Which swim toys, if any, are you currently using at least semi-regularly. Feel free to elaborate on why and when you use them! You can make as many choices as you like.
I forget to add breaststroke fins. You can just note if you are. I have just started kicking once in awhile with them. I aspire to learn the snorkle, but haven't gotten around to that yet. I also can't keep my nose clip on. Hoping to get the hang of it this winter to avoid sinus infections.
I use a kickboard every workout. I probably use paddles and pull buoy about 75% of the time. I use regular fins rarely and a snorkel even less, though I do have one in my equipment bag.
I also don't consider earplugs to be a "toy". That's like saying goggles are "toys". I don't think that logic extends to noseplugs, however, since good swimming technique (learning how to breath out while your head is submerged and otherwise pressurize your nose) should obviate the need for a noseplug. Noseplugs make it easier to swim (theoretically) and are a crutch. Earplugs are not.
As for "real" toys, I'm generally not a fan. We used fins in college from time to time but found that I didn't really get much in the way of benefit from them. I also don't like paddles. I always worry that they put too much pressure on my shoulders...
I do use a kickboard for kicking breastroke and freestyle. I find that I kick with more intensity with a kickboard for those strokes. Otherwise, the kick set becomes too focussed on breath control and I scull, pull too much. Backstroke is easier without a board and when I kick butterfly, I'm really just practicing SDKs which need to be done underwater, in proper form and with breath control.
I also use a pull buoy, but usually only in warmup. For me, pull buoys are a good way to focus on technique and are also a good way to practice breath control (I usually breathe every 3/5 by 50 on pull sets).
Love my snorkle for warmup/cool down and some drills. It makes it easier to swim free with my shoulder problems:cane:. Regular fins for breaststroke/dolphin kick is an important part of my workout. I never use paddles(hurt my shoulders) and only use a pullbuoy for the breaststroke kick drill.
Just a pull buoy during pulling sets. I'm not against toys, my body just can't seem to take them (probably because my stroke mechanics aren't good enough...)
I do use fins now and then when the set is fin specific, but don't use them for ordinary kicking sets because they tend to make my knees/lower hamstring inserts hurt. Plus, I can't STAND the sensation you get when you take the fins off and it feels like your feet have been whacked off at the ankle! Blech.
I also don't consider earplugs to be a "toy". That's like saying goggles are "toys". I don't think that logic extends to noseplugs, however, since good swimming technique (learning how to breath out while your head is submerged and otherwise pressurize your nose) should obviate the need for a noseplug. Noseplugs make it easier to swim (theoretically) and are a crutch. Earplugs are not.
It's quite apparent that I know that nose clips and earplugs are not toys. I don't need a lecture, and I'm not an idiot. :mooning: I just ran out of ideas and tried to be funny by listing other things one might wear in the water. Nose clips are not a "crutch," however, for people with chronic sinus infections from swimming. They might be the only thing that keeps them in the water.
I'd like to try the alpha zura fins some day.
A ton of pull buoy users so far. That seems like the fav toy.
I use toys for a specific purpose, then move on.
We have a few who use fins or a pull buoy for a whole practice and it can be disruptive, especially as the rest of us fatigue.
My pull buoy is my friend, as I love to pull, but I am experimenting with using my paddles less often. Same goes for the fins. My kick has gotten better, so I'm doing more without fins, but when the rest of the lane slips them on, it's hard to avoid getting run over, so out they come. I have ditched the kickboard though. Kicking on the back (fly, ***, and flutter) does double duty as an ab workout.
What are alpha zura fins?
Don't pull buoys keep your hips and/or feet up just like fins? (I don't know, I don't use pull buoys.) I was just wondering.
I like my fins, but I rarely use them to kick. Well, except for SDKs with the MF.
Here's a pic of the alpha zura fins. They're very light and flexible. Karlyn Pipes-Nielson brought a ton to zones last year. They look like they might be easier to wear for people with knee or ankle issues maybe?
Karlyn let me try them on at state - they were really cool. I want a pair.
I am very bad and do use paddles from time to time. Only if my shoulders have felt good, never with the wrist strap, and only for short swims. I like them for backstroke.
I use fins (zoomers) maybe once every 2-3 months. I never use a kick board and only pull with a bouy on occassion.
I use ear plugs every time I swim otherwise I'd be out with ear infections constantly.
I use my paddles for days that I am trying to work on form.
I use my fins for improving my desire to attempt butterfly without:drown:
I have a pair of fist gloves that I am thinking about using BUT never have...was wondering what people thought about them.