This is sort of a guest post by … well … me. I wrote this a couple weeks ago over at a group blog that’s still in development. Since that’s not available yet for viewing (though it will be awesome once it is!) I figured I’d bring this over here to share with ya’ll. Hope you enjoy it.
In the last year, many things have happened which I didn’t expect. I dived into social media through blogging and Twitter. I got laid off. I started running in Vibram Fivefingers and barefoot, and realized I LOVE running. I found new social outlets online for running in dailymile.com and Barefoot Ted’s Google group. I began inspiring others to try running (and minimalist footwear, and barefooting). And then, last night, perhaps most unexpected of all, I became an expert on sports bras for well-endowed women. I was surprised, too. Let me explain.
Through dailymile, I post every run I do online. This post also goes out automatically on my Twitter and Facebook feeds, and to a widget here on my blog, so pretty much everyone I know online knows about my runs. Since the beginning of this year I’ve run four to five times a week, and my mileage and speed are steadily improving. I’ve also shared information about minimalist footwear, barefooting, Born To Run, the successes and setbacks I’ve had, and generally been open with my online friends about my running adventure.
So, yesterday, someone on Twitter suggested to a friend of theirs to follow me on Twitter for inspiration to get into running. She’d been wanting to do it and considering the Couch To 5K program, but finding it hard to get going. Flattered, I thanked her for the complement and followed them both back. Happy to be a positive force for this thing I love doing. Then the new runner sends me a note with this question:
“Wondering how a double D girl like myself could run 5 minutes, let alone 5k?”
Considering my Twitter name is badassdadblog, and that I put my bald-pated mugshot right there for all to see, I’m not sure what made her think I might be an authority on this subject. But, when someone asks a question, I have a hard time resisting the urge to go find an answer. So, I had a mission.
Born To Run?
In fact, she’s not the first woman I’ve heard raise this issue in one form or another. “I can’t run, it’s too uncomfortable.” “Some people just aren’t built for running.” “My boobs are just too big.” Though I know I have no firsthand knowledge or experience here, I can’t help but say (or at least think to myself) bullshit. This sounds like just another in the litany of excuses people give to avoid giving running a real go. But I firmly believe each person must find their own way. To running, to enlightenment, to happiness. One sure way for someone to not enjoy running is to have someone else tell them they have to. Do you remember gym class? Not my idea of a good time.
So usually when someone raises an objection, I let them hold onto it. I might argue another point of view, but I’m not here to argue or talk you into doing something. But this was different. She didn’t say “I can’t, because…”. She ASKED me what she could do. So, I set out to find an answer.
One of the things I love about social media is it is a wellspring of knowledge, information, and (perhaps above all else) opinions. In addition to dailymile, Twitter and Facebook, I also recommend Aardvark for getting answers to some pretty obscure or detailed questions from people who really know the answer. I put out a question across various platforms asking women who run for their solution to this problem. Is there such a thing as a perfect sports bra?
I got many answers. A few were from women embracing the shape of their bodies as a reason not to run. Some were from women genuinely seeking the answer to this same question. And some were from those who had solved this problem, and how they did it. These I cheerfully passed along, both to the original asker and to anyone else who cared to know.
What I learned is that there is no one answer, as everyone is different. This was no surprise. There were a few themes, though. Chief among them was that for very well-endowed women, or women who truly want to pretty much stop any and all unwanted motion, the Enell bra is about the best there is. This thing is pretty amazing. There’s even a video on their site showing how it works. It’s almost like a little vest that hooks up the front. It looks a bit medieval, but apparently this thing really does the job. And in another stroke of awesome, they sell a “male support vest” for the moobs! No kidding. Other recommendations included Moving Comfort, Title Nine, and Champion (which is available at Target, and probably the least expensive of the bunch).
Interestingly, while Title Nine has a lot of different models, apparently from different manufacturers, the one they call the “Last Resort,” for when nothing else will do the job, is actually the Enell bra. So in a way, that recommendation was validated yet again.
So, here endeth my journey into the world of supportive women’s undergarments (as far as I know). I hope you’ve found it interesting, and for some of you, I hope it proves useful. Maybe it can remove at least one of the barriers between you and this wonderful activity called running. Take it from me, it can take you places you truly never expected to go.
(Special thanks to Miss Grace at boobemancipation.com for donating the photo.)
{ 14 comments… read them below or add one }
Something that I can’t help adding, though I might seem like an ass, is that you may need sturdy support to begin running, but given several months and dozens of miles, and you might have to spend more money, on a smaller bra.
I am a reluctant runner, and it seems to keep me trim(mer) up top.
Tyson´s last blog … The Girl Who Lived!!
As a 32 DDD runner (yes, triple) the most consistently successful strategy I’ve used is finding 2 athletic bras in my size (a bodacious challenge in it’s own right) and wearing them both, layered one on top of the other. But it would be fabulously freeing to have just one and not have quarter-inch indents in my flesh post exercise. I’ve been meaning to research this for a while…thanks for doing the legwork (get it?) and keeping us abreast (hahaha!) of your results.
crap. you just sent me to the gym.
After many, many years of enduring back discomfort, shoulder grooves, and having to purchase her bras custom fitted by a specialty store, my mother, at age 60, decided to have a breast reduction (from about a DD or DDD to a C cup).
She was soooo happy! She wondered why she had waited so long to have this life changing (liberating!) surgery. She was very proud of her new figure (had pics taken in a leotard to show off to her family), and so much more comfortable, without even considering the challenge of running (her exercise was lightweight yoga).
The remaining 22 years of her life were so much more comfortable, she never, ever regretted it.
Let me tell you, not all men (husbands or not) are impressed with that big front porch, so that’s no reason to reject the possibility. And, as it’s not their body, they don’t get a full-value vote, anyway.
So, based on my mother’s elation with her choice (I cannot overstate how pleased she was), I challenge you to liberate yourself.
–Greg
I love this post. But I still hate running. It’s not the boobs, though. It’s partly the asthma and also the part where I have to actually acknowledge that I’m attached to a body. Find an answer for that!
Ewokmama´s last blog … Clashing Work Schedules
Even though this wasn’t the point, I’m getting more and more used to the idea of your freak shoes.
Miss Grace´s last blog … Twitter: What Not To Wear
As a 36F, I wear two bras when exercising (one a size smaller than my normal size) and haven’t even attempted running since I was a D-cup in highschool.
hi there! im a beginner in badass-ing in ukraine.
badass´s last blog … wrong object to observe
Color me impressed! Nice research!
Chiming in totally late here, but thanks for posting that info. I’ll have to check it out! I’m a DD myself, but I’m in week 5 of the Couch to 5K program and have had no issues wearing two sports bras, like others have mentioned. I never used it as an excuse to not run, but I can definitely see how it’d be a barrier for a lot of gals.
You sure did your research well! I use Enell and that thing is like an iron gate! WELL worth the money I paid for it and I’m broke most of the time. Champion comes in second…mostly for regular gym workouts because it’s hard to workout wearing a full vest (the Enell).
Alyssa from Dailymile here…this post is hilarious and right on!!!
Two bras work well (particularly the two-bras, two-shirts method), but then you have to deal with extra heat. DD-women are small in my book — and the only bra I can run with on its own is one made by Panache. Also, I’ve lost a significant amount of weight (90 pounds), and although I lost weight on top, I didn’t lose any cup sizes. I was a 44 (unmentionably low number of the alphabet); I’m now a 32/34. I recently ran a marathon with my Panache bra, and I appreciated the single (if thick) layer.
To clarify, of course, rather than “unmentionably low number of the alphabet,” I meant “unmentionably advanced letter of the ABCs.”