Goal #3 - Waist Training

I have been in love with corsets since I was about twelve. Lately I've been reading up about tightlacing, a practice that serious corset lovers undertake. Okay, so mostly I've been drooling over corsets and pictures of ladies' waists, but I've also been reading articles and researching how to/health risks/benefits and so on. And the conclusion that all this has wrought is that I've decided to start waist training myself. As you can imagine since this is my blog you're going to be getting periodic updates on my progress so I figured I'd do an article on what exactly it is I'll be undertaking. So what's up with tightlacing and waist training and why is it different that just wearing a corset whenever you want?

Tightlacing:

Wiktionary

1. n. The practice of wearing a tightly-laced corset to modify one's figure and posture.

Waist training is also known as Tightlacing (click for Wikipedia article if you're still really unsure what I'm talking about). It is the practice of wearing and tightening a corset regularly so that your body slowly becomes tapered in the waist.  "It's like wearing a pair of high heels." -Meg of Skirting The Issue. I really like this analogy. Eventually you get used to 2" and move up to 3" heels. In this case a novice would order a corset 4 inches smaller than his or her waist size and wear it while slowing tightening it until the corset can be fully closed. Once you've achieved that goal you buy a corset that's 6 inches smaller than your natural waist size and the process is repeated.

What are the health risks? What are the benefits?

In laywomans terms here's a list of things to watch out for/be aware of when tightlacing:

Pros:
-Better posture
-Better eating habits - eating foods that cause gas/bloating can cause discomfort while wearing a corset so the wearer tends to eat healthier
-This can also help with weight loss, clear skin, mood boosting etc. as a result of eating better
-Confidence. Personally when I wear a corset I feel beautiful. Add a dash of red lipstick and I'm unstoppable!
-The reshaping of the body is temporary. When the corset comes off the waist reverts to it's natural size.

Cons:
-Possible Internal Organ Damage if you tighten too much, too fast. **It's akin to being wholloped in the stomach with a steel bar. Squeezing yourself into any shape that hurts is bad! It should be an obvious NONO** Literally go with your gut. Putting on a corset can feel a bit weird because you're not used to it but it should never hurt, be too hard to breath, pinch, poke, bruise, make your legs fall asleep etc. *extreme case

-Weakness of muscles or even atrophy of muscles unused to supporting the body without a corset *extreme case

-Exercise or activity requiring lots of movement can leave a wearer light headed and dizzy

-I've heard it said that corset wearers are slave to fashion. While perhaps less relevant now that corsets aren't an everyday garment it's still true someone who wears corsets regularly will have to plan outfits around their corset instead of picking a corset to casually amplify an outfit. And yet, the great thing about living in the 21st century is the choice I have as a wearer, not only in clothes but whether or not to wear a corset at all.

As with all of the above points I would like to note here that tightlacing SHOULD NOT be entered into lightly and without doing extensive research. The only way anyone could hurt themselves with a corset is to rush in and do something stupid. I'd also like to note that this little article here is not meant to be the be-all-end-all guide of information.

Have I grossed you out yet? If not here are some really great sources for more research and information.

The Long Island Staylace Association has a great directory of Medical Advice from an actual doctor who practices tightlacing herself. It's easy to read and she answers questions sent in from other tightlacers, so there's a good change that all of your questions are answered.

Lucy's Corsetry, a corset company based in the U.S., has a YouTube Channel called Bishonen Rancher and they have a list of videos under the title Physical Effects of Corseting. These videos are straightforward, clear cut and tell you everything you want to know but can't find on Google. This channel is amazing, especially for people wanting to get into tightlacing because they give you the facts without the naysaying, fingerwagging exaggeration that people who don't want to educate themselves about wearing corsets will give you.

Why the heck would you do something so crazy in the first place?

Besides the pro's and con's I listed above, tightlacing falls into the category of body modification. It's all about proportion. You can be really extreme, the way some people completely cover their face with piercings and others with tattoos. Or you can go about it in a milder approach- which I personally think is still pretty badass. I'm a huge advocate of body modification. I don't believe that anyone should be forced to get piercings or tatts to look cool but for me they've been milestones, meaningful, decorative, self affirming, confidence boosting and plain old awesome ;). I have wanted to wear corsets since I was twelve years old. If I'd been a more proactive or vocal about what I wanted teen I probably would have started wearing them sooner. But since becoming eighteen I've really spread my wings, and since becoming a burlesque dancer I've shed a lot of my inhibitions. Corsets are now something that's within my means of buying and acquiring and I have the stamina and determination to devote to them.

So let this delicious journey begin!

Saucily yours,
Miss Scarlet