Swimming with fins has many benefits for strength, flexibility and speed. The benefits of fins carry over to when fins are not worn so they are a valuable training tool. U.S. Masters Swimming recommends fins be properly sized to avoid blisters from fins that are too big or too tight. Fins can be worn at any point in the workout: warmup, kick set, main set or cool down.
Strength
Fins can increase both leg and ankle strength when worn for swimming or kicking. The large surface area of the end of the fin forces the leg to work harder to move through the water. In addition, this also forces the ankle to flex and point with more strength so that the ankle isn't pulled too far. Since fins help strengthen the muscles of the legs and ankles, many swimmers get tired more quickly while wearing them and may experience more soreness than usual after their workouts. In addition, because fins may feel very different to the swimmers who wear them, the swimmers may decrease the amount they kick because the fins produce an unusual sensation for both the legs and feet. To avoid this, swimmers should try just kicking with fins in order to get accustomed to the feeling of wearing them and to avoid a reduced use of the feet when swimming.
Flexibility
Fins play a great role in improving flexibility in the ankles of swimmers. The larger surface area of the fins as compared to the feet make the ankles move more when trying to kick. This causes not only strengthening as previously discussed but a stretching of the ankles and feet as well. Swimmers with weak and inflexible ankles may experience pain when first using fins. However, this will lessen over time and the swimmer will find that his ankles are increasingly flexible. This flexibility will carry over into swimming or kicking without fins and result in increased swimming speed as the feet move in a greater range of motion at all times.
Speed
When a swimmer wears fins, her speed improves greatly. Depending on the athlete and her ability level, she may see times drop 3 to 10 seconds in 50 yards of swimming or kicking. The longer the distance swum with fins, the greater the time difference. Many people whose ankles are very flexible or not flexible at all will not see much of a time difference when wearing fins because they may hinder their speed as opposed to helping it. However, most people will swim much faster while wearing fins. Fins can help the swimmer cover more yards in a short amount of time, increasing the intensity of a workout.
Ease
Swimming with fins makes swimming easier for many people, especially beginning swimmers. Fins can make learning the butterfly stroke much easier as they help with floatation. Fins help feet stay on the surface of the water, improving body position. In addition, they take pressure off the arms and require the legs to do more work, making the entire swimming stroke less challenging, no matter what stroke is performed. Since fins can make swimming easier, swimmers can swim longer and do longer workouts, improving their ability in the pool with or without fins.
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