Sports bra's for the older athlete

 

Over-fifty athletes wear sports bra’s too.  I really love my sports bra and it is comfortable enough to wear all day, with one exception.   The exception being that it is nearly impossible to get on.  I am over fifty, well over sixty is more like it, and it isn’t quite as easy to contort my arms over my head and down my back in order to uncurl the back of it and pull it down smoothly, especially when my body is damp from the shower.  I can’t be alone here can I?

 

This dilemma led me to a good article in Runner’s World magazine that evaluates a number of sports bras.  They talk about cooling and wicking and being appealing and enhancing assets and that kind of thing (which isn’t exactly what I am worried about as I lumber around the neighborhood with my dog, or reel out a few miles on the treadmill), but only a couple of them addressed the easy of getting them on.

 

I really don’t want to pay $45-50 dollars for something to sweat in but I will mention a few just in case you are, and perhaps someone out there can help me out in my quest.

 

I had to laugh at the description of the Champion’s O2Cool Double Layer Tank top because it talks about having four straps to figure out, which is quite an event even though she said that the struggle was worth it.  I have a swimming suit like that…there are some days when I can’t get it on at all.

 

New Balance Bonita Run Crop boasts of a bottom band to hold it in place and mentioned shoulder straps with hooks that make slipping off the bra after it is sweaty but didn’t mentioned getting it on in the first place.

 

I finally found one by Under Armour’s Heatgear Endure D that mentioned the ease of getting it on properly, with a zipper.  It also mentioned a cross-back design that had enough room for a heart rate monitor.  This bra is designed for larger sizes, which category I am not, so paying $50 wouldn’t be in my wheelhouse either.

 

I still haven’t solved my problem but I recommend this article in Runner’s World; Sept2008, Vol.43 Issue 9, p127-130 for some ideas about real sports bras for serious runners.  I guess I just am not serious enough!