From whalebone stays to girdles to Waist Trainer, there are plenty of products that promise to cinch your waist and give you an hourglass shape. Some of these are even promoted by influencers who post videos of themselves wearing them during workouts or revealing their day-to-day progress. But do waist trainers really work?
Beyond the Basics: Advanced Techniques for an Hourglass Shape
While waist training can be effective if used correctly, it isn’t a magic bullet. For starters, the squeezing effect of waist trainers can actually be harmful, especially if worn for prolonged periods of time. The compression squeezes your organs into unnatural positions, which can cause pain, interfere with breathing, and even damage your internal tissues.
Wearing a waist trainer can also limit your blood flow, which can lead to numbness in the legs and feet. Depending on how tight you wear the waist trainer, it can also reduce your range of motion, which can affect your core muscles. It can even cause your body to lose muscle mass over time as the muscles that support your core become weakened from continuous compression.
In addition, waist trainers can cause back and rib injuries. The constant compression can pull your torso forward, which can lead to muscle tightness or even spinal fractures. Lastly, waist trainers can affect your breathing by restricting the movement of your diaphragm. This can lead to heartburn and aggravate symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD).
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