Anybody deeply fond of their flotation belt?

January 4, 2014 10:22 PM

I love deep water running. The pool has a couple of varieties of flotation belts, I've purchased my own; they're all okay, but none of them are great. And none of them last long before they start falling apart (granted, they spend a lot of time immersed in chlorine, not so great for foam).

Is there a Best brand, or a secret web site? I'm in the US, but if it's online I can buy it. This is a long shot, I know, but I've gotten useful answers to stranger questions. I'll even welcome shared complaints. It's thinking there's a Really Good Belt out there somewhere that's driving me crazy.

posted by kestralwing to Health & Fitness (5 answers total)

This is the one my mom has used for many years Aquajogger. I have one that is coated in rubber or a rubber-like substance but I don't remember the brand.
posted by amapolaroja at 1:40 AM on January 5, 2014 [1 favorite]

Best answer: I think that Aquajogger is the brand they use at my pool. If not, something very similar in shape, color, and construction (just foam, no coating, and all one piece with a black webbing belt). They've had the same ones for years and years and sometimes the belts get a bit frayed but the rubber part hardly changes. The only thing that makes me question whether it's Aquajogget is ours come in sizes and those don't. If I can remember, I'll check next time I go. I find them very comfortable.
posted by HotToddy at 9:41 AM on January 5, 2014 [1 favorite]

Best answer: I like the Speedo Aqua Fitness Belt, the one with 6 separate pieces of foam that you can position as you like around your waist. Most floatation belts cover my back and part of my sides, which is lopsided (no front floatation) and my arms brush against the foam at my side, which is annoying. With the speedo belt, I wear the belt clip at my side, and position three foam pieces in the front and three in the back.

I've stopped water jogging, so I can't say for sure that this model lasts for years and years. But I've definitely had a year or two of use, with no signs of deterioration. The foam seems denser than the foam on the Aquajogger belts.

I've also used the floatation belts at my local pool, and while those black coated ones are nice when they are new, when they start to disintegrate, the cracked black coating can be rough against your skin and suit.
posted by loop at 10:48 AM on January 5, 2014 [1 favorite]

Well I checked today and it's not Aquajogger, it's Aqua [something else that I've already forgotten and can't find online]. Will try again next time but given the reliability of my memory wanted to provide what info I could while it's in my tiny mind. I was right though, they've had them for years and years and they see a ton of use and hold up remarkably well.
posted by HotToddy at 5:15 PM on January 6, 2014

Here it is: Aqua Trim.
posted by HotToddy at 12:56 PM on January 7, 2014