How to Put On a Tech Suit Without Damaging It
Every season I see swimmers fighting their suit behind the blocks ten minutes before a race. A tech suit is the most expensive piece of kit you own and the way you put it on affects both its lifespan and how you feel on the blocks.
How Long to Allow
It depends on the suit. A comfort focused model like the Speedo Pure Valor 2.0 slides on in a few minutes. A maximum compression sprint suit like the Mizuno GX Sonic 6 NV can take up to 30 minutes on first wear. Whatever you race in, do a full dress rehearsal at home before the meet so race day holds no surprises.
The Technique
Start with dry skin and dry hands. Water makes tech suit fabric grip and drag.
Roll the suit down to the leg openings and step in one leg at a time. Work the fabric up in small sections using the pads of your fingers, never your nails. Gather, lift, place. Do not yank from the waistband, that is how seams fail.
Get the crotch seated fully before you worry about the waist. Most of the struggle at the waistband comes from the suit sitting too low through the legs.
Once on, do a couple of gentle squats and a streamline to settle the compression, then check the leg openings sit flat.
Between Races
If you have long gaps between events, you do not need to stay fully suited all day. Rinse the suit in fresh water after the session, never wring it, and let it dry flat away from a radiator. Tumble drying is how fast suits die.
When to First Wear It
Interestingly, some suits actually perform better on their second wear once the fabric has settled. Wearing your suit once at home before a meet is not wasting it, it is preparing it.
Choosing the suit itself is the bigger decision. Start with my TOP 10 tech suits for 2026 or the free Tech Suit Finder quiz.
Found Your Suit? Now Get Faster In It
A tech suit buys you tenths. The right training buys you seconds. I coach sprinters and racing swimmers all over the world, and I built a free 2-minute quiz that matches you to the exact training plan for your events, your schedule and your goals.
Take the free Find Your Plan quiz and get your match in 2 minutes, or jump straight into RAW SPEED 100, my sprint training membership at £39/month, cancel anytime.
Understanding 10.0.0.1 wifi log in can be confusing at first, but this guide makes the basic process easier to understand. Good resource for beginners.
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Experience the excitement of Dinosaur Game As someone who's still new to competitive swimming, I found this really helpful. The step-by-step approach makes it much less intimidating.
I learned this lesson the hard way at a meet last year Golden Genie —watched a kid in the lane next to me blow out the side seam of his brand-new suit because he yanked it up by the waistband like a pair of gym shorts. That sickening rip sound still haunts me. The tip about getting the crotch seated fully before touching the waist is genuinely the secret nobody told me; once I started doing that, the whole process went from a wrestling match to something almost civilised. And the dress rehearsal at home? Absolute game-changer. Nothing kills your race-day focus like fighting with £300 of compression fabric while your event is being called.