Young Sport Girl Wearing A Sports Bra

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 like 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.
Another problem arises 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 halter-style.