Why is it, that the dreaded muffin-top so often creeps up on women in mid-life? Our body shape often changes in our forties and fifties, but weight gain in menopause doesn't have to be inevitable. Here are 10 Top Tips to help you have a toned and healthy body through menopause, and beyond.

Tip #1: Understand what the menopause is.

Menopause is a natural transition in every woman's life, which happens as hormone levels decline, ovulation dwindles and then ends, and menstruation ceases. The menopause isn't an illness, or something to be feared. Leaving the concerns of fertility and young parenthood behind can be a liberating time, when you can rediscover who you are, and what you want, in this new phase of life. If you can see your menopause in these terms, you're less likely to be troubled by changes in your body shape, which are simply part of this far-reaching and potentially fulfilling time of life.

Tip #2: Learn to recognise the signs of menopause.

Subtle hormonal shifts can begin as early as your thirties. The time to tackle menopausal weight gain is when you first notice a change in your weight or shape - and that may be earlier than you expect. A change of body weight won't necessarily be accompanied by other menopausal signs which are easier to spot, like hot flashes or irregular periods. It's never too soon to take steps to control excessive weight gain.

Tip #3: Understand why weight goes on so easily during menopause.

It's not purely because your life is that bit more sedentary, or you're piling your plate too generously. Hormones are at the root of menopausal weight gain, in particular cortisol, released when you are under stress. If you're juggling job, partner, kids, your own ageing parents, health issues, money worries...then you are under stress, and your body responds by releasing cortisol which in turn prompts you to over-indulge in fatty and sweet 'comfort foods', and then makes things worse by encouraging your body to lay down stores of fat right around your midriff.

Tip #4: Achieving weight loss in menopause calls for a three-pronged attack.

Adapt your eating patterns: Go for fresh foods, much less junk, and regular, small meals. Get active: Exercise in a range of different ways, and make exercise a regular part of your life. De-stress: Learning how to relax and chill-out and keep your angst from exploding.

Tip #5: Exercise to lose weight.

When you increase the amount of exercise you do, you don't just burn more calories, you improve your mood and your long-term health. Exercise is a crucial key to wellbeing, and it's a vital part of your menopausal weight loss regime.

Tip #6: Use strength training exercises.

Strength training is a critically important part of your fitness strategy in mid-life. Many women think that it's enough to do one step class a week, or walk briskly to work every day. But by coupling those types of aerobic exercise with strength training, such as weight-lifting, yoga or Pilates, you set yourself up for success. Strength training, or resistance exercise, builds muscle, and muscle is wonderful stuff for midlife women. It burns calories far more efficiently than the same weight of body fat. It makes you stronger, strengthens your bones and revs up your metabolism. Muscle mass declines with age, but with exercise you can completely prevent that loss. It's a must, if you want to lead a healthy and active life for many, many more years to come.

Tip # 7: Include aerobic exercise and weight bearing exercises.

Aerobic exercise, like running, brisk walking or skipping, has loads of health benefits. It improves your overall health, cuts your risk of heart disease and some cancers, and is great for lifting your mood. Do some aerobic exercise regularly, alongside your strength training exercises. Many types of aerobic exercise are also weight bearing - think jogging, dancing or tennis - and these are another valuable part of your health program, because they strengthen bones and reduce the risk of fractures in later life thus keeping you mobile for longer.

Tip # 8: Stop dieting.

Have you spent your life going on and off diets, losing weight, then slowly but surely putting it back on? Every time you embark on a diet regime, you're telling your body that food is in short supply. Your body, which does not want you to starve, responds by slowing your metabolism, hanging on desperately to your existing weight, and instructing you to eat whenever you get the chance - which is what causes those uncontrolled binges that all dieters recognise. The answer to menopausal weight gain does not lie in following some restrictive low-anything diet. Instead...

Tip # 9: Check your menopause diet.

It's not so much what you eat at this time of life, it's how much you eat. Yes, of course you should be eating healthily, including plenty of fruit and vegetables, sufficient protein and wholegrain carbs. You need to cut down on the junk food, but you don't need to deprive yourself of everything you love. Aim to eat several small meals a day rather than a couple of huge ones. And consume just enough to satisfy your hunger - think of how much food you can hold in your cupped hand, and that's a good-sized portion. Eating this way - and adding regular exercise to the equation - means you won't feel cheated of your favorite foods because you can have them, but in small amounts.

Tip #10: Reduce your symptoms of stress.

Remember that stress triggers the release of hormones that make your body store fat across your belly. Tackle your stresses by delegating or sharing domestic responsibilities, reviewing your daily and weekly schedule to see where you could cut some slack, and making downtime a priority for yourself, and not an often-forgotten luxury. Add stress relievers into your life - meditation, massage, enjoyable hobbies, time by yourself, relaxation time with those you love - whatever makes you feel rested and re-charged. This is not self-indulgent, but highly necessary both for the good of your waistline, and for your long-term health.

Gaining weight at menopause isn't a given. Follow these tips, and make taking care of yourself and your health top priority. Build yourself the healthy and happy long-term future you deserve.