Tracksuits for Watersports

If your sports involve swimming in clothes consider an unlined tracksuit, the most versatile kit for activities where you or your team get wet repeatedly.

Tracksuits are robust but lightweight outfits for outdoor activities. The quick drying fabric is comfortable on land or in water. Even when wet, they protect you from the cold and against bruising. They don't hold much water, most of it soon drains off after you get out.

Inexpensive Swimsuits

Tracksuits can be used as inexpensive swimwear that avoids sunburn, provides a comfy and wholesome swimming experience, and feels pleasant as they dry in the breeze after you've been in the water. Combine them with rainwear on wet or windy days to avoid the dreaded wind chill.

A tracksuit is great fun for swimming. As an inexpensive swimsuit it also makes sense in a serious training context: it can function as a cheap resistance and survival training tool, especially for strong swimmers who want additional drag or realistic fully clothed swimming practice.

A proper swimsuit costs quite a bit of money. A tracksuit is something you may already own. You can wear it anywhere, at home, in the mall, or in the pool. If you're willing to swim in your tracksuit, you don't need to buy a swimsuit. Therefore, an unlined tracksuit should always be in your swimbag.

Wetsuit Cover

Tracksuits can go over a wetsuit to protect it from damage when you go canoeing or enjoy wet and wild activities. If you don't have a wetsuit, wear a tracksuit over fleeces or thermals, not cotton.

Warm up for Swimming Competitions

It is essential that you are properly clothed on poolside between races to keep your muscles warm, regardless of the poolside environment. After warm up or between heats, wear your club T-shirt on poolside. Have a few spare T-shirts to hand as they will get wet quickly.

Warm Tracksuit

You may also want your tracksuit to keep warm and retain muscle heat. A hooded top keeps you warmer as you lose much heat from your head. A club branded tracksuit is highly encouraged, as it really makes you look and feel part of the team, especially when attending swimming events.

After Competition Swim

When you go home, especially on cold winter days, you need to keep warm in dry clothes. Bring spare clothes if your team has a tendency to throw people into the pool after a competition. Teams often go for a relaxing swim to chill out. Many keep their damp warm-up clothes on as there is seldom the time to change.

Resistance Training

Swimming in a tracksuit can be used as a form of resistance training because the clothing creates extra drag in the water. Many competitive swimmers, lifeguards, military personnel, and triathletes have used drag-producing clothing or equipment during training to increase the workload on their muscles and cardiovascular system.

How a Tracksuit Increases Resistance

Water is much denser than air. A tracksuit:

1. Increases your surface area in the water.
2. Traps water within the fabric.
3. Creates additional drag as you move your arms and legs.
4. Makes each stroke require more force.
5. The resistance may encourage proper technique which lets you move faster.

As a result, swimming at the same speed becomes significantly harder than swimming in standard swimwear.

Fitness Benefits

Improved Muscular Endurance

The added resistance forces muscles in the shoulders, back, chest, core, and legs to work harder throughout the swim. Over time, this can improve muscular endurance.

Greater Cardiovascular Demand

Because every movement requires more effort, your heart and lungs must work harder to deliver oxygen to your muscles. This can increase the training effect of aerobic workouts.

Better Stroke Power

When used appropriately, resistance swimming can help develop strength and power in swimming-specific movements. Returning to normal swimwear afterward may make the water feel "lighter."

Increased Energy Expenditure

Swimming against greater drag generally burns more calories than swimming the same distance in regular swimwear because of the higher workload.

Mental Toughness

Swimming in heavier clothing can help athletes become comfortable working under more demanding conditions and maintain technique when fatigued.

Resistance Swimming Principles

The goal of resistance swimming is to make propulsion more difficult. The resistance should be enough to challenge you without causing your stroke technique to break down significantly. A tracksuit or other clothes is probably the best method as it distributes the load evenly over your body.

Avoid useless or dangerous things like drag suits or resistance shorts which make little difference, and parachutes or tow ropes which could endanger other swimmers. Hand paddles maybe useful for training specific muscle groups, but be careful not to hit other swimmers.

Best Practice for Beginners

For fitness training, many coaches would use resistance swimming initially as a supplement rather than the entire workout. This allows you to gain the strength and conditioning benefits while maintaining efficient swimming mechanics. For example:

1. Warm up in normal swimwear.
2. Swim several intervals in a tracksuit until you notice some exhaustion.
3. Remove the tracksuit and finish with technique-focused swimming.

If your goal is general fitness, a tracksuit can be an effective way to make swimming more challenging. If your goal is competitive swimming performance, resistance work is usually most effective when combined with regular technique-focused training.

Potential Drawbacks

Swimming in a tracksuit isn't always beneficial:

1. It can alter normal stroke mechanics.
2. It may place extra stress on shoulders if overused.
3. Wet clothing becomes heavy and can increase fatigue rapidly.
4. Some pools may restrict certain clothing, so check local rules.