oscillating deformations of subcutaneous adipose tissue when swimming at higher speed

Originally posted by ande the problem is pandoras box has opened there are now world records done by swimmers wearing the suits Would it be fair to remove these records from the books? Would it be fair to ban the suits and allow swimmers who aren't permitted to wear the suits to compete against the times of those who did? I suppose the same questions could be asked regarding various changes that have been made to the stroke rules over the years. The bottom line is that there are world records that have been set by swimmers wearing the suits, and there are world records that have been set by swimmers who weren't wearing the suits, suggesting that the suits (contrary to the manufacturers' claims) haven't made much difference (though who knows whether that will continue as the suits continue to be redesigned). I think it would have been better to have banned the suits in the beginning, but I see no problem with doing it now. Bob

I am no fan of the new suits, which seem to me to do little more than make the sport a whole lot more expensive, but I wonder exactly what a ban would look like. It seems to me that careful testing for bouyancy should be possible and that the current testing methods may be flawed, but when you go beyond that what do you do, set a maximum area limitation? I'm hoping the article turns out to be correct and that cheap tight suits or just shaving is as fast.

After reading some of the stuff on the site Ande originally linked, I'm now wondering whether I should wear a leg suit for my distance events at Nationals. Any opinions? I've never worn a "speed suit" before but just got a Speedo Legskin. Some of the articles mention that once the suits get waterlogged they could actually slow you down. Would I be better off with a standard suit for the 500 and 1650 frees?

I never thought of it that way: one more thing to blame for a sub-par performance! All my swims will be outstanding, though, so I won't need that excuse.

I swam the mile at our Pacific Champs. in a leg suit. I was only off my best by 2 seconds, unshaved and untapered. But when I took it off is when I noticed that there was A LOT of water in it! I can't complain...

Originally posted by knelson After reading some of the stuff on the site Ande originally linked, I'm now wondering whether I should wear a leg suit for my distance events at Nationals. Any opinions? I've never worn a "speed suit" before but just got a Speedo Legskin. Some of the articles mention that once the suits get waterlogged they could actually slow you down. Would I be better off with a standard suit for the 500 and 1650 frees? I'm not sure about the mile but I have done my best time in the 500 (in Fort Lauderdale:))wearing a leg skin. Ande once said that Jill Sterkel said the female distance swimmers at Texas didn't wear the long suits because they got too hot. I would imagine since the mile is after the 1000 and will probably be around noon that perhaps you wouldn't want to wear it because of the heat factor. Personally I do believe the suits help keep me "higher" in the water and all of my best times have come wearing the long suit. I have never felt too hot nor heavy (i.e. waterlogged) in it but I don't swim the mile...I have seen men wear them in the 1500 in the Olympics and the NCAA 1650 so they can't be taking up that much water or the best in our sport wouldn't be wearing them when it matters most...

Originally posted by knelson After reading some of the stuff on the site Ande originally linked, I'm now wondering whether I should wear a leg suit for my distance events at Nationals. Any opinions? I've never worn a "speed suit" before but just got a Speedo Legskin. Some of the articles mention that once the suits get waterlogged they could actually slow you down. Would I be better off with a standard suit for the 500 and 1650 frees? I had wondered the same thing about wearing my TYR Aquapel (long legs, no arms) for my distance events. Ande suggested that I simply try it out, so I did. I swam for a triathlon team (It was an odd distance, 750), but I absolutely loved it! I haven't competed very much since college, and I'm certainly not working out as much now as I used to, but my 500 split was a 5:26, only a hair off of my best 500 time from my college days. I also wore my Aquapel for my 500 in a very small intersquad meet last week and went a 5:24. I'm definitely sold on the suits and plan on wearing mine at Nationals. That's just my experience. Hope it helps! Kristi

Perhaps a waterlogged legskin explains why I didn't lower my times for the 500 and the 1000. Of course, sloppy turns and not enough distance work might also have a played a role.

Nah, Gull it was all the suit ...

Originally posted by kristilynn my 500 split was a 5:26, only a hair off of my best 500 time from my college days. I also wore my Aquapel for my 500 in a very small intersquad meet last week and went a 5:24. That's impressive. I'm still trying to get within 30 seconds of my college time in the 500 free!