Choosing Wetsuits Appropriately For Your Sport
Wetsuits come in various forms, despite the fact that they are all designed to do the same thing. Neoprene is a fabric which helps insulate the temperature of your body against the temperature of the water. Wetsuits are not designed to keep you perfectly dry in the water, although a good fitting one can find you mostly dry at the end of a session.
Wetsuits are not dry suits. They are not there to keep all the water out and give you a bone dry session. In fact, the water that enters your wetsuit will warm up and then act as a secondary insulator against the cold. Whether you need a thick suit, a short suit, a skin suit, or a diving suit, you will probably want to buy more than just one suit to get you through all of your temperature related issues.
The point of a wetsuit is to help keep you warm in cooler water. Perhaps you want to extend a surfing season or a windsurfing season. Each sport would actually require different flexibility in different areas. Sitting and riding on a jet ski does not require the same type of flexibility that a more active sport would. Thus, it’s important that you buy the wetsuit that will help you retain the flexible movements you will need.
Remember that wearing a suit is not necessarily just a spring and fall endeavor. Many water enthusiasts up north need some sort of suit all year long. Sometimes southern destinations require nothing more than a shorty in February. Every variable factor comes into play when choosing the right suit.
The different styles offer you different ways to protect your body from the cold. A full suit covers you from wrist to ankle and may even come with a well fitted hood. For additional protection you can certainly add gloves and boots in order to keep all of the exposed skin covered and warmer for your sessions. Wear what is comfortable and appropriate for you and the water temperature.
A shorty is a suit that offers core protection. It has shorts, usually to just above the knee, and short or three quarter sleeves. Using three quarter sleeves gives you the option to pull the sleeves down over the elbow or push them up a bit for more arm movement. Sports like windsurfing and kiteboarding require a lot of arm movement and most people find a three quarter sleeve below the elbow to be constricting.
A “John” or a “Jane” is a suit that offers full leg coverage and core protection while it also allows for total arm movement. It’s sleeveless. A light suit like this can be beneficial not just when you need a little bit of lower body warmth, but can come in handy when stinging nettles take over the water.
You will probably need more than one style and one weight when it comes to the perfect suit. You will have days when a shorty is perfect and then there will be days when a heavy, thick full suit with a hood is called for. Having multiple options extends your season and your session options. With every suit, you have to ensure that you have chosen well and have a back up on hand. Participating in a water sport with a suit that is too light can hamper your ability to perform well and can hamper your ability to swim to safety if needed.
Clement owns the wetsuits information website where you can find out everything you need to know about wetsuits. Just check this wetsuit buying guide for instance.