The Science behind our bras

The Science of Shock Absorber

The Shock Absorber Sports Institute

Shock Absorber are committed to continually improving and developing sports bras and activewear and we have established the Shock Absorber Sports Institute as a dedicated research and testing facility.

Advanced research

The study undertaken by the Shock Absorber Sports Institute was more advanced than previous breast movement research, which only monitored smaller cup sizes, only looked at the effects of vertical breast movement, only analysed one stride during running, and then only up to 12k/h.

What the Shock Absorber breast movement study monitored:

  • Sizes up to 36G/100G
  • 5 strides at each speed for all subjects, in all conditions.
  • 3D movement – vertical, side to side, and forwards and backwards.
 
 
 

        

 

How movement was tracked and analysed

Movement was tracked using four infra-red cameras. Recordings were then taken during three activities: static, jumping jacks and on a ramped treadmill. A comfort level was also obtained for each activity.

The results

The results showed that wearing a Shock Absorber sports bra could reduce bounce by up to 74%. This has proven to be as much as twice as effective at minimising breast movement as a 'normal' bra.

3D bounce increases rapidly during the transition phase from walking to running, then levels off. The implication of this result is that you need a sports bra just as much at lower running speeds as you do at higher speeds.