by
Olivier Poirier-Leroy
Holidays, birthdays, swimming a new PB–do you really need a reason to pick up some new swim gear? Here is a collection of our favorite gifts for swimmers.
Whether you are shopping for the swimmer in your life or looking to pick yourself up a little something-something (no judgment here), I’ve got ya covered with this guide to the best gifts for swimmers.
All eight of the following things are on repeat in my training rotation, so the answer is yes, I actually use and love this stuff.
From swim goggles to dryland gear to mental training, here are the best gifts for swimmers.
⭐ Best overall gift for competitive swimmers
The FORM Swim Goggles are the world’s first smart swim goggles and the best gift a swimmer can get in the pool as they finally give clarity to how fast swimmers are going in the water, down to the hundredth of a second.
The goggles represent a huge step forward in terms of performance tracking in the water, with a heads-up display that shows the splits, times, heart rate, and more from your swim practice in real time.
All of the data from your swim workouts are then compiled in the best-in-class swim app that comes with the FORM Swim Goggles.
Whether you focus on speed, distance, heart rate, SWOLF score, distance per stroke, or average pace, the FORM Swim Goggles can help you get serious about finding ways to improve in the water.
No more relying on an analog pace clock and more cheating by pushing off early on reps and sets.
The heads-up display is customizable, showing the metrics that matter most to your swimming.
You can also upload custom swim workouts to the goggles before you hop in the water, ensuring you never lose count or miss a rep.
Other things that make the FORM Swim Goggles the number one choice on our list include:
The FORM Swim Goggles are on the pricier end of our list of the top gifts for swimmers, for sure, but the goggles are a massive leg up for the swimmer who wants to squeeze out every last second and every last stroke from their time in the water.
Probably my favorite tool that I have added to my swim equipment this year are these genius, and yet super low-tech foot nets created by California-based AquaVolo.
DragSox are exactly as they sound—socks designed to create a sizable amount of drag on your feet.
And why would you want to do that?
For a few different reasons my chlorinated homeslice:
The only downside? Prepare to field regular questions mid-set from curious onlookers in the next lane.
You can pick up a pair of these bad boys at AquaVolo’s site for $29.
I wish I had had one of these during my age group swimming days.
As a habitual one-sided breather, I developed some pretty ludicrous muscle imbalances in my chest, shoulder, and back as a result of breathing to one side for years of distance workouts.
Since getting back in the water a couple of years ago rarely have I done a practice without strapping on the swim snorkel for a set or two.
After all, introducing snorkels to your swim training gives you the options to:
(On a side-note, throw it in the dishwasher once a week to keep it nice and clean. The mouthpiece will get moldy hanging out in that mesh swim bag of yours after a while. You are breathing through it, after all.)
The FINIS Stability snorkel is their latest iteration of the popular swimmer’s snorkel and is our favorite thanks to comfort, adjustability, and hydrodynamics.
With dual straps for maximum stability and an adjustable mouth-piece, this gift for swimmers results in better body position, tempo, and technique in the water.
The Finis snorkel is available at Amazon for around $30.
There are about a kajillion different kinds of swim goggles out there for all types.
From the old-school Swedes, to the $80ish dollar Speedo FastSkins, there is a set of goggles for every swimmer.
But after years and years of swimming, wanna know my favorite?
The TYR Socket Rocket.
Besides the fact that the name rhymes, the mirrored goggles look certified gangster, and provide a surprisingly clear view from the inside out, something that is key given that I swim at the local Y where the lighting leaves something to be desired.
The goggles come ready to wear right out of the package and they are coated with an anti-leak “Thermo Plastic Rubber” that is surprisingly comfortable, especially during those long workouts when you don’t have a chance to peel your goggles off your face too often.
The indented-goggles-in-the-face look isn’t a particularly appealing one, even for the most ardent of swimmers.
Oh, and they are only about $20. Regarding gifts for swimmers, being able to see properly in the pool with leak-free swim goggles is right up there!
Pick yourself up a pair over and be the snazziest looking swimmer in the pool.
The swimmer’s logbook is a classic weapon for faster swimming in the water. Tracking and logging your swim practices helps to build accountability and ownership. Builds self-awareness. And gives swimmers a tool for endless motivation and confidence.
YourSwimBook supercharges the old-school logbook, giving swimmers a 10-month training journal to attack and dominate their swimming.
Auburn University’s whole team got one last year. So did the Nations Capital Swim Club (Katie Ledecky’s swim team). As well as St. Peters Western Swim Club (home of Olympian Stephanie Rice and coach Michael Bohl).
Mel Stewart, Olympic champion, had some pretty good things to say about the book. Oakville head coach Sean Baker (2012 National Club Coach of the Year) had some praise as well.
The benefits of using YourSwimBook are pretty simple:
Ultimately, with YourSwimBook you are giving the gift of better swim practices, and what swimmer doesn’t want that?
YourSwimBook retails for $39. You can learn a lot more about it by clicking over here.
With the reduced training opportunities in recent years, there has been more attention than ever on building strong swimmers outside of the water to improve swimming performance.
Another old-school piece of swimming gear is StretchCordz, which is simply a heavy-duty rubber tube with handles or paddles at the ends.
StretchCordz makes a particularly great gift for swimmers because:
StrechCordz are used by the USA National Swim team and countless swimmers and swim teams across the planet. (Including me!)
When it comes to gifts for swimmers, a stronger pull, better technique, and out-of-the-water training sound pretty good!
For a lot of swimmers, the most challenging part of the sport isn’t the endless miles, or the mastery of technique or those brutal lung-buster pull sets (although those are plenty difficult).
It’s getting a grip on the mental aspect of the sport.
For any swimmer that has ever gotten up on the block and choked they know just how mental the sport can be. Same goes for the swimmer who is a yo-yo when it comes to their swim practices–one day they are ripping across the surface of the water, the next they are down in the dumps because their swimming isn’t going as well as they’d like.
So what’s the answer?
There is so much information out there that it can feel overwhelming. Particularly when most of the material is written in a dense and inaccessible format that only makes sense to academics and experts in the field.
Enter Conquer the Pool: The Swimmer’s Ultimate Guide to a High-Performance Mindset.
It’s the first book for swimmers of its kind, a mental training manual that covers everything the enterprising young swimmer needs to dominate their mindset (and as a result, their PB’s). The book comes in 3 parts, each designed to help you master your brain:
Conquer the Pool is currently being used by teams across the country, with NCAA programs such as Notre Dame, Auburn, and Indiana using it with their swimmers, as well as dozens of club teams including the London Aquatic Club, Sandpipers of Nevada, Shaker Heights Swimming, and many more.
Give your swimmer the gift of a better mindset in the pool this year.
The book retails for $39 and comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee. Learn more about it here.
For a long time, listening to music while training at the swimming pool was limited to whatever was playing on the pool’s PA system. No more.
Nowadays, there is a wide variety of awesome underwater music players and waterproof headphones for swimming.
But my longtime favorite device for listening to music at the pool has to be the FINIS Duo Underwater MP3 Player.
Why?
Because instead of relying on headphones to pipe music into the ears, the FINIS Duo uses bone conduction to deliver clear sound through the jaw to the ear. Having tested and compared all of the different waterproof headphones designed for lap swimmers, this type of headphone delivers the clearest and most consistent sound.
The Duo can pack up to around 1,000 songs, a clip keeps the player secured on your goggle strap, and it is charged and loaded quickly through a USB cable.
You might not be able to give the swimmer in your life a personal best time this year, but when it comes to gifts for swimmers, music while training is a close second!
The 6 Best Gifts for Swim Coaches. Looking for a way to thank your coach for all of their hard work? Here is our list of awesome gift ideas for swimming coaches.
The Best Black Friday Deals for Swimmers. Looking to get some new swim gear on a budget? Shop the best Black Friday deals for swimmers in this exclusive guide.
Olivier Poirier-Leroy Olivier Poirier-Leroy is the founder of YourSwimLog.com. He is an author, former national level swimmer, two-time Olympic Trials qualifier, and swim coach.
The swim snorkel has become part-and-parcel of every competitive swimmer’s gear bag. Here are a bunch of reasons why you should use it in practice today to swim faster.
With the FORM 2 Smart Swim Goggles, the world’s first and best smart goggles for swimmers get a big upgrade. Here’s what to know about how they perform in the pool.
The Magic5 Swim Goggles are the first of its kind—custom built goggles made for the specific shape of your face. But are they as good as advertised? In this review, I buy a pair for myself and hit the pool.
Ready to throw down on a new swimmer’s snorkel? Here are reviews of the best swim snorkels for lap swimming.
Looking to get some new swim gear on a budget? Shop the best Black Friday deals for swimmers in this exclusive guide.
Looking for the best swimming app to maximize your time and effort in the water? Here’s a look at the top swim apps for conquering your swim workouts.
