Everybody, especially triathletes, seems to love the pull buoys, kick boards, big paddles and long fins. However, these items are not going to help you when training for a triathlon swim. Buoys and boards are floatation devices and give you a false sense of being on top of the water, and are allowing you to avoid working on your balance in the water. Paddles can cause shoulder injuries. Long fins give you a false powerful kick (I do like the shorter fins however- Zoomers Z2’s are the best…to get 20% off on a pair, go to Finis and use discount code ‘aggies20’ at checkout).
So keep it simple no matter what all your friends are doing!