Category: swim snorkels

Looking for a swim snorkel that won’t wobble when you are ripping up and down the pool? Here’s a review of the MP Focus Swim Snorkel.

Swim snorkels have become an essential tool for competitive and recreational swimmers.

Not to be confused with the tube-to-the-side diving snorkels that you see at the beach, the swimmer’s snorkel is a front-mounted, hydrodynamic piece of awesomeness.

The benefits of a swim snorkel include evening out muscle imbalances, learning better body position, and giving your necks and traps a break during long swim practices.

And one of the best swim snorkels on the market right now is from the GOAT himself, Michael Phelps’ line of swim gear, MP.

Recently I bought an MP Focus Swim Snorkel and had a chance to try it out at my local pool.

Here’s my review of this swim snorkel, including things that I really liked about it, who will benefit the most from it, and more.

Let’s dive right in!

MP Focus Swim Snorkel – The GOAT’s Snorkel of Choice

At the Rio Olympics in 2016, Michael Phelps debuted his line of swim gear and swimsuits on the international stage.

The line, which he developed with his coach Bob Bowman, was developed in partnership with Aqua Sphere and included racing and training gear for competitive (and recreational) swimmers.

Tech suits, swim goggles, swim caps, training fins, hand paddles—if you found it on the pool deck, the MP line has it.

Including the MP Focus Swim Snorkel, which Phelps himself had a hand in designing and testing before releasing it for the rest of the swimming world to try.

MP Focus Snorkel – Things I Like:

I swam with the snorkel a few times over the course of the week. Both short course and long course, swimming slowly, swimming fast, sculling at a snail’s pace, and blasting off the wall with fins.

Here are the 11 things I liked most about the Focus:

🏊 It was ready to go out of the packaging. No assembly (save for sliding the mount down the tube) and I didn’t even need to tighten the head strap. Onto the head and into the pool.

🏊 The tube of the snorkel is very hydrodynamic and wraps tightly over the top of the head for improved drag reduction. The “tight” bend over the top of the head meant I was less likely to bang my shoulder or arm into the tube when doing single-arm drills.

🏊 Very stable mount. The tube didn’t wobble at all when pushing off or going fast with fins on. This was the biggie that stood out. No matter how fast I was going, the snorkel remained parked in a vertical position.

🏊 The triangular tube shape parts the water which helps apply pressure on the tube, pinning it to your head and reducing tube wobble. I’m not sure if this was intentional when they designed the tube, but it’s smart if it was!

🏊 The mouthpiece is made of silicone. It can also be lightly twisted away from the mouth when resting at the wall. I like this as it means I can pull a sip from my water bottle without having to twist the whole snorkel.

🏊 Head-strap splits at the back of the head. I find this gives a more secure and slip-free fit compared to swim snorkels that only have one strap.

🏊 Purge valve to get rid of excess water in the tube after pushing off the wall and underwater kicking. For those who are intimidated by the idea of using a snorkel, having a purge valve reduces the likelihood you’ll accidentally breathe in water that hasn’t been cleared from the tube.

🏊 It looks great—the Focus Swim Snorkel is a slick-looking piece of swim gear. While looks aren’t everything, this swim snorkel does check the aesthetics box.

🏊 Simple design with few moving pieces—which generally means that it will last a long time. The bracket on the head mount feels like it’s going to last a long time.

🏊 Comes in two different sizes, regular and small.

🏊 Five different color combinations.

MP Focus Snorkel – Things that could be improved:

The bracket on the head mount (the vertical piece of plastic that meets your forehead) was a little stiff.

Once you find that sweet spot on your forehead (mine was right above the eyebrows), you get used to it, but I did wince a little the first time I put the snorkel on.

The Bottom Line

Experienced swimmers who want a hydrodynamic and stable swimming snorkel will love this snorkel. Once on, it felt like it had melted into my head.

With very limited wobble when swimming all-out with fins on, the MP Focus Swim Snorkel is a great addition to your training arsenal.

The MP Michael Phelps Swim Snorkel is available at Amazon in both sizes and in a variety of colors and color combinations.

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