Okay, cheap ploy I know … but I thought the title might get your attention!!!!! 🙂 Unfortunately my boobs haven’t suddenly headed north-ward naturally – I think it’s safe to say I’m long past any hope of that! However, my new Panache sports bra – fitted in all the right places – flatteringly gives me a much-needed (and ‘supportive’) lift in the right direction. So here I am to tell you all about it ….
As some of you will know from my previous post I have been in dire need of a new sports bra for a little while. Now, bigger breasted than I have ever been, my old faithful sports bra has increasingly not been up to the job – especially as my running mileage has been on the up! With some sore under-boobs to tell the tale, I have been on the look out for something a bit more supportive. Low and behold …. what did I stumble upon? The Panache Sport Campaign 2014 – a 5-week campaign to engage women who are looking to improve their fitness and wellbeing. Perfect timing, especially as they were looking for real women to do real reviews of their new sports bra! Result! 😉
Firstly, I have to say, that it’s rather gorgeous – the sports bra that is!!!! When it arrived I was expecting to see something in black/white and boringly plain. So when faced with bright pink and blue multi-coloured detailing, I was pleasantly surprised. It is worth pointing out that I did have a bit of trouble with the sizing initially. However, this was probably largely due to the fact I don’t really know what bra size I am meant to be at the moment! 😉 What I did know was I recently tried on a 38D in another make of sports bra and I was fit to burst out of it! Picking up one of my well-fitting normal bras, I inspected the size to be 40DD – so I thought that would be a safe bet! I have since found out that Panache sizing is on the generous side. So after the third attempt, I finally settled on a 38D – funnily enough! 🙂
The material is lovely, soft and super padded. At first sight it looked huge; due to all the padding and thick straps. Put it on though, and it fitted near perfectly (once I had the right size!). I did experience a small bit of flab overhang above the side band (under the arm), which was a bit disappointing. But saying that, once out running it didn’t cause me any discomfort at all. Before getting the bra I was slightly dubious about the underwiring. I have never had an underwired sports bra before and I was concerned that the wire would dig in when exercising. I couldn’t have been more wrong! The underwire is wrapped in silicone and then covered in lots of padding – making it hard pushed to know it’s even there! The other thing I was mindful of, was uncomfortable straps, but Panache had this covered too. Designed to be thick and padded, they were really comfy and there was no annoying ‘twisting’ that you often find with other bras. They seem to have really hit the spot when it comes to the sports bra for ‘fuller’ figured ladies – as I can safely say, the bouncing was well under control and there definitely weren’t going to be any black eyes on future runs! 🙂 Oh, and another great touch is the small ‘J hook’ on the back strap, which allows the bra to be easily converted to a ‘race back’ style. This is also really handy if you struggle with strap length and need to make things ‘tighter’.
I had really hoped to take this out for a spin on a long run, but unfortunately, visiting friends and my toddlers 3rd birthday interfered slightly with my best laid plans. I only managed to get out on a short 3 km test drive run on this occasion. But what I experienced on my run definitely sealed the deal! It took me the first kilometre to even remember I was supposed to be reviewing the bra! It was so damn comfortable that I had completely forgotten about it. The seamless seams meant there was no rubbing or sore spots. As for the underwire – what underwire?!There wasn’t even a single pressure point on my shoulders from supporting such ‘large packages’. All of this was probably assisted by the complete ‘lack of bounce’ I was experiencing! This is definitely the most supportive sports bra I have ever had the pleasure of wearing and I would highly recommend it if you are looking for something decent. This retails at around £37 full price. If you are anything like me, you will probably reel back in horror at the idea of spending this amount of money on a bra! However, now I have tried it out, I have been converted! This bra is extremely well made and you are bound to get your money’s worth from it. And, if you have ‘suffered’ as a result of ill-fitting sports bras in the past – being saved from future red raw, weeping under-boobs has got to be worth the expense! I am really looking forward to testing it out at the Reading Half Marathon in a few weeks time!
After my run, as I proceeded to jump up-and-down around the kitchen; demonstrating to the OH how little bounce there was – I looked down and realised my boobs have never looked so perky! I love it! 🙂
101 Challenges in 1001 Days 