Effect of body suits on performance, drag, and energy cost of swimming

David L Pease , Jean-Claude Chatard, Barry D Wilson

Prepared for Sport and Recreation New Zealand by University of Otago

Unknown

Sport and Recreation New Zealand

Barry Wilson

email: bwilson@pooka.otago.ac.nz

Full Body Suits (FB) have been claimed by swimwear manufacturers to reduce passive drag in swimmers by as much as 10% compared to normal suit (N). However, manufacturer’s claims have not been backed by published peer reviewed studies. This study was undertaken to determine the effect of body suits on swimming performance, drag and energy cost of swimming. Fourteen competitive swimmers swam at maximal effort in a 25 m pool for distances of 25m, 50m, 100m, 200m, 400m and 800m when wearing FB, legs only (L) and N. They performed 4 min swims at their 800m pace when wearing FB, L, and N, in the swimming flume of the University of Otago, Dunedin NZ. Oxygen consumption was determined using a metabolic cart. Passive drag measures were made when wearing FB, L, and N at speeds between 1.20 and 2.00 m/s. The order of all suit and performance conditions was randomly assigned. The FB and L suits were purchased from local suppliers and supplied to swimmers according to their fit. There was a 2.95 ± 0.32 % performance benefit (decreased swim time) for all swimming distances when wearing the FB. The gain was significantly lower when wearing L (1.54 ± 0.35%, P

Keywords:

Performance; Suit, Swimming

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Experimental

National

High performance, Sport

Adults, Young People

Other setting

Events, Pools, Professional, Semi-professional

Benefits, Delivery, Performance, Policy, Professionals

Swimming

1668

July 18, 2013

July 18, 2013