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On the run
All women, no matter what their shape, need to ensure their breasts are properly supported for sport. That is old news. Women who are casual runners, who might run just a couple of miles a week, need to take their support seriously, so when you are a world-class long-distance runner, and your training is very much focused on clocking up serious miles, the importance of the sports bra cannot be over-estimated.
Laura Kenney, 24, is established as a serious contender for the 5,000 metres in the Commonwealth Games in October, and as she strives to improve on a 5,000 metre personal best of 15:26, Kenney is clocking up some 70 miles of running every week. 70 miles: that’s over two and a half marathons every week.
“I normally run about 70 miles a week, running twice a day, four times a week,” Kenney tells SGB with a certain nonchalance. “I will also do one weight session in the gym every week, and one circuit session, and I wear the Shock Absorber RUN bra for all my training.”
Shock Absorber would struggle to find a better candidate among the UK’s elite athletes to put to the test its new RUN bra, which is part of the brand’s new range of bras designed for specific sports types: run, ball and racket.
“I was quite excited to be given the opportunity of a sneak preview of the new RUN bra for a couple of months,” explains Kenney, a Scot born in Blackpool who was European under-23 5,000 metre champion in 2007. “Often with running bras the straps slip down or you might get a bit of chafing, but the RUN bra has special straps that sit a bit higher up and don’t slip, and being seamless it is anti-chafe. I can really feel the difference and it is a lovely bra to wear.”
Appliance of science
Shock Absorber collaborated with Dr Joanna Scurr, breast health expert at the University of Portsmouth, to develop the new range, with extensive research conducted over 18 months to better understand the different impacts of running, ball sports and racket sports on the breast and body. The brand says that findings from this research informed the design process for each bra, with each prototype being put through its paces in treadmill, jumping, lunging and anti-chafe tests.
Shock Absorber says that ball sports such as netball, basketball and volleyball result in predominantly vertical breast movement, that racket sports tend to result in lateral movement, while running produces a continuous figure-of-8 pattern. Shock Absorber’s scientific testing has shown that the RUN bra can achieve an overall bounce reduction of 78% thanks to its ‘Infinity 8’ support system.
“Laura is the first athlete to put the RUN bra through its paces,” says Shock Absorber’s Julia Nolan. “Laura particularly liked the bra’s soft, seamless inner which reduces chafe and rubbing - a real problem for runners. We are looking forward to receiving feedback from our consumers as the new range of sport specific bras hit the shelves from January.”
The RUN, RACKET and BALL bras come in sizes 30-36 A, and 30-38 B-F, with an RRP of £36, and wholesale prices of £17.20. The RUN bra comes in White/Silver or Black/Silver.
