Best budget equipment for a new swimmer?? waterproof earbuds

Hello! Jammers: I can't say about Jammers, but my speedo swimsuit is starting to loosen up as well. I believe this is fairly normal. I swim at least an hour 6 days a week, and I have 4 of the same suit. I suspect in a couple of months I am going to have to buy new ones. Goggles: same problem, but I use the Jaws Quick Spit Antifog spray every time. I spray it on, spread it around gently with my fingers, let it settle for a couple of minutes, then I rinse it off at the pool. I've been in the water for 2 hours straight without it getting foggy. I usually go straight to the shower after the swim, so I also rinse it with tap water after I am done with it. Then when I am home, I air dry it. waterproof earphones: I really love www.underwateraudio.com/. It's not cheap. But I've been using it for almost a year now and have not had any problems with it. It came with various tree-like ear buds and I had to try a few of them in the water before finding the perfect size. At first, it kept slipping off, but then after a reading a few articles on google, I found out there is a special way to put them in. You basically pull the top of your ear up while you shove the ear bud in. You can feel it when it is securely in. I swim with my cap over my ears, but once in a while my cap slips off, but the ear buds are still in, even when I am doing flip turns.

I swim 3-4 days a week from 1-2k each day. I bought 2 jammers last July from Aqua Sphere and they are holding up pretty well. I alternate the two suits, so I've only used 3 mos of life on each. I can see the very beginnings of fraying at a seam or two. I had a square leg suit previously, also Aqua Sphere, that lasted about a year, but for the sake of human decency I had to trash those due to fading and thinning. I don't swim with music or a cap, but I would think putting the cap on over the ear buds would hold them in.

Voting for polyester. Goggles? I'm waiting to see what happens with the goggles I've ordered that aren't Speedo.

Use a suit that is 100% polyester. They basically last forever. Eventually the seams will give out, but you'll get a year of swimming nearly every day easily. Goggles are not anti-fog no matter what they try to tell you. One suggestion I've heard that works well is to store them in a mixture of water and baby shampoo.

100% polyester suits will last 1-2 YEARS !! Other will feel nice as they stretch and fade quickly 3-6 months. The cheap & easy "anti fog" solution is listed above by Knelson or just rub some on at the start of swimming & rinse off b4 using. I don't have any info on music. Welcome to the forums.

Thanks all for your replies! Will look into 100% polyester jammers for my next purchase and try the jaws anti fog or just make the cheap solution. I used to put dishwasher soap, rub it in, leave for a minute, wipe away but the trick was to NOT wash it off only wipe away with a dry towel. Works well, but takes a long time to do before each swim... as for waterproof headphones, I will look into that website, but I just heard about the FINNIS one where the sound goes through your cheekbones??? if anyone has any experience with those please let me know! I usually TRY to listen to podcasts but my earphones don't cut it. If i put my swimming cap over my ears, it just pushes the earphones against the walls of my ears and the sound gets blocked completely...

Can't help with earbuds, however... I just wash my goggles with that foamy soap from the dispenser in the locker room. Wet, soap, rub it around a bit, rinse it lightly (leave just a smidgen of soap, not enough to bother my eyes). Good to go. My goggles stay clear through my workout. I'm just guessing here, so if I'm way off the mark, ignore what follows... I have never had the urge to listen to music (or NPR, or AM Talk Radio, or TED Talks) while swimming. I break my workout up into small, but meaningful, chunks of time so I don't have to think too hard for too long, but still need to concentrate just a bit to not completely lose track of where I am. If boredom is why you want to listen to music, that might be an alternative to consider. For example, I have no trouble counting to 2 or 4, but much beyond that, it's quite possible I will slip, especially while tired. Here are some games I play. Suppose I want to swim 12x50. Twelve is a big number when I'm tired, but like I said, I can (almost always) count to four. (I am reminded of Watership Down. The rabbits could, as I recall, only count to about three. Anything bigger was "many.") So, I might pick an interval that I can cruise doing free and a decent amount of rest, say 1:10 (I'm not too fast, these days I might hold :45s/50). Swim the first four free. Easy peasy. Swim the next four back, still pretty easy, but a little tougher, because I don't swim back quite as fast as free. Swim the last four ***. Now we're talking more like :53s-:55s/50, and I get much less rest. The free/back/*** part breaks the 12 50s up into three sets of four. Nothing bigger than four. And, I effectively just descended by swimming faster to slower strokes. (You fly types can get to 16 with the same (il)logic.) If I want to do more than twelve, just repeat the free/back/*** part enough times to get where you're going. I can get to 48 without ever having to count higher than four. :) If you have plenty of pool toys available, gather a few up at the side of the pool. Guard them jealously. With four pull buoys I can count to sixteen in binary before I'm back to zero. On edge for "1", laying flat for "0". The lifeguards will think you're nuts, playing with your toys at the edge of the pool between starts. Unless they are computer science majors. :) Use the (analog) clock, Luke. If you can see a swim clock on deck with a second hand, set up your intervals so your start time is on a different number each time. A 1:05 interval would have you starting on 00, then 05, then 10, etc. Similarly, a :55 interval has you starting on 00, 55, 50, ... It works as well with a digital clock, but you won't have the circular geometry to remind you of where you are. HTH. Ignore if it doesn't... :)

I use Foggies for my goggles: www.trisports.com/triswim-foggle.html and it works well. After I swim I pat the goggle lenses dry and then use the wipe on them and toss them back into my bag. The wipes last a long time if you put them back in the package and roll it down to keep it moist, so I get multiple uses out of them.

FINIS Swimp3 is a good product. Sturdy and effective.

Can't help with earbuds, however... Suppose I want to swim 12x50. Twelve is a big number when I'm tired, but like I said, I can (almost always) count to four. (I am reminded of Watership Down. The rabbits could, as I recall, only count to about three. Anything bigger was "many.") So, I might pick an interval that I can cruise doing free and a decent amount of rest, say 1:10 (I'm not too fast, these days I might hold :45s/50). Swim the first four free. Easy peasy. Swim the next four back, still pretty easy, but a little tougher, because I don't swim back quite as fast as free. Swim the last four ***. Now we're talking more like :53s-:55s/50, and I get much less rest. The free/back/*** part breaks the 12 50s up into three sets of four. Nothing bigger than four. And, I effectively just descended by swimming faster to slower strokes. (You fly types can get to 16 with the same (il)logic.) If I want to do more than twelve, just repeat the free/back/*** part enough times to get where you're going. I can get to 48 without ever having to count higher than four. :) If you have plenty of pool toys available, gather a few up at the side of the pool. Guard them jealously. With four pull buoys I can count to sixteen in binary before I'm back to zero. On edge for "1", laying flat for "0". The lifeguards will think you're nuts, playing with your toys at the edge of the pool between starts. Unless they are computer science majors. :) Use the (analog) clock, Luke. If you can see a swim clock on deck with a second hand, set up your intervals so your start time is on a different number each time. A 1:05 interval would have you starting on 00, then 05, then 10, etc. Similarly, a :55 interval has you starting on 00, 55, 50, ... It works as well with a digital clock, but you won't have the circular geometry to remind you of where you are. HTH. Ignore if it doesn't... :) Wow! thanks for all of your input! Unfortunately, i cant do you first bulletpoint because i can only freestyle...and i also cant do the time because the clock is placed at the worst place possible at my gym. I alrdy keep track of my workout by using my flip-flops. and yes. the lifeguard and people around me look at me weird, but w.e that works for me, right? :D