Training corset

This is an example of a training corset. It has long, stiff shoulder straps which raise the lower ribs

A training corset is a garment worn around the waist and torso for cosmetic benefits, aesthetic appeal and medical treatment.

Preparatory corsets

Children were corseted in the eighteenth century (Steele 2001). Both boys and girls wore miniature adult stays. This prevented growing bodies from becoming crooked and corrected ungraceful posture. In the nineteenth century the belief that corsets were fundamental to a child’s wellbeing was still entrenched in the minds of parents (Steele 2001).

By the middle of the century the corset became a symbol of gender differentiation (Steele 2001). For men corset wear fell from favor and little boys were no longer corseted. Girls wore new specially designed corsets for the child’s body. Sensible mothers nurtured beautiful children with healthy brands of corsets.

Corsets no longer imposed their customary constraints on the physical body. Rather, they prepared girls for their social role (Steele 2001). The practice became a symbol of conformity for the standard of feminine beauty and respectability.

Redresseur corset

The focus of the “redresseur” corset is the formation of a young person’s figure (Lord 2012). It improved posture and helped to retrain poor posture habits. The chest area was left free for growth while the waist was confined. Special boning structures within the corset were constructed to support the back of the adolescent (Lord 2012). Straps brought around the shoulder and hooked together behind the back positioned the shoulders for proper form.

There are claims that the redresseur corset is safe and efficient by today’s standards for corrective issues (Lord 2012). There may be some foundational truth to the claim. The medical profession does use corsets for a variety of medical conditions. Such a use would be medical and done case-by-case with a medical grade corset.

Orthopedic corsets

Corsets may be worn for orthopedic reasons, such as correcting a crooked spine or straightening the back and shoulders.

Waist training corsets

Waist training, or waist reduction, generally uses an hourglass corset. Waist reduction, sometimes called "tightlacing," is often used by women who are post-pregnancy or by women involved in BDSM.

No structural features distinguish a modern waist training corset from a corset worn as an external garment for special occasions. Training corsets are always made from strong fabric (or leather) and with relatively inflexible boning (not all corsets are strong enough to mold a body). A training corset is designed to be used every day, and will generally be hidden under clothing, so it is likely that the practical aspects (comfort, ease of laundering, etc.) will have been prioritized in its construction over aesthetic ones.

Any style of corset can be used for waist training, although some styles are more popular and suitable than others. However, as the corsets necessary to maintain a body modification are no less rigid than those first worn to achieve the modification, there is no effective structural difference between corsets worn during training and those worn once the desired body shape is achieved. The term "training corset" can therefore be used for any corset worn by somebody undertaking training.

History of Waist Training Corsets

The earliest forms of waist training corsets can be seen as the tight lacing corsets. Corsets are said to have been worn by the people of Crete. Their use didn't become popular until the 16th century when they were considered characteristic of fashionable dressing up until the start of the French Revolution. These corsets were designed to shape the torso in the desired way. They squeezed the waist into a cylindrical form and had shoulder straps which finished at the waist. The torso was flattened, with the resultant pressure pushing the breasts upwards. The aim of these corsets was to create a perfectly flat midsection while allowing for the curvature of the breasts. There is no record of tight lacers in this time period. Corsets subsequently went out of fashion for a few decades, until the 1840s and 1850s when the use of waist training corsets was first recorded.

The corsets from the Victorian and Edwardian era were different from the corsets that appeared earlier in a number of ways. These corsets were longer, flaring out and ending quite a few inches below the waist. These corsets also emphasized the classic hourglass figure rather than the cylindrical shape of earlier corsets. New technology enabled the construction of more rigid corsets and spiral steel stays were incorporated to shape a curve based on the figure of the wearer. Though a lot of corsets were still being hand-stitched and custom-made to the wearer's measurements, there was growing demand for less expensive, mass-produced corsets. Tight lacing was widely practiced at this time and a few corsetiers were well known for attaining particularly small waists. Some men developed an obsession for smaller waists which was considered quite normal.

In the late Victorian era, women were reportedly giving up corset-wearing due to adverse health effects. In the early 1900s, corsets started to become less fashionable. A number of feminist and dress reform movements gave rise to looser clothing, with a natural waist becoming more fashionable. Corsets made something of a comeback as fetish-wear during the 1960s to the 1990s. Rather than traditional undergarments they were quite often worn as underwear. Around the twenty first century, corsets - especially waist training corsets - have reappeared, though they are by no means common. Some women desiring slimmer waists see corset wearing as a suitable means of achieving this.

Notable People who Waist Train:

• Kim Kardashian
• Kourtney Kardashian
• Khloe Kardashian
• Jessica Alba
• JWoww
• Amber Rose

See also

• History of corsets
• Hourglass corset
• Corset controversy
• Waist cincher
• Tightlacing

Sources

• Waist Training Corset Guide

Bibliography

• Steele, Valerie (2001). The corset: A cultural history (5 ed.). New Haven, CT: Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0300099539.