by Belinda Youlten

Created on: April 10, 2007   Last Updated: September 30, 2008

Comfort, comfort, comfort! If you're going to swim it's all in the rim.

Look for swimming goggles that have a neoprene inner rim to avoid the red post-swim goggle line around your eyes. Especially if you swim during lunch time. Nothing's more frightening than returning to work with goggle marks that take hours to fade.

Similar to wetsuit material, the thin soft neoprene padding on the inside of the goggles is more comfortable than the plastic rims.

It adheres to your face just as well as plastic rimmed goggles but won't give you the feeling that your eyeballs are being pulled from their sockets when you take them off.

The neoprene rimmed goggles are usually a little more expensive than other swimming goggles and the rims tend to wear quicker than the plastic rims. However it's worth paying that little extra for the comfort factor.

The color of the lens is a personal preference. Anti-fog lenses are an added bonus but still tend to fog after continued use. The scuba diver's trick of a little spit-and-wash in the eye piece will also help clear the fog although not the most refined activity.

So regardless of whether you like to swim, looking through clear, rose-colored, or any other rainbow-colored swimming goggles,the most important thing is the comfort of the rim.

Learn more about this author, Belinda Youlten.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.