Hello,
My name is Emmanuel Millet and I am the US and Canadian Distributor for Aquaman Triathlon Wetsuits. I would like to respond to some of the posts that are debating the best wetsuits on the market.
Yes, I think you can’t go wrong by saying that the best wetsuit is the one that fits your body type best. I compare the fit of a wetsuit to that of a dress suit tailored specifically for you or your favorite pair of running shoes. You want the fit to be just right so that you enjoy wearing it.
The two main reasons you want to wear a wetsuit are to improve your swim time and stay warm in the water. The reason you stay warm is because you are going to have very little water going into your wetsuit and your body temperature will warm that water which will create a barrier between your skin and the cold water. If you have too much water in the suit because of a poor fit you will never generate enough energy to warm the extra water that enters your suit. This is why the fit of the suit is so important if you want to be warm. I always say that your suit should fit like a second skin.
The speed will come because you have trained right and you have the right suit for your body. Fit and thickness to me are the main ingredients. The thickness of 5 mm is the maximum you can have in a Triathlon wetsuit. The more you have , the more your body will float on the top of the water and the less drag you will have under the water. Why not have 5 mm on your body if you are allowed and 1.5 to 2 mm on the shoulder for more flexibility?
Some of you are raving about the Aquaman wetsuit fit and they are right but the idea that they only fit athletes like Jordan Rapp or the ITU elite is very wrong. Aquaman has 5 or 6 different models of wetsuits ( depending of the country you are in) with sizes ranging from XS to XXXL. Four of these models are available in Men’s and Women’s specific sizes. Something Aquaman has done since the beginning is cut our suits a little shorter in the legs and arms. With this feature,our suits can accommodate athletes with longer arms and legs and the suit come off very fast. Believe me, with all these options, we have been able to fit just any size athlete.
One other thing that has been said about Aquaman wetsuits is that they are for Olympic distance athletes but not for longer swim events. That is a misconception and our suits are for all distances and the longer the swim, the more you will benefit from the comfort and buoyancy of our suits.
One more thing about the posting on swimming with a wetsuit from donzi8 on Nov. 10th.
What happen to you has nothing to do with the wetsuit. That can happen even without the suit. You are ready to start racing and you get all excited. You jump in the water and you get a rush of adrenaline in your blood. You swim as fast as you can and 100 yard later you run out of oxygen in your blood and hyperventilated for a few seconds. Panic sets in and you think this is the wetsuit because you feel tightness in your chest. This is a natural process because you start cold and are excited about what you are doing.
The remedy is to get your blood going by warming up on land and in the water before hand. Place yourself on the beach where ever you think you belong but not in front if you don’t want to get run over. Start slow and build up your speed during the swim that way your body will not go into shock when you are cold. Try that and let me know.
Finally a lot of posts are about being cold in the water. At the start of my post, I told you about less water in the suit is better.
The best suit for cold water is by far the Cell Gold and Metal Cell model from Aquaman with neoprene on the inside and neoprene on the oustide. You will get almost no water inside the wetsuit and will stay very comfortable during your swim because your body will generate enough heat to warm what little water does enter the suit. This is the main reason why you see so many Elite athletes wearing Aquaman Metal Cell Technology suit. The water is always cold when they swim and they want to stay warm and take off their wetsuit fast at T1.
Happy swimming.
Emmanuel Millet.
Aquaman wetsuit importer for the US and Canada.
E Mail: aquamantriusa@yahoo.com
Web: www.aquamantri.com