Fitting Wetsuits for Triathlon and Open Water Swimming

Getting the perfect size wetsuit for open water swimming and triathlon is quite an art form , plus you also need a leap of faith in how close fitting your wetsuit needs to be, we've put these tips together to help you get the wetsuit on correctly and the fit right first time.

The most important point is to get a close fitting wetsuit, there is no point making your swim harder by dragging gallons of water around with you in your wetsuit, your arms and shoulders will ache, your time will be slower and you simply won't enjoy it as much.

Do you want to enjoy your swim? yes? Good, then on dry land your wetsuit will feel tight, it should be a struggle to get into and you should need assistance to do the zip up.

Wetsuit size charts vary across different brands, so ask around and do your research on the fit of the particular brand. Go for a good quality swimming wetsuit they will be more flexible, buoyant and the fit and features will be designed to help you swim faster and better in open water.

We've picked 2XU wetsuits for our store, an Australian brand with a great reputation for precise fit, flexibility and quality specification.

10 Tips For Fitting Swimming Wetsuits

The wetsuit will look too small for you, you should be thinking 'I'll never fit in that'.
Handle your wetsuit carefully, use gloves if you're trying it on for the first time. (you might need to exchange it!)
The trick is to get the wetsuit as high up your legs as possible before you start pulling it up your body. A good tip is to put plastic bags on your feet, then as you put your feet in your wetsuit legs the wetsuit will easily slide up your legs.
The bottom of your wetsuit legs need to be a good 2 or 3 inches up your legs and just on the bottom of your calf.
With one leg in, start pulling up from the bottom of the suit leg, gradually moving the excess neoprene upwards. Do not pull from the top. Do the other leg and then work the neoprene up both leg getting it as high as you can into the crotch, this is the key to a good fit.
Now pull the wetsuit up you body and do the same with the arms. pull the wetsuit edge back behind your wrist bone and then gradually move neoprene back working from your wrist to your shoulders. Getting it right into your arm pits.
Get your assistant to zip you up as you flex you shoulders back wards.
Bend over slightly forwards and gently pull the neoprene from your stomach upwards a bit at a time towards you neck. This lifts the wetsuit up your front and lowers the back to stop it pulling and reduce chafing on the neck. Ensure the neck and zip neoprene is lying flat too, a common cause of chafing.
Ideally your wetsuit should feel restrictive on dry and, it will feel tight. A close fitting swimming wetsuit will not restrict your swimming stroke if you have picke da good quality wetsuit designed for swimming. In the water you want a close fit as if to much water gets in it collects and you will collect more as you swim to fill the crotch area and waist area. This is not good.
Two areas where the fit needs to be right is the torso length and the waist. If the suit is too long and /or baggy on the wasit, water collects here as you swim and this is not good. A good way to tell if it's too big at the waist is to try grabbing the wetsuit at the base of the zip, just in the small of the back, if you can grab a few inches easily it could be too big.
Lastly getting the wetsuit off: Your wetsuit might fit closely but for triathlons put you also need to get it off quickly. Its easier when the suits are wet so don't despair. Never use vaseline or oils to lubricate, use a product like Body Glide, which will not harm the neoprene. Rub body Glide on you wrists and lower Calf's for swift wetsuit removal.

Nothing beats swimming in your wetsuit to get the size and fit right, we run TRI-ON events be sure to come along if you can, otherwise follow the wise words of experenice here.