Of Support, Moral and Otherwise

This, I’m sure, is a very common concern among women runners. I am talking of the physical type of support. I guess just like male athletes, women runners also need all the help they can get in the support department. however, it is my firm belief that most sports bras were made for those who do not really require much support. If you are like me, who is—well, “problematic” on top, you know what I am talking about. In order to run properly, I require two sports bras… three if I have the monthlies. And this is all just so I wouldn’t bounce all over the place. I find that this is also necessary to prevent the pains around the chest and upper back area after running. Also, breast movement during running in the wrong bra will damage the breast’s outer skin and connective tissue – the Cooper’s ligaments – permanently --- an extremely horrifying thought, amplified by my zealous imagination of breasts sweeping across the floor as I walk.

Most bras available in the market do not offer enough—well, for the lack of a better term—“bondage”. Or maybe I should actually call it “bandage”, because as a kid, I remember this was the best way of making the girls stay in place and out of the way. Someone actually did suggest that I could tape the girls up, but visions of rolls and rolls of sticky packaging tapes revolted me so I decided to stick to my two-or-three-bras routine. It gets the job done, albeit really wasteful of detergent and water come laundry time.

There is a rather promising line of sports bras offered by CW-X, makers of athletic undergarments that offers mesh webbing and a Targeted Support System that promises to give support even for the bigger cup sizes. Unfortunately, this one is not available in the local market so it seems I have to order them online or get my brother… my BROTHER, to buy me my bras in Canada. And they do not exactly come cheap, too, at 60 to 70 USD a pop. Think I’ll have to stick to my two bras in the meantime.

On to support of the moral kind, I am extremely grateful to my aunt in Toronto, who is also an avid runner for always being so supportive as I make my way to becoming a real runner. She’s been extremely encouraging from my first 5k to my most recent 10k this month. i told her of my training plans for my first 21k and she promptly sent me her 21k running manual from the running room. Thanks Tita N! goal is to get my first 21k by October of this year. Yeah yeah, over 8 months in training I know, but bite me. I will run at my own pace and enjoy the route to that 21stK.

Happy running everyone!