Bra fitting on a fat body

Recently, I have become aware that bra fitting is not just that – it can be very different from body to body. Eliza at bratabase recently made a post about “Bra fittingfor the overweight or pendulous”, and we have both talked of bra fitting for the overweight on several occasions at bratabase, as have others (if you are not on bratabase yet, sign up! :D It’s a great resource!) 

I also noticed that Georgina also addressed some fit issues that will be different from body to body: One is straps digging in, as she says: “the straps should take 20% of your breast weight and 20% of my breast weight is a hell of a lot!” And also, squishy shoulders will be squished, even if it was a light weight that they carried.  She also addresses back-fat, which is quite relevant – even for someone as smooth as her. I am not that smooth, so now I will address back fat and bands from my point of view: 

So, I want to talk about something that has been a problem for me a lot here in my bra journey. Band. A lot of bra fitting just doesn’t seem to work for me. For example, the difference between a tight, snug or loose measurement is not so clear defined. Part of the reason for that may be that for a lot of women, it doesn’t actually make that much of a difference. If they land on an uneven number, they can just round up or down depending on if the measurement was loose or tight. But for me, and many bigger ladies, I am sure, the difference is between 28.5” and 35.5”. That could mean 5 different band sizes! So what to do? I usually put down 33.5” as my measurement, because that is what I get if I measure just about as tight sock or panties, which is probably a good reference. And it can’t be said enough, bras should be determined of fit, not just the numbers. So on we go to look at how a band is supposed to fit:

 Here the problem starts: My back will never look like that. A band will never fit like that on me. Bra advice tells us “the band should lie flat on your back”, but what if my back is just no flat? It is difficult to see on a soft back, how a band doing any work could possibly not dig in. 

^These are lableld as too tight bands, because they dig in, and create those bulges. But again, a lot of plus size women will always have bulges, it’s not the bras fault, and a looser band certainly wont make it any better. When ever I naively walk up to a fitter, they often tell me that I need a much larger band, because “oh, isn’t it painful when it is digging in that much?” and they’ll say that even if I am wearing loose, loose bands. What they don’t seem to realize is, that those bulges aren’t bra-bulges, they are the natrual shape of a body with rolls. But I bet there aren’t many of those in bra-school.

Another very important thing about how a band looks on a larger women, is also the fact that a lot of weight is put on the band: On a slim woman, a too loose band with a lot of weight on, would probably fall down, if not held up by the straps. On a woman with a belly, or a stubborn underbust roll like me, the bra cannot fall down, and instead “rests” on the top of the belly, and will then look like it is strained on the body, because there is put so much preasure on it from the weight, rather than by the tightness.

And now I’ll show you why I always look like my band is digging in. I have to say, I didn’t think I would volentarily have pictures of my rolls anywhere, but hey, in the name of bra education (of which I care very much), here we go.  First up is how I look without a bra: You can clearly see what I mean about “bra bulges” with no bra! And also forementioned underbust roll. Next up is how 36, 34 and 32 bands look on me, both without the strain of weight, and with it. So here we go:

No bra

36 band with my boobs lifted, so no weight is putting pressure on the band

36 band with weight on

34 band with boobs lifted, so no weight is putting pressure on band

34 band with weight on

32 band with my boobs lifted, so not weight is putting pressure on band

32 band with weight on

For the 36band, at the front, you can really see the difference between having weight on the band or not: Again, because the band is not giving any support, all the weight is put on my roll – this really makes it look like it is very very tight at the front, even though the oppesite is the case.
On the 34band it is clear how the band riding up slightly, means that it sits exactly at the my back roll, making it look like it digs in – and this is even exagerated when the weight is put on. So here it is easy to imagine, that a smaller band that doesn’t ride up, will actually eliminate some of the bra-bulges!
Also on the 32band, you see that when the weight is put on, everything just get’s more squished, but much less than with the 36 for example. What is interesting, is that there is no more back fat than there was with the 36 or no bra: So it is a myth that the tightness of the band causes the back fat.

So, what is the conclusion? The look of the right fit can be very different for fat women vs slim women, so we can’t always rely on those handy fit-pictures and advice. Fitters, or people who fit themselves, must learn to know what is supporting, rather than what matches the picture, because fact is, if you look nothing like the picture to start with, a bra cannot make it match up. Look for wide, firm bands, with wide elastic at the edges. And notice how much difference there is whether your weigh it down or not – I think that can be a good trick.

I can also tell you, that just yesterday, I wore my Ewa Michalak Onyks without the straps, and the mark from the band would make it seem it was much much tighter than normally - so I guess this proves my theory that weight, not tightness, can put a lot of strain on the band, making it look like it is tight.

All in all, I know this was not a too long post word-wise, but I hope the pictures speak for themselves, and can give a more size-varied view of bra fitting :D

Next post will probably be about bratabase and a few words about my recent order (very few words, because it is not too fair to properly review a bra that I got in the wrong size)