Reebok is launching a new sports bra that can be relaxed or tightened according to the wearer’s movements. It’s called PureMove, and as the Fast Company reports, the technology it uses has been incorporated into bulletproof vests and NASA spacesuits.
The development of the bra began three years ago when Reebok designer Danielle Witek encountered a gelatinous substance called Shear Thickening Fluid when reading the research journal. Developed by scientists at the University of Delaware in 2005, the substance is more like a liquid when it moves slowly, and more like a solid when it moves at a higher speed.
Witek lends a helping hand to the researchers, and Reebok created the Motion Sense Technology fabric, which incorporates dynamic liquids into the textile. The idea is that when the wearer is performing an activity, such as running or high-intensity interval training, they want more active support, the bra will harden and provide more compression. However, when they participate in a less active activity, such as during yoga or just after completing an exercise, the bra will relax and loosen. In this way, a single bra can be used for a variety of activities, providing a comfortable balance of comfort and support for whatever the wearer does.
Nike also took on this issue and announced its Motion Adapt Bra earlier this year. Like the Reebok version, it adjusts its support according to the movement, the foam and polymer blends stretch inside at rest and harden when an impact is sensed.
Only time will tell the user whether they agree with Reebok’s bra to solve its design problems, but Fast Company’s Elizabeth Segran tested it during high-intensity and cool training and was satisfied with its performance. “The best thing about bras is that I didn’t notice it at all,” she wrote. “When I was hanging out in the gym, I didn’t feel suffocated. When I ran around, I didn’t feel that I didn’t get support.”
Reebok said that if customers respond well to the new bra, it would consider adding new technology to other garments. “For designers, finding this material is so exciting because it unlocks a lot of possibilities,” Witek told Fast Company. “We can now look at every piece of clothing we make and think about how to add another layer of adaptability to it.”