Sports
Using Paddles and Fins Without Sabotaging Your Swim Training
Wanderley Santos explains why swim gear should build strength and technique—not act as a crutch to drop pool times.
Swim gear like hand paddles, fins, and pull buoys are valuable tools, but they require a clear purpose in training. Coach Wanderley Santos highlights how equipment builds specific swimming strength and warns against using gear merely as a shortcut.
It is a familiar scenario in endurance training: the swim workout falls in the middle of the day, often as the second session on the schedule, when fatigue from a morning ride or run has already set in. Facing exhaustion, the temptation to reach for shortcuts is immediate. While you cannot easily mask effort while running or cycling, in the pool you can simply grab a pull buoy, slip on fins, or strap on hand paddles to hide fatigue and hit the prescribed split times.
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The danger of shortcuts during main sets
This habit can become a self-sabotage trap when athletes use training aids solely to hit target times on the workout sheet. Speaking on the Café com Tri podcast, coach Wanderley Santos emphasized that swim gear must have a clearly defined technical and physiological purpose, rather than serving as a crutch to inflate average paces.
In Santos' view, swim fins should target specific kick work and body alignment, not magically turn a 1:20 pace into a 1:12 per 100 meters without genuine effort. Likewise, hand paddles act as tools for stroke correction and muscular overload, not as an easy way out during demanding sets. When equipment is used merely to compensate for tiredness, the planned training stimulus is compromised.
Building specific strength in the water
Beyond technique correction, hand paddles stand out as the primary tool for developing swim-specific strength. Santos cites research comparing various aquatic resistance devices—such as drag suits, swim parachutes, resistance cords, and pull buoys—which identified hand paddles as delivering the best outcomes for propulsive power gains.
Paddle work acts like strength training for the upper body, making it popular among athletes aiming for pull power and muscular endurance. The golden rule is intentionality: every piece of gear must serve a clear biomechanical purpose in the water, ensuring training adaptations translate directly into race-day performance.
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