How to Choose the Right Bra That Fits Comfortably

Choosing or selecting the right bra shouldn't be difficult. However, there is a widespread myth among women that underwear is primarily about fashion, pleasure and being sexy.

In reality, the most important function of good female underwear is to support the body and, in particular, those bits that stick out or hang loose and need to be bought under control!

The bra is more about engineering and less about style. More about comfort than fashion. Bras, corsets, stockings and knickers can all provide healthy support to the female form and help keep a girl's body in order.

So let us begin with the brassiere; now almost exclusively know to we girls as the bra. So how do I find the right bra?

It is not at all difficult to find women wearing bras that are totally the wrong size and shape. Just check out the customers in your local supermarket or Mcdonalds. These garments are probably chosen for their colour or sexiness rather than for comfort.

It is a fact that the majority of women are not sure exactly what their bra size is and around 80% of women are wearing the wrong sized bra.

The result is the garment pinches and chaffs and doesn’t do what is meant to; offer comfort and support. A good bra is a work of engineering rather than just a sexy garment. That’s not to say that a decent bra can’t be sexy!

Once you have got the engineering right, then you can add the fancy finishes to make it pretty and alluring.

Breasts in the western world are growing rapidly. It is estimated that the average woman has increased a whole bra size in the last 10 years.

Exciting news for men maybe, but not for we girls who have to keep those growing puppies under control!

This boob expansion is partly due to the trend towards obesity but also the somewhat bizarre fashion for surgically enhancing the breasts that God and nature have provided so they are huge and unnatural!

Did you know that a pair of D cup breasts weigh as much as 20 pounds?

Equivalent to carrying a couple of small turkeys around. No wonder so many women complain of breast pain when running! PS: Don't try this with live turkeys!

A Brief Bra History

Mary Phelps Jacob from New York is supposed to have invented the first bra in 1914. However, the first patent for a breast support garment was granted fifty years earlier to Luman. L. Chapman of Camden, New Jersey.

The Bra manufacturer S.H. Camp and Co. were the first business to measure breast sizes using the letters of the alphabet, A through D, in 1933.

So How do I go about Choosing a Sensible Bra?

Make sure you know your bra size. Seems obvious but many of us are getting it wrong. You could take a range of bras that look about right into the changing cubical and see which one fits and is comfortable. Don’t just stand still but try running on the spot and see if it feels comfortable when your 'boys' are bouncing up and down!

Better still, go into a serious lingerie store and ask for advice. Its amazing how many girls will quite happily let a male doctor feel their boobs but don’t feel comfortable with a female shop assistant ‘weighing the goods’. This way you can get more practical advice about what sort of bra suits your shape and lifestyle.

By the way, please don't ask husbands or boyfriends for advice in the breast department. If you've been married for a while your husband will be so disinterested he'll get it wrong. If you have a newish boy friend then you can be sure he'll be far too interested in what is inside the containers to worry about the correct size of your bra!

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Start you quest with something that is sturdy, sensible and comfortable. Make sure that if you're running for the station or the subway your breasts don't fall out of it. Once you've mastered comfort you can always search for something similar that is also pretty.

The thing to understand that the bra isn't just designed for static support. The clever engineering kicks in when you start moving around. Those weighty breasts will fly off in one direction while you are moving in the another.

A Momentum all of Their Own

Your breasts have a momentum all of their own and the bra needs to keep them in check just as a seat belt keeps your body in check if you're in a rally car. Different activities will present different engineering challenges for the bra designer. Hence the complexity of sports bra design.

Finally, if you are really into sexy lingerie then why not buy yourself a play bra or two for romantic evenings in or a special date. However its horses for courses; in other words, don't wear your plaything to the office! Think of your play bra as a weekend sports car. Your priority should be serious bras for the workplace and for serious exercise outside the bedroom!