Gloves for swimming?

--amadeus--

This is a wierd one, so you have been warned!

I'm one of life's poor swimmers and I can live with that. A lot of my difficulty is mental (I just don't believe that I can swim) but that's getting better and my issue now seems largly technical. In a nutshell I splash a lot and make pretty minimal progress, not least because I usually hit the water with my palm rather than the side of my hand. Again though that is slowly improving.

What is really causing me problems at the moment is something totally stupid... Ever sice I was a kid I have disliked the feeling of wet skin. I hate my hands and feet going wrinkly and hate being touched or touching in the pool (I mean like lifting my kids out, nothing dirty!). In particular I cannot cope with wet hands or holding a wet hand. I can't explain it - it just feels revolting (imagine putting your hand in a dish full of maggots, that's the feeling I get if I have to hold the kids hands when they are in the pool)

Now that shouldn't impact on swimming normally but I have realised that I don't put my fingers together when I swim, they stay splayed out throughout the stroke which - of course - makes a lot of the effort pointless. The problem is I just can't stick the feeling of my fingers touching each other in teh water (told you it was wierd).

Now the obvious answer is to grow up and get over it. Which I can't do. So are there gloves or something I could wear? Anyone ever come across anything like this before?

Thanks!

Mellor

Never came accross any thing like that before, but there may be a solution.
"Hand or finger paddles" are plastic pieces that are attached to the hands or fingers with rubber straps, they have grooves on to so deflect water in such a way so as to achieve better hand positioning, eventually this becomes your natural position.
How does this help you?
Well in recent years, the rubber straps have been replaced with a glove. This will help the wet hands problem, prob won't remove it totally, depends how water tight they are. But will also improve hand positioning in water. It is also possible that you couls apply a spray on water-proofer similar to camping gear to improve water tightness.

hunnymonster

Another option would be a tight pair of sailing gloves. I use them in winter when it's really really cold in the water. I can send you a pair to try if you return them before December :-) That said in the long term you're probably going to have to get used to the feeling of wet skin, but let's not worry about that for the moment.

Clseeper

A very strange problem! And the first time I’ve come across it. I find it very strange that you like to swim and have this issue. I would have thought you’d have avoided the sport all together!

Two of my ideas which may help;
Have you tried covering your hands in Vaseline or some other oil? Even a thin hydrophobic layer will drastically change how the water acts on your skin. The water will be repelled away or worst case small droplet will form which can’t stay on the skin and will slide off. This should also help with the wrinkling of your fingers. I haven’t tried or tested this and I’m not sure how long it would last in the pool? Worth a try as nobody will notice this!

Alternatively you could just wear normal skin tight gloves as Hunnymonster suggested or I have used webbed gloves before as a training aid. They work similar to paddles, but not as effectively in my opinion.

http://www.poolandspa.com/catalog/images/s-774.jpg

If there is such thing as a latex pair, they would keep the water out.

Hope this was some help.

--amadeus--

I was hoping that 'd get loads of "ohhh me / my friend have that problem too" - looks like I am as wierd as my wife insisted!

God suggestions so far - I especially like the finger paddles since it would be a fairly inobstrusive fix. I'm not sure about vasaline, when I put my fingers together the skin would still touch. Sailing gloves might be my last resort (wouldn't the chlorine ruin them?)

And I didn't say I *like* swimming but the kids are getting better and better at it and I can't let them show me up!