline.

Love Handles, Muffin Tops, and Spare Tires: Are They Different?

The famous cosmetic surgeon and inventor of AirSculpt technology, Dr. Aaron Rollins, explains in this video that muffin top, lower belly, flank, and spare tire fat all refer to the same area on the lower stomach. 

This type of fat often extends around the front of the abdomen to the sides, continuing to the spinal column in the back. Spare tire specifically is an older term that has been replaced by muffin top and love handles; regardless of what it is called, this region is one of the most notorious for forming stubborn fat.

Exercises The Help Reduce Love Handles

If you want to reduce your midsection, you must be well informed about what love handle and muffin top exercises you should do to ensure optimal changes to your body. 

As we mentioned before, you can't target body fat reduction around the waistline or any part of your body, for that matter. Fat loss occurs in an overall manner, progressively slimming down the areas of your body you're most concerned about.

A combination of cardiovascular and weightlifting exercises will help you change your waistline. Cardio has the function of losing fat due to burning off calories. Strength exercises will help you develop musculature at your core, giving you a more aesthetic, toned appearance.

Other Habits You Should Pick Up

While the leading cause of love handles is excess fat within the midsection, there are certain lifestyle habits that you can change that can influence weight loss.

For example, if you're sleep-deprived, that will affect your cortisol levels. This hormone affects your metabolism, boosting your appetite and causing your body to store more fat. The same goes for stress, which can cause abdominal fat to form. 

If you're physically inactive and love to eat unhealthy foods, then it's obvious the long-term effects of doing so will result in you gaining unwanted fat.

Elite Body Sculpture Can Help Too

Elite Body Sculpture provides the optimal procedure to reduce love handles and muffin tops without invasive liposuction.

For residents in the Washington, D.C. area, the minimally invasive Love Handle AirSculpt® doesn't use a scalpel, needle, stitches, or general anesthesia, providing you with a seamless fat-removal process with a short recovery time and practically no noticeable scarring.

Never settle for less; make the wisest decision when it comes to choosing a cosmetic procedure to revamp your waistline. 

For more information on how we can help you, visit our Washington, D.C. office or one of the 25+ body contouring centers nearest you to schedule your free consultation.