Muffin top, like crow's feet, is one of life's merit badges that you earn as you grow older (and wiser, of course). Alas, unlike crow's feet, there's no magic injection to get rid of muffin top. While diet and exercise can help, both take lots and lots of work and time, plus, they're not as much fun as, say, a shopping spree. A much easier and faster way to lose your muffin top is to simply hide it. And how does one do that? We're so glad you asked!

Say Buh-Bye to Low- and Mid-Rise Anything

Let's start with the basics, your underwear. The first thing you'll need in order to get rid of muffin top is a great pair of high-waist panties with a waistline that lands somewhere around your navel. High-waisted underwear holds in your muffin top, so it's not spilling out over your pants, without squeezing you like a girdle. Pair your high-waisted undies with high-waisted yoga pants or jeans for added muffin top protection.

The Empire Waist Strikes Back

Sure, you can hide your muffin top with big sweatshirts, but they're like the granny panty of the fashion world - comfortable and easy, but not flattering or sexy. There are a number of ways you can hide muffin top without completely hiding your figure. For one, empire-waist tops are back in style (thank you Bridgerton!). The only downside here is if the waistline poofs out too much, you run the risk of looking pregnant, even if you are well beyond your child-bearing years. 

Pepper in Peplum

Even better than empire-waisted tops, and more stylish, are peplum tops. Peplum is a short piece of fabric attached to the waistline of a top, jacket or dress that flares out. Peplum tops hug you right along the ribcage and then blouse out at the waistline, so they only show off the curves you want to show off (and hide those you don't).

Embrace the Smock

Don't worry, we're not talking about artist's smocks here, we're talking about fabric smocking - a method of gathering fabric in small bunches to give it more stretch. Dresses and tops with fabric smocking are not only super comfortable, they also allow you to determine where the waistline hits. You can pull up a smocked waistline to make a shirt blouse out more, or pull it right on top of your muffin top as the gathered fabric makes it easier to conceal any lumps and bumps.

So now that you know how to get rid of muffin top, the fun begins. Here's a handy dandy cheat sheet for you to bring as you get to shopping. Enjoy!