I got this sports bra because I was thinking of getting into running. The Shock Absorber 4490 has good reviews all around, it runs notoriously tight, and lucky me, there was one in my size listed on Bratabase!
[As a side note, it took about a month and a half (!) to actually finally get to me via airmail (!!!); presumably because Malaysia Post accidentally sent it on a joyride around the world first (who knows!) but sender cass_lee28 was extremely polite and apologetic about the whole ordeal. She was just about to refund me in full when the bra finally arrived. Props to her!]
Back to the ... bra. It's tight enough that, although I am technically flexible enough to do up both sets of hooks behind my back by myself, I had to get my S.O. to do it for me today because my arms were way too sore (due to an unrelated adventure on the climbing wall yesterday). Based on the measurements I took, the band currently stretches to 26in, which is tighter than my snug underbust (27) but not break-the-tape tight (25). I consider this perfect for a high impact sports bra. It's tight enough to feel, but not so tight I can't breathe.
The bra pretty much holds itself up by the band, so there's very little pressure on my shoulders. The straps are quite wide too, so it wouldn't be a huge issue either way. I found the straps to fit me just fine on the shortest setting, though as some others have mentioned, there's not much to adjust.
The cups are also fairly tight, in a compressing way, not a "too small" way. They come up high enough that even with my tall roots, I felt like absolutely everything was contained. I found it easiest to scoop and swoop BEFORE closing the upper set of hooks because ain't no way my hand is fitting in the cups after closing it all the way. Once it's on, there is zero chance of boob movement. Seriously. None whatsoever. I ran in it and didn't notice any bouncing or discomfort or anything. I pretty much forgot I have boobs. As far as performance goes, 10/10, extremely impressed; I may buy more of these.
With regards to appearance, I'm not a fan of that pink/orange combo, but who cares, it works better than literally every other sports bra I've ever tried, including the 28DD Panache Sport (underwired, moulded) and the 28D Freya Active (underwired, non-moulded) and definitely much better than everything that doesn't have hooks at the back. I don't think it's even possible for me to pull this bra over my head without undoing it first.
The cups do have another layer of fabric on the inside (lining?) which seems slightly tighter than the outside layer. This results in the *slightest* bit of wrinkling on the outside of the cups just along the seams, though I definitely do not have any room to spare on the inside. It doesn't bother me at all because it's entirely an aesthetic issue and I don't intend to wear the bra on its own.
I would absolutely recommend this bra if you need 100% boob immobilization.
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Updated on Mar 08, 2016 Flag this
It certainly... looks too big? Is the wrinkling only in the outer fabric, can you tell? And have you tried a 28D for comparison?