Quote Originally Posted by shopGirl View Post

Please do not spend the money on Men's bibs, unless you are built more like a Man. Cycling apparel companies are finally putting the time into developing great comfy bibs for Ladies, and we should show them that we are noticing that by supporting Women-specific items. A man's chamois is built to fit differently than a woman's - it's not just a size thing, but an anatomy thing.
I think what shorts you're comfortable in definitely depends on your build. I think I'm probably built more like a man. I have long thighs and a long torso. I have an ecto-mesomorphic build. This means I'm essentially straight up and down - shoulders, stomach, hips, legs - but I'm quite muscular, not small or skinny (5"8', 140, 16% body fat). I will say that men's pants (at least more hipster pants) tend to fit me better than do women's pants. I wear a 30" waist with 32" inseam. So all that said, I tend to prefer men's bibs because they just seem to fit better than do women's, likely due to those dimensions!

Also, I don't like how short most women's bibs are in the leg. While I like showing my quad muscles in looser shorts, the leg length in a lot of women's bibs, because they're skin tight, can make some women's thighs look really 'bubbly'/'stuffed/however you want to put 'too big for what the packaging they're encased in'. I've heard women go both ways on the leg length. They usually look much better on women with small, really thin thighs (i.e. the type who wear short shorts) ... personal opinion obviously!

Up top I'm a 34B and seem to have no problem with the straps; but of course someone else might or it may be different for those with different chest sizes. Anyway, my two cents for someone with potentially more of a 'men's build!' Since there are all sorts of body shapes for women, I wouldn't put wearing men's bibs out of the question. Good luck!