Swimming equipment tips to improve your performance

By gab

Do you think going swimming in the pool to improve your overall fitness level requires just a swimsuit? Well… think again! Whether you are an experience swimmer or a beginner, exercising with the right swimming gears makes a lot of sense. To train your muscles and cardiovascular system in the most effective way you need some support from a small set of swim gear which will boost the outcome of your training and kill your frustration. Let me give you some tips on what swimming gears are best and how to use it.

Essential Swim Gear guide

Let’s start with the basics.

Swimsuit

The swimsuit needs to be comfortable but tight, it needs to allow you to move easily without dragging you down. So guys, forget those cool funky shorts.
Some suggestions: Speedo Women’s Aquatic Xtra Life Lycra Solid Conservative Ultraback Swimsuit
Speedo Nylon Stripped Square Leg Training Suit

Swim Caps

Think about yourself and the others when you swim. Your long shiny and smooth hairs are handsome….. though, they are even better if I don’t find them in my mouth when I swim. And, yes that hairstyle gel makes you look cool though, it does not really taste good….. So, always wear a swim cap when you are in the swimming pool. Also, stay away from latex caps, stick to silicone caps. Silicone caps last much longer, latex cap get ruined easily from the chlorine in the swimming pool water. Check the Speedo Silicone Swim Cap out, they are great and cheap.

Swimming Goggles

Whether you mind or not having water in your eyes you should wear goggles while swimming in the pool. After an hour or so of swimming your eyes will feel the chlorine and start getting reddish and itchy. As for the swim cap stay away from latex, get goggles with a silicone band, they will last much longer. Also, take your time to try the goggles, see how they fit your eyes. They need to be comfortable and steady on you face. Goggles come in many shapes and forms, so you will find some which fits your head best. The worst goggles are those which let water leak in because their share does not fit your face. if you are planning to swim outdoor, purchase metallized goggles or dark plastic goggles to reduce sun light bothering you. Nowadays you can find fantastic goggles with universal nose-piece systems, leak proof shapes, hypo-allergenic, anti-fog and UV materials. In case you wear eye glasses you can also get your goggles with the correct optical grade. So protect your eyes and swim. Speedo has many great model I found Speedo Vanquisher Plus to be perfect. While competing though, I always use
Monterbara Swedish Goggle

That much for the basics, now let’s get to the cool swim gears which can really make a different for your swimming fitness and physical benefit.

Swim Pull Buoys

A pull buoy is a piece of closed-cell foam, usually shaped like the number eight, used in swim workouts and to be placed between the legs. Pull buoys provide you with support for hips and legs so you wont have to move them. The aim of this floating device is to allow the swimmer to focus on the arms, training without having to perform leg chicks. Allowing to focus only on the arms movements, pull buoys make you develop endurance and strength in the upper part of the body, and work on your arm stroke technique and breathing rhythm.

Here is an example on how to swim with pull buoys. The pull buoys could also be placed higher up in between the legs if you find them more comfortable there. I use Speedo Pull Buoy and find them easy to use and comfortable.

Swimming Hand Paddles

What would happen if you had hands double as big? Well, I guess you would be swimming faster if only you had the muscles to pull. Hand paddles are plastic devices you wear on your hands during your swimming workout which make your hands bigger and therefore make you develop strength. They can be used while swimming any stroke and may be used together with pull buoys to maximize the effect. Hand paddles are the “free loads” swimmers can use in the swimming pool. The Zoggs Flexible Hand Paddle are the most versatile, you can use them swimming any stroke.

Here is an example on how to use hand paddles swimming freestyle.

Swimming Kickboards

Swimming boards, also known as kickboards, are flotation devices used to isolate the swimmers kicking work. They can be used on every strokes to get more familiar with the swimming kicking action, in case you are a beginner swimmers, or to train and strengthen legs kicks in more experience swimmers. They come in different shapes, forms and materials. Some swimmer uses kickboards as pull buoy, however used in that way they can be rather uncomfortable.

The Competition II Kickboard is a great choice if you want something compact and stable in the water.

Here is and example on how to use swimming kickboards.

Swimming Fins

Swimming fins can be used to increase strength and endurance in your legs. They are used on all the swimming strokes but breaststroke. As for arms and hand paddles you can use fins to focus on the leg kicking technique. Swim fins come in different shapes, forms and materials. To maximize the strength and endurance training use the fins together with the kickboard but make sure to kick the water and avoid other swimmers in crowded pools. FINIS Zoomers Fins are the most solid and durable.

Here is and example on how to use training fins.

These are only some of the swimming equipment you can use to get better results with your swimming workout. I will be posting on some specific exercises to be done with these swim gears in the coming days, so stay tuned. In the mean time do not hesitate to leave comments or contact me through Ask Gab if you have any question.

Keep healthy, Keep swimming