Ladies, take note of these facets of fashion that—over time—could be damaging to our bodies and our overall well-being.
Credit: Huffington Post
We all know that fashion can be a lot of things: exciting, transformative, communicative, and most importantly: fun. That said, there are some facets of fashion that—over time—could be damaging our bodies and our overall well-being (yeah, we know: not so fun). We’re talking about the actual things that we put on our bodies, as well as mind-sets we adopt for the sake of “looking the part,” which often means you’re not actually channeling legitimate style so much as you’re regurgitating what’s “now” as dictated by hoards of other people.
To explain what fashion habits—both literal and figurative—that could be doing potential damage, we enlisted Will Torres, a health and fitness expert and owner of Willspace, a private training studio in New York City. Read on to educate yourself!
1. Teetering On High Heels
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Probably one of the worst things you can do for your body alignment is wear high heels. According to Torres, walking on the ball of your feet forces your torso to lean forward, simultaneously forcing women to straighten out by leaning back. This puts an incredible amount of stress on the spine and compresses its discs over time. It’s really important to remember that injury is cumulative: It generally doesn’t happen overnight. It can take weeks, months, or years of altered movement to show up as discomfort which often presents itself as cramping in the toes and calves, and pain in the back and hips.
While there might not be many things that boost a woman’s confidence quite like a killer pair of heels, they can be a serious hazard, causing an incredible amount of pain and discomfort. Luckily, however, it seems heel heights have reached an all-time high and are starting to fall, which is good news for shoppers, as lower heels are everywhere, and really, really cute.
2. Lugging Around That “It” Bag
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The bigger the bag, the more things we find to fill the bag. Torres points out that women typically carry purses on one side, either on the shoulder or perched on their lower arm/crook of their elbow. This uneven weight distribution prompts the body to shift causing muscle imbalances and a slew of alignment issues, such as one shoulder being more developed and sitting higher than other (not a good look).
It can also create pain in the spine because the torso shifts to counterbalance the uneven weight. In addition, heavy bags can lead to neck discomfort and shoulder pain. A solution: Give your body a break and carry a small light bag a few days a week that’s free of extraneous objects: We’re partial to canvas totes, leather pouches or a paper-thin backpack so long as they’re generally un-stuffed.
3. Dieting and Striving for “Fashion Skinny”
Credit: Fashion Zoom
Even though Torres admits that Americans might eat too much as a culture, seriously restricting your food intake for the sake of looking “fashion skinny” can actually cause your metabolism to slow down and your body to store more fat.
While young adults who don’t eat regularly may see an initial decrease in body size, by the time they hit 30 years old, Torres says that their metabolism will be so slow that even looking at food the wrong way can cause weight gain. Along with a slowdown in metabolism, people who “don’t eat” wind up snacking, often taking in excessive sugar which is vile for the body and (ironically!) causes bloating and swelling.
Read more at StyleCaster.