Fela Kuti made very good music and had many wives, but he was definitely wrong about women. He has a song called “Fefe Naa Efe”, which he says is an Ashanti proverb meaning “it is because of the beauty that a woman holds her breasts when she runs, not because she is afraid they are going to fall off”.
How wrong he is. If I’m not wearing a bra I hold my breasts when I run (or walk briskly, or up stairs) because I am afraid they are going to fall off. Wearing a bra leaves my hands free, which is a great thing in everyday life when hands could be doing many things aside from clinging to my own boobs. I wear a bra so I can carry things, check my phone, pick my nose, get my keys to open the door and find my purse to pay.
(Well ok, not afraid they are going to fall off, exactly, but it’s very uncomfortable.)
Maybe for some women that’s true, but for me, anything more active than a slow walk would be uncomfortable without one. I wear one for my comfort, not anyone else’s.
And swinging chesticals are not at all attractive, IMHO - I don’t need that in my field of view. I’m not offended, just don’t want to see it. Other people can do what they want, but I don’t have to like it.
I get uncomfortably hot without a bra. Plus I only buy pretty bras, and that makes me happy. My outside clothes are usually standard tee shirt/scrubby shorts, but underneath I’m dressed really much more nicely!
Well, actually, I don’t want to share that story on the SDMB.
Basically it comes down to societal expectations. But it’s not as trivial as one might think from that. Women can be accused of “asking for it” if they go braless. That’s not something I want to deal with.
What did you vote for? I was about to comment about how I thought it was weird that no one chose that they just wanted to cover up, but here you are saying that. I would have thought that was option 1.
I know at least a few other people who primarily wear bras for that reason. I remember a girl in high school who was made fun of behind her back because you could see her nipples pushing from under her shirt, and, one day, that stopped.
None of the above: getting the tits out of the way of my arms and putting a layer of cloth between them and the rest of the chest.
My gym has these pre-recorded lessons. In one of them, the instructor (a petite male) at one point said to intertwine our fingers, palms out, and straighten our arms ahead while pushing our chests out and shoulders back. My remark of “yeah dude, it’s a lot easier with YOUR boobs!” caused the other two students (both female) to completely lose it.
I’m in the “painful without” camp. Also, and this is kinda gross and not talked about in polite company, but when some of us say, “absorbs sweat,” what we really mean is that yeast likes to grow under sweaty boobs, and prickly heat, itchy and open sores can follow. And it’s yucky stinky.
I really could not care less about my nipples showing. I have no idea how or when nipples became obscene, but it’s fairly recent.
But for comfort and no yeast, I wear a bra even at clothing optional events.
Nipple chafing. Hadn’t really thought about that on an everyday basis for women but it makes sense. In my younger days as a very flat chested male I ignored advice and ran a marathon in a moderately tight shirt without putting a band-aid over my nipples. Those things hurt for a week.
I certainly don’t mind seeing an attractive woman that is bra-less and I don’t see it as trashy. Still, I understand the comfort factor.
Anyone who’s wearing a bra that hurts is wearing a bra that doesn’t fit. Get thee to a Nordstrom or lingerie boutique (not Victoria’s Secret) and get properly fitted.
If they don’t, they will hook you up with a retailer that does, or you can look online. You don’t have to be on the extreme ends of the size spectrum to benefit from a bra fitting, either – maybe you’re wearing a 36B but are really a 34D: voila, your new bra will fit and feel better!
You can also get fitted, buy one bra full-priced so the salesperson gets their commission, then go on ebay and get a bunch more at much lower prices. My favorite brand regularly retails at $60-70, but I’ve gotten them on ebay for ~$20.
They are definitely a bug for the vast majority of women that want to be taken seriously at work, and who want people to pay attention to their words (coming higher than nipple line).
Despite being very top heavy, I sometimes go braless. When I do it’s usually a T-shirt I’ve got on or a tight blouse. I am a life model, so I guess I quite like being looked at.