Why You Should Ditch Your Waist Trainer
“Waist Trainer” is the new age name for “corset”. Both function in the exact same way. In the corset’s heyday, you didn’t see many women concerned with physical fitness only tiny waists. There were no women’s gyms or women’s section in the existing gyms of that time. Today though women are in the gym and concerned with fitness more than they have been at any other time in history. This physical fitness awakening in women combined with the reintroduction of the corset as a “waist trainer” is a recipe for disaster.
What is a waist trainer?
A waist trainer is an undergarment made up of thick fabric and sometimes hard metal boning. Waist trainers are secured with a lacing system, hooks, Velcro or a series of very tight zippers. A waist trainer is tighter than a girdle/shapewear to give you a sleeker, smaller waist.
What is a waist trainer used for?
Waist trainers are specifically to make the waist appear smaller. However ineffective, a waist trainer is also sometimes worn for weight loss. Any weight you might lose from wearing a waist trainer will likely be imperceptible on the scale and will be visually temporary.
Weight loss experienced while wearing a waist trainer is temporary because it is only a loss of fluids. You appear smaller because you have dehydrated the top later of skin through perspiration. Once you rehydrate your body, the top layer of skin will return to its previous state.
Should you work out in a waist trainer?
Working out in a waist trainer can severely restrict movement and airflow. Your body needs more oxygen when you are exercising than when you are at rest. Exercising in a waist trainer can make it difficult to breathe, robbing your muscles and organs of much-needed oxygen during periods of high exertion.
When it is difficult to breathe and your abdominals are compressed you can cause your abdominal muscles to disengage during core movements. Core movements are not just targeted core/ab exercises. Core movements include exercises where you need to engage your core for stability and holding good form. If your core muscles are disengaged due to working out in a waist trainer, you can become dependent on the waist trainer. Having your movements restricted while you work out prevents you from performing the exercises with proper form and this can lead to injury. You will find that your lifting ability goes down when you are not wearing the waist trainer and you may even injure yourself by putting more strain on your core than it is conditioned to handle without a waist trainer.
Should I wear a waist strainer when I am not working out?
Even if you wear a waist trainer when you are not working out, it may weaken your core muscles, leading to back pain and poor posture when you don’t’ have the waist trainer on.
Why should you ditch your waist trainer?
You should ditch your waist trainer because waist trainers don’t provide any lasting results and the temporary results present too many dangers to be worth clamoring for. You could injure yourself in a way that you will not recover from.
Am I paranoid? Maybe.
Is there anything wrong with having a healthy fear of injuring yourself? No.
Last year I injured myself to the point that it took over 8 months to recover. The injury was not caused by wearing a waist trainer, but it opened my eyes to be constantly conscious of proper form and listening to my body when it comes to taking on more than I should in the gym. Wearing a waist trainer is a perfect set up for the same kind of injury as it preps your body for bad form and taking on more weight than your core is conditioned to handle.
Some celebrities that promote waist trainers have been outed for photoshopping their images on numerous occasions. Some celebrities that promote waist trainers have admitted to having body modifications. So, I ask you this, why would you take fitness advice from or compare yourself to someone who has admitted to or has been reasonably suspected of going under the knife to achieve a look; a look that they only achieved with implants, body contouring liposuction and photoshop? Knowing all of that, why take advice from a person who now attempts to convince the public that a restrictive and unhealthy garment is the magic pill to achieving a desired look?
As you continue your fitness journey, be smart. Nothing worth having is easy in the beginning. It can however become easy and second nature over time. If waist trainers, sweat belts, drink to shrink, detoxes etc. were truly the way, we would all have stunning bodies. They are not the way. There are no short cuts but there are endless gimmicks. Don’t fall for it. Educate yourself and when you know better, educate others.
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