I started training for my first full marathon a year ago. Naturally, ads on websites and Facebook were geared to my interest and I kept seeing this product pop up in my feed. I gave into my curiosity and decided to pick this magical band up. Claims of it being so effective that you could wear it in place of a sports bra piqued my interest… did it work? Read on to find out…
The product is pretty straightforward, you get an elastic band that wraps around your chest and secures with velcro. You can place it in multiple locations around your chest: high, low, and across the middle. The only placement that won’t work is beneath. The Booband makes the lofty claim that you can use this in place of and without a sports bra. I have tested this with a very low impact bra and have something to say about that claim later. For the record- I have a 38C bust… not very chesty, but not flat either.
How it works: the band combats bounce by reducing the vertical travel that happens with running/jumping. Placement of the band and tightness changes the amount of support/bounce reduction.
Who this is marketed for:Â Active women who don’t find enough support in traditional sports bras. They have been pushing to market to those who are interested in or already participate in running races.
How to wear it:Â 
You can wear the band high up or just a little lower on the chest. You can no wear this below your breasts or straight across. They even make the claim that you can wear this in place of a sports bra.
Comfort: I found this to be incredibly uncomfortable no matter where I placed it. The tighter you have the band the more effective it is. No matter where I placed this it caused unsightly bulges of skin, accentuating my back fat and distorting the shape of my breasts. I developed burns/chafing in multiple areas. When I run, I wear a heart rate monitor that straps across my chest, the band on top of a bra and the chest strap = too many areas to put glide on and a lot of opportunity for chafing. Having a tight strap across the top of your breasts feels very restrictive and made me feel like it was harder to really breathe when running, you now have to work harder to expand your chest when breathing deeply. They tell you not to wear the strap too tight or breathing may be difficult… but if I don’t then my breasts bounce all over the place… so which one is it?!?!?!
Effectiveness: They say you have to move this thing around to find the sweet spot and offer two locations that the band can be worn. The band offered very little support without wrapping up very tight. I find it very hard to believe that they would claim you can wear this in place of a sports bra because I tried that and would not recommend it at all! No matter where I placed this, I had a really hard time finding a balance between cutting into my fat and bounce reduction. I never found my happy medium and only ended up with chaffing and pain in the long run.
Price/Value: I have a really hard time recommending this one because it is a better value to invest the 20 British pounds you would spend on this into a really good sports bra. These are hard to re-sell once used. Returns are an option; however, have you checked the price of shipping to the UK? You will have to pay for the return shipping and do it within 30 days. I did mention that you could always just put this in your gym bag to throw on should you need a little extra support. However, mine has been sitting in mine… unused. Why? Because this is crazy uncomfortable and I would rather carry one high impact and one medium impact bra with me to prepare for whatever workout I have planned.
Overall: I can not recommend this product. As I mentioned earlier, you would be better off saving and investing in one or two really good sports bras. I tried to use this for running as it was marketed for and it left me chaffed and bruised. Even using Glide on previously chaffed zones did not help because of the material. The pressure needed to reduce bounce made it hard to breathe and made me feel lumpy/uncomfortable while working out. I see a lot of positive reviews and am unsure why so many women like this product. A few women mentioned the negatives that I experienced. Is it worth trying? If you have some cash to burn and your curiosity gets the best of you… sure. Otherwise, save your money and thank me later.
Feel like I am being too harsh or unfair?- Leave your rating below, your scoring changes mine :).
Disclaimer: I did not receive this product for free. I purchased this with my own money. I was not asked to do this review. Lastly, I received no monetary compensation for this review.
Booband
Pros
- Easy to use product.
- Does reduce bounce.
- Easy to carry.
Cons
- Can not replace a sports bra as advertised.
- Very uncomfortable.
- Creates unsightly lumps and bumps under and over clothes.
- Creates a lot of chaffing points when used for running.
- Can make breathing feel labored during long intense physical sessions.