What’s in a Bra? (Sorry guys, this one’s for the girls)

Bras are hard to find, even for just day to day living. You need one that doesn’t show through your clothes, one that feels comfortable, one that will support and one that will ease your day because you are not worried about your bra all the time! Add exercise to the mix and the whole thing gets that much more complicated. Large retail lingerie stores are often no help.

Bra’s come in standard sizes, rarely the ones anybody actually needs. The sales ladies are often as equally unhelpful as the wrong size bra! But, these stores don’t cost an arm and a leg, and the right boob! So it is the most convenient for many women. But, how often do they have sports bras? NEVER! Turning to the athletic stores are even worse than the lingerie stores. The sales people are usually young adults or teenagers, often guys who are really into basketball or soccer or some other trendy sport, and the thought of bras just embarrasses them, so getting help can sometimes be a problem. In this article I hope to give you the tools you need to walk into a store and find the bra you need. Knowing what you are looking for helps when you get bamboozled by sales people, or when you get ignored by sales people. And, I’ve given my own bras a few reviews and gone shopping to find some new ones for you to try!

Some of the most important things to look for when shopping for a sports bra are design and fabric. We wear sports bras to support ourselves during the high impact movements of working out. It’s important to have really great support so that injuries related to the back, shoulder, and upper arm areas do not occur due to forceful movement of the breasts.

A word about design: All sports bras are not created equal. Two versions of the sports bra exist, one is really great and one is just okay. The encapsulation version is considered to be the optimum design for support and comfort. Encapsulation bras have molded cups that support each breast separately. They are designed to cup and hold rather than flatten and squish. Most encapsulation bras also have clasp backs. This is great in that you don’t have to struggle to pull them on and off over your head. The clasp also lets you tighten the bra as it stretches out, because it naturally will stretch a bit over time (hand washing can help to reduce this stretch).

The second type of sports bra is called the compression bra. These bras are much more common in stores but they are not ideal for women with a cup size above A or B. Compression bras flatten the breasts against the body and have one panel for both breasts to sit in. This creates what is affectionately referred to as uni-boob. Compression bras do not provide as much support as encapsulation bras do because their purpose is simply to squish.

Some other key design features to look for are thick straps, wide bottom band, seams and fabric. Thick straps really increase the amount of support that you will get. The Y back or racer back design is considered one of the most supportive designs out there, but the most important thing is that the straps are wide, aim for ½ an inch to 1 inch. A wide bottom band is also important. The wider the band the more support the breasts will have from underneath. The bottom band also helps to keep the bra in place. Thin bands can sometimes role under and cause discomfort, a wide band is more likely to stay put. Seams can also be a cause of discomfort in sports bras. They can be irritating to skin if they rub and sometimes cause chaffing. Look for a seamless bra or one that had covered seams. Finally, fabric; fabric in sports bras is very important. You want something that feels nice against the skin but that also has a ‘wicking’ quality. Wicking means that it will not retain sweat making your bra all wet but rather the fabric will absorb it and move the sweat away from the body so that you don’t feel like you went for a swim.

I’ve done a little review of my two favourite sports bras to give you some ideas of where to go shopping.

Joe Fresh Sports Bra Hard to find, but worth the search.  The thick, stretchy fabric really feels supportive but comfortable.  Before putting it on I wasn’t sure how it would feel as the fabric really is thick!  But once it was on and I was in the middle of my exercising day, I couldn’t even feel it!  When Joe does actually have these in stock, I grab one in any color available!!!  Fabric is a mix of nylon, spandex and cotton.  Price point: $

Nike Fit Dry Bra This bra is supper supportive.  A bit hard to get on as it is really tight around the ribcage strap, but feels secure.  Not the most comfortable, but it does the job well, especially with the added cup support which is invisible from the outside!  Fabric is a mix of polyester and spandex.  Price point: $$$

And… I went shopping! I went to Mountain Equipment Coop and Lululemon to try on some bras and report back to you. At MEC I tried on the Champion Sport No Poke Wire Bra ($49.00) an encapsulation bra with clasp back and adjustable straps…

and the Moving Comfort Fiona Bra ($50.00) an encapsulation bra with clasp back and adjustable straps.

The Fiona Bra has fantastic reviews on the MEC website!

At Lululemon I tried the Ta Ta Tamer Bra, Style #LW21495 ($58.00) also an encapsulation bra with clasp back and adjustable straps.

I hope this information will help you out the next time you go shopping for a sports bra.