After having a baby, shapewear has been known to help train and mold your body back into your normal shape. It can also help to redefine your shape with the proper exercise and dieting.

One of the best know typoes of Shapewear is the Girdles

A girdle is an elastic undergarment designed to shape and smooths a woman's figure from the waist (or neckline) to the thighs. It is made to aesthetically mould a woman's figure and may consist of garters. Any girdle is designed with a rubber like fabric which is tied with hook and eye closures. Most fashion historians agree that a girdle was invented around 1910 by the French designer Paul Poiret, to be worn with the clothing he was designing. Compared to the fashions of the period 1830-1910, Poiret's revolutionary designs placed much less emphasis on the waist, and fit much closer to the body at the hips and derriere. Poiret's revolution became permanent in the 20th century. His new understanding of the way in which women's bodies should interact with their clothing and his invention of the girdle were major reasons why the corset, which had determined the shape of women's clothing for most of the previous five centuries, went out of fashion.

Girdles were worn by most women throughout the period 1920-70. They were an important part of the fashion aesthetic of these decades. A woman needed to be smooth and sleek if she were to look her best in most of the fashions of this period. Most contemporary girdles are made from interwoven nylon and Lycra spandex. Those made from this blend are the most comfortable that have ever been made. And although they are light and easy to wear, they contour and shape the body as well as the significantly heavier and stiffer girdles that were worn before Lycra was developed in the early '60s. Today's girdles are generally classified as "light control", "medium control", or "firm-control". The difference in the degree of control usually indicates the weight or thickness of the girdle material, or the degree to which a girdle is paneled. That is, a firm-control girdle will have a greater number of panels in which the fabric has been doubled or tripled for a design that has more contour or "control" power. Although most are relatively light-weight pull-on garments, it is still possible to find girdles that contain boning, or which must be hooked and/or zipped.

Many styles also incorporate materials like rayon, cotton, or satin. Girdles have almost completely replaced the corsets in usage and popularity as they are more effective in making the figure of a woman attractive, smooth and pleasing to the eye.