Best-kept secret: The new shapewear

MANILA, Philippines - What is that common advice to women, again, about keeping men around and interested? Be mysterious. Keep your dirty laundry to yourself, don’t succumb to the Overshare Syndrome, and have a functioning filter between your brain and your mouth. Be yourself, but a more intriguing version of yourself.

I’m not sure if I totally buy into this school of thought, but there are some benefits to knowing how to keep one’s self well put together instead of letting everything hang out — literally. Not everyone has the services of a Tracie Anderson and a gourmet chef at their disposal in order to keep a fit physique that will look good in vacuum-shrunk shifts and soldered-on pants, but there are tricks that even the average woman can employ in order to look her best on the outside, while still keeping it real on the inside. And no, it’s not the girdle that cuts the torso off in the wrong places and always threatens to ride up into unflattering rolls.

Touted as the modern body contouring shaper, Yummie Tummie is the hip, new shapewear that has gained the approval of both Oprah and Heidi Klum. Created by Heather Thomson, it is the answer to most women’s need for a contouring garment that neither looks nor feels like one.

Designed to be worn both as a foundation and as a layering piece, Yummie Tummie is made of a patent pending dual fabric technology that is comfortably smooth and lets the skin breath. It also lets “the girls” breathe, as the Yummie Tummie’s secret minimizing panel works from beneath the bustline down to the hips, offering full coverage even when the wearer is bending down, without constraining the chest. The firm control microfiber panel immediately takes away five pounds visually, as muffin tops and belly rolls are smoothed and kept down, while the bust and hip panels that are made out of cotton provide the freedom and comfort that an ordinary tank top gives. No boning or stitching peeks through; there is just a slim, smooth figure that belies the firm control holding all the extra flesh in. With sizes from extra small to large, Yummie Tummie also assures women of different sizes that there is a control shapewear garment that will fit their girth and their needs. With Yummie Tummie, it’s not about freakishly small waists matched to voluptuous curves, but rather great proportions that look good in any attire.

Wear it as an outer fabric, or under slinky dresses and shrunk-fit tops — either way, you’ll achieve a more streamlined and flattering silhouette that doesn’t tell the world, “Hi, I’m wearing a control top.” Maybe that’s what those dating advice books meant about keeping the mystery intact: look fantastic, but keep all the lengths you went through to achieve your fabulousness to yourself.

Tried and tested

A revolutionary garment such as the Yummie Tummie needs a little getting used to — anything that involves holding in lumps and bulges does. For speech therapist Mikaela Arroyo, the Yummie Tummie’s firm control microfiber fabric was a bit hard to get used to, since it doesn’t have much give. “But that is a good thing,” she reasons, “since it gives the top more longevity. It won’t stretch even after months of use.”

New mom Anna Hortaleza agrees. “It was a little difficult getting into it, but no pain, no gain. It retains its elasticity and has adapted to my body after I lost pregnancy weight — and it really does flatten my post-baby flabby tummy.” In fact, Anna deems it better and easier to wear than another popular shapewear. “With Yummie Tummie, it took me two minutes to get into one the first time I’ve tried it. It’s better than getting into a Spanx.”

One of the benefits of having a Yummie Tummie in her wardrobe is that it allows Mikaela to wear other clothing items that would otherwise look unflattering in her. She says, “I look less pregnant — and no, I’m not pregnant — when I’m wearing the top under an empire-waist dress.” It’s also versatile, as Mikaela claims, “You can use it when you do yoga or go to the gym, because it’s a basic garment.”

Comfort is a big factor that has won the two over to adding Yummie Tummie to their closets. “The material is not itchy at all,” describes Anna. Adds Mikaela, “The fabric is breathable, and that matters a lot when I’m doing a lot, when I’m running errands and sweating all over the place.” And while the top holds and smoothes down extra bulges, “it definitely does not restrict how much I eat,” Anna says. “I do feel full faster when I’m wearing one, so maybe it helps in that aspect,” Mikaela concedes. Real results and a placebo effect? Sold!

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Yummie Tummie is available at Mix Greenbelt 5.