Corsets

So from what I've read (and I've never actually tried it so this is only based on reading that I've done) if you wear one pretty much all the time, your organs move around (similar to pregnancy) so you waist will be smaller but not due to fat loss. I've also read that it can make your core muscles weaker (with constant wear) because your body doesn't use them and cause shortness of breath (because your organs are pushing against your lungs).

Again this is just what I read and may or may not be true, however, based on that alone, I wouldn't do it...

they're fine, as long as you don't wear it all the time and not tightlacing. Better to permanently reduce your waistline with fitness.

I don't really plan to wear one ALL the time, i just have some cute shirts that are meant to be tight and until I can lose my belly fat I want something to help in that area.

Then I'd suggest Spanx rather than a corset.

For temporary reduction? Yeah, they can be a quick fix to fit in clothes. However prolonged wear is definitely not suggested for the reasons already mentioned. They can do some serious damage. Spanx and other such shapewear would be a better solution.

edit: and if you do decide to go for a corset, don't buy the cheap ones with plastic boning. They are horrible at keeping their shape and are then useless for shapewear. Look for steel boning.

I do not currently own one. but I plan to get one instead of wearing a dumb bra! Bra's hold toxins in your skin where they sit which isn't good either!

Cathie Jung, woman with the smallest waist achieved it with "corseting".

Her husband is an orthopedic surgeon. I can't believe he allowed his wife to take it this far. Then again, maybe she is his Frankenstein.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrx3jgqJy1E
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LXRrkV1nVh8

Not a corset but I've been known to rock the shiz out of a girdle. It didn't slim my waist but I did gain about a B cup...too bad it was on my back.

they're fine, as long as you don't wear it all the time and not tightlacing. Better to permanently reduce your waistline with fitness.

I don't really plan to wear one ALL the time, i just have some cute shirts that are meant to be tight and until I can lose my belly fat I want something to help in that area. That is crazy about moving your organs tho. I'll have to research more.

If you have tight shirts that you want to wear you should probably wear Spanx under it or something. A corset is going to show really bad underneath a tight shirt. You'll have lumps and lines everywhere lol

I'd say get some Spanx.

Much smoother looking if you're planning to wear it under clothing ... But not very sexy looking.

Interesting that next to your question to start the thread there is an ad for corsets. Ninerfbuff is correct about the fainting couches. That's what smelling salts were for, too, since they needed to be revived after being deprived of oxygen because they couldn't take a deep breath. When women wore corsets from the time they were in their early teens, even into pregnancy until they couldn't wear them any longer, and resumed after, their ribs were deformed much like the feet of the Chinese women that were bound. The deformation of the ribs left no room for the lungs to expand, interfered with the heart doing its job, cramped the liver, stomach, pancreas and spleen. It was one of the cruelest fashion fads of all time. Unless you are still growing, it will never do anything permanent to your waistline except make it hurt. They might be fun to wear for a short period of time, if it fits comfortably, and if you intend to have it taken off of you soon after putting it on. Otherwise, I wouldn't bother. The shapewear that is available today is really just another word for "girdle" like our mothers and grandmothers wore. It can help you look smoother under your clothes, but nothing will keep you that way except exercise and strength training. Work your abs so you can bare them and show them off, not hide them under a corset.