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A sports bra is a bra that provides support to the during physical exercise. Sturdier than typical bras, they minimize breast movement and alleviate discomfort.Thomas E. Hyde, Marianne S. Gengenbach (2025). 9780763732523, Jones & Bartlett Learning. . ISBN 9780763732523 Many women wear sports bras to reduce pain and physical discomfort caused by breast movement during exercise. Some sports bras are designed to be worn as outerwear during exercise such as running. There are also sports bras with extra padding for exercises that involve some kind of trauma to the breasts.
The sports bra was deemed a serious innovation which gave women the confidence and comfort to play sports, which came with a revolution in women's sport. In 2022 its inventors, Lisa Lindahl, Polly Smith, and Hinda Miller (formerly Hinda Schreiber), were admitted to the US National Inventors Hall of Fame.
The first general exercise bra, initially called a "jockbra", was invented in 1977 by Lisa Lindahl and theater costume designer Polly Smith with the help of Smith's assistant, Hinda Miller. Both Lindahl and her sister, Victoria Woodrow, complained about their bad experience exercising in ordinary bras, having experienced runaway straps, chafing and sore breasts. During the course of Lindahl and Smith's exploration for a better alternative, it was suggested that what they needed was a jockstrap for women's breasts. In the costume shop of Royall Tyler Theatre at the University of Vermont, Lindahl and Smith actually sewed two jockstraps together and nicknamed it a "jockbra". It was later renamed a "jogbra". One of their original Jogbras is bronzed and on display near the costume shop of the theatre. Two others are housed by the Smithsonian and another by the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art. PDF
In 1990, Playtex purchased Jogbra from Lindahl and her partners. This was followed by research by Christine Haycock, associate professor of surgery at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey. She measured breast movement of women running on treadmills. Sought out by bra manufacturers for her expertise, she advocated wide bottom bands for extra support and firm straps that minimized breast bounce. Renelle Braaten, a Montana hairdresser, struggled to contain her Bra size-sized breasts while playing racquetball and volleyball. Unable to interest mainstream bra manufacturers, she collaborated with freelance apparel designer Heidi Fisk, and founded Enell Incorporated. After considerable lobbying, she persuaded Oprah Winfrey in 2001 to try her bra. This led to very positive reviews in , a 2001 appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show, and a huge surge in orders.
In 1999, at the 1999 FIFA Women's World Cup Final in Pasadena, California, after scoring the fifth kick in the penalty shootout to give the United States the win over China in the final game, Brandi Chastain celebrated by spontaneously taking off her jersey and falling to her knees in a sports bra. The image is considered as an iconic photograph of a woman celebrating an athletic victory. It was the first time that an international woman footballer had removed her top, exposing her sports bra.
The most common sports bra is basically designed like a Sleeveless shirt with the bottom half cut off. Other designs use gel and water pads, silver fibres, and air bags. A stitchless bra was made by Wacoal, was molded, compressed, and shaped. A compressed bra is designed to push the breasts against the chest to reduce movement and bounce. Other bras are knitted in circular patterns, giving varying stretch and support. A common design uses a stretchable, absorbent fabric such as Lycra designed to reduce irritation by drawing perspiration away from the skin.
Sports bras are also worn by women after certain surgical procedures. In those situations, a front-closing sports bra with a compression, seamless cup is recommended for healing and comfort. Certain fabrics such as Lycra have been found to help reduce swelling and help "even-out" a bustline that has been altered by a surgical procedure.
Sports bras are also manufactured for men with large breasts to enable them to take part more comfortably in physical activity. Some descriptions used euphemistically to describe bras for men are chest binders, compression vests or shimmels.
Problems arise from the shoulder straps of standard bras. Standard well-fitting bras are constructed in the form of a "square frame", with all dimensions adjusted for each woman in a normal standing position, with arms to the sides. When a woman performs an activity which requires her to lift her arms above the shoulders, the frame is strained because it is anchored by the chest band, putting direct pressure on the shoulder trapezius muscles. This may result in neck and shoulder pain, numbness and tingling in the arm and headaches. To avoid such problems the bra's shoulder straps are usually crossed at the back, or the bra is worn Halterneck-style.
Some female athletes are concerned that a sports bra may interfere with breathing, but even though increased pressure on the rib cage has been demonstrated, no significant effect on breathing can be shown.
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