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Features of sports bras that deter their use by Australian women
Kelly-Ann Bowles1, Julie R Steele, Bridget J Munro
1Biomechanics Research Laboratory, School of Health Sciences, University of Wollongong, Australia.
Objectives:
This study aimed to identify features of commercially available sports bras that deter women from wearing them while participating in physical activity.
Design:
Study results were obtained from a self-administered mail survey, which was posted to participants after gaining their verbal consent via random telephone recruitment.
Methods:
Four hundred and thirteen women aged 20-35 years were recruited from New South Wales, Australia, with 267 (65%) surveys returned.
Results:
It was found that the shoulder straps slipping or cutting into the shoulder were the two most disliked features of current sports bras, with 23% of respondents also indicating that the shoulder straps were the first bra feature to fail. Respondents also indicated that the perceived tightness of the sports bra around the chest was a deterrent for their use.
Conclusions:
Although previous research has found that a correctly fitted sports bra does not impede athletic performance, further research is required to investigate sports bra shoulder strap designs to improve wearer comfort without negatively affecting the ability of a sports bra to reduce breast motion and/or associated breast pain during participation in physical activity.
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