6 Things I Know about Fast Swim Suits

Japanese swim suit makers had to give the swimmers special permission to NOT wear the swim suits of their sponsors in the upcoming Olympics because one suit maker is head and shoulders above others.

Swim suits are getting cool in swimming competition. Back in the days it was said that the smaller the suit the better because skin has less drag (Resistance).

Swimmers will shave down their skin to reduce drag (which still happens today).

Now in the 2000s, it’s the opposite. There are suits that have less resistance than our human skin. Going in to the 2000 Olympics new swim suit were called fast skin. The suits repelled water in the way that sharks do. Some would call it Shark skin.

In 2008, there is a new swim suit that has been released by Speedo and was invented in NASA called Lzr Racer. This new suit makes a swimmer more aero dynamic in water mimicking a space shuttle. The suit has ultra thin fabric that repels water and makes breathing easier by 5% so that athletes can breathe easier. The additional cool fabric is placed in a specific place which by studying multiple elite swimmer (world record holders, too) they can have the best shape in the water in terms of cutting and repelling the water.

There are different types.

·         Jammer (Hip to knee)

·         Leg skin (hip to ankle)

·        Full body (Usually ankle to shoulder but some can go to the wrist)

·         Body (Shoulder to knee)

·         The old fast skin II had stroke specific suits

Guest Blogger – Micah Belew