Equipment Matrix
Squad |
Drinks Bottle |
Theraband |
Training Fins |
Kick Board |
Pull buoy |
Finger paddles |
Drag Shorts |
Hand paddles |
Freestyle Snorkel |
Academy |
1 litre |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
JD |
1 litre |
Yellow |
Y |
Y |
|
|
|
|
Y |
JP |
2 x 1 litre |
Yellow Red |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
|
Y |
Competition Squads |
2 x 1 litre |
Yellow Red |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Elite Squads |
2 x 1 litre |
Red Green |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Y |
Equipment Explained
It is expected that swimmers wear swimming hats and goggles. It is a good idea that swimmers get used to smaller racing style goggles. They should also have a spar hat and goggles at training and competitions as they do break.
- Drinks Bottle
Plastic 1 litre bottle. A swimmer will lose on average 1 litre of fluid every hour they train. Those squads training for more than 1 hour should bring 2 bottles - Theraband
Much of the dryland training relies on the use of a theraband. They are graded so don’t get one that is too difficult. - Training fins
For juniors these are short fins (not flippers). Examples are Kiefer Rubber Short Training Fins, Slazenger Rubber Junior Short Fins. It is worth checking that these are comfortable before buying - talk to other swimmers.
Once you have fins you will need to get a net bag, invest for the future and get one that will fit all your other stuff as you progress. - Kick Boards
The best all round boards are the smallish ones made by Pool. Don’t buy adult kick boards for children. As a rule they need to be able to have their hands at the far end of the float and still be able to put their face in the water behind it. - Pull buoy
As with kick boards please buy the junior Pull buoys for younger or smaller swimmers. - Finger paddles
Its worth getting ones like Speedo Bio Finger Paddles as these don’t constantly need adjusting. - Drag shorts
These are for resistance training. Don’t get ones that are too big for juniors (they won’t be able to move!). - Hand paddles
Some coaches recommend the ones with holes in as these maintain a feel for the water. - Freestyle Snorkel
It is important to make sure that this is washed out and thoroughly dried after every session they are used. They can get moldy otherwise.