If you’re intending to improve your swimming performance, whether you are new to the sport or already competing, you’ll benefit from using pool accessories to enhance your swimming experience. Our range of swimsuits, kick boards, training fins and more can help you to focus on different areas of your body and improve your technique effectively so that you can make the most of your skills.
In this article, we’ll take a look at some of the pool accessories that can help you in your training plan and optimise your efforts. We’ll share our expertise and our top tips, and our friendly team will be happy to help you find the training aids you need to step up your training plan for improved performance and style. If you’ve never tried training accessories such as pull buoys, training fins and kickboards, you’ll find that it helps to try out different methods and techniques to find out what suits your body, your training plan and your budget.
Swimming is Great for Your Health
Did you know that swimming is one of the best forms of exercise you can do? The resistance provided by the water, as well as the techniques used in swimming, mean that you are getting a much more effective workout than other ways of exercising. Swimming is renowned for being excellent for cardiovascular health, improving the way the arteries function and promoting better circulation.
Studies have shown that swimming can have a positive impact on cognitive function, which may be due to the position of the body in the water having a positive effect on blood flow to the brain. Swimming is even associated with living longer and is a great way to exercise as you age since it is gentle on the joints, so it’s the ideal choice if you’re just beginning a new exercise regime or working on your fitness.
Essential Pool Swimming Accessories
Pool swimming, whether as a leisure activity or for competitive swimming training, is easier and more rewarding when you have the right accessories. Our experienced team can help you to pick the very best options for your lifestyle and your budget when you pop in and see us at The Edge. We recommend the following essentials:
- Swimsuits. Finding the right swimsuit makes a big difference to your performance and a suit that fits you well can help to improve your speed and ensure that you are comfortable when you swim. Our selection includes high-neck swimsuits, powerskins, long legged suits, swimming shorts and racing suits. We love the Speedo Women’s Placement Laneback Swimsuit, with contrast straps and supportive elastic underband for comfort and high chlorine resistance to ensure it stands up to repeated wearing and washing.
- Kick Boards. Swimming aids and floats are an excellent way to improve your swimming technique, especially for beginners and during speed and performance training sessions. Kickboards are designed to refine your swim kick technique and improve overall performance, developing more efficient strokes and improving leg endurance. Our range includes kickboards, swimming aids and floats from quality brands such as Funky, Vorgee and Speedo.
- Goggles. Whether you are new to swimming or an experienced swimmer, you’ll need goggles to enhance your pool performance and we have a good range to choose from. Sleek, streamlined options are essential for competition swimming, and many of our styles are shaped to optimise peripheral vision and clarity. You will need to select the shape of your goggles based on your own comfort and preferences, as well as your budget and the type of swimming you do. Try the Cobra Edge Swipe Mirror Goggles, with enhanced upward and side vision and an innovative temple shape that stays stable and secure as you dive, turn and swim. The Swipe anti-fog technology ensures your vision stays clear for ten times longer than other googles, and the mirrored lenses are ideal for cutting down on glare.
- Pull buoy. Pull buoys are used to develop upper body strength and focus on pull endurance in the pool, especially curved for added buoyancy. Pull buoys improve body positioning in the water and enable more effective training, and can be used with paddles or resistance tools to further improve upper body strength. The Speedo Team Pull Buoy is designed for maximum effect on the upper body, assisting you in honing your arm technique as you isolate the upper body and improve your body positioning and speed.
- Hand paddles. Using hand paddles is a great way to work on your swim stroke technique, improving the mechanics of your strokes and enabling you to build upper body strength in a targeted way. Hand paddles help you to focus on correct hand positioning, working on a more effective and more powerful swim stroke. You can choose your hand paddles based on your own preferences and swimming style, and our experienced team can help you to identify the best options. The Speedo Power Plus Paddle aims to improve your stroke technique using a wide surface area that enables you to feel the catch point and the finish phase of your stroke, with multiple holes for water flow and increased stability.
- Swim fins. Using swim fins to train is popular due to the sheer fun element, as well as the extra focus they can bring to your technique. Swimming fins or flippers can increase propulsion and help to develop a better body position, aiding kicking technique and ankle flexibility while improving leg strength. Swim fins can be a handy addition to your training kit, whether for warm-ups or intense training sessions, and can be used with swim paddles or as part of single-leg training to optimise your training plan. Beginners may benefit from long fins, which add buoyancy, while more experienced swimmers may find shorter fins to be a more useful option. Zoggs Swim Fin Energy fins have an advanced shape to promote work on technique and a comfortable closed pocket design that provides a secure fit, ideal for pool training to hone your kick strength.
You may also find that a swim watch is an essential piece of kit to make your training more productive, enabling you to track your performance, set goals and monitor variables such as your heart rate, average speed and stroke efficiency. Training aids and accessories can help you to optimise your performance in the water and we can help you to find the options that suit you best.
Starting to Swim
Getting started with swimming doesn’t need to be complicated, you can simply grab yourself a swimsuit and a pair of goggles and head to your local pool. If you are a non-swimmer, you will find plenty of adult swimming teachers in your area and will soon be making progress with your swimming, giving you the huge benefit of achieving a fantastic goal as well as improving your heath and fitness.
There are often social swimming groups as well as competitive groups associated with leisure centres or with open-water swimming spots if this is something you’d like to try. These can be a great opportunity to try new training methods, explore new techniques and make new friends while you are working on improving your wellbeing. As you spend more time in the water, you’ll begin to discover the type of swimming you like best, and this is a great time to think about introducing essential swimming accessories to help you make the most of your training and improve your swimming style.
Find Swimming Accessories at The Edge, Ireland
At The Edge, we know what it means to optimise your time in the water and spend your training time more effectively, and we have a great range of pool accessories to help you do this. We also have all of the kit you will need for open-water swimming and triathlon, and we will be happy to help you find what you need to enhance your swimming experience and develop your strength and stamina.
We are passionate about outdoor adventures and we specialise in cycling, running, and surfing, as well as swimming. We have an excellent range of mountain bikes, electric bikes, city bikes and hybrid bikes in store, as well as cycling clothes and accessories and running clothing and equipment. We recommend exploring the options before you invest and you can browse our full catalogue on our website or come into our store and talk through your plans with our experienced team, who will be happy to share their expertise.
