Five vital tips to keep you happy when swimming with a triathlon wetsuit
1. Bend Your Elbows. Many triathletes put on a wetsuit and feel "stiff" in the arms. In reality, the changes in panel thickness in a triathlon wetsuit will allow you to comfortably bend your arms, and you should have a "high elbow" recovery while swimming in your wetsuit in the same way you do while
swimming without one. And the stroke under your body should also have a high elbow bend, not a straight arm.
2. Swim Hard. Many triathletes go for long and easy open water swims in their triathlon wetsuit, without actually pushing themselves to "race pace" intensity. The expansion of the lungs, body heat, and increase in blood vessel size that occurs once you start swimming hard can make a wetsuit feel tight and uncomfortable. If you're not ready for that feeling during the race, you're more likely to panic.
3. Practice the Exit. Don't finish a practice swim in your wetsuit and then ho-hum your way to the beach, shore or car, then take your time exiting your wetsuit. Anytime that I take my wetsuit off, I am hurriedly fumbling the same way that I do during a race, beginning the exit process as soon as my feet hit bottom and I start running upright from the water. I guarantee that practicing the triathlon wetsuit exit will vastly improve your transition times.
4. Vaseline, Body Glide, Pam Cooking Spray or Crisco. You certainly do want to lubricate your extremities with one of these options, so that you can slip in and out of your wetsuit without it "sticking" on your hands and feet, but you'll also want to put some of that lubricant on the back of your neck, to avoid the annoying neck chafing that can occur with as little as 10 minutes of swimming.
5. Read the Instructions. Nearly all wetsuits come with specific care instructions. If you bought a used triathlon wetsuit, then you can easily find the care instructions on the internet. These instructions are not meant to be glanced at and then discarded. Rinse, clean, dry and properly fold your wetsuit after training and races, and you'll vastly improve the life of your wetsuit!
Ready to start swimming? Grab your wetsuit and get going! And remember to visit the Rock Star Triathlete Academy at http://www.rockstartriathlete.
