What Shoes Can You Wear In The Pool?

What shoes can you wear in the pool? The best way to answer this question is to match your water shoes to your water plans. What do we mean by this? Today’s aqua shoes technology is surprisingly advanced. This is great news because today you can find the perfect type of water shoes for any activity, from swimming laps to training for a triathlon.

Can you swim with regular shoes?
Should you wear flip-flops to the swimming pool?
Can you wear Crocs for swimming?
Waterproof shoes for swimming
Best shoes for swimming in pool
Water shoes vs water socks in pool

Can You Swim With Regular Shoes?

Although it is not impossible to swim in regular shoes, your garden variety street shoes are probably not the best choice if you plan to enjoy water sports. Why not? For starters, many pools and water parks ban wearing street shoes while in the water. Also, chlorine and other pool chemicals can quickly and permanently damage your street shoes.

Also, regular shoes aren’t going to give you the same safety or fitness benefits that water shoes or water socks will give you. The right swim shoes can keep your feet safe and also help you enjoy your pool time the most.

Best of all, the pandemic has turned water shoes from a purely functional choice into a popular fashion in their own right. Over the last couple of years of at-home quarantine life, water shoes and water socks are even starting to find their way to couture fashion on the red carpet!

Should You Wear Flip Flops To the Swimming Pool?

As long as your local pool or gym allows you to wear flip-flops poolside, it can be a great idea to bring a pair of sandals with you to the pool. Flip-flops can protect your feet from sharp objects, hot surfaces and (most importantly) the bacterial and fungal spores that are often present in shared public changing and showering facilities.

However, flip-flops aren’t very functional once you are in the pool because they won’t stay on your feet. You will have much better luck swimming, diving and moving about in the water if you are wearing true water socks or water shoes designed for these activities.

Can You Wear Crocs For Swimming?

If you love Crocs – and most people do in this post-pandemic age – you can’t help wondering if there is anything these wonder shoes can’t do. But can you wear Crocs for swimming?
Crocs today are a bit different than the Crocs we first met in the early 2000s. They come with soft sherpa insoles. And platform wedge heels. They come as slides, flip flop sandals as well as high fashion heels and mid-calf boots.

Crocs are water shoes in the sense they are made from water-resistant materials that promote water drain and protect your feet. But whether they will work to help you actually swim, dive, float and move will really depend on what style Crocs you bring with you to the pool.

Waterproof Shoes For Swimming

Is there such a thing as waterproof shoes for swimming? Yes and no. Water shoes can keep your feet protected from excess heat or cold and can definitely reduce exposure to water chemicals as well. However, the only way any type of shoe could prevent all water from getting inside is if that shoe had a fully waterproof seal all the way around your foot or leg.

Instead, water shoes and water socks are engineered to allow for ready drainage as you move between dry land and water. With good drainage in place, your water shoes won’t weigh you down whether you are in or out of the water.

Best Shoes For Swimming In Pool

So what are the very best shoes for swimming in a pool? When you are headed to the pool to swim, you typically won’t have to worry about certain hazards like sharp rocks or bottom-dwelling critters that you would face in an open water situation.

So you can probably get away with wearing a thinner, lighter weight water shoe or water sock. You just want enough protection to keep chemicals, fungus or heat away from your feet. Ankle socks or mid-calf socks made of wetsuit materials like neoprene are a great choice for a day at the pool.

Water Shoes Versus Water Socks In Pool

Water shoes and aqua socks are definitely close relatives but they are also not one and the same. Why would you choose water socks versus aqua shoes for a day at the pool? Here again, it really depends on your plans.

Water Socks for the Pool

If you are heading to the pool for a big day of exercise, training or competition, you will probably want to opt for water socks.

Water socks are the lighter weight, sleeker cousins to the ultra-protective water shoe. Water socks come in anklet and mid-calf designs. Both are slim, sleek and lightweight to reduce drag and protect your feet without interfering with your speed or maneuverability in the water.

For maximum speed and minimal drag, look for open toe aqua socks that maximize water inflow and outflow.

Water Shoes for the Pool

However, if you plan to do more walking, standing on the bottom of the pool, lounging around the pool or using shared public bathing or showering facilities, water shoes are going to be a better friend to your feet.

Water shoes typically come outfitted with a thicker, sturdier sole and structure that is more protective for your feet. Water shoes are also your go-to choice for transitioning between water and dry land throughout the day.