Lifeguard attire includes layered clothing that can be easily removed in an emergency. Red is a popular color and clothing may feature a cross or “lifeguard” graphic. Board shorts, slip-on footwear, and whistles are also common. Rain ponchos may be worn in bad weather.
Lifeguard attire is meant to be layered to suit the weather; start with a bathing suit. Shorts, a t-shirt, and a hoodie jacket can be layered over swimwear designed for lifeguards, but these pieces must be easy to remove in an emergency to allow the lifeguard to get into the water quickly. Pull-on pants such as drawstring waist sweatpants with the word “lifeguard” on one of the legs or on the back are also available, but they tend to be worn less than different styles of shorts. Red is one of the most popular colors in lifeguard attire; white, blue, black, grey, yellow and orange are also worn by many rescue professionals.
A red cross or the word “guard” or “lifeguard” often appears on clothing designed specifically for rescue professionals. In addition to bathing suits, shorts, t-shirts, fleece jackets and sweatpants, hats, and slip-on footwear are commonly worn types of lifeguard attire. Slip-on beach shoes allow the lifeguard to be able to quickly remove them when they need to enter the water during an emergency. Common types of lifeguard hats include cloth baseball caps and straw or nylon brimmed hat styles.
In general, lifeguards wear modern but conservative swimwear. Female lifeguards may wear a two-piece swimsuit, but the pieces don’t reveal at the chest or back. Male lifeguards usually wear a shorts-length bathing suit rather than briefs. Monochromatic colors with a cross or “lifeguard” graphic and dresses with sporty striped accents are popular swim looks for the beach or poolside shoot.
Board shorts are lifeguard clothing worn by both men and women. These are longer, slimmer shorts that usually have a drawstring waist and are made of a soft material like cotton jersey. Wearing necklaces or other jewelry is often not permitted for lifeguards to wear on duty. Instead, a whistle on a string or cable is worn by lifeguards to signal warnings to swimmers. Some lifeguard clothing companies sell whistles in different colors to coordinate with their clothing.
Rain ponchos or hooded jackets are sometimes worn by lifeguards working in rainy or windy conditions. Many beach lifeguards have other responsibilities than supervising beachgoers from a high chair. They must ensure that the beach is clear of debris and post signs with rules for swimmers to follow. All lifeguard gear is made to be layered as needed, from a bathing suit to a rain poncho.
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