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Training corset

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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.[1]

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.

Waist training corsets

Waist training goals very from losing weight to body sculpting.[2] Waist trainers used to accelerate weight loss are made from latex or rubber.[3] The material properties hold heat within the body ramping up perspiration. Increased thermal activity, it is claimed, mobilizes fat cells and removes toxins through the pores carried by sweat. Claims such as these remain controversial. Training with a latex or rubber corset does not cause semi-permanent changes to the body such as changing the shape of the rib cage.

Waist training corsets made from fabric and steel boning are capable of producing semi- permanent changes to the torso call body sculpting. It changes the contours and silhouette of the body nonsurgically. This affects the BWH (bust, waist, and hip) ratio reducing the waist beyond its natural size. The waist circumference has been reduced as small as 13 inches. An achievement won by Ethel Granger in the 1930s. Cathie Jung holds the Guinness World Record for smallest living waist at 15 inches. These changes are fully reversed when waist training ceases. The body will return to its natural shape.

Waist training corsets are supported with boning; flexible boning for latex and rubber corsets and steel boning for fabric corsets. Boning comes in both flat and spiral steel. Flat boning supports the corset while spiral boning allows for flexibility. To create semi-permeant changes the corset requires 20 steel bones. Sometimes less is used. The flexible boning in latex and rubber corsets prevents roll and migration. When excessive roll and migration are experienced due to body shape, a waist training vest is preferred.

Waist cinchers are the most common corset used for waist training. A waist cincher is simply a shorter underbust corset. They are less restrictive and allow for a high degree of mobility when worn. Latex and rubber sport corsets are waist cinchers because of the flexibility and mobility requirements of the wearer. Latex, rubber and fabric waist cinchers are easily seasoned, i.e. broken-in. They mold to the shape of the body with little effort making them ideal for beginner waist trainers.

The shape of most waist trainers is hourglass. The subtle curves are ideal for fit and extended wear. For the fabric corset with steel boning, the shape is a choice of beginners since it will not reshape the ribcage and will allow them to acclimate to wearing a corset. Extreme hourglass shapes can accommodate the natural shape of the body without change to the ribcage. More advanced waist training corsets include the overbust corset and conical, pipe stem and s-bend shaped corsets.

Notable People who Waist Train:

Orthopedic corsets

At the end of the Dark Ages medicine as a science began to grow. A steel corset for the treatment of crooked spines was constructed by Ambroise Pare in 1561 laid the foundations for orthopedic surgery.[4] The corset was mainly a caraplace and plastron to support lacing for correcting spinal deformities.

Innovation in corsets would continue with the steel cuirass by Pare, 1570 and the steel corset brace with jury mast by De la Croix Skol, 1725.[5] The renaissance of orthopedics and the empirical use of mechanical appliances for the treatment of deformities evolved in the nineteenth century.[6] Waltuch, of Odessa, constructed the wooden corset consisting of layers of stockinet, wood, roller bandage and linen bound by glue.[7] They weighed less than one third their plaster-of Paris counterparts.

The benefits of lightweight orthopedic devices spurred innovation and the use of materials in corsets such as leather and aluminum.[8] Today the corset in orthopedic medicine is no less important. Modern materials and procedures continue to make them lighter and more effective.[9]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ http://waisttrainingcorsets.com/waist-training-corset-guide/
  2. ^ http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/body+sculpting
  3. ^ http://waisttrainer.us/latex-waist-trainer/
  4. ^ Young, pp. 5-6
  5. ^ Young, p. 7
  6. ^ Young, p. 6
  7. ^ Young, p. 162
  8. ^ Young, p. 163
  9. ^ http://www.medicalexpo.com/medical-manufacturer/support-corset-5847.html

Sources

Bibliography

  • Steele, Valerie (2001). The corset: A cultural history (5 ed.). New Haven, CT: Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0300099539.
  • Lord, W. B. (2012). The corset and the crinoline: An illustrated history (Dover ed.). Mineola, NY: Dover Publications. ISBN 9780486138404.
  • Young, J. (1911). A manual and atlas of orthopedic surgery: Including the history, etiology, pathology, diagnosis, prognosis, prophylaxis, and treatment of deformities. Philadelphia, MA: P. Blakiston's Son & Co.
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