Good swim fins are inevitable for great swimming practice-which will one day make you a fine swimmer. Swimmers - along with scuba divers and body surfers - have been using fins for decades, but only recently have coaches and swimmers alike begun to appreciate what these excellent training tools can do to help people of all ability levels improve their swimming.

Steps

  1. 1
    Try this simple test to see the difference between how fins work compared to other brands.
  2. 2
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  3. 3
    Now, grab the foot in both hands; one holding the heel, the other holding the top of the foot, pull again toward the sole of the foot and resist with the leg. The tension has moved up to the upper leg, hasn't it?
  4. 4
    To measure your ankle flexibility, sit on the floor with legs extended and place a stiff piece of paper against the side of the foot. With heels touching the floor, point your toes as far forward as you can while having someone trace this side view.
  5. 5
    Measure the distance from the base of your big toe to the ground or floor; your goal should be from one to four inches.
  6. 6
    Avoid "very long" or vented, scuba style fins. While excellent for scuba uses, they are not the best choice for a swimming workout with fins. The fin's length and design result in very slow movements, too slow to give you as much specific benefit as short fins.
  7. 7
    Use your fins. There is an official sport called Fin swimming. Fin swimming has competitive events where athletes wear single bladed fins (called a monofin) and race either under or at the surface for various distances.
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Warnings

  • Make sure to buy fins that are a little bigger than needed. Small fins will result in blisters, while fins that are way too big will fall off. Fins that are just the right size will be quickly outgrown!
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Things You'll Need

  • Goggles
  • Fins
  • Good knowledge of swimming

About This Article

wikiHow is a “wiki,” similar to Wikipedia, which means that many of our articles are co-written by multiple authors. To create this article, 10 people, some anonymous, worked to edit and improve it over time. This article has been viewed 38,141 times.
29 votes - 83%
Co-authors: 10
Updated: July 18, 2022
Views: 38,141
Categories: Swimming Accessories
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