You can either trust us or find out the hard way— a good sports bra is essential for mountain biking (unless you don’t need/wear one, in which case CARRY ON…). Yes, you could just wear your regular t-shirt bra, but a sports bra has many advantages. Below, we’ll explain why wearing a sports bra while mountain biking is important, as well as what you should look for in a sports bra!
Why You Should Wear a Sports Bra
A sports bra a day keeps the rashes away
We recommend finding a breathable, moisture-wicking bra that moves salt and moisture away from your skin.Sports bras minimize chafing
Wearing the wrong size or texture of bra while mountain biking can result in chaffing. A well-fitting, quality sports bra will protect you from this crime against humanity. (If you don’t want to wear a bra, we recommend a form-fitting top to prevent chafing.)
Sports bras can help minimize bounce
Despite what you may have heard, breasts are made up of much more than fat — they also contain glands, connective tissue, lobes, lobules, ducts, lymph nodes, blood vessels, and ligaments. Unfortunately, they don’t have muscle or other supportive tissues. Subjecting them to excessive bouncing is not only painful but can also damage ligaments, which lack elasticity and take a long time to heal. A shock-absorbing bra will go a long way in preventing pain and injury!Sports bras are more durable
Sports bras are made using fabrics that are more resistant to tears, bouncing, sweat, and frequent washing. Save your regular bras for situations that don’t occasionally find you clawing your way out of a cactus patch.
Types of Sports Bras
Next, we’ll tell you a little about what to look for, as well as some staff favorites.
Low-support Bras
These bras have minimum support, and are best for low-impact, smooth rides and/or small chests. You still want to wear breathable, durable, moisture-wicking fabric, even for low-key rides.
Athleta Exhale Bra: This bra is great for wearing backpacks because the non-racerback style minimizes sweat.
Wild Rye Lucille: Super cute fabrics, and some styles have matching shorts.
Medium-support Bras
These bras work for medium-impact rides and/or for people with small-to-medium size chests.
lululemon Energy Longline Bra. This bra is very comfortable and great for wearing all day.
Salomon Cross-Run Bra. Great for downhill days!
High-support Bras
These will absorb more shock and are best for high-impact rides that involve jumps, rocks, drops, and roots. They are usually preferred by people with large chests for all types of rides.
Brooks Dare Zip 2.0: High-impact bra for bouncy, technical rides and/or large chests.
Compression bras:
These boa-constrictor models work by compressing your chest. People with a larger cup size may not like them because they tend to be sweatier since not as much skin is in contact with the fabric.
The North Face Dune Sky Strappy Bra: Better for small chests and/or smooth rides.
Encapsulation bras:
These bras are more like traditional bras with individual cups. They are generally more comfortable if you have a large chest.
Panache Sport: This is a wireless version of an encapsulation bra.
Third Love Kinetic Bra: This high-impact, wireless bra has individual cups, wide straps that can be worn two different ways, and light padding for cooler days on the trail.
Underwire bras:
These bras incorporate flexible wires to further support your chest while riding. Many people dislike underwire, while many love it. You do you!
Wacoal Simone Underwire Sports Bas: Great for technical rides with drops and jumps, as well as riders with large chests.
Brooks Dare Underwire: high-impact, underwire encapsulation bra.
Wacoal Brandi Underwire Sports Bra: This bra has underwire support with the look of a compression bra.
We asked our FB community for bras that they love and these were their responses: Tera Kaiai, Smartwool, SuperNatural, Wiskii and Under Armour.
The best bra is the one you hardly notice is there. Once you find a great bra, you can focus on the things that matter most — like that drop you’ve been daydreaming about!