water swims may cause you to become cold or bottoms (taking advantage of the buoyancy)
hypothermic. You want to use a full suit if at all but skip the top.
budget to purchase a high-tech suit right out of
possible.
the gate, consider renting one on race day or
If you have a larger frame, you have a sAlt wAter or fresh wAter?
borrowing one from a training partner.
definite advantage in the swimming world. Salt water is denser than fresh water,
For those of you out there to have some
Adipose tissue is more buoyant than water meaning you become more buoyant in salt
fun, hang out with your friends and engage
and will help you float (muscle is more dense water. If you live by the beach and plan to race
in healthy exercise, you don’t need to be
and will sink). Adipose tissue also creates mostly in the ocean and bay, the increased
concerned with the performance difference.
a protective layer of warmth around your buoyancy of full, thick wetsuits is less
Your equation is going to be dominated by
muscles and your core and will help keep you important to you. It is actually possible that the
the other questions answered in this article
warm even in really cold water. You may be added buoyancy of a thick wetsuit in salt water
– comfort, distance, budget, swim stroke and
able to consider the sleeveless suits fairly equal might make your position so different than
body type.
to the full-sleeved suits in terms of warmth your normal swim stroke that it would impede
and comfort. rather than improve your swimming speed.
Marty Gaal, CSCS, is a USA Triathlon
Consider a slim wetsuit or sleeveless.
certified coach who lives in Cary, N.C. He and
Am I clAustrophobIc? If you live inland and will race and train
his wife Brianne coach triathletes through
If your answer is no, then you can ignore mostly in fresh water, then a wetsuit with more
their company, One Step Beyond. Marty
this question. However, if you are squeamish material is going to help you stay on top of the
has been swimming in ocean competitions
in confined spaces or with the feeling of water. You’d need to balance that desire for
since 1986 and racing triathlon since 1989.
confinement, then you need to carefully positive buoyancy with the need to stay cool
One Step Beyond recently produced the
consider what wetsuit will work for you, if at and how your swim stroke functions with the
Powerstroke®: Speed through force and form
all. Wetsuits are meant to be very snug without wetsuit.
freestyle technique DVD, intended to help new
being constrictive. A sleeveless suit will
to intermediate triathlon swimmers become
generally feel less constrictive. The two-piece how competItIve do I plAn to be?
faster and more powerful in the water. You
suits also allow a bit of extra flexibility because If you are out to win an age group or overall
can read more about their coaching services
the torso and leg pieces are separate, so there award, then you will want to take advantage
at
www.osbmultisport.com and the DVD is
is no feeling of pressure on your shoulders or of every possible piece of equipment that can
available at
www.powerstroke-dvd.com.
trapezoids. You could also swim with just the improve your speed. If you don’t have the
usatriathlon.org USA TriAThlon 41
USATTriWinter10pgs3-51.indd 41 12/9/09 12:36:04 PM
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