You know sports bras stink, and now there’s science to support it.
A new study from the University of Portsmouth shows that breast movement negatively impact running form, and the poorly designed sports bras on the market aren’t doing their job.
By placing reflective markers on subjects’ breasts and tracing the movement with infrared cameras, researchers found that during running women’s breasts don’t just move up and down, they “arc” through a complex figure-8 pattern.
No sports bras are designed to handle this lateral movement, working either by encapsulation (cupping) or compression (smashing against the chest). The resulting discomfort can discourage women, especially those with larger bosoms, from exercising.
Australian scientists, after noticing how large-breasted women wearing crop-top sports bras running in water felt little breast discomfort, came up with a new experimental design that combines foam pads with compression to mimic the supportive buoyancy the water provided.
The result was a bra that prevented both horizontal and vertical breast movement. Women, particularly those with larger breasts, gave it higher comfort ratings by a huge margin.
Until manufactuers come around or people start making them on Etsy, the best bet women have is to:
Find a sports bra that “feels supportive,” Ms. White said. That advice may “sound obvious,” she added, “but many bras are marketed as a sports bra” but are instead “just a fashionable crop top that has very stretchy material and that would not provide a lot of support.” To test support, jump “up and down in the changing room and assess how much movement occurs.” The chest band should be “firmer than an everyday bra, but should not dig into your skin.” All in all, if the bra “is uncomfortable, then this is probably not the bra for you.”
Research Shows The Ideal Sports Bra Has Not Been Invented [NYT] (Thanks to c-side!)
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This is a great reason why we need more female scientists and engineers in this country. My guess is male researchers’ progress is consistently stymied at the point of “BOOBIES”.
“BOOBIES”
Where? Do you have pictures of some?
Ask and ye shall receive!
http://thundafunda.com/33/animals-pictures-nature/dancing-blue-footed-boobies-pictures.jpg
Heh. Nevertheless, Wild Wild World of Animals taught me that “Blue-footed Boobie” was synonymous with “disappointment” a long time ago.
There’s a whole website devoted to them: http://www.boobiesco.com/index.html
Enjoy.
oh, their twitter link at the bottom of the page is missing the ‘s’. But myspace & facebook links work.
I would think that male researchers were more fixated on trying to make said boobies bounce, than to stop the bouncing. (at least if my sports bras are any indicator
The rate of women in science has been steadily growing. The problem is we’re not focused on boobs, we’re focused on all that cool stuff that were formerly boys’ toys. Men are focused on boobs, they just don’t have them so have no idea what they’re doing.
Well, to be fair, boobs *do* fall into that category.. at least for men
SOOO true. When my husband (a scientist) sees me topless, his entire thought process spirals down to “Boobs! And I can touch them! SWEET.”
LOL
This is a GOOD THING. You really don’t want one of those guys who is going to be disappointed because you don’t have anime-style boobs your whole life.
…wait, what? Since when? And why wasn’t I notified?!
Lets be honest, the scientific community has never had that much experience with boobies, lol.
Which is why all those Nobel Prize Winning chemists, physicists, engineers etc. are all unmarried men.
Oh…wait…
I remember in high school seeing a, um, ‘well endowed’ girl running at the track, and thinking, “Good god that must hurt.”
And at the same time you couldn’t wait for her to round the track to re-evaluate that conclusion…
It does.
Like, a lot.
And the solution many of us work with (for me, it’s a supportive underwire bra with a sports bra on top, worn under a compressing tank-top with a shelf bra built in) can cause tremendous shoulder pain in under 15 minutes.
agreed, also you want to eliminate as much movement so that the men that drive by you running dont stare.
So cruel
Even having small boobs hurt. If there’s enough to bounce while doing downstairs, there’s enough to hurt while running. It really screws up your gait using your hands as a bra too.
See my comment above re: breast reduction.
Yeah I have a really awesome sports bra with underwire and cups that surprisingly came from victoria’s secret that straps them right in there but I do notice my shoulders start to hurt after about 15 minutes of jogging or so. But, my breasts don’t hurt so I suppose that’s a plus! C’est la vie!
My daughter sleeps in good underwire bras, and wears at least two bras, one a good sports bra, for athletics and running. I have no first hand knowledge of any of this, since I’m a B on a heavy day.
She has wanted reduction surgery since she hit the D stage more than 2 years ago, and she’s still growing (17 yo) and a DD. It will be a few more years before any reputable doctor will touch her, though.
Yes. It does. I have to wear two sports bras and I still feel uncomfortable. It sucks.
Breast reduction surgery. Best thing I ever did. And covered by health insurance because of my chronic back problems. Don’t waste another day in pain!
AMEN to that sista.
Same here… except my insurance company is currently trying to get out of paying the bill….
When I was a kid my dad used to point out which well endowed actresses on TV were wearing bras made by the factory he worked at. He could tell by how they moved. The bra was designed by an engineer. He also came home many times griping about having to fit a bra for someone who flew in especially for that. I think this must have been like the Lambourgini of bras or something.
Are you Howard Hughes’ son?
Man… what a smart guy your dad was… griping about fitting celebrities with their bras… genius…
I didn’t think that, I just wanted to go out with her! In fact I still do…23years and counting!
We have enough problems getting the populace to go to the gym – why are we working on removing one of the reasons men go to the gym?
More importantly, what can I do to hide this information from MY wife…
Men that oggle my boobs ARE one of the reasons I hate going to the gym.
Men that are so obvious are one of the reasons I sigh with resignation whenever leaving the house. Last night I had some dude on the street call out “Oh DAAAMMMNN!!!” just because my top fitted in a way that showed, yes, I have a large chest.
Sorry guys- nearly every girl with those big ol’ boobies would surprise you if she took off her bra for you. Most of the time, it’s a delicate art to heap all that fatty tissue into shaped cups. Remove the bra, and gravity shows you what a cruel bitch she really is. And yes, running hurts really bad.
Ladies feel free to send pictures of yourself in a sports bra so that I can tell you if it is supportive enough. I’m a professional, trust me.
Even with small boobs it hurts to run. I have to wear two to feel comfortable. Ridiculous.
Agreed. 2 bras seems to be one of the few ways to stop the bouncing, but at that point, all of the compression from the bras makes my stomach upset and kills my shoulders. >_
Hands.
but i bet their cute;) small boobs rock!
2 tin cans and some string…
Oh, sorry, that was my plan for a better telephone, now what did I do with the bra plans?
I have a hard enough time finding regular bras that fit well.
Maybe you’re using bad data on bra sizing. My g/f went to Lane Bryant and got fitted, and she noticed a tremendous difference. She is well-endowed, obviously, if she is going to LB.
You need someone who knows what they’re doing to fit you, and that might help find the right size.
I’ve been sized many times… but my boobs don’t sit down and to the sides like most bras are. Also, they don’t carry 34DD in many stores… I know at VS 36D is a “sister size” but I’m not paying $50 for a bra!
anyway I’m off for the day. Have a good weekend everyone!
They told me at VS that 36D is the same as 34DD and it is just not true. I second qwickone’s recommendation of Nordstrom. Unfortunately you will pay more than $50 for a bra. I think it’s worth it. You can always try Nordstrom Rack. They usually have something. Now I’m nursing and in a 34G I can’t go anywhere but Nordstrom and nursing bras run into the $80 range. bleh.
Online can be good too if you already know your size and what styles are likely to work for you. I love figleaves.com for larger sizes. Amazon can be good too. I was fitted for (and bought) a nice nursing bra at Nordstrom for $80 and bought a similar one in the same brand on Amazon for $35.
The CUP is the same size (at least it should be if they’re manufactured to the correct standard) but the band is obviously larger. As you go down a band size, you go up a cup size. So, the cup on a 38A is the same size as the cup on a 32D.
When I went to a boutique lingerie shop (shoutout, Town Shoppe in NYC!) I was amazed at how good my chest felt. Comfortable! I paid about 60 bucks a bra, and it was well worth it.
You don’t need a lot of bras. Buy two or three, then handwash them and hang them up at night. Takes a few minutes, is all.
I wear a 34G right now as well (32 weeks pregnant) and love the Bravado nursing bras. They also run about $45-50 each, but there are often good sales to be found online.
Gave up on running years ago, when I was a 38E.
Definitely go to a specialty shop. I have a small frame but am well-endowed, and the woman at the shop took one look at me and said I was wearing the wrong size. She took me down two band sizes and up two cup sizes, and although I almost cried (not happily) when I realized how large my chest actually was, it made a world of difference, and I feel better, and look way smaller. The bra was something like $75, but worth every penny. If you have a larger chest, you unfortunately can’t get away with the cheap bras small chested women can.
Yeah, and a lot of the bras just aren’t as cute and fun as they make for smaller chested women! Also, I like to show off a lot of cleavage and most DD bras are “full coverage,” which isn’t the look I’m going for!
And the “fitting” isn’t always the issue. My daughter, who is a 32-34B size runner, wound up with four areas about 3/8″ x 1″ where just the small amount of movement of the material back and forth during the hour run that morning had rubbed the top layer of skin off of her chest. Aside from the discomfort, no woman want sores on her decolletage.
It was the same brand she’d been wearing but that morning was the first with high humidity when she’d run outside. That was the only thing different about that run.
Lane Bryant has that size; I know because my g/f is about that size, too (thank you).
If you have trouble, I recommend a boutique lingerie shop. They are much more expensive, but it can definitely be worth it (depends on if it’s worth it to you). Also, I find that Nordstrom’s lingerie dept is quite good and less expensive than boutique (sometimes).
Nordstorms is what I was going to recommend. I went there and got fitted and found out that the Victoria’s Secret chicks had been lying to me for 5 years because they don’t actually carry my size. Apparently there if they don’t carry your size they just go up a band size and down a cup or something like that. Nordstorms had some extremely comfortable bras in my actual size, decent prices all things considered, and my back feels much better. Their customer service is really good, too.
So, I guess what I’m saying is Nordstorms is pretty awesome at bras and stuff.
Also I managed to spell it Nordstorms and not Nordstrom’s all three times I used the words. I am properly ashamed.
I managed to read it Nordstroms every time, though.
I have a bra size that doesn’t exist. Because if you’re tall and overweight you should be at least a C-D cup. Not so much…
I used to have the opposite problem. Tall and skinny, huge boobs. It was really hard to find a 36DD that didn’t look like a huge granny bra. Victoria’s Secret was the only place that had decent ones in my size. I am now, post reduction surgery, a very happy B cup with no problems finding bras.
Check out Dillards! I love their bra section which is in my opinion much better than Nordstroms. The brands I find that work best for me have been Modern Movement and Wacoal. 34DDD here.
padded breast plates??
They needed a University study to tell them that? Every woman I know could have told them that for free.
It sounds like the study was looking for why it was still a problem and how best to fix it, not so much ascertaining whether the problem existed.
The bra issue totally stopped me from being able to run or jump as I am a normal weight female with a naturally extra-extra large bust. There is no such thing as a comfortable bra of any type, they all totally fail from the engineering standpoint, as they put excessive pressure on the shoulders, upper back, and ribcage, rather than distributing the weight. the proper solution would be cantilever support from below plus slight compression to the midline with formed foam and a very WIDE band across the back. Narrow bands redistribute load on back muscles and cause backaches. Straps cause painful neck and shoulders. Constant pain caused me to start making my own upper support. ENGINEERS and MATERIAL SCIENTISTS: this is your chance to supplant the fashionistas (many of whom are male and have never worn a bra…uh, because they needed to)!
I recommend Enell sports bras. they are expensive but they last a long time.
Yes! I couldn’t remember the name but I was about to go dig it out and check. It is wonderful.
I just looked them up: how can one bra fit a C to a DDD?
Tried them. They killed, killed, KILLED my shoulders. Went into muscle spasms.
I have been happiest with Enell sports bras too. I have tried Moving Comfort, Champion, Nike, Under Armour, Adidas…everyone and my Enell bras fit the best and reduce bounce the most.
I am not sure how they can fit such a variety of sizes, but my bras work well. I am a 42 DD
Interesting, I’ll be looking into this, I’m in the same boat as the OP: not overweight but well endowed. It really sucks trying to do martial arts with these things sometimes. I’ve often thought about putting on my sports bra, then a cotton tank, and using a (not tight) wrapping of duct tape over the tank. I sometimes wear armor for weapons fighting and it seems like it would be a “light” version. =p
Ladies, I highly recommend this Champion sports bra if you have larger breasts: http://www.championusa.com/Champion/Products/Women-Champion/Women_ShopByCategory-Champion/Women_SportsBras-Champion/Women_SportsBras_Underwire-Champion/CH1694.aspx
I have had trouble finding a good one for years, and this one is a keeper! The sides are reinforced, it’s got underwire and a racerback style, but still can be adjusted via the straps (vertically) and across the back (horizontally). I bought a couple at Dick’s, but now I see they are on sale on Champions website… I hope they aren’t discontinuing them!
Good to know its hard to find a decent one, Nike makes one that has an underwire too.
Know any good sports bras in a 32GG? =
I feel you, and I’m a more reasonable (?) 34F.
And don’t you love how they suggest trying them out in the dressing room? Ha! As if stores don’t carry your size so you have to order all your bras from the UK and pray they hold all of your breast tissue? Bah.
It’s definitely good advice no matter what, the jumping bit. It just doesn’t work unless the store has one you can try on in the first place! For what it’s worth, I’ve had good luck bra shopping (just not sports bras) at Nordstrom. Even though I had to order my last bra, that was only because they didn’t have the right color in stock – the size itself was there!
I recommend figleaves.com (I’m normally 34DD currently 34G while nursing). I love them. I did a search for you there
http://www.figleaves.com/us/nsf/qwiseranswered.asp?dept=Womens_Active&answerhandle=15673&searchhandle=A%3dwomenswear+not+in+olet~B%3dwomenswear+not+in+olet~D%3d12~E%3d0^0^2^LifeTime~G%3d14121^2~K%3d4~L%3d1~M%3d8~N%3d3~&originalquery=Womenswear+not+in+olet&answerhandleback=15673&cm_re=lhn-_-Shop-_-cta6_Activewear
I love the site name! And thanks a ton for the link. I’ve been jogging in an old 36G (of the non-sports variety) and it’s really not ideal. x.x
This one’s pretty good, and it doesn’t give you that god awful uniboob
http://www.bravissimo.com/products/lingerie/sports-bras/freya/full-cup-bras/fyj3-details.aspx?colour=red&ck=C0ltqxqea5Q%3d
I approve of the lack of Baywatch jokes in the OP.
Now seriously- I am actually surprised this has not been “solved” yet. I guess all of the money has gone into the sexy side of bras instead of the comfortable side.
I highly recommend the Moving Comfort Fiona Bra. It is the only sports bra I can workout in comfortably.
http://www.amazon.com/Moving-Comfort-Womens-Fiona-Bra/dp/B001AP1QWK
Oh, and I forgot… it doesn’t create the dreaded UNIBOOB.
I thought that was “one, fantastic SUPERBOOB”, at least according to American Dad
I do not have breasts large enough that this is a problem, but I’m thinking many women in this thread would jump for a bra that gave them uniboob, if it held their breasts in place well enough to make said jumping pain-free.
Uniboob doesn’t bother me – I’m really don’t care if I look particularly attractive when I’m running.
I never understood why the “uniboob” is dreaded. Even with my sports bras on smashing the girls together and creating the “uniboob,” I’m sure not a single person would think I only had one massive, wide boob. I’m sure that anyone idiot would understand that there are TWO of them under the shirt.
I have larger boobs, all bras are uncomfortable. I hate that society makes me wear them. They are the most uncomfortable article of clothing. It’s like a torture device strapped to you all the time. Who invented the stupid thing anyway? Must have been a man. Nature intended them to flop down over, and the girls are most happy when they can be floppy and free!
I would love if women didnt wear them ..from a sympathetic standpoint only.. of course.. Its women (my wife being one) that talk to/about women when they dont.
When wifey comes home though, first thing she does is take off the bra and doesn’t put one back on till she leaves the house..She complains about her bra hurting and i tell her, then dont wear one..But she never listens..
Also, theres a myth (women driven) that if you dont wear a bra, then the sisters will sag alot more as opposed to none.
There have been studies that point toward an increased chance of breast cancer due to the unnatural increased temperatures caused by wearing a bra, and so far as the “sagging” caused by not wearing a bra, another study showed that sagging still occurred with women who religiously wore a bra, the sag-age happened between where the breast left the chest a where it lay in the bra, i.e., it lead to a more pronounced long tear drop shaped breast.
P.S. I submit that we Ban All Bras! (My former website.)
Actually, a lot of the concepts that contributed to the development modern bra came from women. But it’s not like women were going free and floppy before that and the bra was made to restrain them. Women had been wearing corsets; introducing the bra provided women with a less restrictive garment.
Uggh, not mine! I wear a bra ALL THE TIME unless I’m in the shower. My breasts aren’t even that big (38C) but I hate how they feel unsupported. I wear an underwire during the day, a Champion sports bra to exercise, and a softer, less constructed sports bra to sleep. Then again, I’m very picky about how my bras fit, so mine are actually comfortable to wear!
36G here and I couldn’t agree more. If your bra hurts, you’re wearing the wrong size. For me, going braless can be painful.
I wear a 34c, but according to the chick at victoria secret who measured me, I’m a 32d. I have tried every size that I can find in stores and they all hurt like hell. I do not wear a bra unless I leave the house or someone comes over. Let’s burn our bras!!
At 38D, there’s NOTHING comfortable about NOT wearing a bra. Then again, I’m not too happy with the brastrap perma-grooves in my shoulders. That makes me sad.
they “arc” through a complex figure-8 pattern
Well of course! That’s why tassels where invented long ago!
You know, this is actually a good point!
You know, if the tassels had the correct lengths and weights, you could solve the problem by killing the harmonic. Of course, if you got it wrong…
If you got the harmonic frequency all wrong, it’d be like that bridge in Washington State that went all wavy, then… kaplooie!
That’d be awesome!
You know sports bras suck, and now there’s science to support it.
Was I alone in laughing at that?
*wants to say something relevant to the article…but doesn’t use sports bras*
This is good news! I am disproportionally huge for the rest of my body, and short of escaping attack from a wild animal or something I do. Not. Run. I has to dance on stage in a leotard for a play a few years ago, and I wore a regular underwire bra, two sportsbras, two shelf tank tops, and two leotards. And I still bounced jumping around.
Of course, this bra would mean one less excuse for not going to the gym…
“they “arc” through a complex figure-8 pattern”
Well of course! Tha’s why tassels where invented long ago!
I saw an ad in a running magazine for a “new, improved!” sports bra a few years ago. The ad showed a young woman wearing 3 or 4 layers of inferior sports bras. I checked out the “improved” version online, saw that it retailed for >$40, and took their unintentional advice about the other option and started layering. Works nicely.
You’re thinking of CW-X. I learned the layering trick from that ad too–then I actually forked over the $$$ for one of their bras, and it’s worth it. They’re not perfect, but they’re the best compromise of support vs. not ugly I’ve ever seen. The CW-X Xtra Support bras are up to around $60 these days. Ugh.
Yeah… Seriously who can afford to buy $240+ worth of sports bras? I want to wear a clean one each day that I go to the gym. Layering is more economical. I had owned about 5 sports bras (mostly purchased at Target), but when I started going to the gym 3-5 days a week I bought another half dozen so I can wear two clean ones every day.
The layered approach was cutting into my shoulders and causing pain. So it was worth it to me. I’m up to 5 of the CW-X bras now and I don’t regret the investment a bit. I have cheaper, less supportive bras for weight training, yoga, etc. I tend towards shoulder trouble anyway so I’d rather spend the money on bras than PT.
It hasn’t been solved because to men, boobs bouncing in a sports bra is not viewed as a problem.
Why should men be the ones to solve the problem?
Title Nine (www.titlenine.com) FTW
I second that!! I’ve gotten my sports bras from them for years. Though you can’t try them on before hand, they give you plenty of information about each bra to help you decide which one to buy. They especially note which ones work better for larger cup sizes and which are better for smaller cup sizes.
“…and now there’s science to support it.”
LOL
I envision engineers in lab coats unsuccessfully trying to measure the love lumps with calipers.
Um, yeah. I mean, it should be pretty obvious that they haven’t made the perfect one yet. It’s still too difficult to find sports bras that you can take off and put on easily.
“By placing reflective markers on subjects’ breasts and tracing the movement with infrared cameras, researchers found that during running women’s breasts don’t just move up and down, they “arc” through a complex figure-8 pattern. “
Couldn’t they have just watched some Dead or Alive XTreme Beach Volleyball footage to learn that? It would’ve saved a lot of time and money.
XD
The boob physics in DOA games is insane and that’s just from seeing the ads and reviews.
And in education, adolescent boys are showing an increased interest in studying science!
At a G cup, I am skeptical that this “improved bra technology” will ever be available to me. I layer (as many women around here seem to) and am otherwise left to shopping for….nursing bras!
I find it hilarious that most bra companies make a-cup bras (why?! you might as well draw a bra on!) but not DDD or G cup.
Hey us A-cups need support to, believe it or not. Now, training bras? THOSE are useless.
What you say is true but maybe its because those of us with smaller endowments LIKE to wear bras and buy more of them?
That’s the only reason I can think of, though you are definitely right. I could probably get by wearing a really tight tank top with my Bs, doesn’t work the same with Gs.
-.- Wow, that’s pretty ignorant of you. “Draw a bra” Just… wow.
Look, I’m sorry you think great big bazooms are the only thing worth bellyaching over, but if you come into my sphere, we can go on a fruitless hunt for well-fitting bras together, and perhaps you can witness how the rest of us shop among non-existing selections.
Remember, anything more than a mouthful is wasted.
Your picture is much too young for you to be saying that!
I hate wire bras SO SO MUCH. But I also hate the non-wired ones lack of support.
Should have guessed that Ben would write a companion to his panties article…
so… they just watched tons of baywatch reruns?
This thread has an unfortunate lack of pictures.
Let’s get to remedying that, you know, for science.
… and in related news, the University of Portsmouth has received a sizable endowment from their research partner, a website called “jiggilyboobvideos.com”
“…sizable endowment…”
You owe me a new keyboard…
The best I’ve found: Under Armour Stabilty D High Impact Bra
http://www.sportsauthority.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3430427&cp=3077569.3079702.2806304&parentPage=family
Get one of those 25% sports authority coupons that are always out there and stock up. They are a bit smaller than the size suggests (they fit a bit tight) but after years of extreme back pain this helped a lot.
the article says the ideal sports bra hasn’t been invented. But if you read the comments the women keeping recommending Enell with high praise. And I agree. Outstanding product. Best sports bra on the market. http://www.enell.com/index.php
I’m glad it works for you. It gave me the worst muscle spasms in my shoulders. My boobs are set low (relatively) on my chest, and the Enell couldn’t accommodate that quirk.
Then I got the reduction, and all was well.
I may not have any idea on how to fix this yet but I would like to offer my services.. for… ummm… research. Yeah research… that’s the ticket!
This thread needs a gif animation to show this figure 8.
Why can’t I get research assignments like this? *sigh
Is this the lateral figure 8 they are referring to?
http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=102276180
(DO NOT open that link if you are at work or if you are drinking hot liquids. You have been warned.)
There is no such thing as a proper fitting bra and there sure as heck ain’t no perfect sports bra cuz women with big boobs cannot run without pain, discomfort, and major jiggling- physics is a bitch
There is no such thing as a proper fitting bra and there sure as heck ain’t no perfect sports bra cuz women with big boobs cannot run without pain, discomfort, and major jiggling- physics is a bitch
Get smaller breasts!
A floatation bra, or, as I call it….(wait for it)….”Tanks for the Mammaries”
I HATE sports bras. I have yet to find one that is comfortable and doesn’t wear a hole in my skin somewhere. Luckily, thanks to horrendous knees, I am not a runner, so bouncing isn’t a huge problem for me. What I would like to find is one that is easy to get on. My friend sent me this link a while back and I thought it illustrates the process of getting into one of these contraptions perfectly.
http://www.mcsweeneys.net/links/lists/25lefler.html
Best running bra, especially for girls with big real hooters, is a combination. This Lunaire bra:
http://www.titlenine.com/product/sports-bras-and-undies/medium-high-impact-sports-bras/318901.do
With this bra over it…in a small enough size:
http://www.titlenine.com/product/310900.do?w=tadpole
I am an F cup.
The Enell sports bra is the most marvelous sports bra I’ve ever purchased. Running, cycling, boxing, ice skating. The boobs DO NOT MOVE. It’s not uncomfortable, either. It closes in the front — a kind of hook and eye closure.
I used a lesser bra when I started running, and actually wound up with blisters on my breasts. This, as you might suspect, is painful. This bra has not let me down(ha!), and it’s about 18 months old.
It’s about fifty bucks, and well worth it.
For those that don’t read all the replies to comments, there’s a site devoted to ‘em: http://www.boobiesco.com/index.html
“Research Shows the Ideal Sports Bra Has Not Been Invented”
“Australian scientists . . . came up with a new experimental design . . .”
Shouldn’t the title read:
“Research Shows the Ideal Sports Bra Has Not Been Mass-marketed” ?
Since, the Australian scientists appear to have invented the bra in question…
I am a happy recipient of a breast reduction. At one point I was a 4’11″, 115 lb size 34 F woman. Running miles while I was in the Air Force was pure torture. People thought it was funny that I would hold my breasts with my inner arms (elbows bent), as I ran. But it was the only way to run fast without have these huge mamma-jammas bouncing all over the damn place. I used to wear a super-tight sports bra, then a little looser one on top of that one, then a much looser yet still somewhat supportive sports bra on top of those. Severely uncomfortable couldn’t describe how I felt. Good to know that (hopefully) more supportive sports bras will soon be on the market.
Best advice I can give to any women with larger breast sizes….
check your insurance, make sure it’s covered and get a reduction….
There is a calculation ( that I never knew about…) take off the “over the shoulder boulder holders” and stand up… if the lowest points of your breast reaches the bends of your elbows or below… (arms down, flat at your sides) then you are covered as long as your insurance (I believe all of them do actually) covers it… it’s undeniable… they cannot reject your claim, any surgeon worth a shit will take pictures that show JUST that image you’ll see in the mirror when you do this.
I’m not saying being natural isn’t beauty – but it’s not beauty we’re talking about here, it’s comfort….
I didn’t even care about potential scares… as soon as I could – I did it…. and the scares are practically faded… and I had my surgery 9 months ago.
I was a 40 F.. and that’s based on my bra size I assumed at the time… they took 1,000 grams of tissue and.. stuff.. from EACH BREAST…. and now I’m down to a high C.
I can walk around braless and with strapless bras.. IT’S FRICKEN AWESOME….
I pretty much had no pain.. I had awesome drugs…. awesome doctors…. your nerves are pretty much on vacation after surgery too so.. if you’re worried about pain, don’t be….
No more lower back pain, bra line pain, no more pain or “indents” from my bra straps – clothes fit better….
just awesome….
… don’t get dicked over by your insurance company – that’s my only disclaimer.
I remember reading about this research back in 2005. Maybe not the same EXACT research, but research into this very issue:
http://discovermagazine.com/2005/nov/physics-of-bras
Still nothing available that would be the fruition of the detailed research? Of course not. I’m sure they’ll be “researching” this subject until 2185….
…but if somebody invented something to prevent chafed ball-hairs on GUYS, within 6 months, there would be 14 patents, 48 products, late night infomercials by the dozens, health insurance coverage on it, and spam overflowing our inboxes, telling us ALL about it.
A GOOD bra for women? That will never come.