Women: Hoist your girls!
Droopy, bouncing breasts that don't have the right support can undermine your fitness goals by causing pain. Sports bras can cut the pain without crippling your wallet.
Nordstrom offers certified bra-fitting services and online tips because, the retailer says, eight out of 10 women strap on the wrong bra size. Think about it. Ever had your band ride up your back? Bust spill out of cups? Or worse, give you no relief from that ripping feeling? Get help. The heavier you are, the more an expert can help. But if having someone push you around is too intimate, consider doing what my well-endowed friend and exercise pal Jeanne did. She stopped by a Danskin outlet and spent less than $30 on a bra that supported her without breaking the bank.
"Yes, it gives me a uniboob, but it straps them down," she said. Her solution lets her participate in step classes and she's comfortable enough to participate in some impact exercises. But while her Lycra and Spandex bra works by compressing her breasts, it's not the full support that many experts suggest.
Bras designed with side panels, individual cup support and rugged Spandex fabrics can support the robust among us both up and down and laterally. The combination reduces that ping-pong jogging jiggle.
Bra fitters also recommend that full-figured women look for bras that offer support in the lower and upper part of the cup. Cheaper bras often cover just the lower rim.
To get 360 degrees of support, one co-worker who is an exercise fiend swears by her two-bra method before hitting the streets for a jog. Yanking the goods out of her locker, she showed me her "industrial" bra with reinforced side breast panels and underwire. The second bra was a stretchy Nike sports bra one size smaller than she needed. Together they strap her DDs down and hold them in so running is not painful.
Hate the idea of two bras? Consider the $60 Enell Sports Bra, which has a wide band across the ribs, thick straps and hooks that link up the entire length of the sternum. It's not cute. It's effective, and that's what you want. The website TitleNine.com sells a similar bra made of nylon and Spandex for $60 that it calls the Last Resort Bra. It won a rave "five dumbbell review" from testers sporting DDD cups. Nordstrom's version is the Goddess Front Closure Sports Bra for $48.
