Swim Lessons at the Pool? How to Choose and Care for Children’s Swimwear

School starts, and sports programs are kicking into gear. If your children have signed up for swim lessons or will be training regularly at the pool, you may be in the market for some swimsuits. Here are a few things to keep in mind when choosing and caring for new swimwear for children.

Fit

Make sure the swimsuit fits and is comfortable. It should be snug but not tight, and it should stay in place while your child is swimming. A baggy suit that has to be constantly pulled back into place or a too-tight suit that leaves red marks is not going to make for a fun day at the pool.

Style

Most girls’ training swimsuits (i.e., swimsuits designed for the pool rather than the beach) are one-piece styles. arena offers a variety of strap and back options so you can find just the right fit and amount of coverage to make sure your girl is comfortable in and out of the water. Older, more serious swimmers can choose more open backs (the ‘tech back’ or ‘freedom back’) for maximum freedom of movement.

arena’s boys’ training swimwear collection includes briefs, shorts of various lengths and jammers. Briefs offer the greatest freedom of movement but the least coverage. This is primarily a matter of personal preference, but sun exposure should be considered as well if your child will be swimming in an outdoor pool. arena also offers UV-protection swimwear for both boys and girls.

Cost

Kids grow like weeds, so it’s natural not to want to spend more money than necessary on something they’re just going to outgrow in a few months. That said, a quality swimsuit not only lasts longer but makes a difference in terms of comfort and performance in the water. To make sure you get your money’s worth, choose the right fabric for the type of use the swimsuit will be seeing and follow the care instructions on the product label.

Fabric

Part of arena’s swimwear for children is made from Max Fit fabric, a nylon/elastane blend that provides stretchy, long-lasting comfort and fit, along with excellent shape retention and sunlight and chlorine resistance. This fabric is ideal for swimwear that will be used two or less times a week.

If your children will be swimming daily and don’t have multiple swimsuits to rotate, or if they’re a bit older and won’t be outgrowing their swimwear immediately so you want it to last a long time, consider a swimsuit made from Max Life, an innovative polyester-based fabric that is extremely resistant to chlorine, abrasions and pilling and offers excellent UV protection.

Care

To make sure your children’s swimsuits last as long as possible, rinse the suits in nonchlorinated water immediately after use. Do not leave wet swimsuits in a bag for a long time, and do not expose the bag containing the swimsuits to direct sunlight. When you get home, wash the suits with detergent for delicate clothes and air-dry them away from heat sources. Do not dry clean, bleach, machine dry or iron swimwear.

Did we miss anything? Do you have any additional tips for choosing children’s swimsuits?