Importantly, after following the fin fitting tips and positioning her fins to suit her kick, Tamra really loves her shinfinTM fins for retraining her freestyle, and without foot or knee issues. They allow her to smooth her stroke so they retrain her away from a choppy freestyle. She really feels the difference in her hip flexors and back. This is because the fins are designed to lift her hips and encourage power from her hips using the stronger muscles in her thighs and torso. She uses them daily, enjoys her pool time again and bought a second pair of fins about six years later.
Tamra’s review from Albuquerque, USA
“I am loving my fins!! Sending people to your website. Really notice the difference in my hip flexors and back. Awesome in helping me retrain my choppy “fight the water” freestyle. No issues with knees or feet. Gets easier putting them on and taking off. Just enjoying pool time again! Thanks for inventing these beauties! I use them every day!! I love my shinfinTM fins more than any piece of equipment I own!!”
Tamra’s review: Fins for retraining freestyle with no foot or knee issues
“I really struggled in the pool yesterday trying to get the fins on and use them. Problems are they kept twisting around and coming off (on one foot) and they are really hard to adjust and take off: suggestions?”
Reply
I’m sorry to hear you had problems with the fins twisting round and coming off. I think I can help you to avoid this and get them fitted snugly so that you can enjoy them and get the benefits from them. I designed them to fit a wide range of leg sizes/shapes securely, to stretch with muscle expansion and with no extra buckles/Velcro to jam or release unexpectedly. The straps usually get easier with practice. Following the tips we sent with the fins, each fin usually takes about 30 seconds to put on, 10 seconds to take off, and 10 seconds to tighten or loosen whilst wearing the fins. If you still have difficulties after checking through these tips, please let me know what you still find difficult so I can help you better.
Tamra
“I am loving my fins!! Sending people to your website. Really notice the difference in my hip flexors and back. Awesome in helping me retrain my choppy “fight the water” freestyle. No issues with knees or feet. Gets easier putting them on and taking off. Just enjoying pool time again! Thanks for inventing these beauties!”
Reply
Many thanks for your kind reply Tamra and for helping to spread the word. That is very good of you. I’m glad you are enjoying them so much. Can I ask a favour please? Would you mind if I put some extracts from your emails on the web site?
Tamra
“Sure. Could you send me an extra set of the black straps so I have a spare? I use them every day!!”
Reply
Thank you for your kind permission Tamra. Personal recommendation is very important to help a new product like this along, so I really appreciate it.
The polyurethane fins are extremely tough, and sunlight and chlorine water won’t really affect them, so you should get many years of use from the fins. The straps are made from a high quality natural rubber with UV protection but time, sunlight and chlorine will slowly degrade and crack the rubber. To increase the life, please rinse the fins after use (especially the straps), keep them out of the sun and keep away from sharp objects. Then you should get a good few years of use from the straps. Replacement straps are available separately on the website.
Tamra
“Thank you for the information about taking care of the straps. The procurement of an extra set of straps today is protection of my investment for a few more good years.”
“I love my shinfinTM fins more than any piece of equipment I own!!”
Reply
Yes, we have a lot of customers using shinfinTM fins for swim training, technique improvement, fitness etc. Here are some further suggestions to help you get the best from your fins. As you have probably found, they are designed to work best with a good streamlined kick like swimmers use for freestyle, backstroke or fly (not breaststroke). We get a lot of great feedback from swimmers saying that swimming with shinfinTM fins (especially full stroke swimming) improves their horizontal body position, breathing, speed and overall swimming technique (arms too). The shinfinTM kick does more than just add leg power, it balances your arm pull and supports good breathing technique. For example, in freestyle, there is often a larger kick down with the left leg when the right arm pulls (and with the right leg when the left arm pulls), a diagonal force balance across your body.
You mentioned that you are trying to retrain your kick. I have another suggestion for you to help you with that. Immediately after swimming with the shinfinTM fins for a while, take them off and swim a bit more. You should find that your body remembers the shinfinTM kick pattern, so your “no-fins” swimming improves too. If you keep doing this each time you go swimming then you should notice continual improvements in your swimming technique. I would be very interested to hear how you get on with this. Any questions just ask, I am here to help.
Tamra (6 years later)
Bought a second pair of fins.
Conclusion
You will really love shinfinTM fins for retraining your freestyle, backstroke and fly, and without foot, knee, hip or back issues. This is because they help you to smooth your stroke, so they retrain you away from choppy freestyle techniques. It is important to follow the fin fitting tips and fit them in the position that best suits your kick. The fins are designed to encourage power from yout hips using the stronger muscles in your thighs and torso, so you will really feel the difference in your hip flexors and back. Tough and strong enough for daily use, you may even like to get some more pairs for your family and friends.
These other swim training reviews demonstrate a stronger kick with a balanced body position, helping legs to work better and faster and using the fins for butterfly training too. As well as lifitng your hips, this further review shows that the fins also help if you have mobility problems in your hips. Here is a general comparison of shinfinTM fins versus foot flippers.