A defined waist: envied, desired, admired. For many women, perfect curves are a fitness goal, for others is an obsession. A jungle of corset-like garments has spread fast as the light making the choice less easy than imagined. A defined silhouette requires defining these wearable allies as well.
Hourglass pairs with Kim K, the association is instant but do you know the difference between a corset and a waist cincher, a waist trainer and a waist trimmer? And what about body shapers? Here’s a short guide for you.
The practice of reshaping one’s body, particularly women’s waistline, isn’t the latest trend. As you go back in time, you will encounter the growing popularity of corsets already during the Victorian era and the more you travel back, the more tricks you find. The idea of wrapping a body tighter and tighter to correct shapes, slim down, conceal or make the silhouette more flattering has much to do with socialité and social trends.
Human inventiveness has delivered many options to achieve a slimmer tummy, an extreme hourglass or a feminine waist. There are different garments for each goal, hence the confusion. No one is the same and all don’t give the same results.
Steel-boned Corsets
A ‘trained’ hourglass equals a corset. However, all the before-mentioned waist pieces are not corsets. Although it would be easy to group everything under the umbrella term ‘corset’, that’s wrong. The authentic corset is only and solely the one with a steel-boned structure. Apart from this rigid or semi-rigid build, a standard corset features laces at the back which allow one to tighten the corset after getting used to it. You actually train your waist to keep the desired shape gradually with hours of wear, then you tight the laces up (tightlacing) to shrink your ribcage when you feel ready. Wearing a corset to reshape your waistline to an hourglass requires time because the progress must be done slowly.
Waist Cinchers
What you are used to seeing on Instagram and on celebs’ personal snaps is likely a waist cincher. Waist cinchers are more flexible than corsets and allow more movements thanks to the latex or spandex fabric they are made of. They can have some boning, flexible boning or be completely free from this internal structure. These gears work by sucking or tucking your belly in, hence giving the impression of a slimmer midpart.
They have a series of hook-and-eye closures and you can tighten it to train your midpart by moving to the next line of closures once you get used to it. Waist cinchers instantly reduce your size but don’t deliver the same dramatic effects that a long-term corset creates. They’re also meant to be used for shorter periods for an instant slimming effect under your outfit.
Two examples of waist cincher (left to right): 4-row waist cincher – black latex 3-row waist cincher
Waist Trainers
As we add ‘waist trainer’ to the list, we highlight another level of confusion. The difference between waist cinchers and waist trainers is really minimal. The differences lay in the material and the length of time you use them. Waist trainers can be made of different fabrics; among them, latex is widely used. A waist trainer can feature a boning structure and can have a variety of closures: hook-and-eye, zippers, velcro or a combination of two of them. The biggest difference is that waist trainers are designed to be worn for longer and also while working out providing ‘tummy training‘, back support and sauna effect to make you sweat. Prices can be very affordable and there are many cheap waist trainer options to get familiar with them.
Waist Trimmers
These other members of the family are kind of cousins. Waist trimmers aren’t to be shown off like corsets, nor hidden strategically under your clothing like cinchers or body shapers. These fitness gears are thicker and made of a synthetic material called neoprene to increase your core temperature. Waist trimmers create a localised sauna effect to help you shed weight and inches by sweating while working out. You can find waist trimmers sold like long wraps, bustiers or trainers with velcro closure and/or zippers.
Body Shapers
Here we have the last of the family: body shapers. Body shapers don’t train your body or your abdomen, and they aren’t meant to make you sweat buckets. Body shapers come in different… shapes depending on the area or areas you need to control. In fact, body shapers control rather than reshape your body over time and their effect last the time you wear them. Some kinds of body shapers look like swimsuits, others are sleeved, and some can also cover your legs to your knees. Body shapers are underwear that compresses your body to temporary give you a firmer and slimmer appearance. They wear like a breathable glove under unforgiving dresses. You will find the best body shaper for you depending on your areas of main concern.
Let’s wrap this encyclopaedia up. Each of these reshaping, training and concealing clothing, whether they are fitness gear or not, aiming for different goals and knowing what you’re working towards will help you pick the one to make you look and feel more comfortable in your skin.
Valentina Chirico aka Valens
Image credits
Ph. Reza Delkhosh, Unsplash
Ph. Ryan Moreno, Unsplash
Ph. Sergey Meshkov, Pexels
