Sports Bras

Sports bras are worn during exercise for support. The sports bra minimizes breast bouncing. Its design includes wider straps, and broad cup coverage. Breasts are supported by the non-elastic Cooper's ligaments. Frequent exercising breaks down the ligaments and causes permanent sagging in your breasts. Wearing a sports bra will help prevent damage to the breast tissue.

Manufacturers often categorize their sports bra line by the level of impact and exercise intensity. If you participate in various sports or exercise activities, you may need several different sports bras. Sports bras are designed using one of two engineering concepts:
The compression bra, which works like the old Ace bandage by compressing the breasts against the chest (giving a woman what some call a "uni-boob"). This design works well for A- and B-cup women, and its tank or t-shape design allows many women to work out sans T-shirt without embarrassment.
The other concept is to encapsulate each breast. This style sports bra tends to look more like a traditional bra with full cup coverage. Wide straps, clasps and in some cases, underwires keep the breasts in place. Because of their heavy-duty and utilitarian construction these bras typically are worn under workout clothes rather than alone.

As most small- or medium-breasted women will tell you, finding a comfortable compression sports bra is not that difficult. There are countless styles and fabrics to choose from. Not so for the encapsulation model, which tends to have fewer styles and cost more than compression sports bras.