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8 Best Tech Suits for Distance Swimmers- Specialist Guide

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Tech suits have become a widely discussed topic within the competitive swimming world. Swimmers are always talking about what the best tech suits are, more specifically- what the best tech suits for their specific events are. And today, I will be discussing the best tech suits for distance swimmers.

As you probably already know by now- tech suits provide performance benefits (more about this later). These benefits are both physical and mental, and quite frankly- I have seen these suits help swimmers absolutely crush some record times.

These suits contain many features within their design, allowing you to swim with less resistance and better body position, ultimately contributing to faster times in the pool.

Wearing a good tech suit that is optimized for the event you are swimming can be the difference between winning and losing in a close race. It can be the difference between getting that important qualifying time or missing it by 0.04 seconds altogether.

As a distance swimmer, you are going to want a suit with a good amount of muscle compression but not so much that it feels like your legs have been restricted from blood circulation by the end of your race.

You are also going to want a suit with high water repellency and a good range of motion, ensuring that your movement patterns aren’t going to be limited while swimming.

What Is the Best Tech Suit for Distance Swimmers?

Here are the best tech suits for distance swimmers-

  • Arena Carbon Glide
  • Speedo LZR Pure Valor
  • TYR Avictor
  • Mizuno Sonic GX V MR
  • Arena Carbon Air 2
  • Michael Phelps MP Xpresso
  • Jaked Jkeel
  • Finis Fuse

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Distance tech suit Recommended events Material Composition Our rating View on SwimOutlet
Arena Carbon Glide All 200 events and 400, 800, 1500 freestyle events 65% polyamide, 34% elastane, 1% carbon fiber 10/10 >View price
Speedo LZR Pure Valor All 200 events and 400, 800, 1500 freestyle events 65% nylon and 35% lycra 10/10 >View price
TYR Avictor All 200 events and 400, 800, 1500 freestyle events 70% nylon, 30% lycra 10/10 >View price
Mizuno Sonic GX V MR All 200 events and 400, 800, 1500 freestyle events 65% nylon, 35% spandex 9/10 >View price
Arena Carbon Air 2 All 200 events and 400, 800, 1500 freestyle events 65% polyamide, 34% elastane and 1% carbon fiber 9/10 >View price
Michael Phelps MP Xpresso All 200 events and 400, 800, 1500 freestyle events 77% nylon, 23% lycra 8/10 >View price
Jaked Jkeel All 200 events and 400, 800, 1500 freestyle events N/A 8/10 >View price
Finis Fuse All 200 events and 400, 800, 1500 freestyle events 71% polyamide, 29% elastane 7/10 >View price

For help with finding the right size for your tech suit, consider reading my tech suit sizing guide, where I cover all of the most popular swimming brands and their tech suits.

1. Arena Carbon Glide Tech Suit

The Carbon Glide is one of Arena’s newest tech suits, and it’s a feature-loaded suit with some awesome new and innovative technology designed to enhance your swimming performance.

This suit is excellent for distance swimmers due to its lightweight design that will keep you agile in the water and its intelligent carbon cage technology that will allow for comfortable and strong muscle compression. The construction of the suit also ensures that it allows for an optimal range of motion in all directions.

Further, the Arena Carbon Glide is very comfortable and is suitable to wear for long periods of time. The hydro glide technology will also reduce resistance which is ideal for when you are swimming long-distance events since it can contribute to significantly faster times in the pool.

Arena Carbon Glide Tech Suit

Features and benefits of the Arean Carbon Glide tech suit-

  • Ultra-light hydroglide shell effectively reduces your drag while swimming, allowing you to swim faster, resulting in more gold medals and best times.
  • Intelligently positioned carbon grid technology and internal taping help to compress and activate your muscles while adding support and optimizing your body position. This allows you to reach and maintain your peak swim speed in no time.
  • The highly water-resistant fabric reduces your drag in the water and allows you to stay light and swim faster.
  • Carbon extreme cage is a tight grid surrounding important muscle groups in your body, allowing for strong compression with a lightweight feel. This allows you to stay light and agile while providing optimal muscle support and increasing blood circulation for more oxygen.
  • Internal taping of the suit increases comfort and allows the suit to be worn for long periods of time without restricting blood circulation or freedom of movement.
  • The suit is designed to allow an optimized range of motion while swimming, resulting in maximal power exertion, helping you to swim as fast as possible.
  • The durable and lightweight material composition of 65% polyamide, 34% elastane, and 1% carbon fiber helps the suit retain its features for longer, ultimately saving you money.

Cons-

  • Expensive price point.
  • It doesn’t have the best snapback effect.

2. Speedo LZR Pure Valor Tech Suit

My next tech suit recommendation for distance swimmers is going to be the Speedo LZR Pure Valor. The LZR Pure Valor is one of Speedo’s newest tech suits. It was released alongside the Speedo LZR Pure Intent. The LZR Pure Intent, however, is designed for shorter sprinting events.

Speedo LZR Pure Valor Tech Suit

Quick summary: the Speedo LZR Pure Valor is a less compressive, more flexible tech suit ideal for longer events. It also makes a good fit for all strokes and is popular among breaststroke and IM swimmers.

Features include a lightweight fabric, moderate compression panels, bonded supportive leg seams, water-repellent technology, and premium grips.

Note that the thinner fabric is less durable.

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The LZR Pure Valor is a perfect tech suit for distance swimmers. It supports an increased range of motion in the water, and the compression levels aren’t too high to ensure you don’t feel like you are being restricted in any way possible.

The suit is very comfortable and has a lightweight construction to ensure that you are able to stay agile and light while racing for long distances. The suit is also highly water-resistant, and the flat bonded seams will cut down on drag even further.

Speedo LZR Pure Valor Tech Suit

Features and benefits of the Speedo LZR Pure Valor tech suit-

  • Lightweight design with a material composition of 65% nylon and 35% lycra keeps you agile and fast while racing.
  • The Speedo Pure Valor has intelligent and comfortable muscle compression, allowing for faster blood circulation and better muscle activation, making it a good suit for distance swimming events.
  • Compressive inner leg seams allow the suit to provide greater muscle support while racing.
  • The Pure Valor suit is designed and constructed to support an increased range of motion in the water so that you’ll be able to exert maximum power while maintaining perfect technique.
  • It has flat-bonded seams and improved finishes to optimize your hydrodynamics and reduce resistance while racing.
  • The Pure Valor features new and improved leg- and waistbands, built to reduce water ingress, allowing for reduced drag and increased durability of the suit.

Cons-

  • High price range.

3. TYR Avictor Tech Suit

The TYR Avictor is one of TYR’s flagship tech suits. The suit is designed to work in contrast with the new TYR Venzo tech suit, which is aimed more at short-distance sprinting events, while the Avictor is aimed at longer-distance events.

TYR Avictor 2 Tech Suit

Quick summary: the TYR Avictor 2 is an excellent all-around tech suit ideal for all strokes and events. It's most optimal for middle- and long-distance events and is popular among breaststroke and IM swimmers.

The suit reduces drag using a lightweight, hydrodynamic construction and water-repellent surface lift technology. Additionally, supersonic flex bonding seams and targeted compression panels further optimize your performance.

Downsides include less durability due to the thinner fabric.

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The Avictor features some innovative technology and is loaded with excellent performance-enhancing features.

The suit is great for distance swimmers due to the flex bonding seams which allow for 100% natural movement while you are swimming. The suit is also very comfortable and has a lightweight design with targeted muscle compression allowing for proper blood circulation and muscle activation.

All in all, this is a really solid tech suit for distance swimmers with some good features loaded into its design.

TYR Avictor Tech Suit

Features and benefits of the TYR Avictor tech suit-

  • Hydrosphere technology forces water to surround the suit, creating a visible hydrospheric effect in the process. This reduces your drag and increases your swimming speed.
  • Supersonic flex bonding seams allow for maximized comfort and freedom of movement, allowing for a stretch up to 360° and 100% natural movement and a full range of motion while swimming, resulting in maximized power generated with each pull and kick.
  • The suit features a lightweight design with a fabric composition of 70% nylon and 30% lycra, allowing you to stay agile in the water.
  • The proprietary fabric effectively repels water keeping the suit dry while keeping you light, compressed, and fast.
  • Targeted compression allows for comfortable muscle compression for added muscle support and activation, helping you to reach peak swim speed as fast as possible.
  • The higher waist design adds increased core and lower back support helping you to power to the wall at the end of that long race.

Cons-

  • The water-repellent coating isn’t very durable.

4. Mizuno Sonic GX V MR Tech Suit

Moving onto my fourth tech suit recommendation for distance swimmers, we have the Mizuno Sonic GX V MR. Mizuno tech suits are currently some of the best and most popular tech suits in the competitive swimming world. Their suits are well designed and come in at a good price.

Most Compressive Tech Suit
Mizuno GX-Sonic V Tech Suit

Quick summary: the GX Sonic V is a very compressive tech suit optimal for all strokes. The ST variation is ideal for 50 and 100 events, and the MR variation for 200 to 400/500 events.

Features include highly water-repellent fabric and taped seams for drag reduction, dual-layering for buoyancy, and sonic line X taping for hip elevation and kick support. This tech suit is also very durable.

The main downside is that the suit is uncomfortable to wear and hard to put on.  

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The Sonic GX V comes in 2 variations- the MR variation and the ST variation. The ST variation is designed for shorter sprinting events. On the other hand, the MR variation is designed as a multi-racer. This means that the MR variation is going to be good for distance swimming events. It has slightly lower levels of compression in its design and also offers more range of motion while swimming.

The suit is quite comfortable and will be ideal to wear for long periods of time. It does, however, still offer a bit more compression than other suits, which is great if that’s something you like.

Mizuno Sonic GX V Tech Suit

Features and benefits of the Mizuno Sonic GX V MR tech suit-

  • The suit features a flat concept design allowing for increased hip elevation and optimized body position throughout your entire race, no matter how far, resulting in significantly less drag and faster swim performances.
  • Manufactured using Sonic light ribtex fabric, a material engineered to enhance your performance and speed while also helping you to maintain a good body line in the water.
  • Highly water-repellent coating and fabric reduce water absorption, allowing for a lightweight suit with low resistance. This helps you to swim faster and break more best times.
  • Compressive interior panels designed to support and align your important muscle groups ensure higher power output, faster swimming, and more gold medals.
  • The Sonic Line X taping supports your kick cycle and provides a hip-lifting effect, resulting in more power generated by your legs.
  • Low-profile taped seams reduce resistance in the water by cutting down the surface area of the suit. This optimizes your speed in the water and helps you to swim as fast as possible.
  • The MR (multi-racer) variation of the suit makes it ideal for distance swimmers since it has less compression and more range of motion.

Cons-

  • Still expensive, but the price is slightly lower than the other suits.

5. Arena Carbon Air 2 Tech Suit

My fifth tech suit recommendation for distance swimmers is going to be the Arena Carbon Air 2. It is one of the newest tech suits released by Arena and was built on the foundation of the original and widely popular Arena Carbon Air.

The suit is very lightweight and has good levels of muscle compression. It is important to note that the compression within this suit may be a bit high for some swimmers. It is going to be up to your personal preference of whether or not you like higher compression for your distance swimming events or not.

Further, the Carbon Air 2 also supports a greater range of motion in the water, which is highly important for all swimming events. The internal lining of the suit is built from 3 different panels allowing the swimmer to have increased freedom of movement while swimming.

All in all, this is a superb tech suit. I really like how versatile the suit is, you can use it for both 50 sprints and 1500-distance events due to its innovative design. It also makes a good fit for all of the strokes but might not be the best option if you also swim breaststroke. All of this makes it a good option if you’re looking for a suit that you can use across a variety of swim events.

Arena Carbon Air 2 Tech Suit

Features and benefits of the Arena Carbon Air 2 tech suit-

  • The Carbon Air 2 has a single fabric construction, this reduces drag by removing the side seams on the suit. It also decreases water absorption, increases comfort, and makes the suit easier to put on.
  • Carbon bands in the suit allow for comfortable and intelligent muscle compression. They attach to important stretch points to provide compression on overextended zones, improve core stability and enhance power when required.
  • The Arena Carbon Air 2 allows for a greater range of motion. The internal lining is made up of 3 different panels to allow for increased freedom of movement.
  • The suit is very versatile, allowing it to be used on a wide range of events ranging from short 50 sprints all the way to long 1500 and mile swims.
  • The highly water-resistant fabric reduces your drag in the water and optimized your hydrodynamics to ensure that you can swim as fast as possible.
  • The Air 2 has an ultra-lightweight design with a material composition of 65% Polyamide, 34% Elastane, and 1% Carbon Fiber to ensure you stay light and agile while racing. It’s currently the lightest tech suit available.

Cons-

  • The suit is slightly see-through due to the thin fabric used for the light design.
  • The Air 2 doesn’t have the best buoyancy.

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6. Michael Phelps MP XPresso Tech Suit

The MP Xpresso is a tech suit that has been around for quite some time now, but nevertheless, it still holds out as one of the best suits for distance swimmers currently available. If you are someone who likes a very comfortable suit, then you’re definitely going to want to consider the MP Xpresso.

Michael Phelps MP Xpresso Tech Suit

Quick Summary: The MP Xpresso is a versatile tech suit optimal for all strokes and events. It, however, has a more compressive design.

The core features include Aqua-Core compression technology and an Exo-Foil 3D fabric. The suit is also flexible, lightweight, comfortable, and offers good water repellency.

Downsides include lacking durability.

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Apart from the comfort, the suit also packs some other great features ideal for distance swimming events. The suit features comfortable muscle compression and a 3-dimensional structure that allows for 100% natural movement while racing.

Something cool to note about this suit is that the compression is slightly higher along the femoral artery to allow for optimal blood circulation while you are swimming. All in all, a great suit with some supreme comfort levels.

Features and benefits of the MP Xpresso tech suit-

  • The MP Xpresso suit utilizes aqua-core and exo-foil 3D Fabric to allow for better muscle compression in the water, resulting in optimal muscle activation when you need it most.
  • Light-weight construction with a material composition of 77% Nylon and 23% Lycra ensures that you stay agile while swimming long distances. 
  • The higher nylon content ultimately contributes to a more comfortable tech suit allowing you to wear it for long periods of time without any issues.
  • Leg grips are designed for a tight and secure fit that won’t allow any water to come into the suit and weigh you down.
  • Compression is paneled along the femoral artery, allowing blood to be delivered faster to your feet and legs, which will result in enhanced oxygen uptake and faster swimming.
  • The MP Xpresso tech suit features a 3-dimensional structure that allows for an increased range of motion and optimal flexibility while racing.
  • Hydrodynamic fabric is highly water-resistant and will reduce drag to allow you to swim as fast as possible and crush those best times.

Cons-

  • Internal fabric is vulnerable to tearing if you’re not careful.
  • The sizing of the suit is a bit off.

7. Jaked Jkeel Tech Suit

If you are interested in a mid-range suit coming in at a lower and more affordable price point, then you’re definitely going to want to have a look at the Jaked Jkeel tech suit. The Jaked Jkeel packs some solid features and a premium design that will allow for enhanced swimming performances.

The Jaked Jkeel is a very versatile suit, great for a wide array of swimming events, including distance events.

The suit has good muscle compression and a very comfortable design. The ergonomic construction of the suit will also ensure that you’re able to reach a full range of motion on every stroke and kick while racing to allow for maximal power output and some fast swimming.

Features and benefits of the Jaked Jkeel tech suit-

  • The manufacturing process of the Jaked Jkeel utilizes advanced plasma processes to create a durable layer of water-resistant film that is both lightweight and thin.
  • The ergonomic design improves the fit of the suit while allowing for maximal muscular compression and a full range of motion while swimming.
  • It contains a premium FlexStripes strap compensation system for a comfortable fit in the water.
  • A specially designed drawstring tunnel allows you to adjust the tightness of the suit without the risk of tearing the fabric. This increases the durability of the suit, especially for younger swimmers.
  • The Jaked Jkeel is constructed using ultrasound and heat welding processes, along with the use of taped seams for increased mechanical capacity. This effectively reduces your drag and maximizes your freedom of movement when you swim.
  • 3D construction with an additional double layer of fluorocarbon resin allows for high water repellency to reduce your resistance and keep you light while racing. 
  • The suit has an affordable price coming in at nearly half the price of most flagship tech suits.

Cons-

  • The logo on the suit is very large and may be a problem for high-school swimmers in the USA due to certain regulations.

8. Finis Fuse Tech Suit

The Finis Fuse is my go-to budget tech suit. The suit packs some awesome premium-grade features while coming in at a very affordable price. Similar to the Jaked Jkeel, the suit is also very versatile, making it great for a wide range of events, obviously including distance swimming events.

The Finis Fuse has flexible muscle compression technology, which will allow for optimized muscle activation and a full range of motion while swimming. The suit also cuts down on drag with its water-repellent technology and fabrics. The comfort of the suit is great, and the suit is also quite durable.

Overall, a great tech suit coming in at a very affordable price point.

Features and benefits of the Finis Fuse tech suit-

  • Flexible muscle compression ensures a full range of motion on every pull and kick, no matter what stroke you are swimming, resulting in maximal power output and making the suit ideal for distance swimming events.
  • Bonded seams combined with a double-panel design reduce drag and improve your performance in the water, allowing for more best times.
  • Water-repellent technology ensures a reduction in your drag and turbulence and optimizes your swim speed, helping you to conquer that big record or crush that best time.
  • Compression technology in the suit allows for high levels of muscle compression with excellent elasticity built-in. This enhances blood circulation, increases muscle activation, and ultimately helps you to swim faster without restricting you in any way possible.
  • Silicone watertight edges ensure a comfortable, secure, and water-tight fit, ultimately reducing your drag and optimizing your swim speed.
  • High-quality fabric with a material composition of 71% polyamide and 29% elastane provides you with a durable and lightweight tech suit.
  • The budget price makes the suit an excellent value-for-money option.

Cons-

  • The Finis Fuse doesn’t have a carry pouch to store it in.

Want to check out some more tech suits? Consider reading some of our other tech suit articles-

Physical Benefits of Wearing a Tech Suit

1. Compression

All good tech suits will provide the swimmer with some form of muscle compression. It is a critical feature to have in a tech suit since it allows blood to circulate through your muscles at a faster rate. This blood will then resupply muscle tissues in your body with oxygen and nutrients while also removing lactic acid and other toxins that harm performance, ultimately allowing you to swim faster throughout a race.

2. Increased Stroke Rate and Length

a Study done on elite French swimmers found that wearing a tech suit created conditions for lower resistance while swimming. Ultimately, swimmers also experienced longer gliding phases and increased efficiency in the water. We can thus conclude that these racing suits allow for increased stroke rate and stroke length in the water.

The study also found that the effects of the tech suits were the highest at sprinting speeds. Meaning the effects of the suits may vary from swimmer to swimmer depending on the size, speed, and technique of that specific swimmer.

3. Decreased Drag

Tech suits are constructed to reduce resistance and drag in the water as much as possible. Ultimately, reduced drag will result in higher swimming speeds and faster times. The first-way tech suits decrease drag is by making use of water-resistant fabrics. This will stop the suit from becoming heavier, increasing in surface area and ultimately weighing you down.

The second-way racing suits decrease drag is by using ultra-lightweight fabrics and designs. This will ensure that you stay as light as possible while racing. Lastly, tech suits are also designed to reduce drag by almost completely removing seams. This will allow your racing suit to be like a second layer of skin, ultimately keeping you smooth and fast in the water.

If you would like to learn a bit more about how tech suits affect your swimming performances, both physically and mentally, then I recommend that you check out my article- “Do tech suits make a difference?

Swim Faster and Further with a New Distance Tech Suit

As you can see, tech suits have become an important part of every swimmer’s race day essentials. These suits can help you to swim faster in many ways- both physically and mentally. They are designed and built to improve performance in the water, and that is what they will do.

If you are serious about winning that important race or getting that qualifying time at your next big meet, it is important that you have the best tech suit for your event tucked into your swim bag.

Yes, it is true that these suits aren’t going to transform you into the next Michael Phelps somehow, but they can certainly help to shave off a precious second or two in your next race. It is also important to remember that these tech suits only enhance performance, they don’t create performance.

You still have to work hard, train hard and get to the pool every day if you want to see good results in the water.

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I am Benjamin, a competitive swimmer with over a decande of experience in the sport of swimming. I also hold certifications in Exercise Science and Nutrition. I am very passionate about competitive swimming and love sharing everything I have learned about the sport. I specialize in swimming butterfly and my favorite event is the 100m butterfly with the 50m and 200m fly closely following.

A Cheat Sheet for Creating the Perfect Swimming Workout and Routine

Download this FREE cheat sheet to create the perfect swimming workout and routine. Learn how to structure your swim workout and enjoy 9 example workouts, ranging from beginner to advanced.

Swim Workout Cheat Sheet
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