By now you’ve probably heard about waist training, whether you’ve seen celebrities sporting their workout bands on social media or your friends have started wearing them. Waist trainers look cute and appear to make you slimmer, but perhaps you’re still wondering what all the fuss is about.

Some people love their waist trainers because they do so much more than just make you slimmer for that one Instagram pose. Many of our customers are pleasantly surprised when they discover the unexpected results of our most popular waist-slimming garments. If you’re trying to decide whether or not to give it a try, consider these five waist trimmer benefits.

1. Immediate Slimming Results

When you first put on a waist trainer that is fitted properly, you’re going to see results immediately and anytime you're wearing the garment. You’ll notice an hourglass curve at your waist that eliminates muffin top and prevents your belly from sticking out. If you take measurements, you waist could be up to 4 inches slimmer instantly.

For this reason, waist trainers make excellent special occasion garments, as they can help you fit effortlessly into tight-fitting or flowing dresses, pants and skirts. Every body type benefits from having a more defined waistline.

In order to achieve the best results when you first try on your waist trainer, it’s important that you garment fits correctly and is a style ideal for your body type and lifestyle. Check out our complete guide to help you determine your ideal waist trainer. Also be sure that you are sizing your waist trainer correctly by following the sizing chart for the garment of your choice and taking accurate waist measurements.

2. Enhanced Workouts

It’s a good idea to work on strengthening your core when you’re wearing a waist trainer for the best results. A waist trainer should not take the place of strong core muscles; rather they should complement each other.

A workout waist band can be an indispensable part of your workout wardrobe, which is designed to provide firm compression during vigorous movement and will help you sweat harder for a more effective workout.

The garment stimulates thermal activity, literally increasing your body's natural heat. This makes you perspire more in the areas where you're trying to slim down—so you're getting more from your workout without the extra effort.

Some women prefer using a waist trainer exclusive for working out in. In fact, our most colorful, selfie-worthy waist trainers are ideal for this purpose and are meant to be shown off!

Wearing a workout band can complement a number of exercises, including but not limited to running, walking, racquet sports, aerobics, circuit training and strength training. We highly recommend you incorporate strength-building workouts for your whole body, but especially your core. Check out these workout recommendations if you need inspiration.

Workout waist trainers are great on their own, but if you want to follow an everyday waist training regimen, we highly recommend that you also use your favorite everyday waist trainer for the best results and to keep your workout band fresh and clean.

3. A Supplement to Your Long-Term Slimming Goals

Many people use waist trainers to supplement their other slim-down goals. And because of the heat-stimulating properties, the more you use your waist trainer, the more you’ll know your efforts are working. For the best results, we recommend wearing a waist trainer 8–12 hours a day, but keep in mind that results will vary depending on your lifestyle, goals, body type and other factors.

If you’re new to waist training, we recommend starting out slowly. Wear your waist trainer for just an hour or two for the first couple of days and then slowly wear it for a little longer each day. You can take a break in the middle of the day if needed, or even take a day off. But stick with it and be consistent. After 2–3 weeks it will feel totally natural to wear your waist trainer all day.

Be sure to check out some of our customer stories to discover what real women’s results can look like. These are everyday women of all shapes and sizes who have benefitted tremendously from wearing a waist trainer.

4. Corrected, More Confident Posture

One of the unexpected benefits of wearing a waist trainer is better posture. It’s something that many of our customers have been pleasantly surprised to discover, and it’s one of their favorite benefits. Professional women who sit at a desk all day tend to slouch, which is a big no-no for your back. While wearing a waist trainer, the compression forces to sit up straighter and thus provides more posture support.

The corrected posture is good news for your back, but that's not the only benefit. You’ll look and feel more confident simply by the way you carry your torso. It's a look of confidence. Nonverbally you can send a powerful message just by standing a little taller.

5. Motivation for a Healthier Lifestyle

Sometimes one of the biggest hurdles to losing weight or getting healthy is the motivation to get started and keep going. Sticking to a healthy diet and going to the gym day after day can be difficult to keep up, especially if you hit a hurdle or a plateau in your progress.

That’s where waist training can really benefit you—by keeping you going. Many of our customers have testified that they didn’t start out with healthy lifestyle changes when they started waist training, but once they got a vision for what their bodies could look like, they were more motivated to stick with it.

It’s tough to make major changes to your lifestyle, but the first start is to just do something. And that something leads to other changes, until you find that being healthy is just a part of who you are. Waist training is just one piece of the puzzle, but for many women it has been exactly what they have needed to get started and stick with it.

It’s evident that, while a waist trainer can provide instant results in slimming and enhancing your figure, it does a whole lot more. Not only will you love the way you look and feel, but your close friends and family will probably start noticing how you're changing and will wonder what your secret is!