Girls 13O Tech Suit Fitting

[Anonymous]

I think there have been posts fairly recently that had recommendations for Girls 13O tech suit fitting. I believe both Sport Fair and Metro Swim Shop were recommended.

I see these in Google maps:

Sport Fair, Arlington VA

Metro Swim Shop, Glen Burnie MD

Metro Swim Shop, Fairfax VA

I am guessing recent posts mentioning Metro was for the Fairfax location. Anyone have experience with the Glen Burnie location?

Any strong recommendations for any of the three above for Girls 13O tech suit fitting?

Any other recommended places in DMV for Girls 13O tech suit fitting?

TIA

[Anonymous]

I think that is all that you have available. Also
Be clear with your swimmers stroke specialization and events.

Backstrokers do better with closed back (honestly preferable for not strokes but harder to get in and certain curvy types) TYR is known for breaststrokers, etc.

Also check with your club. Some clubs require certain brands over others at their high level meets.

[Anonymous]

I second the recommendation to check with your club. Not only do some clubs require the sponsoring brand at certain meets, they might have a relationship with a shop that gets you a discount (Metro Swim in Fairfax, for example, offered us a discount if DC was with an associated club). Also, not all shops necessarily carry all brands. Sport Fair was mainly Speedo, IIRC, while Metro Swim definitely had Tyr and Arena suits.

FWIW, I've heard excellent things about fittings at Metro Swim. My own kid insisted on just doing measurements at home and ordering online so I can't speak from experience (but the Arena and Speedo size charts proved to be very accurate!).

[Anonymous]

I’ve been to both Metro Swim Shops and would definitely recommend the Fairfax location for in person fittings. When we went, they had a large selection of multiple brands (Speedo, Arena, TYR, etc) and sizes. The woman who helped us (a local swim mom) was wonderful and very patient and knowledgeable!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think that is all that you have available. Also
Be clear with your swimmers stroke specialization and events.

Backstrokers do better with closed back (honestly preferable for not strokes but harder to get in and certain curvy types) TYR is known for breaststrokers, etc.

Also check with your club. Some clubs require certain brands over others at their high level meets.

What does “closed back” suit mean? I goggled this and the back seems pretty open.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think that is all that you have available. Also
Be clear with your swimmers stroke specialization and events.

Backstrokers do better with closed back (honestly preferable for not strokes but harder to get in and certain curvy types) TYR is known for breaststrokers, etc.

Also check with your club. Some clubs require certain brands over others at their high level meets.

What does “closed back” suit mean? I goggled this and the back seems pretty open.

Tech suits are either open back or closed back. Closed back are much harder to get into than an open back and do not work for some body types. They are much better for body compression and water repellency so they are a faster suit. If a swimmer is a backstroker they are a must since they reduce drag tremendously. A lot of swimmers do not wear them because they either cannot get into them (body type) or the compression is too much for or it is too tight on their shoulders.

Most suits come in either closed or open back versions. Example of a closed back suit:

https://www.swimoutlet.com/products/speedo-womens-lzr-valor-20-closed-back-kneeskin-tech-suit-swimsuit-8219212/?color=black

And of the open back suit version:

https://www.swimoutlet.com/products/speedo-womens-lzr-valor-20-open-back-kneeskin-tech-suit-swimsuit-8219211/?color=black

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think that is all that you have available. Also
Be clear with your swimmers stroke specialization and events.

Backstrokers do better with closed back (honestly preferable for not strokes but harder to get in and certain curvy types) TYR is known for breaststrokers, etc.

Also check with your club. Some clubs require certain brands over others at their high level meets.

What does “closed back” suit mean? I goggled this and the back seems pretty open.

Here is probably a better way to look at them.

Closed back suit.

And the same suit with an open back



Now, you can see if a girl has curves it can be tougher to get into the closed back but you can also see that a closed back is going to reduce drag even more than an open back which is advantageous for backstrokers. The added compression helps with swim recovery. My swimmer has both open back and closed back suits and for the most important of events will wear her closed back suit. I also very much recommend getting tech suit gloves for closed back suits to put them on - actually any tech suit. It prevents accidental tears when you put them on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think that is all that you have available. Also
Be clear with your swimmers stroke specialization and events.

Backstrokers do better with closed back (honestly preferable for not strokes but harder to get in and certain curvy types) TYR is known for breaststrokers, etc.

Also check with your club. Some clubs require certain brands over others at their high level meets.

What does “closed back” suit mean? I goggled this and the back seems pretty open.

Here is probably a better way to look at them.

Closed back suit.

And the same suit with an open back



Now, you can see if a girl has curves it can be tougher to get into the closed back but you can also see that a closed back is going to reduce drag even more than an open back which is advantageous for backstrokers. The added compression helps with swim recovery. My swimmer has both open back and closed back suits and for the most important of events will wear her closed back suit. I also very much recommend getting tech suit gloves for closed back suits to put them on - actually any tech suit. It prevents accidental tears when you put them on.

I suck at links.

Open back

Closed back

If these don't work, I give up.

[Anonymous]

2nd set of links work for me, thank you!

[Anonymous]

Thank you for the explanation for backstroke!

A few more questions if you have the knowledge & patience to help understand all this stuff better:

Are closed back 13O tech suits considered faster for all strokes, just especially important for back? Assuming the swimmer can actually put on and wear a closed back suit, are closed back suits also better for free, fly, and breast?

Any (other?) preferred 13O tech suits or types of suits for the other strokes, or is it just for back?

For breaststroke, are kneeskins better than non-kneeskins? As a non-swimmer, seems like kneeskins would limit range of motion for the legs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thank you for the explanation for backstroke!

A few more questions if you have the knowledge & patience to help understand all this stuff better:

Are closed back 13O tech suits considered faster for all strokes, just especially important for back? Assuming the swimmer can actually put on and wear a closed back suit, are closed back suits also better for free, fly, and breast?

Any (other?) preferred 13O tech suits or types of suits for the other strokes, or is it just for back?

For breaststroke, are kneeskins better than non-kneeskins? As a non-swimmer, seems like kneeskins would limit range of motion for the legs.

Technically a closed back suit will be faster in all strokes because the material of the suit does a number of things for the swimmer.

1. It is extreme compression, so the muscles last longer and recover faster - especially important in long course and distance events. For sake of discussion anything over a 200 we will call distance. A swim of 100 and below is a sprint. A tech suit helps a swimmer use less energy. For women it is much more helpful then men.

2. The suits are hydrophobic. Throw water at a tech suit and the water will fly back at your face. This property only last for a certain number of swims/events and then it loses value. So take care of the suit. This property helps a swimmer streamline better and cut through the water more efficiently - making them faster with less energy.

So the more the suit covers of the body, the more benefit the swimmer will get - even with breaststroke. Because the muscles will recover, be faster, and move through the water with less energy. Although tight, and difficult to put on, the suits sort of meld to the body once they are wet so the swimmer does not feel constricted swimmer.

That being said you are talking about time drops on average in a tech suit of 0.5 to 1.5 seconds per 100 yards of swimming. So the longer the event, the more impact it can have on the swim. The mental advantage for some swimmers is sometimes huge as well. Some swimmers get very locked in when they are suited up and perform better. For this reason, also, tech suits should be saved for big meets, champs, and if a swimmer is trying to get a cut. If you wear them all the time, you lose the mental advantage (and the suit is losing its ability to perform)

Certain brands work better for certain body types and events. As mentioned TYR suits tend to be the suit for breaststrokers/IMers. They have a higher neck on them than other brands. This is especially beneficial for a breaststroker/IM swimmer to reduce drag and increase speed.

Every brand tends to have a different feel to them and a different fabric. Every line also has a low to high tech suit line. The more expensive being the newest and best technology and the more extreme compression. Tech suits are generally worn one to two sizes smaller than a practice suit. But a professional fitting is key. I know some swimmers that only wear one size smaller then their practice suit and that is appropriate for them. One of my swimmers wears two sizes smaller and with her curves she cannot go smaller. Meanwhile, my other swimmer wears a tech suit that is four sizes smaller than her practice suit. Yes, FOUR sizes. If we did not get a professional fitting I would not have believed it. Because of the way her body is built she is very limited in the brands that she can wear because of sizing.

Teams do have agreements with certain brands and require their swimmers to wear them. In exchange, swimmers generally get discounts of 20-25% off of the suit at whatever shop the team works with.

[Anonymous]

EXTREMELY helpful, Thank You!!!

[Anonymous]

If you go to Metro Swim Shop in Fairfax, make sure you go when Jill is there. Jill is who you want doing the fittings.

[Anonymous]

All of this is great advice and you should definitely get fitted. Also, since your swimmer is only 13, know that at 15 or 16 when her curves start developing you will probably need to go through all of the fitting stuff again.

Girls don't get much taller after 13, but they do start getting all womanly and it can change what suits work with their bodies.

[Anonymous]

it would be very rare and a bad decision to get a closed back suit for a first tech suit