I think looking at some basics about waist trainers should come before we ask does sleeping with a waist trainer help lose weight?
Truth be told, waist trainers have more dangers than benefits to your health and wellbeing, and thus you should be highly cautious with them.
A waist trainer is an advancement of the corset, a type of body shaping undergarment or over-garment that was popular in Europe from the 16th century to the early 20th century. It represented an evolution of fashion, from people wearing only the clothes that would fit them, to reshaping their bodies so that they could fit into the curvier outfits they desired.
Waist trimmers can help you in your weight loss and figure-shaping journey but if you don’t put in the work and avoid bad eating habits, they alone will never help you achieve your fitness goals.
Here is the Table of Contents
What are the Benefits of Waist Trainers?
1. Checking your appetite
A compressed abdomen means that you will feel full faster than usual. But, you should ensure that you take a more nutritious diet in the now lesser portions and cut back on calories.
However, if you don’t want to take up strenuous exercise, you can try keto diet, a superior approach to weight loss that forces your body to start burning fat into ketones instead of relying on glucose from carbohydrates.
2. Hourglass silhouette
Firm waist trainers help to sculpt your body into a curvier shape. However, this kind of shaping is temporary and your body will get back into its previous shape once you stop using the undergarment and abandon your fitness goals.
3. Supporting weight loss efforts
A waist trainer can help you sweat more in the waistline, thus accelerating weight loss efforts (see reviews of waist trainers for weight loss at https://sweetskinliners.com/body-shape/best-waist-trainers-for-weight-loss/). However, if you’re not physically active, expecting a waist trainer to help you lose weight will be more of a fad than a fact. The slimming effect will be largely due to perspiration, and your stomach will get back to its bloated shape once you remove the waist training garment.
4. Improved posture
A waist trainer forces you to keep your back straight thus maintaining a good posture whether you’re sitting or standing. Take care not to overuse it since this will counter-intuitively weaken your abdominal muscles.
5. Postpartum recovery
Just like a postpartum belly wrap, a waist trainer can help to compress your abdomen after pregnancy, as well covering a C-section scar so that it heals faster. You just need to ensure that the figure shaper has a soft lining and it doesn’t have hooks or boning that can hurt you.
Risks of Wearing a Waist Trainer
1. Damage to internal organs
Wearing the wrong kind of waist trainer or wearing them for long can push internal body organs like kidneys and liver out of their natural position thus impairing their function.
2. Impairing body posture
Over-relying on a waist trainer for body posture can weaken your core muscles leading to poor posture and back discomfort. Talk of something aggravating what you’re trying to fix.
3. Preventing proper digestion
A waist trainer that is too tight can constrict the digestive tract, affecting digestion. This can potentially lead to acid reflux, the burning sensation that you feel when some of the food content in your stomach moves back into the esophagus.
4. Potential reduction in breathing
Overcrowding of compressed abdominal organs can restrict relaxation of the diaphragm, potentially reducing your lung capacity by 30 to 60%.
Can You Sleep in a Waist Trainer?
Figure shaping garments have tremendously evolved since the days of the rigid corsets that had to be pulled around your waist by two people. You can now get a flexible and lightweight waist trainer that is safe to wear as you sleep so that you can get your desired slimmer waist faster or recover your postnatal body.
Your line of work or summer weather may prevent you from wearing a waist trainer during the day, leaving you with no option but to use it at night if you’re still committed to your fitness goals.
How to Sleep in a Waist Trainer
1. Loosen your waist trainer
A waist trainer with hook and eye closure and/or Velco straps is the best for sleeping with so that you can adjust it to a looser fitting. Of course, it shouldn’t be too loose because that will defeat your intention and the results that you’re seeking. Simply let it fit enough to sleep in it for the next eight hours.
2. Breathable cotton interior
Sweat-wicking cotton and spandex fabric will ensure that you’re not roused from your slumber due to soaking in sweat.
3. Consider a short waist trainer
A short waist trainer such as Mecapo Adjustable & Non-Slip Waist Wrap with Loop Design will only compress your tummy area and not the whole torso. Such a design is much unlikely to impede your breathing.
4. Don’t sleep in a brand new waist trainer
It takes a couple of days or weeks for a new shoe to mold itself to the shape of your foot and a waist trainer is no exception. It’s better to sleep in a waist trainer that you’ve worn a couple of times and you know that it fits you well without any discomfort.
5. Find your comfortable sleeping position
If you’re a back or side sleeper, it’s advisable to strategically use light and soft pillows to support your lower back and relieve the pressure of your body weight. Remember to support your head as well so that your spinal cord maintains a straightened position.
Dangers of Sleeping with a Waist Trainer
Besides impaired digestion, acid reflux, and potential damage to internal body organs, sleeping in the wrong waist trimming garment can cause more issues such as:
1. Its discomfort can deprive you of sleep
Impaired breathing and compressed organs will be uncomfortable, lowering the quality of your sleep or depriving you of sleep altogether. Long-term sleeplessness can cause problems such as amnesia, dementia, high blood pressure, and obesity.
2. It can hurt you as you sleep
While you’re sleeping, you’re never aware of the position your body takes. If you sleep in an awkward position, a waist trainer with hooks or steel boning can poke and hurt your skin. You could also be the one to damage such an undergarment.
3. Obstructing your breathing
Reduced lung capacity will lead to oxygen deprivation, and this can even affect your heart rate and brain health.