Did you know? Over 90% of women are wearing the wrong size sports bra and nearly half of women experience breast pain when working out.
You'll all have heard of cult sports brand Adidas and likely even own gym leggings or some running trainers from them.
And today, in a groundbreaking move for women or people who identify as women, they've unveiled a totally reimagined sports bra portfolio after just under two years of research into what it is, exactly, that makes a workout bra fit for purpose.
Re-engineered to support people of all body sizes through a range of workouts, the new offering includes 43 brand-new styles.
There's different offerings for all workouts - because their research also revealed that it's vital to wear different support for each - and similarly, their findings unveiled that a lack of adequate support resulted in movement-related breast pain for 44% of female respondents.
So what makes the new adidas bra range unique? Good question. "The collection comes in our most extensive and inclusive size range yet," Professor Joanna Wakefield-Scurr of the University of Portsmouth, who lead the insight into breast health, breast movement in sport, and performance implication of poor bra support, shares.
"Across 43 new styles, you can choose from light, medium, and high levels of support for four different activities" (that's day-to-day, running, weight training, and yoga classes, FYI).
Not sure what kind of support you need or, well, where to start? Their handy bra finder will assist you and show you which exact product is right for you and your workouts.
Their research uncovered a lot - working with researchers at the University of Portsmouth, they found that not only do boobs move a lot more than initially thought when undergoing high-intensity sports, like running or HIIT training (they can move up to 19cm), but also that nearly half of women experience breast pain when working out.
"One of the interesting things from the research is everybody assumes sports bras are to stop the movement of your breasts. What we’re also interested in behind the scenes is stopping the speed and acceleration in which the breast moves," explains the professor. "Breasts undergo more G force during an activity like running than a F1 car, so you'll need more support than, say, yoga."
Not to mention their findings that adequate support makes your performance more efficient, changing everything from your muscle activity, to posture, to breathing frequency, to full body mechanics. "We even saw changes in stride length during running - some reduced stride length during running as much as 4cm if women were wearing poor support and, as a result, their breasts were moving a lot," she shares.
It might not sound like a lot, but that over a marathon distance equates to a whole mile.
You can see why, if your boobs are moving that much, it might hurt or be uncomfortable for some women, right? Hence why it's so important to invest in one of the best sports bras. "It was a light bulb moment for us when we uncovered the stat that 44% of women experience workout-related breast pain - it just highlights the importance of appropriate support," she continues.
They made sure that each bra was tested multiple times, by internal researchers and external consumers, too. "The range underwent extensive research, development and multiple rounds of testing to ensure each bra was fit for purpose," explains the professor. "This included testing directly with consumers as well as testing through independent research and testing body, the University of Portsmouth," she continues.
Keen to shop the collection? Keep scrolling.
Introducing the new re-imagined Adidas sports bra range
FASTIMPACT LUXE RUN HIGH-SUPPORT BRA, £65
Best for: running
ADIDAS TLRD IMPACT TRAINING HIGH-SUPPORT BRA (PLUS SIZE), £45
Best for: running
POWERIMPACT LUXE TRAINING MEDIUM-SUPPORT BRA, £50
Best for: strength training
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