Wearing a sports bra that fits well and is supportive sounds simple enough – but it's still a major issue for many women.
And wearing the wrong bra is more than just uncomfortable — it can do serious damage.
"A bra that fits will anchor our boobs to our body," says Tish Tily, co-founder and managing director of Melbourne-based sports bra specialty store She Science.
"And that is what helps to control our breast displacement when we're being active. A bra that doesn't fit can't do that."
Tily says everyday bras aren't designed to support breasts during physical activity.
"And our boobs move significantly more and differently when we're being active compared to when we're lounging or sitting at a desk.
"So anybody that's being active, needs a sports bra. And it's not just bigger-busted ladies, smaller-breasted women can experience exercise-induced breast discomfort and more benefit from being supported."
Wearing the right sports bra can help to reduce breast bounce and breast pain, increase comfort, and lead to better performance.
Tily's top tips include:
- Find a bra that fits — "If it does not fit you, it will not work"
- Wear a band that is snug around the rib cage
- See a specialist bra fitter that stocks a range of products in your size
- Understand you may need different bras depending on whether the activity is high impact or lower intensity
More than half of elite athletes wearing the wrong bra size
While the 'everyday' woman struggles to find the right sports bra – it's also a problem for elite athletes.
More than half of elite Australian female athletes have been found to wear the wrong bra size, including Melbourne Mavericks and England international netballer Eleanor Cardwell.
"I got the cheapest bra that I could find and probably didn't have enough money to invest in a good sports bra," she told ABC Sport.
"[I was] definitely wearing the wrong size as well, I think I was wearing three sizes too small.
"And then coming to training and being in a lot of pain and warming up I'm holding my chest. Because it's agony, just bouncing around everywhere."
Cardwell was fitted for a sports bra as a teenager, then didn't revisit it until two years ago, after the Commonwealth Games, when she was fed up with the pain and discomfort of wearing the wrong one.
"When I first realised that this was a problem, I got very overwhelmed with what I was looking for, especially in the larger sizes. I just had zero clue," she said.
So she put a call out on social media – asking her followers for advice.
After a huge response, she decided to start posting her own sports bra reviews to help others find affordable options.
"I would say I sometimes have struggled with body confidence. So, putting myself out there was very difficult," she said.
Cardwell's initial reluctance was quickly subdued after positive feedback, and the realisation that she was helping so many other people in the same boat.
"I feel like I've created this lovely community where now we all feel body confident, and we all just bounce off each other.
"I've got women now at netball matches coming up saying 'El, I loved your sports bra review. And then they lift up the top and show me the sports bra that they've got on."
Cardwell's top tips include:
- Get fitted professionally
- Find out about the different types of sports bras and see what works for you, e.g. encapsulation (cups to support each breast), compression (no cups, compress both breasts against chest), hybrid (combination of compression and encapsulation)
- The band should be snug, but not too tight
- For larger-breasted women, look for cross straps at the back for a more even weight distribution
Cardwell says sporting organisations can do more to support their athletes too, like providing custom fittings and sports bras, and greater education.
She's not alone. Sharks hooker and NRLW Indigenous All Stars captain Quincy Dodd says there isn't much knowledge around sports bras or breast protection among elite athletes.
"It's something that we'd love to learn about a bit more in the women's game, as it is such a contact sport and we are getting hit around that area," she said.
"It's not really a topic of conversation, the sports bra, it could be a lot more as is such an important part as breast injuries could occur."
Women with larger breasts avoiding exercise
Women with larger breasts face added challenges — some studies have shown they exercise less frequently and avoid high-intensity exercise.
Flinders University also found that women with bigger breasts believed a breast reduction would improve their participation, while those who'd undergone breast reductions said they led more active and healthy lifestyles.
Tily can relate. She was 17 when she had a breast reduction.
"The number one reason being that I'd always been very active, and then my boobs got just out of control," she said.
"And I completely opted out of activity, so mum and dad were obviously very worried about that. And being such an extreme case, that was the solution for me at the time."
Even after her breast reduction, Tily still struggled to find a sports bra that fit her properly, which is what prompted her to open her store – believed to be the only one of its kind in the world.
"The main demographic that we're seeing through the store is people getting back into activity, people that have had a significant shape change, that need advice around what's going to be best for them," she said.
Sports Medicine Australia has guidelines for exercise and breast support and notes the level of bra support needed depends on age, breast size, and type of exercise.
In some cases, women with larger breasts choose to wear two bras to get enough support, but Tily doesn't think that's necessarily the best option.
"I understand why people are led to it because the quality of product that's available in most retailers isn't good enough," she said.
"But it really shouldn't be the answer for most women. We see ladies up to a K cup in store and never have we had to provide a double bra as a solution."
Ill-fitting bras could contribute to teenage girls dropping out of sport
There are some studies that suggest nearly 90 per cent of teenage girls wear a sports bra that doesn't fit, and Cardwell thinks that could play a role in the large dropout rate of girls in sport and physical activity once they hit puberty.
"When I was that age, I was so uncomfortable in my body. I was in pain trying to do PE," she said.
"I loved sport and I would just do sport whatever it took for me to get through it, but some people might not have that drive."
Cardwell says sports bras should be considered an essential piece of sports kit in high school, and there should be education provided in the classroom.
"[So] they know that they're not alone, and that they don't have to be in pain every single day."