With the rising cost of living continuing to be an issue, now is absolutely a time to make as many savvy shopping decisions as possible. Exercise is a privilege in terms of availability of time and, unfortunately, the financial cost of participating, so making our money go further is important. It’s a sad fact that good-quality kit can be costly, and something that I see happening a lot is people either making spur of the moment purchasing decisions, or only replacing a piece of kit when their last one fully gives up.
Again, it’s a privilege to be able to stock up when prices are favourable, but if you can, it’s a smart move, particularly when it comes to those pieces which involve a greater outlay. One of which is a sports bra. Not only am I a pro at fitting them, and therefore fully qualified to give good advice, but I’m also going to only recommend below retailers I’ve actually used. Plus, a well-fitted sports bra is proven to improve performance, AND when we’re physically comfortable, we tend to be far more emotionally comfortable, meaning that you’ve got a better chance of focusing on enjoying your activities.
Without further ado, here are my top tips for ensuring you buy a sports bra that does what you need it to do!
Function and fit
Not all sports bras are sports bras! Retailers and brands like to lie, and you’ll often find something which is labelled as a sports bra and actually is no such thing. Now, I’m going to make it clear that I love crop tops, it’s just that it’s important to appreciate that they don’t do the job of a bra, not even for low impact activities.
The easy way to tell whether something’s truly a bra? Firstly, how it’s sized – bras by definition have a band size (e.g. 30, 32 or 34 inches) and a cup size (ranging from AA upwards). We do not accept shared sizes! Calling something a “34-38” means it fits nobody. Calling a bra a “DD+” means it fits nobody. Run, don’t walk away from these!
The second way to differentiate a bra from a crop top is that, as a minimum, a bra will have two adjustable points – the band (it may be a front or a back fastening) and the shoulder straps (they could be the traditional bra-style loops, or they may be Velcro).
Whilst a crop top does not equal a low impact bra, there are bras of different impact gradings and, for your comfort and performance, you may wish to choose from low, medium or high impact (I keep it simple and wear a high impact for everything… I am also a 32FF/G so this makes sense for me!).
Where to shop
This is what you all came for! Firstly, I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: AVOID MARKS AND SPENCER! They can’t fit bras to save their lives, and they also don’t make sizes correctly. I said what I said. They may be accessible, but they’re a poor product. I’d avoid any supermarket brands for the same reason. Cheap, perhaps, but I doubt you’ll be cheerful.
Here are the retailers I’d recommend…
Boobydoo – probably the gold standard of online sports bra retail. Their social media content is great, they’re helpful and friendly, and they stock a huge range of brands. I’ve found delivery to be speedy and the extra bonus for me is that they tend to get exclusive colours in my favourite style (Panache wired, seeing as you’re asking…)
Bravissimo – the bonus here is that they have some brick and mortar stores, so if you can get to one and they have stock (I’d call ahead or use the online chat to check), you can try them on in person before buying, and get fitting advice. Bravissimo runs a loyalty scheme, but sale items don’t earn you any points sadly.
Belle Lingerie – not a sports bra specialist, but they do stock a big range. The bonus here is that they also stock a lot of swimwear. I’ve always had efficient service from them, and they have some much older colourways at a hefty discount.
Top tips
Hopefully you’ve found this useful, and I will add that information on which brands have sales was up to date when I wrote this post! Remember that, with regular use and proper care, sports bras should last about six months, so it’s worth making a note of when you bought one and putting some pennies aside week on week if you can to keep saving up. Signing up to mailing lists will inform you of discounts and sales early, but can also lead to temptation, so use this mindfully!
Bear in mind that return periods for sale items can be shorter, so make sure that you try your order on as soon as it arrives, and get that return sent in swiftly should it not work for you. Sports bras do tend to run tight, so you may need to size up in the band – the retailer should be able to let you know about this before you buy. Black or very dark coloured items will always fit even tighter (certainly when brand new), as the amount of dye in the fabric makes the fabric contract (the more you know!).
Talented bra fitters will fit by eye (and I can just about do this too, it just takes practice!), and a really good rule of thumb is that your band size should be approximately your UK dress size plus 20 (e.g. I typically wear a 12 on top, so 12 + 20 = 32, which is right for me!). However, if you’re truly desperate to reach for the tape measure, the only guide I’d ever recommend following is the legendary Boob or Bust.
Happy shopping! If you found this useful and snagged a bargain, drop me a comment to let me know what you bought