As I was meandering through the expo at the Hot Chocolate 15K in Denver, I stumbled upon the SheFit booth. As I was browsing through the samples they had out, one of the women at the booth asked if I could use some help.
I let her know that I had sized out of my current bras (no bra is gonna hold the girls in place if they are too big) and while I had purchased a few, I was really unhappy with them so far. The sales pitch began.
This bra has some really awesome features. A front zipper with two hook-and-eye closures to make sure all stays secure. The top and bottom of the zipper have little fabric flaps that fold over to help prevent any irritation on your skin. The seams on each side of the zipper are reflective to add extra visibility if you’re out running at night (without a shirt over it, of course). The shoulder straps can either be worn crossed in the back or straight up and down like traditional bras. They are adjustable so you can customize the fit to your body.
Front of SheFit bra in limited edition tangerine – the colors are gorgeous.
The bust band (that goes around your torso) is also adjustable and won’t roll. The cups have removable pads and the whole thing is made from wicking material. A lot of thought went into this design and they are even taking into account that there are women of all sizes that need support in the bust area. Sizes range from ribcage measurements from 23″ to 46″. Colors come in standard black and white with additional “limited edition” options throughout the year.
After the woman asked what size I normally wear, she grabbed one of the sample models and I tried it on. Now, I was doing this over my clothes, so it wasn’t a great test to see how they felt once worn properly, but it was good enough to make me bite the bullet and order a couple (yay for show specials!)
A week later, they arrived and the real test began.
It took a few minutes to get things adjusted, but I really liked that this bra fits me now, but will also size down with me a while. The construction seems really durable and there is no skimping in materials that I can see – this is not your $20 model from the discount store.
Back of the bra with straps crossed. You can see the velcro adjustment on the bust strap to help you get the perfect fit for your body.
I went out on my trail run/hike – I figured this would let me see how it felt as I hiked/walked and ran. 5.6 miles was a decent distance to check for issues – I hoped! For this first trial, I wore the straps crossed in the back. I’m not going to lie, I didn’t find this terribly comfortable – but I also don’t wear bras like this often. I played with the adjustments a few times on the trail, loosening and tightening the bust strap and the shoulder straps. I really like that you have these options to make the fit best for each individual.
Covering the bottom of the zipper. I like that this helps reduce possible irritation from the zipper base.
Fabric flap covering the zipper pull. A magnetic lock helps assure you things aren’t going to open up mid-workout.
Aside from the cross straps being a little of an issue for me, I noticed that I had a little bit of a “shelf” going – not quite a mono-boob, but close. That being said, the girls didn’t move much. Hurrah! A little over halfway into my route, I was pretty happy with the new bra overall. A little further in and I was pleased that there were no major issues, though I was still not in love with the cross straps.
I decided to give it another test, but this time changing the strap configuration to a more “traditional” arrangement. I’m going to say, I like this MUCH better. I don’t know if perhaps I am borderline on the size, but with the straps crossed, I didn’t feel like I had much room to actually move and there was definite potential for chaffing on a longer run. So with the new strap configuration, I went out for a few miles and, while I still had a bit of a shelf going, the overall comfort was much better for me.
One more thing I noticed is the fabric. I’m not sure how to describe it, but it felt kind of warm. It wasn’t a particularly hot day, but it felt warmer when compared to my other sport bras. I’m not sure if it’s due to thicker fabric or the padding in the cups, but it’s been a fairly consistent thing on all the trial runs so far – one run being in the 30s.
Is this my favorite sports bra ever? No, but I will continue to wear it. It IS one of my favorites out of the recent purchases I have made. While there have been no issues with movement or chaffing, the temperature and overall feel make me want to peel that bad boy off as soon as I’m able.
Am I regretting my purchase? Not at all. Overall, it’s a strong addition to my running wardrobe.
For my current selection of bras in my size (that I own) they are the best by far for securing the girls, customization, and features. The re-configuring of the shoulder straps was a huge improvement for my personal taste, which is awesome that each woman can make those changes to best suit their own needs.
In my opinion, the cons were the overall comfort of the fabric and the shelf that formed. The shelf I can deal with, and perhaps the comfort level of the fabric might improve as they break in a little more (I’ll update this review as I wear them more if things change.)
I think SheFit is onto something and I love that they are tackling a market that seems to be neglecting the needs of women who wear more than an A or B cup.
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