Exercise is good for your boobs; in fact, it may help to prevent cancer.
Which explains why I have taken up running. OK, it’s more like fast walking, but self-delusion is essential to starting a fitness regimen in your 50s. Still, even at my snail’s pace, I’m feeling the pain. There’s foot pain, knee pain, and then “jiggle pain,” i.e., the rapid-fire movement of my butt and boobs.
The pain in the rear actually feels good, because I think it’s doing good. After all, there are muscles under that fat that are tightening up. The boobs, on the other hand, are just fat sacks held up by poor, overworked Cooper’s ligaments, the tendons that have the sorry job of trying to defy gravity every day (Cooper, by the way, was a nineteenth-century anatomist).
In high school when I ran track and sported a perky pair of A cups, an Ace bandage wrapped around twice was enough to keep them in line. But my current generous Cs need greater engineering to avoid injury and embarrassment. And after watching the bounce-test videos at HerRoom.com (a great site that sells women’s underwear), I understand why. The tatas go up, they go down, they go side to side, in and out, even in a figure eight—I haven’t seen so much boob action since I was a cocktail waitress at a strip club in college.
Boob-bobbing is, in fact, a science that has been studied by the likes of LaJean Lawson, PhD, a former professor of exercise and sport science at Oregon State University, and Joanna Scurr, PhD, who is setting up Britain’s first research group for breast health. Scurr found that acceleration and deceleration caused the most breast discomfort, and that an encapsulation bra—one that separates the boobs into actual cups versus a compression bra, which flattens the breasts to the chest wall (Health’s running coach, Jenny Hadfield, refers to this classic look as the “uniboob”)—was best for those of us with larger fat sacks.
With that in mind, I did an informal survey to investigate my options. Health’s fitness editor, Su Reid, controls her Ds with Champion’s Powersleek bra and is crazy about the Bonita Run Crop from New Balance, which you can adjust to fit in two places. However, she laments the lack of colors and styles for women with bigger breasts. While there are some newer trends in bras (reversible, built-in heart monitor), most don’t come in her size.
To find my perfect sports bra, Hadfield, the co-author of Running for Mortals, suggests I measure carefully (HerRoom.com offers great measuring advice), do some jumping jacks or jog in place to check the bob control of each prospective bra, and choose my fabrics carefully. “Look for breathable synthetic fabrics that wick moisture away from the skin and have a gentle supportive stretch; they also help to minimize chaffing,” she says. “Stay away from cotton and any sports bra with a zipper. Although stylish, they have the potential to chafe and come unzipped.”
I definitely do not want to come unzipped. I need my girls to be on lockdown. So, in spite of all of the advances in bra science, I may just turn to an updated Ace bandage approach and strap these babies down with duct tape. That’s the low-tech method of runner Lady Jove, who gives taping instructions on her blog. And tape has the added benefit of color options beyond boring black and white. If you see a set of fluorescent pink knockers streaking by, you’ll know that’s me.
(PHOTO:REVELSPORTS.COM)
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Comments (2)
Ann,
First, please know that I am probably not one of the scientists who, according to humorist Dave Barry, “now believe that the primary biological function of the breasts is to make males stupid.” However, I did want to let you know you can give your breasts a lot more cred than just being ‘fat sacks’! In fact, they are first of all glands– ‘endocrine organs’ that produce helpful hormones and are exquisitely plumbed to deliver milk to newborn babies.
Second, thanks for posting the link to my first sports bra research study conducted in 1984. I hope women of all bra sizes will be reassured by knowing that some of their sisters have dedicated long years of their professional lives to the scientific study of better sports bras! In the nearly 25 years since my first research, as a consultant serving as Champion Athleticwear’s “Chief Breast Scientist” I have used advanced biomechanical motion analysis methods to study the breast motion of hundreds of women ranging from A to DDD cup, wearing every conceivable brand and style of sports bra.
But I know my work isn’t done when, in spite of the research and excellent products developed over the years for larger breasts, it is clear that deserving and desperate women still have difficulty getting hooked up with sports bra styles that meet the challenge of their size and exercise intensity.
Thank you for raising more awareness and pointing the way to resources! There are some super-supportive sports bras out there for fuller figures, and they aren’t as elusive as one might think. For example, at http://www.championusa.com, just click on the “Bra Finder” link, punch in your size, and you will locate a dozen styles specifically designed to provide high/maximum support to larger breasts. And in addition to HerRoom.com mentioned in your post, women can also find a variety of sports bra brands and high support styles at titlenine.com, nordstrom.com, and athleta.com, among others.
Best of luck in finding and filling those cups!
Anne,
I’m also a C-cup. I’ve found that the secret to finding a bra that wont allow for movement is to get one that is one cup size, and one band size smaller than your actual bra size. It is a little harder to put on…but they will not move any! I’ve found if you go with the size smaller it doesn’t really matter what bra you buy as long as it a good quality brand like Champion or whatever.
Good luck!