3 ms·

> For example, in triathlon and some open water swim meets, wearing a wetsuit does give someone a speed advantage Is that because of the distance? An extended

> For example, in triathlon and some open water swim meets, wearing a wetsuit does give someone a speed advantage Is that because of the distance? An extended family member is an elite swimmer (competes in USA Swimming national meets, NCAA D1 times while still in middle school, etc) and the idea that wearing 3+ mils of neoprene makes you faster is ludicrous to them.

tedunangst 4y ago
Also, triathletes aren't always the best swimmers. A modest +5% buoyancy for them is probably more meaningful than a top swimmer.
dredmorbius 4y ago
Conservation of body heat is a huge factor alone. Not only does the competitor expend less energy in keeping warm, but muscles function more efficiently when warm. Buoyancy is another consideration --- the wetsuit helps float the swimmer higher in the water, again, requiring less energy than would be required for a non-suited swimmer. As cons, the wetsuit does somewhat restrict movement, though on balance that seems outweighed by other factors. Suits designed for swimming are far less thick than diving or surfing suits generally, and may be vest-and-leg designs.
- petre 4y ago
  Buoyancy is negligible, at least on 3 mm shorties. It's the added insulation from the cold that does the trick and makes open water swimming easier and more enjoyable. Why take that away from people?
- Kon-Peki 4y ago
  That does sound like a primarily distance-based thing, thanks :) Pool swimmers rarely exceed a few hundred meters. I think the longest individual race might be 1800 meters, and few swimmers compete at that. The negatives are going to completely dominate when you are only swimming those kind of distances.
  - dredmorbius 4y ago
    For regularly-scheduled events, 400m (500y) is considered a longer event, and is included in most meets, whilst 1500m / 1650 y (1.5 km / about a mile) are held infrequently, and often scheduled on a separate day from other events. There's also an 800m listed in the US records: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_records_in_swimming https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_records_...> Time to run a heat is roughly 7 minutes for a 500y, and 15--25 minutes for a 1650y. Open-water swimming typically begins at about 500m / 500y (mini-triathlon) and goes up from there, with multi-mile events being fairly common. Ironman Triathlon swimming distance is 2.4 miles. Among longer events are the Catalina Channel (20 mi), for which the men's record is 7h15m. Or if that's not enough, there's the two-way, 40 miles, 16h42m record. <https://longswims.com/events/catalina-channel/ https://longswims.com/events/catalina-channel/> The English Channel is comparable in length at 21 miles, with 2,778 swims recorded to date: <https://www.channelswimmingassociation.com/ https://www.channelswimmingassociation.com/>
derbOac 4y ago
There's been many studies showing that wetsuits give a speed advantage on average around 6% (this is on average). My understanding is it's because of the buoyancy. There's an idea that they're less necessary for really skilled elite swimmers but that's controversial. Having worn them I can say there is definitely constriction around the arms even with good-fitting wetsuits (relative to no wetsuit material), so I understand the idea that if you're good enough the wetsuit would just get in the way (not saying I'm that good, just that the idea is consistent with my experience). However, I've also read pretty convincing arguments that if you take any swimmer and put them in a wetsuit that fits them well, on average across swimmers, they'll swim faster. Regardless, in a typical triathlon or meet, there is usually an observed speed increase of a slight amount, which ostensibly puts someone at a speed disadvantage.
scheme271 4y ago
For people that aren't expert swimmers, wetsuits add buoyancy. Just as importantly, it adds buoyancy to your legs and hips which help to prevent your lower body from dragging in the water. If you're a good swimmer with great technique, you're already doing this but it definitely helps people without good form and technique.

tedunangst 4y ago

Also, triathletes aren't always the best swimmers. A modest +5% buoyancy for them is probably more meaningful than a top swimmer.

dredmorbius 4y ago

Conservation of body heat is a huge factor alone. Not only does the competitor expend less energy in keeping warm, but muscles function more efficiently when warm. Buoyancy is another consideration --- the wetsuit helps float the swimmer higher in the water, again, requiring less energy than would be required for a non-suited swimmer. As cons, the wetsuit does somewhat restrict movement, though on balance that seems outweighed by other factors. Suits designed for swimming are far less thick than diving or surfing suits generally, and may be vest-and-leg designs.

petre 4y ago
Buoyancy is negligible, at least on 3 mm shorties. It's the added insulation from the cold that does the trick and makes open water swimming easier and more enjoyable. Why take that away from people?
Kon-Peki 4y ago
That does sound like a primarily distance-based thing, thanks :) Pool swimmers rarely exceed a few hundred meters. I think the longest individual race might be 1800 meters, and few swimmers compete at that. The negatives are going to completely dominate when you are only swimming those kind of distances.
- dredmorbius 4y ago
  For regularly-scheduled events, 400m (500y) is considered a longer event, and is included in most meets, whilst 1500m / 1650 y (1.5 km / about a mile) are held infrequently, and often scheduled on a separate day from other events. There's also an 800m listed in the US records: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_records_in_swimming https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_records_...> Time to run a heat is roughly 7 minutes for a 500y, and 15--25 minutes for a 1650y. Open-water swimming typically begins at about 500m / 500y (mini-triathlon) and goes up from there, with multi-mile events being fairly common. Ironman Triathlon swimming distance is 2.4 miles. Among longer events are the Catalina Channel (20 mi), for which the men's record is 7h15m. Or if that's not enough, there's the two-way, 40 miles, 16h42m record. <https://longswims.com/events/catalina-channel/ https://longswims.com/events/catalina-channel/> The English Channel is comparable in length at 21 miles, with 2,778 swims recorded to date: <https://www.channelswimmingassociation.com/ https://www.channelswimmingassociation.com/>

derbOac 4y ago

There's been many studies showing that wetsuits give a speed advantage on average around 6% (this is on average). My understanding is it's because of the buoyancy. There's an idea that they're less necessary for really skilled elite swimmers but that's controversial. Having worn them I can say there is definitely constriction around the arms even with good-fitting wetsuits (relative to no wetsuit material), so I understand the idea that if you're good enough the wetsuit would just get in the way (not saying I'm that good, just that the idea is consistent with my experience). However, I've also read pretty convincing arguments that if you take any swimmer and put them in a wetsuit that fits them well, on average across swimmers, they'll swim faster. Regardless, in a typical triathlon or meet, there is usually an observed speed increase of a slight amount, which ostensibly puts someone at a speed disadvantage.

scheme271 4y ago

For people that aren't expert swimmers, wetsuits add buoyancy. Just as importantly, it adds buoyancy to your legs and hips which help to prevent your lower body from dragging in the water. If you're a good swimmer with great technique, you're already doing this but it definitely helps people without good form and technique.