The first swim with a silicone tail. Precautions?

[Mermaid Aglaia]

Hello mers,

I want to swim first time with my silicone tail next week. I have some experience with fabric tails and with monofins. But nothing with silicone tails.
A silicone tail is much heavier and the movements more limited than fabric tail.
And now i want to ask the mers with a silicone or latex tail, have you done some precaution befor you first swim? Or what is the best way to learn the tailswiming with a silicone tail?

[Mermaid Wesley]

Make sure you have a buddy and maybe a floatie just in case.

[Mermaid Ellowyn]

It should be neutrally buoyant in the water. Get in the water to put it on, and swim with a friend and a pool noodle or something (like Mermaid Wesley suggested). :) You also can get tired pretty quickly because it requires more muscles to move than a fabric one would, so be careful not to over-estimate yourself. Have fun!

[teeth4u]

My first experience with my silicone tail went really well. I was a strong swimmer in my fabric tail and was hoping that would translate to swimming in my silicone tail. The thing that surprised me the most was how tightly it clung to my body. As soon as you get in the water, it will feel like the tail is suction-cupping to your legs and literally becomes a second skin.

In the water the tail is a lot heavier and takes a little more work than a fabric tail. You'll be pooped out more easily so it's important not to push yourself too hard the first few times. But overall, it's the same motion as fabric tail swimming and you'll get used to it pretty quickly.

[Ayla of Duluth]

Bringing a buddy and a floatie is probably the most important precaution. My first tail was a silicone Merbellas tail, and one thing I noticed was that if you try to swim with just your legs, (I've seen videos of some mermaids doing it and it's actually quite obvious) you won't get much power behind your stroke. The water won't move right around your tail and you won't get very far, so make sure you get really good at swimming from your torso and hips, and then following through with your legs. If you're at the bottom of the pool and you need air but can't get up fast enough because your stroke isn't right and you're not getting up fast enough, you could panic. So that's just something I picked up from my tail, you go a lot faster with the right stroke, which can help get you to safety when needed.

[AniaR]

Check out the thread on what to expect with your first tail. It covers a lot about using silicone for the first time. I can't link it from my phone but its starred