It was size “8” and a little big, but overall it fit and was fine for my purposes (swimming laps at the Y 2-3 times a week). As of today the suit is crazy stretched out and I’m not sure why. I haven’t worn it that much and I’m not an incredible swimmer, in fact, I am quite bad at it. The thing now sags all over and when I hold it up it hangs down really long. The elastic in it has broken off and separated and even leaves little dust all over my body.
Does anyone have advice on shopping for these? I have been to Dick’s to try suits on, but they never have the pretty ones like they do on eBay. Plus, I don’t want to go deal with the holiday crowds.
Do you rinse it after you use it? Sure, the chlorine disinfects it, but it’s also breaking down the fabric. Rinse it thoroughly with cool water, towel or spin dry and then let it air dry.
You can probably expect a bit more than 6 months out of 2-3 time/week but that really doesn’t sound that bad to me.
Hate to have to ask the Emperor’s New Question, but are you sure you haven’t just lost weight? You didn’t mention any changes in size since you started wearing it, so…
I have toned up quite a bit, but I haven’t lost enough to make the suit that baggy. It just hangs on me. As for the rinsing question, I usually rinse it out when I get in the shower after swimming.
I really thought swimsuits were meant to last longer. For the price (well, the retail price, not what I paid on eBay), I expect more. My regular suits last a couple of years, but I’m not always in the water when I’m wearing those.
At last, something I am a bit of an expert in, what with buying suits for 6 regular swimmers and all.
Speedo makes fine suits. In my experience, they last longer than one of their competitors whose name starts with T and ends with r. You probably picked out a “racing” suit, which do indeed fall apart in water.
You have two choices. You can something to mitigate the chlorine. They sell special liquids for this, but it is usually cheaper to buy the stuff you treat water for your aquarium. A better solution, in your case, is to buy a suit made of polyester. These are “practice” suits, and last much longer. (I’d submit a link, but the search engine at the site I went to got in the way. Try www.kiefer.com )They are not quite as form fitting when new, but last a long time.
Back when I was swimming daily, I found that suits (brief trunks) lasted 3-4 months due to chlorine damage, even with rinsing after use. The elastic was the first thing to go, and then the fabric would start tearing. Chlorine plays havoc with material (and I kept wondering what it was doing to my lungs). Aside from petitioning your Y to go to a saline system that minimizes chlorine, I think you’re just going to have to buy suits regularly.
I don’t get this. I wore the same bathing suit every day when I was a kid/teenager. I spent 5 or 6 hours a day at the pool, at least 1/2 of that time in the water. I never had BSS (Baggy Suit Syndrome). What the fuck! Of course, that was late '60s, early '70s. Maybe they made them better back in the day.
The polyester suit I use for lap swimming is at least 1.5 years old. I swim 2-4 days a week, for about 1.5 hours. My girls swim about 6 times a week, sometimes more, occassionally less. Their suits last until either the inside liner disintegrates, or the butt starts to wear through from sitting at the meets and pre-practice drills. I think their suits last about a year.
Kalhoun, you are a guy, aren’t you? You were wearing cloth trunks, perhaps polyester, not suit that needs to fit to your body like women’s suits or lap swimming suits.
No, contrary to what my foul mouth might indicate, I’m woman-folk (fuckin’ a!). They always kept their shape. However, it has literally been 25 years since I’ve donned a suit, so I don’t even remember what they were made of.
Machine washing and especially drying can ruin a suit. I think you bought the suit used, right? No telling how it was cared for before you bought it, that might be your problem right there. Maybe the former owner thought she was taking good care of it by machine washing and drying it after each use.
Rinsing in clean water and hanging dry is better than machine washing, and suits should never be put in a dryer. Heavy chlorine can affect them too, if the owner wore it sitting in a hot tub or something. I wouldn’t blame speedo brand, I have bought cheapo suits from Target that held up just fine and I am sure speedo suits are better than those.
What you want to do is see if there is a swimming store in your area. Then look for a practice suit, one made from polyester and not the lycra crap. The poly stuff changes color, but lasts a long time, the lycra stuff stays the same color, but dies very quickly. You should be able to find a good practice suit that will last a good long time, probably for under $50, and maybe even in the $30s. Either a good swim store or an on-line store should be able to help you.
For what it’s worth I never wash my suits, I take them to the shower and rinse them off and then hang them up. My wife does the same thing and no problems. You might also want to look into a water polo suit, except they are a lot smaller around the butt, they are so people can’t grab you as easily.
Also check Target. This past year, they had some speedo style suits for under $30 and mine have held up normally. They were in with the women’s fitness clothes but I don’t know if they were seasonal or not.
That looks like a good suit. The Speedo site also lists it as a polyester suit, so it should work fine. (BTW, I see I said “latex” instead of “lycra”. Sorry.)
Now you have to post a picture of you in the suit.
