Essential Equipment

1. Bathers/Cossie/Costume/Trunks/Togs/Speedos/Budgie Smugglers – whatever you call them it’s essential to be suitably attired in the swimming pool and ocean! A well fitting swimming costume can make all the difference to how well you slip through the water. Of course you can wear whatever you like to protect your modesty but at Swim Smooth we have a preference towards brightly coloured bathers made by Funky Trunks, Aqua Diva and Speedo as they are a little bit fun and help to brighten up a cold winter’s morning!
2.  Swimming Cap and Goggles – silicon swimming caps are our recommendation as they are very durable and don’t pull at your hair like the cheaper latex caps tend to. A good cap will also keep your head warm in the open water and help streamline your progress. Caps and goggles are made by a range of manufacturers but our favourite goggles are made by Canadian company ‘Sable’ (www.sablewateroptics.com) as they provide a great fit, come with a variety of different nose bridges for custom modification and have excellent clarity and anti-fog properties. We recommend that female swimmers with small faces try out junior size goggles for a better fit.
   
3. Fins/Flippers – these are excellent tools to have in your swim kit bag as they help to develop good ankle flexibility and provide extra propulsion when performing technical drills. As long as fins are used correctly and with a purpose you should not consider them as ‘cheating’ but as an aid to assist you in your swim stroke development. Choose fins that are slightly longer than the shorter ‘zoomer’ style as they will be more comfortable and encourage a better kicking action for drill work.                                     Unfortunately due to health and safety regulations in some swimming pools (especially in the UK) fins are not allowed but it’s always worthwhile checking with your local pool to see if they will let you use them. Fins are so beneficial for helping you develop your stroke technique that if it were a choice between two pools with one allowing the use and the other not, always go to the one that does. If you’re not fortunate enough to have more than one pool in your local vicinity, enquire with your pool as to whether they might allow fins in a session one night per week.
   
4. Pull Buoys – for those with ‘Sinky Leg Syndrome’ pull buoys can become a bit of a crux and should not be used to simply mask a low body position or a scissor leg kick. It is generally less challenging aerobically to swim with a pull-buoy and this can lead to de-training if they are overused. On the flip side, they allow you to specifically focus your attention on the catch phase of the stroke. In our programmes we use pull buoys regularly during sculling drills to build up your ‘feel for the water’ but you should always remember to emphasise good rotation as everyone has a bit of a tendency to flatten off in their stroke when using one.