Maternity Shapewear: Choosing The Best Postpartum Girdle For Your Body Shape
April 06, 2020Learn how to find your body type and the ideal maternity shapewear for you! Choosing the right postpartum girdle for your body shape it's not just about the looks. It's also a way to help you stay comfy, snug, and confident to move around. Wearing a compression garment that looks and feels like it was designed just for you it's a huge game-changer!
For starters, let's agree on something: every single type of body shape is gorgeous as it is. However, your needs may differ from the ones of other women. And just as that refers to the type of activities you do, your diet, your genes, and so much more, it also applies to how your maternity shapewear fits your body. If you are a petit new mum with a short torso, why choose a postpartum girdle that's designed for women with a longer upper midsection?
In this article, we show you how to find your body type! We'll also explain the specifics for each of the 5 most common shapes, and which models of maternity shapewear and postpartum girdles will help you ease your way into child birth recovery.
How To Find Your Body Type
If you are already way into your pregnancy and planning for your postpartum recovery, it may be hard to be too specific on your measures as your body is already changing, so just focus on the overall proportions of your body. New mums that have already given birth and are still losing weight, take this just as a reference for gaining knowledge on what will suit you best.
We'll show you how to take your measures, but in reality, most people can guess their body type just by taking a good look at themselves in the mirror!
If you are comfortable with it, grab a measuring tape! You'll need to find out the relation between the different parts of your upper body -these are shoulders, bust, waist, and hips. We'll also tell you how to figure out if you have a long or a short torso!
Bust
Take the measuring tape and place it gently around the fullest part of your bust. It's up to you to wear a bra or not for this, but remember the tape needs to be just a little bit tight -don't compress it against your chest.
Shoulders
Same here! Wrap the tape around the top of your shoulders, at their widest point above your shoulder blades. Check that it doesn't slip off!
Waist
Place the tape on the narrowest bit of your waist, which usually is just above your belly button, and below your rib cage.
Hips
Stand with your feet slightly apart. Find the broadest point and wrap the measuring tape around it. Make sure it's not too tight or too loose!
For accurate measuring, always make sure the tape is placed horizontally, parallel to the floor.
In this video, we show you how to measure your hips for ordering your Bellefit Postpartum Girdle.
Knowing The Length Of Your Torso
Getting the right compression garment for your body type is also closely connected to the length of your trunk.
To get your torso's measurement, find where the neck connects with your shoulders. Measure down along your spine up to the base of your back, which is where your hips start. Place your hands on your hip bones and extend your thumbs towards your back to find the exact spot!
The average torso length for women of " 5'2" to 5'6" height is 15" to 17." Identify if your torso stands within these measures and use it to understand which type of compression garment will suit you best -more on that below!
What Are The Different Body Types (And Why It Matters When Choosing Maternity Shapewear)
There are many different body types as we are all different and come in all sorts of sizes and shapes. With the purpose to help you choose wisely, we've selected the 5 Main Body Types and which specific compression garment to use for it!
The most likely is that after child birth, you'll try your best to get back into your pre-pregnancy body. Each type of shapewear is functionally designed to compress certain areas of your trunk and back to give you both the right support and a slender look.
Some will also press your hips and hold your bum, which comes very handy when your hips have widened or if you suffer from back pain!
1. Pear Shape Or Triangle Shape
The main characteristic of this body type is that shoulders and bust are narrower than hips. You may also have a defined waist that softly leads into your hips and a full rear -sexy momma!
Another trait of the Triangle Shape is weight gain around the hips, bottoms, and thighs.
Best Maternity Shapewear For Pear Body Types
For Pear Shape or Triangle body type, we recommend wearing the Bellefit Bodysuit Corset! Its adjustable and removable straps and upper back coverage will help enhance your breasts and offer support along your whole spine. The corset will also keep your bums and hips covered, protected and contained, which is great for women with wider hips and a curvy rear!
This bodysuit is also excellent for women with a long torso.
Check out the Bellefit Bodysuit Corset here!
Another great option for women with this body type is the Bellefit Girdle Pull Up -only after natural child birth. This girdle offers a high level of compression designed to protect your back and core, but also has full rear coverage. The best thing about it is how the tension is distributed evenly along your trunk. This is very important as for this body type, the center of gravity revolves around the hips. Balancing your torso will give you more comfort.
Check out the Bellefit Girdle Pull Up here!
2. Apple Shaped Or Inverted Triangle Body Type
The main characteristic of this body type is that your shoulders are wider than your hips. Plus, your waist may not be too defined and your hips may not be as curvy. Women within this body type usually have thin legs and thighs, with weight being evenly distributed across the trunk and average-sized breasts.
Best Maternity Shapewear For Apple Body Types
We've chosen 2 different types of maternity shapewear to help you feel curvy-licious while you recover from child birth!
The Bellefit Corset Thong has adjustable and removable straps that will help your breasts stand out if you wish so. Plus, its thong rear will help shape your bottoms. This girdle will also keep that annoying back bulge and muffin top on check! You can wear it when swelling is at its peak, both after natural birth or a C-section.
Check out the Bellefit Corset Thong here!
The Bellefit Girdle with Front Zipper is another sweet choice if you are not a big fan of thongs and prefer full rear coverage. This compression garment will help shape your waist harmlessly as it's been designed for new mums with gentle curves.
Check out the Bellefit Girdle with Front Zipper here!
Both of these compression garments are great for apple shape or inverted triangle body types because they help to softly define your waistline giving the firm compression of a medical-grade girdle. The Bellefit Corset Thong will also focus a bit more on your bust and bottoms, so of course, it's up to you to decide what suits your recovery better!
3. Oval And Diamond Body Types
These body shapes are all very similar as they refer to women who gain most of the weight across their midsections -stomach and back. Diamond-shaped bodies have broader hips, and narrow bust aligned with the shoulders. However, if you have a prominent bust your body type could be the Oval. The other only main difference is Diamonds carry a bit more weight on their thighs, where Ovals have thinner hips and slender legs.
Best Maternity Shapewear For Oval And Diamond Body Types
One of our new mom's favorite comes up again! The Bellefit Bodysuit Corset is great for Oval and Diamond body types because it's full back coverage help dissipate the wicked back bulge and love handles! Also, it's removable straps and rounded front helps enhance your bust.
Check out the Bellefit Bodysuit Corset here!
Our second top choice is the Bellefit Abdominal Cincher Corset -which is also good for ladies with long trunks! With 2 front and 2 rear bonings and powerful compression panels, it helps to define your waist shape -big time! Its frontal 3 rows of hooks also let you keep up with your progress as you start getting back into your pre-pregnancy shape.
Check out the Bellefit Abdominal Cincher Corset here!
4. Rectangle or Straight Body Type
Are your shoulders the same width as your hips? Is your waist not hugely defined? Maybe your buttocks are not too curvy? Then you may have a rectangle-shaped body. Some people refer to this body figure as the "athletic type" as the waistline looks quite straight and your general measurements are quite uniform.
Best Maternity Shapewear For Rectangle or Straight Body Type
Mums with straight body shape, check out the Bellefit's Pull Up Girdle or the Bellefit Girdle with Front Zipper! Both compression garments offer full support and are designed to fit bodies that are not that curvy.
The Bellefit Pull Up Girdle is recommended after natural child birth, whereas the Bellefit Girdle with Front Zipper is meant for both types of deliveries. Both garments will accompany the natural shape of your body and flatten your tummy for a slender look and feel.
Check out the Bellefit Girdle Pull Up and the Bellefit Girdle with Front Zipper!
5. Hourglass Body Type
Women with this body type have a wide bust, wide hips, and a narrow waist. As shoulders and hips are the same widths, and the waist is quite defined, this is the body type that's usually taken as a referent when styling and finding flattering outfits. Keep in mind this is not a very common body type. Sometimes a pear-shape body can be confused with an hourglass, but the actual most common shape is the straight type!
Best Maternity Shapewear For Hourglass Body Type
We have our Nr 1 bestseller for you, mostly because it's a postpartum girdle that can suit every single woman on Earth! The Bellefit Postpartum Corset with full rear coverage will accompany the natural curves of your body and help flatten your tummy as you recover from child birth.
Check out the Bellefit Postpartum Corset here!
If you had a natural birth, then we'd recommend the Bellefit Girdle Pull-Up, so you can go back to wearing those tight dresses in no time -while you wear a compression garment that's completely invisible under your clothing!
Check out the Bellefit Girdle Pull-Up here!
Sources:
https://www.sportsrec.com/tell-long-short-torso-8251478.html
https://www.healthline.com/health/women-body-shapes
https://www.stitchfix.com/women/blog/fashion-tips/find-fit-for-your-body-type/
https://www.metdaan.com/5-common-female-body-shapes/
https://shopyourshape.com/body-shapes/oval-body-shape/