can anyone tell me the benefit of using swim fins? i'm beginning to start my training for olympic distance triathlons. any training program assistance would be helpful.
Former Member
There are three benefits that I can think of (or, more accurately, that my coach has been telling me :) ) :
1. They promote ankle flexibility, which is essential to developing an effective kick -- long fins are better at this than zoomers.
2. They let you swim faster than you normally would in practice, so you get a sense of how swimming at race pace feels.
3. If you don't get lazy and let them do all the work, they can function as resistance training for your legs -- zoomers are better for this than long fins.
But, as has been noted elsewhere in the forums, if you use them too much you can become dependent on them (see number 3 :D)
4 ) and when I first started back, my coach told me that if I got tired before completing the yardage, to put on the fins--they would 'help me go the distance'--and they did indeed help me build up endurance. I seldom use them now unless the drill specifically calls for fins.
5. They enable you to perform drills which call for minimal (if any) use of your arms. Because the fins allow you to move forward easily, even if you have a terrible kick with you nekkid feet, you can concentrate on doing the drill properly, rather than trying to kick hard enough.
They let you swim faster which allows you to get a better feel for where you are experiencing resistance. Anytime you can figure out how to shed even a small amount of resistance, you also decrease the amount of energy (and hence the amount of metabolic conditioning) necessary to swim at any given speed.
