Bra Fitting 101

*post disclaimer: Daddy, you may find this one a bit embarrassing, if you choose to continue reading, don't say I didn't warn you. ;)

"E?," I said, "as in elephant?"

"Oh yeah, that's French for double D," replied Michelle nonchalantly...

Michelle is the lingerie sales person I recently discovered at Nordstrom at the King of Prussia Mall, a local mall that is a very popular tourist attraction in our area. Many of you have probably heard that most women are walking around wearing the wrong size bra and that we have no idea how to choose the right size. After losing nearly 70 pounds, I was certainly no exception.

I had heard from Oprah (and if Oprah says it, you know it's true) that Nordstrom has an exceptionally good lingerie department and being in dire need of a new sports bra, I decided to check them out on Saturday.

I instantly found Michelle, smiling, friendly and roaming the lingerie department with a tape measure around her neck, looking for her next victim customer. I approached her and told her that I needed a sports bra, and that I probably needed a regular every day bra as well. This wasn't my first bra replacement since I started losing weight but it was definitely time for another one.

Michelle was happy to help, she took me to the fitting room and told me to take off my top but leave my bra on, I quickly learned this was not going to be a shopping trip where modesty was involved. She measured me and promptly announced that I was a 36 D! HUH? I'd been wearing a 38 C and it was big so I thought for sure I'd go down in cup size but evidently, I was wrong. Very wrong. Michelle asked me a few details about the kinds of bras I was looking for and left the fitting room to find them for me.

She returned shortly and... this is where it gets a little weird... helped me put the new bras on! Yes, I had to take of my own bra and she fitted me, literally fitted me into the bras she had brought me. "Bye, bye modesty, see you later,"I thought but it was clear to me that Michelle knew what she was doing and what she was talking about. Phrases like, "bend over and get them in the right place," and "pull all of that breast tissue up and over" were used and soon I was into the sports bra she brought me. It. Felt. Fantastic! I could tell that it was going to work for me with all my work outs and especially help to keep "The Girls" comfortable while running.

Next, we tried on the regular bra that Michelle had chosen. YIKES! It didn't fit, too small in the cup size and let's just say, my cup runneth over in a very unattractive way. I was informed that there was more "tissue" than she realized which I figured out really means, "You must have breast fed for close to two years and now those puppies hang way lower than they should and they're really deceiving because there's not much at the top any more." Michelle hit the lingerie road again and soon came back with a larger cup size. This time it said "E." I had never heard of an E in a bra size but as I stated before, was informed that it was just French for DD. I felt oh, so European as we (yes, we) slipped it on and it fit like a glove. Or should I say, fit like a well-fitted bra.

Now it was the moment I was concerned about. I had already peeked at the $62 price tag on the Wacoal sports bra but quickly rationalized that this was something I was going to wear nearly every day and the chafing, pinching and sore red marks that I was currently sporting on the underside of my chest were not something I needed I to live with. I asked Michelle how much the other bra cost and she told me that it was "only" $49.90... on sale. Again, I realized that I do have to wear a bra every day and decided that I would buy one and see how I like it. It was WAY more money than I'd usually spend on undergarments but in this case, I felt like I had also had instruction in bra fitting, learned what size I truly am and learned that I wasn't putting all my breast tissue in the right place, things I never would have learned without Michelle, it's not something I'll be able to do all the time but it was worth the price to get that knowledge.

I've worn the sports bra a couple times during my runs and truly notice a difference. It feels so comfortable and the every day bra makes me look like I did back in my 20s long before The Son and weight gain/loss came along. Thanks Michelle.

Now I'd like to do something nice for Michelle since she was so nice to me, tit for tat if you will, I asked her if I could post her information on my blog and she was thrilled so... if you're in the area and happen to make a stop to the fabulous King of Prussia Mall, stop in and see Michelle Rouse at Nordstrom's lingerie department. 610-265-6111 ext. 1240 She'll be happy to help you out and tell you why your breast tissue was in the wrong place inside your bra.