The winter is now upon us and open water swimming is starting to have a bite. Cold water swimming is not for the faint hearted especially in the middle of winter, even the hardiest swimmers can have their breath taken away when taking the plunge. So how do people swim all year round and survive the cold? And more importantly how can we swim for longer when in cold water?
Acclimatizing to the cold is the key to being able to swim for longer comfortably. The process to acclimatize comes with commitment to gradual exposure to cold water. Repeated exposure reduces cold water shock and allows your body to last longer in cold water.
Below are some top tips to follow on how to acclimatize and survive this winters chill.
1.)Practice at home
Plunging into an icy lagoon may seem just a bit daunting for the most of us, especially if you have not had much exposure to cold water. Starting your cold water endurance journey can be as simple as standing in a cold shower for 30 seconds. Continuing to do this repeatedly will eventually build up your tolerance, when you feel comfortable change the 30 seconds to 1 minute, this is called progressive overload. When you are happy, move from a cold shower onto a cold bath.
2.) Food
It is no secret that food is fuel for our bodies and a good amount of fuel can make us function and perform well in whatever we do. Some food is also a key player at keeping us warm, which is processed by food metabolizing in our bodies. The medical term for this is thermogenesis. As a general rule of thumb, food that takes longer to digest can help raise your body temperature and make you feel nice and toasty. Look out for foods which are high in healthy fats, full of protein and carbs.
Iron rich foods, such as Red meat, liver, kidney and edamame beans are great source of food to provide energy and warmth. Iron is an important mineral which helps carry oxygen through our bodies. Good circulation and blood to our extremities can help warm us up. People who suffer with an iron deficiency may experience cold hands and feet.
Wholegrains, such as rice, potatoes and lentils. These foods are complex carbs and can take a long time for your body to digest, encouraging your digestive system to work harder. This again increases blood flow, meaning a rise in body heat.
Many of these foods can be harder to digest and may not be suited to eat before long or more intense swims.
3.) Hydration
The most simplest but one of the most effective ways to keep your body warm. Hydration keeps our bodies functioning normally and helps to regulate our internal temperature.
Drink more water! Its no secret that water is the best thing to drink to hydrate us. Our bodies are made up of approximately 60% water, so its important to remember to drink especially in the colder months when you might not feel as thirsty.
Coffee. The perfect excuse to get some strong coffee down you. Caffeine increases our metabolisms which encourages our bodies to burn energy and in return warms us up. Plus you cant beat a warm cup of coffee in between your hands on a winters day.
Ginger tea. Drinking Ginger tea has many health benefits for our bodies. Ginger helps stimulate thermogenesis and is known to be good for our digestive systems. Ginger is a diaphoretic which means it can warm us from the inside out.
DO NOT DRINK ALCOHOL! All though a shot of whisky may give us some Dutch courage to jump into a frozen lagoon, it can prevent our bodies from shivering. Shivering is our bodies natural way to try and warm up, consuming whisky or any other alcohol for that matter will make it harder for our bodies to stay warm over time. So maybe save it for afters when your nice and dry wrapped up in a coat.
3.) Warm up
Making sure your body temperature is warm before entering the water is important. Being cold before you start will dramatically decrease the amount of time you will last in cold water. However having a full on workout that makes you sweat prior to jumping into cold water will increase the chance of cold water shock. A gentle warm up whilst wrapped up in thick clothing will suffice.
4.) Gradual exposure
Jumping head first into a cold body of water is not going to help you last for a long time in the water. Our bodies can easily adapt to being in cold water if we are kind to them and gradually expose our skin to the cold. Gradually lowering yourself into cold water and repeating this process will show results. Each time you take the plunge try to time how long you can last in the water and challenge yourself each time.
5.) Mindset
Cultivating the right frame of mind is just as important as preparing your physicality for the endurance needed for cold water swimming. You have to train your mind in being comfortable with being uncomfortable. Jumping into a freezing cold lagoon goes against our primal nature. The bodies state of shock will naturally send messages to the brain to either resist entering the water or to take a swift exit. In order to embrace and endure cold water swimming, the mind needs to be conditioned to not always respond to the bodies impulsive messaging. By acknowledging before entering the water the inevitability of the temperature being a shock to the system, the mind feels prepared and calmed and is therefore better equipped in being comfortable with being uncomfortable. You may also find it useful in checking out the Top 7 Cold water swimming benefits (2021) . Knowing the rationale and benefits of any task often provides your mind the resilience to take action.
Please remember that your safety is always the first thing to think about when swimming. Check out Swim safety tips on how to keep you safe.
Thanks for reading! If this post has helped or you have any questions please drop a comment below.
