Though many of today’s bras can be sexy and sassy, a woman’s main concern shouldn’t be if her top-half undergarment matches her new pair of stilettos, but instead she should be sure that the padded cups and lacey straps are actually providing the proper support for her breasts.

A 2007 study done by Joana Scurr, a biomechanics professor at the University of Portsmouth in England, showed that a bra could lack in providing support during activities where the breasts are bouncing. She gathered a group of 70 women with bra sizes ranging from A through JJ and placed eight sensors on the each woman’s chest area. Scurr observed the women as they performed various tests. The tests showed that there was less movement while the women walked, but more movement while the women jogged. 50 percent of the women’s’ breasts moved in an up and down motion while 22 percent moved from side to side. The other 27 percent moved in and out. All three movements combined resembled a figure eight, said Scurr. She also concluded that the bouncing of the breasts could stretch the breast tissues to a vertical distance of eight inches.

“Breasts are mainly made of fat, connective tissue, blood vessels and ligaments,” said John Penacerrada, the program manager at the Fitness Center. “That’s probably why some of my female clients tell me they’re uncomfortable working out especially when they didn’t come in wearing the proper support.”

Scurr’s study showed that an ordinary bra doesn’t control side-to-side and in-and-out breast movements. For a woman with large breasts, for example a D size cup that can weigh anywhere from 15 to 23 pounds, wearing the wrong bra can lead to severe pain. An estimated 50 percent of women experience breast pain during exercise, and without appropriate bra support, some women abandon active sports altogether due to breast pain, according to Scurr.

Penacerrada has heard from previous clients that they’ve experienced some breast pain and even finished the rest of the workout session with their hands pressed to their breasts because of this pain.

“Even though our contract has specifics about what our customers can wear to the gym, we still can’t tell our clients what to wear when they work out,” he said. “But we can make suggestions especially if they’re complaining about pain issues related to improper support.”

Nida Javeed, an 18-year-old nursing major, played on a basketball team throughout much of her middle school and high school years and recalls often wearing a sports bra when playing a game.

“I could tell the difference from when I played wearing a regular bra [instead of] a sports bra,” said Javeed. “It’s just a lot more comfortable wearing a sports bra especially when there’s a lot of movement going on.”

According to Runningwarehouse.com, a website that specializes in exercise gear, there are three types of sports bras: compression bras, encapsulated compression bras, and adjustable encapsulated compression bras. The compression bra is the most common, designed to minimize movement by pressing the chest flat, and works well for small to medium sized breasts. Encapsulated bras are best for larger breasts and resemble regular bras. Some have under wires and can offer more support by compressing each breast individually rather than compressing them together. An adjustable encapsulation bra is an encapsulation bra with a wide adjustable band and wide, rigid, adjustable straps to create a custom fit and full support, according to the site.

But child adolescent development major Celene Chen, 24, who is taking a low impact aerobics class on campus, says she wears a regular bra while exercising. She has never experienced any pain and never considered wearing a bra that provided specialized support, even for more intense workouts, she said.

“I didn’t know that there was that much movement going on even for women with smaller breasts,” said Chen. “I’ve never thought about wearing a sports bra because my regular bra hasn’t given me any trouble.”

Yet Scurr’s study showed that regardless of their size, a woman’s breasts still moved in all three directions.

Luckily for Chen and others who still prefer wearing regular bras instead of sports bras during exercise activities, Schurr is currently working with a manufacturer in Britain to create a new bra that will help minimize and control the figure-eight breast movement for all sizes.