Why You Shouldn't Wear a Wetsuit in Triathlons and Open Water Swimming

Should you wear a wetsuit in a triathlon?

The answer to this question isn’t as clear cut as some in the triathlon world (athletes, coaches, etc.) might make it seem.  The true answer to this question is the same answer I give to so many questions:

It depends.

What is a Wetsuit?

A wetsuit is a specialty piece of apparel designed to help athletes be warmer, more buoyant, and faster in open water swimming events such as those found in multisport races like triathlons.  This being said, wetsuits are not just utilized in triathlons; they are also used in surfing, scuba diving, and other water activities and water sports.  All of these different types of wetsuits vary slightly in terms of how they are constructed so that they can serve the user best during their activity of choice.  For the purposes of this conversation, we’ll be discussing wetsuits that are used in multisport events like triathlons.

A triathlon or swimming wetsuit is constructed from neoprene and rubber and covers the athlete’s upper and lower body; only the head, hands, and feet are left exposed.  There is neoprene and rubber throughout the entire wetsuit, but there are thinner sections of neoprene around the shoulders, armpits, and neck so that an athlete can move their arms, shoulders, and neck more freely while swimming in open water.  In addition, the neckline of a triathlon wetsuit is lower than other styles of wetsuits (such as surfing or diving) so that the user can comfortably turn their head to breathe and to reduce the sensation of compression against the chest and lungs (which is a sensation that can make an athlete feel anxious as their respiration rate increases while swimming).

Triathlon wetsuits come in two main styles: Sleeved and sleeveless.  Sleeveless wetsuits further increase range of motion and mobility through the shoulders, arms, and neck since there isn’t any material there to restrict movement, but this increased range of motion comes at the cost of warmth.  Full-sleeved wetsuits have sleeves that extend the full length of the arm and are warmer since they cover more of the body’s surface area.

There are also garments called buoyancy shorts and buoyancy pants.  (They are also commonly referred to as lava shorts or floaty pants.)  Like wetsuits, they are constructed of neoprene and rubber.  However, unlike wetsuits, buoyancy shorts or pants only cover the lower half of the body, from the hips down.  For the purposes of the rule sets that govern the use of wetsuits in multisport events, buoyancy shorts and buoyancy pants are considered wetsuits even though they do not cover the entire body.

What are the Advantages of Wearing a Wetsuit?

Wetsuits provide several advantages for athletes who wear them.  Arguably, the most important thing that a wetsuit does is help the athlete stay warm and maintain an appropriate core body temperature.  Open water temperatures can vary widely depending on the location of the open water, the season, and the recent weather.  Swimming in water that is significantly cooler than our normal core body temperature (which is around 98.6ºF) can lead to hypothermia.  

Using a wetsuit delays the onset of hypothermia considerably.  A wetsuit is so named because the user does get wet while wearing it; the suit allows a small layer of water to come between the suit itself and the athlete’s body.  That layer of water gets trapped between the wetsuit and the athlete’s body, and the athlete’s body warms that layer of water up.  That warmed layer of water is what provides the athlete with extra warmth and keeps them warmer, even if the water they are swimming in is cold.

In addition to helping athletes stay warm, wetsuits also provide extra buoyancy.  In my opinion, this is the second-most important benefit of wetsuits.  Triathlon wetsuits are designed so that the neoprene is slightly thicker in the area around the athlete’s hips; this helps the athlete’s legs lift, which makes it so that the athlete has a better and more streamlined body position in the water.  The two fastest places to swim in the water are either on the surface or completely submerged.  Since being completely submerged is impractical since humans need to breathe air, helping to ensure that an athlete is as level with the surface of the water as possible gets them into the best position to maximize how fast they can go in the water.

While every athlete’s body is different, males often benefit from the extra buoyancy that wetsuits provide slightly more than females since females typically have more fat around their hips.  Fat floats in water; bones and muscles sink.  More body fat in key areas (such as around the hips) helps athletes be naturally more buoyant and to maintain a better body position in the water.  That being said, all athletes - even those who do have more body fat around their hips - benefit from the extra buoyancy that a wetsuit provides.

Wetsuits can also make athletes faster in the water.  The aforementioned increased buoyancy and the resulting more streamlined body position is one reason for this extra speed.  But another reason is the outer surface of a triathlon wetsuit.  While the main part of a wetsuit is constructed using neoprene, that neoprene is externally covered by a coating of rubber that encases the entire outside of the wetsuit.  This rubber coating is smooth - smoother than our own skin - and therefore glides more easily through the water than bare skin does, which in turn makes the athlete faster in the water.  

The Most Common Problems with Wetsuits

While wearing a wetsuit affords the user with many advantages, wetsuits can (and do!) cause problems for some athletes.  One of the biggest problems is that they can cause anxiety.  

As I hope we all know, humans live on land and breathe air.  As such, water is a foreign environment to humans.  While we can be in it, we cannot live in it.  Inhaling water into our lungs will drown and kill us.  On a very primal level, our brains know this even if we are not consciously thinking about it.  Thus, when we go into water, there is a part of ourselves that knows that this is a foreign environment and that it could kill us if we don’t manage it correctly.  This can create a background baseline of anxiety for an athlete going to swim in water, and especially in open water (which is a living body of water and not as controllable as a swimming pool).

Wetsuits are tight-fitting garments.  This is necessary so that they can do what they are designed to do (be warm, buoyant, and help athletes be faster), but this necessary functional design can make them feel very restrictive.  Compression across the chest can make athletes feel like they cannot draw a full breath.  In an environment that can kill us (such as water), the sensation that one cannot draw a full breath or cannot breathe can be very alarming, to say the least.  It is not uncommon for athletes (especially adult-onset swimmers or athletes who have had a negative or near-drowning experience in water in their past) to have full-scale panic attacks when being in open water and when wearing wetsuits.

I have coached many athletes over the years who honestly cannot wear wetsuits because of this.  The distraction of the compression and their restricted breathing is significant enough that it outweighs any benefits that a wetsuit can provide.  We should only use a non-required piece of gear or equipment if it actually benefits us.  In this situation - when the wetsuit itself causes more drawbacks than benefits - athletes should not wear one.

When Can You Wear a Wetsuit in a Triathlon?

The use of wetsuits in multisport events is governed by a few different rule sets; the most applicable ones for races that take place in the United States of America are the World Triathlon Competition Rules, the USA Triathlon Multisport Competition Rules, and the IRONMAN Competition Rules.  The USA Triathlon Multisport Competition Rules align with World Triathlon Competition Rules and govern all races in the United States.  The IRONMAN Competition rules apply to races owned and organized by The IRONMAN Group (such as IRONMAN 70.3 and IRONMAN events).  

Per these rules, the thickness of a wetsuit used in a multisport event cannot exceed 5 mm and can cover any part of the body except for the hands, face, and feet.  For age-group athletes, wetsuits are allowed to be worn in water temperatures up to 78.0ºF, are mandatory in water temperatures below 60.6ºF, and are forbidden to be worn in water temperatures greater than 84.0ºF.  In water temperatures between 78.1ºF and 83.9ºF, the use of wetsuits is optional and comes with some caveats.  (I encourage you to read the full rule sets if you want to know all of the rules and nuances.)

In races that are owned and operated by The IRONMAN Group, age group athletes may wear wetsuits in water temperatures up to 76.1ºF, are mandatory in water temperatures below 60.8ºF, and are forbidden to be worn in water temperatures greater than 83.8ºF.  In water temperatures between 76.3ºF and 83.7ºF, the use of wetsuits is optional and comes with some caveats.  Races owned and operated by The IRONMAN Group that take place in the United States must - like all other races that happen in the United States - follow USA Triathlon Multisport Rules, but The IRONMAN Group can choose to have the rules be more restrictive at their events, which is what they’ve done in the case of the use of wetsuits.  (Basically, their rules cannot be more lax or “easier” than USA Triathlon’s Competition Rules.)

The rules regarding the use of wetsuits for elite and professional athletes are more strict; please refer to the aforementioned rule sets if you are interested in seeing those differences.  Since the majority of athletes out there (and reading this) are age-group athletes, I’ve chosen to focus on the rules for age-group athletes.

When Shouldn’t You Wear a Wetsuit in a Triathlon?

The advantages of a wetsuit make it sound like it should be a no-brainer to wear a wetsuit any time it is allowed per the rules, and most people - athletes and coaches alike - encourage this.  However,  I have seen time and time again over the course of my career that this is not always the right choice.  Just because you can do something does not always mean that you should.  Other than when an athlete doesn’t own or doesn’t have access to a wetsuit (and therefore doesn’t have the option to wear one), hardly anyone talks about the possibility that an athlete might not wear a wetsuit when it’s allowed, let alone when and why an athlete should elect not to wear a wetsuit when it’s allowed.  I think that this is a very important conversation to have.

As I mentioned earlier, anxiety and panic caused by the compression and restriction that some athletes feel while wearing wetsuits can be significant enough that it negates any benefit that a wetsuit could provide.  Athletes in this situation should not wear wetsuits, and should instead swim “freely” in a swimsuit or a tri kit.  (A tri kit is a specially designed piece of apparel that can be worn in all disciplines and legs of a triathlon - swimming, biking, and running.)

In addition, just because the water temperature is in a range where wetsuits are allowed does not mean that the water temperature is actually truly appropriate for wetsuits for a given athlete.  As previously mentioned, the most important thing that a wetsuit does is to provide warmth, and it does this job very well.  It is for this reason that wetsuits are banned above a certain water temperature.  

Though you cannot feel it because you are in water, you do sweat while you are swimming.  But since you’re expelling water (sweat) into water that is surrounding you while you’re swimming, you don’t get the benefit of evaporation, which is what cools you.  As a result, you can overheat more quickly in water.  Water temperatures in the low-mid 70s Fahrenheit might actually be too warm for some athletes to wear a wetsuit because of this.  Some athletes will start to overheat more quickly depending on what their personal core body temperature is (though we average 98.6ºF, there’s some variance from person to person), whether they are male or female, and what they are wearing.  

Females in particular often struggle with this more than men because they thermoregulate differently than men.  A female’s ability to thermoregulate and tolerate heat/warm conditions changes throughout the course of her life; once a female starts perimenopause and then goes through menopause, she will overheat more quickly and have a much harder time tolerating warm conditions, whether they are on land or in water.

It’s really important for each athlete to determine what temperature range wetsuits work well for them, regardless of what the rules allow.  This may mean that the race is “wetsuit legal” (a term used for when the water temperature is in a range that allows for wetsuits to be worn).  But just because a race is wetsuit legal does not mean that it is wetsuit mandatory.  (Remember, that’s a different (much lower) temperature threshold.)  This means that when a race is wetsuit legal, you do not need to wear a wetsuit just because the rules allow you to.

For example, the water temperature could be 73.0ºF, which is wetsuit legal for age-group athletes in all races in the United States.  But an athlete may find that wearing a wetsuit in 73.0ºF water makes them feel overheated and uncomfortable, and therefore that wearing a wetsuit at this temperature impedes their performance more than it helps them.  

Being perfectly honest, most athletes racing in an event where the water temperature is 73.0º will opt to wear a wetsuit.  And I have personally seen how this “everyone else is doing it” mentality impacts athletes; it gets them to make choices because they are afraid to deviate from what everyone else is doing.  I have literally been at races where athletes know that the water is too warm for them to wear a wetsuit, but because almost everyone else is wearing one, they convince themselves that they should be, too.  Whether it’s because they are afraid of looking different or because they are just second-guessing themselves, I watch athletes make this choice every season.  And then, they overheat on the swim, which snowballs; overheating on the swim doesn't just negatively impact the swim; it negatively impacts the rest of the race that follows.  

Just because everyone else is wearing a wetsuit doesn't mean you need to wear one, or that you should wear one if it’s not the best choice for you.  Race your race, not someone else’s race.  Make the best decisions for you when it comes to gear choices and race strategy and execution.  You need to have self-awareness; you need to know YOU.  You need to know if a wetsuit is going to help or hurt you, and at which thresholds that line gets crossed.  And then, no matter what EVERYONE ELSE is doing, you should do what you know works best for you, even if it’s different from what all of the other athletes in the race are doing.

Through training and experience, athletes can gain the necessary knowledge to be able to confidently make these choices.  Swimming in a wide range of water temperatures with and without a wetsuit and taking thoughtful notes about what happens during those swims is the best way to learn this.  Then, once they recognize what is working for them and what is not working for them, athletes can stick to what they know works for them in a given situation moving forward so they can optimize their experience and performance.

The Bottom Line

A wetsuit is a great and valuable tool in open water swimming events and triathlons.  However, in my humble opinion, there is too much emphasis on wetsuits being “necessary” for athletes to do multisport events.  Remember, there are only six pieces of gear that are necessary to do a triathlon; everything beyond that is very nice to have, but not necessary.

When it comes to wetsuits, be sure to get to know you, your body, what works for you, and to make the best choice for you at each multisport event that you race so you can be comfortable, feel safe, and enjoy the experience.  That combination of elements (not a single piece of gear) is the recipe to unlocking your potential and achieving your best performances.