How to choose the right sports bra
Sports bras are an essential piece of any lingerie drawer, whether you’re a sportswoman, a gym-goer or you simply love to lounge in sports bras. Whatever your preference, it’s important to remember that when it comes to buying sports bras various factors need to be considered to ensure you get the very best design for you.
Making sure you choose the right sports bra can make a big difference to how much you enjoy the sport or occasion you’re wearing it for. It can be the difference between being uncomfortable or not for the duration of your workout, which can in turn affect the quality and quantity of exercise you achieve.
How to pick a sports bra
So, it’s time to choose your next or even first sports bra. This can be a minefield with all the styles, designs, colours and brands that are available nowadays. With so many choices to make, it can be hard to make a start. Fortunately, we can help.
Let’s start with one of the most essential questions: what is your budget? Once you have established that, you’ll find filtering through styles a lot simpler. The most expensive sports bra doesn’t necessarily mean the best - and in fact, the best sports bra for your gym buddy might not be the best for you as it’s such an individual decision.
With that said, it’s important to make sure you try various styles and designs of sports bras to find the one that best suits you. Size can also be experimented with - sports bras can be tighter than your everyday bra, so make sure you try on sister sizes along with your normal bra size. Sister sizes are where a slightly different cup and band size can also work for someone with the same size breasts depending on whether you want a tight or loose fit.
Most sports bras also have different USPs, from front zippers, hidden pockets, multiway straps, fully adjustable straps, multiple hook and eye fastenings or even just a pull-over-the-head style. All these features are important to consider when it comes to making that important buying decision, so it’s good to do a spot of trial and error if you don’t already have something in mind.
What impact sports bra do I need?
If you’ve ever heard someone talking about impact levels for sports bras, you could be forgiven for thinking it’s a complex science. In reality, it’s much simpler than it sounds - all you need to do is match the support offered by a given sports bra to the kind of exercise you intend to wear it for.
This can be a really important factor, and it’s vital to be aware that there’s no one impact level that’s right for you. Since it’s partly based on your activities, you’re likely to find that you need a high-impact bra for certain sports and a lower-impact one for others.
If you’re wearing your sports bra for higher impact sports such as running, football, hyrox, or cross fit, then it would stand to reason that a more supportive and compressive sports bra would be the better choice. Providing you with comfort, durability and of course that much-needed support, these types of sports bras can be a fan favourite too due to the fuller coverage they offer.
However, on the reverse of this, if you’re wearing your sports bra for activities such as strength training, hiking, yoga, walking or simply for everyday errands like a supermarket shop or just lounging around, a lower impact sports bra may be better suited. These styles still provide you with support and comfort, however, they generally have lower coverage which makes them great for everyday wear.
One last important thing to consider when it comes to choosing an impact level for your sports bra is that your bust size has an effect. As a general rule, the larger your bust, the greater the support you’ll need - so you may need a higher compression than a friend with a smaller bust even if you’re both doing the same sport.
Picking a sports bra should be a fun experience which you should enjoy. From core colours like black and white to more vibrant colours and patterns, with a wide range of styles and brands to choose from, there is definitely a sports bra (or 10) out there to suit you!
“The right bra can change your life. It's all about support and comfort” – Elle Macpherson. Personally, we couldn’t agree more! And this applies to sports bras too!
Happy shopping!