by
Olivier Poirier-Leroy
The Sporti Power Plus Paddles are the best budget-friendly power paddles on the market. Here’s an in-the-water review of these excellent paddles.
The Sporti Power Plus paddles are a budget friendly power paddle for swim training.
The paddles have some awesome ergonomic and comfort features that make it an excellent option for swimmers looking to power up their strokes in the pool.
A raised, contoured palm, adjustable straps, and performance vents are some of the top reasons to add these paddles to your stack of swim training equipment.
In this review, I’ll share my experience with the Sporti Power Plus Paddles, compare them other top swim paddles on the pool deck, and much more.
Let’s get paddlin’!
Here are the things that I like most about these paddles and how it can help improve swim training performance in the pool:
Swim paddles help you develop strength in the water, but they are also a technique correction tool. By removing the wrist straps, swimmers are forced to use a cleaner hand entry, maintain even pressure with the palm, and exit the water cleanly at the end of the pulling motion.
One of my favorite features on the Sporti Power Plus’ is the removable straps that can be pulled out completely (for better technique) or adjusted easily to get a secure and snug fit when strokin’ across the pool during the main set.
These paddles have an ergonomic feature that I’d never seen before in my decades of competitive swimming and coaching; a raised, contoured palm support that meets your hand.
The best way to describe the difference between this type of paddle and a standard, flat-palmed paddle is that your hand has better grip. There’s less sliding around and shifting of the paddle when sculling or swimming.
Paddles are so popular because they are a tool that works on the principle of specificity. In other words, they help you exaggerate and train an effect that is highly applicable to your swimming.
The shape of the Sporti Power Plus Paddles is designed to mimic the same dimensions and characteristics of your hand. This means you exaggerate many of the same ways that swimmers catch, move, and manipulate the water.
This is important for swimmers who are more performance-minded and are looking to generate specific adaptations that will help them to swim better and faster.
These paddles are among the cheapest on the market. Last time I looked on SwimOutlet, the paddles were retailing for about $10. These paddles are essentially a one-off investment; the hard plastic paddle design will last forever.
See also: How Do Swim Fins and Paddles Change Swim Technique?
You may have to replace the rubber straps every few years or so—rubber degrades slowly over time from chlorine exposure, stretching and cracking until it snaps—but besides that, these paddles will go to the end of the season with you and beyond, and do it on a budget.
Elite swimmers understand that a little bit of finger spread is a proven way to catch more water at the beginning of the pulling motion. The Sporti Power Plus Paddles have small vents at the top of the paddle, where the fingers go, to simulate the same vented water flow as swimming paddle-free.
Swim gear, and paddles are no different, should mimic regular swimming to facilitate maximum transfer, and a small detail such as vents where the fingers would typically let water flow is a great feature for the performance-minded swimmer.
No paddles are perfect, and the Sporti Power Plus Paddles are no exception.
The rubber straps—again, removable and adjustable—have a somewhat slick exterior coating to it. I am not sure how else to describe it, but over the span of a few months of training with these specific paddles, on a couple of occasions the straps started to slide mid-lap.
Not sure if I got a bad batch (scouring other reviews of the paddles I’ve yet to see similar issues) or if this is something common with this specific paddle, but it’s something to be aware of. Swimmers could try using different rubber straps (Sporti, TYR, and other brands offer replacement straps for a handful of dollars).
The Speedo Power Paddles and the Sporti Power Plus Paddles are very similar with only a couple of key differences between them, including price, size options, raised counter palm support, and color options.
Here’s a more detailed comparison of the two paddles for easy analysis:
| Sporti Power Plus Paddles | Speed Power Paddles | |
| Price | $10.95* (at SwimOutlet) | $21 (at SwimOutlet) |
| Sizes | 3 | 4 |
| Color Options | Black and blue | Black and blue, black and red |
| Raised palm support | Yes | No |
* SwimOutlet also offers additional price discounts for members. Annual membership is like $5 per year so it is super worth it if you buy even a moderate amount of swim gear each season.
Both paddles are great, I’ve used both for extended periods of time, but for swimmers who better appreciate the lower price point and palm rest, the Sporti Power Plus are the better option.
Paddles are an upper body-focused swim accessory that is primarily designed to help build more oomph in your pull and stroke. But that’s not all you can do with them. Here are some ideas for maximizing use of the Sporti Power Plus’ so that you can maximize your swimming, too.
Other paddles similar to the Sporti Power Plus’ include:
The Sporti Power Plus are an excellent pair of paddles for swimmers looking to get a bit stronger and faster in the water while not paying the premium price point of other popular swim brands.
Get yourself a set, crank your pull power and technique, and happy swimming!
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.
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