Favorite Things Friday - A girl's best friend

No, not diamonds, at least not for this girl. This bra, the Handful (yes that's it's name, isn't it awesome?!) is I dare say, my very favorite piece of workout clothing. Nothing makes me feel cuter than this bra, and yes, vanity is everything sometimes. I mean honestly, in my head, thinking I look good makes a huge difference in my confidence level come race day. It really does. I just think you race better when you feel confident about yourself. And I'm not prancing around shirtless all the time, I feel cute with it under my tech shirts and jerseys too. You can see it in almost all of my photos this year. Let me tell you more about it.
I've had this bra 6 months now. My first thoughts upon seeing it were three things. It's way cute, but is it a yoga bra or will it really support me, and as a triathlete, will it dry quickly? Let me address those 3 points.
Cute - SO cute! I love the colors (black, white, pink, nude, cocoa), and the pink matches my Powertri kit perfectly. Again, I'm back to the vanity, yes :) I love the thin straps, so flattering, and the back? LOVE it! The bra comes with removable pads that looked kind of bulky before I put it on, but they so totally work with this bra. Ladies, you know what I'm talking about here when I say I have grown, fed, and loved my 3 children, and as a result, the girls definitely do not look like they used to. Lets just say push up/padded bras are my friends (gentlemen if you're still reading, sorry to burst your bubble, but those beautiful babies you like to help create really do take a toll on all of us women). So I was so so so super excited upon donning this lovely creation, and just loving what it did for me. I had shape all of the sudden! And it looked natural too! Oh and those pads? Very good at concealing the whole 'headlight' effect too, definitely no worries there.
Support - does it support? Yes it does. Do I realize I'm not exactly the best girl to talk about needing a lot of support? Yes, I do. I've gotten smaller as my dear children have grown, but I've run through pregnancy and nursing and know how stinkin hard it was to deal with bras then, and I still know I never want any bounce even now. And this bra does its job. I've worn it during all types of training, and at every race but 1 this year I believe, including Ironman St George which includes a marathon of course. I've never felt like I was bouncing. That said, yes, the Handful is probably not the best high impact bra for those larger than a C. But that doesn't mean it can't be a great weight room, yoga, spinning, etc bra at the gym where let's be serious, it's a meat market anyway, so you might as well look good :)
Fabric - I was concerned as soon as I held the bra that it wouldn't dry quickly. I was worried these lovely shaped and gently lifting removable pads would just be sponges and leave me wet my whole race, but......NOT SO! I was pleasantly surprised to have no issues at all with it drying. I haven't paid enough attention (because it hasn't demanded it), but it's for sure dry within 30 minutes or so of being on the bike WITH the pads in. *I did hear of a lady soaking and then freezing the removable pads though and then putting them back in the morning of a hot bike race, interesting!*  No chaffing issues with this bra either. The fabric is very comfortable and seems to breath really well too, and I've never seen my pink one with sweat stains. The bra is easy to get on and off, which is always important. Sizing is great, and if you're falling between two sizes, I say size down. Oh and it comes in it's own little wash bag, so machine washing is a breeze.
Cost - $39.95.  No, not your Target $10 clearance special, but so worth it.  You get a bra that you'll really like the way you look in, a bra that does it's job, and it'll last a lot longer than a cheaper sports bra.  Look around at other online athletic retailers, really well made bra's typically go for $30-$50 .  This bra is worthy of it's cost.

So there you go, I love this bra. As there slogan states, "It flatters, not flattens". It feels good, does what it should, and looks great. So I thought how much I'd love one of you to have one so I contacted the good people at Handful Inc. And, drum roll please..........they're giving me a code to give to one of you for a FREE bra of your choice off their website (you only pay shipping). That's a $40 value ladies!! I'm so excited! So here's the deal. I'm super impressed that Handful was willing to give away a free bra, so I want to help them out. If you will become a fan of Handful Inc on Facebook (they send promos to fans by the way), you can have a chance at your own FREE Handful bra. Just post some brief little schpele here on my blog about why you'd like a Handful too, and let me know that you became a fan, and poof, I'll enter you in the random drawing. You have until next Thursday, Sept 9th at 11:59pm to post a comment below, and then I'll announce a winner on Friday Sept 10th. Cool? Awesome!

Your favorite tri shop Powertri carries these wonderful bras now, and I seem to recall a 15% off code on my blog somewhere to help you out  :)  Go in and try one out or order online, you won't be dissapointed.