Support Needed - A Sports Bra Story About Bodies and Design

Finding a sports bra should be simple. For many people, it isn’t. What begins as a frustrating fitting-room experience quickly opens up bigger questions about bodies, health, design, and belonging. Is there such a thing as the perfect sports bra? When does a sports bra really fit not just our bodies, but our lives? And what does the struggle to find support reveal about whose bodies are considered in the design process?

In this podcast episode, we follow the sports bra from its feminist origins in the 1970s to today’s labs, design studios, and fitting rooms. Along the way, we explore how sports bras shape physical comfort, breathing, movement, confidence, and access to sport. From breast biomechanics and inclusive design to the emotional and social dimensions of bra shopping, this story shows that the sports bra is far more than a piece of fabric. It is a piece of history, a health device, a social experience, and, in its own quiet way, a political object.

Whether or not you wear a sports bra yourself, this episode invites you to look between the seams and reconsider what support really means and who gets it.

This podcast was made possible by the generous insights and experiences of:

• Jane Rogers, Curator of Sports Collections at the National Museum of American History
• Dr. Nichola Renwick, Senior Research Associate in Breast Biomechanics at the University of Portsmouth
• Sophie Jackson, Partnerships Lead at PEBE Sports Bras
• Gaby Schmidberger, Bra Fitter and Shop Owner in Munich

This podcast was produced by Ana Acevedo, Emma Jung, Nathalie Milosch, and Lena Sindel, all students of the RESET cohort 2024 at the Technical University of Munich.