Padded sports bras

[Crankin]

Well, I don't think padding would breed bacteria any more than any other material. Of course, I don't think about stuff like that, for anything, really. All my sports bras get washed in hot water and hung up to dry...
You may think it is silly, but it's not to me. If something makes me feel better about the way I look, than I am going to do it. There's always a lot of discussion about finding larger sized bras and the problems inherent with having large breasts. Frankly, it's almost impossible to even find bras in an A cup size, especially sports bras. Thankfully, I live near a real lingerie shop where I buy my regular bras, after years and years of wearing ill fitting ones.
Off topic, but...
It's the same with petite sized clothes. I am short, always have been. I like stylish clothes. I cannot just walk into a store and buy a t shirt. Even stores that have petite sized pants or skirts rarely have petite sized t shirts/tops. There are 2 places that I can buy things at. On the other hand, there's plenty of larger sizes. Stores increase their plus size departments and get rid of the petites. I know as a society we are getting taller and heavier, but please, there are plenty of flat chested women under five foot four who would appreciate some choices.

[Melalvai]

I'm in between A & B. A is too small, B has extra space. The Italian '1' seems to fit better. It only comes in padded. I have sloping shoulders so bra straps do not stay up. I have a little elastic thingy that is supposed to hold them up--that means they don't fall down as often.

I go without as much as possible. Working from home makes that possible most of the time. I think I'm getting saggy at the ripe old age of 35! lol

[BalaRoja]

As a semi-frequently, self-conscious, nearly 6 foot tall, 38A-cup woman (say that 3x fast), I can understand the idea behind it. There are plenty of times when having a teenage boy like figure can be a bit of a drag. A lot of that is highly individual and pretty complex, at least for me it is and there's no need to get into all the sundry details here.

That said, I stopped using them because they simply were not very comfortable, plus they added bulk. Ultimately, my concern on a bike or during any other exercise, is being comfortable and performing well, so standard sports bras (non-padded) are all I have & use now.

Nonetheless, to be somewhat fair to those making padded sports bras, there is a segment of women, particularly the health club set, that are wearing such apparel much more so for how it looks than how it works. I'm not suggesting that every woman who goes to a trendy co-ed health club at 6pm is merely there to socialize and/or meet potential dates, but there are definitely some. Maybe for those, such a bra makes perfect sense.

Like so many other things that we have to deal with, it seems to me that the best thing is simply to have choices for ourselves while respecting those of other women.

[ny biker]

Like so many other things that we have to deal with, it seems to me that the best thing is simply to have choices for ourselves while respecting those of other women.

Fair enough, but there are not enough choices that come without padding. Every time I look at a sports bra made for A/B cups it has padding. All of the tank tops that I actually like have padding.

The message in all of this is that I'm not supposed to be happy with small breasts, and I have to lie to the world and make them look bigger than they are. Except I'm actually quite content with the way I look and I don't want some clothing manufacturer to tell me that I don't measure up to their standards of beauty. This is how I was born, and anyone who doesn't like it can pound sand.

[redrhodie]

Fair enough, but there are not enough choices that come without padding. Every time I look at a sports bra made for A/B cups it has padding. All of the tank tops that I actually like have padding.

The message in all of this is that I'm not supposed to be happy with small breasts, and I have to lie to the world and make them look bigger than they are. Except I'm actually quite content with the way I look and I don't want some clothing manufacturer to tell me that I don't measure up to their standards of beauty. This is how I was born, and anyone who doesn't like it can pound sand.

Try the Ibex ones. No padding! They're good for C cups and smaller.

I hear you on the 2nd part, too. I got so frustrated trying to find a regular bra in my size without padding, or that pushed me up to my eyeballs . I finally found some, but they were crazy expensive. Now I wear the Ibex bralette light for my daily bra.

[rubywagon]

Fair enough, but there are not enough choices that come without padding. Every time I look at a sports bra made for A/B cups it has padding. All of the tank tops that I actually like have padding.

The message in all of this is that I'm not supposed to be happy with small breasts, and I have to lie to the world and make them look bigger than they are. Except I'm actually quite content with the way I look and I don't want some clothing manufacturer to tell me that I don't measure up to their standards of beauty. This is how I was born, and anyone who doesn't like it can pound sand.

If you have a Target store near you, they have a ton of C9 brand sports bras without padding. I have always worn those, until I found the lined ones here at TE. They have a huge selection of colors as well.

[BalaRoja]

If you have a Target store near you, they have a ton of C9 brand sports bras without padding. I have always worn those, until I found the lined ones here at TE. They have a huge selection of colors as well.

+1 on the target C9 sports bras. I've got a bunch of those in a slew of colors. No padding and very comfy. Cute enough that I more or less use them as swimwear tops oftentimes with a generic bottom.

As for the rest of the sentiments expressed - hey I feel y'all's pain

Nobody likes it when clothing seems to be made in direct opposition to your preferences and what works for you. Especially if it seems the majority of a certain type of clothing is made for a minority of consumers.

95% of women's bike jersey's are too short for me (torso-wise) - but hey for whatever reason the manufacturer's keep churning them out. I guess that's life and there are alternatives out there.

I tell myself if I get that hung up about it then I can always learn to sew

[lph]

The message in all of this is that I'm not supposed to be happy with small breasts, and I have to lie to the world and make them look bigger than they are. Except I'm actually quite content with the way I look and I don't want some clothing manufacturer to tell me that I don't measure up to their standards of beauty. This is how I was born, and anyone who doesn't like it can pound sand.

Sing it, sister. I can choose to wear a lightly padded bra to work, but when I can't find a single unpadded bra - and I'm talking augmentation, not just hiding the headlights - I get mighty sick of the implication that "you can't possibly want to go out in public with those ". I like looking like this. They fit my body shape. It's a bear finding a bra that fits a wide back and an A-cup, but I wouldn't change them if I could.

[zoom-zoom]

Nonetheless, to be somewhat fair to those making padded sports bras, there is a segment of women, particularly the health club set, that are wearing such apparel much more so for how it looks than how it works. I'm not suggesting that every woman who goes to a trendy co-ed health club at 6pm is merely there to socialize and/or meet potential dates, but there are definitely some. Maybe for those, such a bra makes perfect sense.

Maybe...but why must they add padding to an ugly encapsulation/compression bra for maximum motion control for those of us who are already on the busty end of the spectrum and are wearing the bras for heavy-duty support, not for fashion? That's the part I don't get and it makes me wonder who is designing these bras--certainly not larger-busted athletes. I had breast reduction surgery 6 years ago because my boobs were oversized...last thing I want is to make them bigger or add more bulk up front. I can see padding on A-B cup bras for those who want to look bustier, but that's the last thing I want, especially during hot weather.

[OakLeaf]

I think it's the combination of big shoulders/pecs and small cups that's the problem... I don't have any trouble finding unpadded sports bras for 34A/B. Like the OP, there's just no dimming the headlights, so I don't even try.

[Crankin]

I ordered the Handful bra to give it a try.

[rubywagon]

I ordered the Handful bra to give it a try.

Let us know what you think, Crankin.

[deeaimond]

I'm in between A & B. A is too small, B has extra space. The Italian '1' seems to fit better. It only comes in padded. I have sloping shoulders so bra straps do not stay up. I have a little elastic thingy that is supposed to hold them up--that means they don't fall down as often.

I go without as much as possible. Working from home makes that possible most of the time. I think I'm getting saggy at the ripe old age of 35! lol

A bra's cup size will also increase if the number ( i don't know what it is called) increases.

So for example, I can wear a 36C, but then the cups spill a little, BUT if i wear a 36D it is just too big. To compensate, I go down one strap size to a 34D, and the cups, even though both are D, are a little smaller as well. perfect fit. (I find that many bras in the US have poor cutting though... not sure why, so be sure to try a variety of brands.)

Due to regional preferences, bras also have very different shapes. I find that bras from asian and japanese brands tend to be very round, while french bras have a slightly pointy shape.

Maybe you can go to a proper lingerie shop and get fitted? there is no return for saggy boobs....

[ny biker]

A bra's cup size will also increase if the number ( i don't know what it is called) increases.

So for example, I can wear a 36C, but then the cups spill a little, BUT if i wear a 36D it is just too big. To compensate, I go down one strap size to a 34D, and the cups, even though both are D, are a little smaller as well. perfect fit. (I find that many bras in the US have poor cutting though... not sure why, so be sure to try a variety of brands.)

Due to regional preferences, bras also have very different shapes. I find that bras from asian and japanese brands tend to be very round, while french bras have a slightly pointy shape.

Maybe you can go to a proper lingerie shop and get fitted? there is no return for saggy boobs....

I find that for regular bras, a 38A fits across the back but is too big in the cups, and a 36A fits in the cups but is too tight in the band. I wind up wearing the 38A because I'm not a big fan of all-day pain.

Also I can't wear anything with an underwire because they dig into my ribs in the front. I have weird ribs.

Really I wish I could just skip it altogether.

[deeaimond]

I find that for regular bras, a 38A fits across the back but is too big in the cups, and a 36A fits in the cups but is too tight in the band. I wind up wearing the 38A because I'm not a big fan of all-day pain.

Also I can't wear anything with an underwire because they dig into my ribs in the front. I have weird ribs.

Really I wish I could just skip it altogether.

there is an inch of fat between my ribs and the wire, so the wire can't find my ribs to dig in

Was the modern bra invented by a man?

some underwires give me heartburn...