Cold water swimmers including sea, lakes and rivers

[TriSkiRun99]

After sea swimming regularly since May I’m hoping to carry on. Is anyone else hoping to carry on open water or sea swimming through the winter? If you fancy supporting each other and sharing hints n tips come join me. I’ve just bought some socks and neoprene hat, I’m hoping to to stay in my cossie as long as possible but I do have a wet suit if I cave.

So this week I tried an ‘Ice Bath’ experience I thought you guys might be interested. It was slightly mis sold to me as was actually 8° and ice free but a great experience of a breath work session plus cold water dip. Stayed in a four 10 minutes and very different from a swim as you’re pretty much static and controlling the sensations with breath alone not movement. I then had a 10.6° lake swim. 800 metres and 30 minutes. Still holding out on any neoprene just bikini and swim hat plus wooly hat. Temperature is dropping quickly at the moment. Happy swimming!!

sounds Like an interesting experience @LazyDoll i don’t think I could do the swim afterwards at those temperatures I struggle to warm my core up past the 15min mark.

It’s been really hard to get sea swims in at the moment as we’ve had really rough seas and pollution alerts with brown murky sea for a few weeks now. I got in last week and temperatures are definitely dropping I put neoprene hat and gloves on for first time this winter.

It's interesting looking back on last year's swims, what I wore and how I found it, and at least I have the gear now.

The one thing I might upgrade is my neoprene bonnet. It's fine now, but I wouldn't mind a thicker one with better neck coverage for mid-winter.

Hello all! I have been lurking but now it's actually cold water out there I will join in the chat. I swim in Surrey in a spring fed lake usually weekly, this morning it was 11.5° and I did 750m, probably could have done more but my friend was already out and drying and I wanted to chat!

I'm presently sporting a twobarefeet 2mm neoprene longsleeved swimsuit, a pair of zone3 booties, and a decathlon neoprene hat on top of a basic silicone one. I had been wearing a fabric cap through the summer and it took until quite recently for me to remember that silicone can be quite waterproof if you wear it properly. Was wearing a regular swimsuit until 2 weeks ago at 12°, had started wearing the booties at 15°. Keen to get some recommendations for the next bit of gear to add to my ensemble...

I've signed up for Antarctic Penguin challenge (3000m a month, any unheated water, any gear), so we'll see how far I get with that, I expect I will end up dropping a level or two but I've never swum through winter before, only regularly swim outdoors the past two summers in fact.

Welcome @TyneFilth i swam last winter with a 4-5mm jacket from two bare feet it does restrict movement but I preferred it to a full wetsuit for breaststroke as it got too ice cream head cold & murky for head in crawl in the sea for me. Or lomo co uk used to do neoprene vests but they were hard to pull on / off unaided 😂

Good tip thanks @Winter789Mermaid - I did notice my swimsuit let in quite a lot of water at the neck which was a bit bracing, but then the neoprene traps the warmth so as long as I go steady to start with its only a momentary bit of discomfort. I think the next piece to add to my ensemble is something on the legs, I also have a cheap rash vest which can be another layer.

Next question, do you all also take cold showers (a la wim hof method) to do more cold acclimatising between swims? My husband has been having 30 seconds of cold at the end of his showers for years but mainly because it's good for skin condition, not vascular health. He thinks I'm bonkers swimming in the cold, I think he's bonkers having an uncomfortable end to a nice shower. Are we both wrong?!

I do the cold shower thing, I started when Wim hof was on’t telly. One thing I do find, now it’s getting colder it’s much nicer when you get out. When you have warm shower and get out to a colder bathroom It’s a rush to get dressed wrap up in towels etc, but when you’ve been in a cold shower and the air temperature is warmer than the shower was I find it a better start to the day.

Welcome TyneFilth I don’t do cold showers but I do try and swim weekly to keep the acclimation going. Started in December so almost 12 months now. Always skins. Have worn boots and gloves sub 10° last winter (not on all swims though) but may try and swim without this winter. Not worn them as yet. Maximum time 30 minutes. I’m in it for the chill not the distance.

WinterMermaid ops that was within in a week not on the bounce! One night then a few days late r. Swimming tomorrow and can’t wait 😛

9.3 today but what a beautiful day for it. Managed 600 metres and 20 minutes ish. Wondered if I’d need boots and /or gloves but was fine in just bikini. I think I’d have got out regardless at the point I did even with them on as I felt my core was getting cooler. Warmed up pretty quick but then got a second after drop when back at home which I haven’t experienced before. Nothing a hot water bottle and a cuppa couldn’t fix! Booked a swim for 27/12 and 1/1 and also hired a beach hut a couple of hours drive away for 31/12 to get maximum swims in!!

Air temp 3c but lovely sunrise swim this morning in smooth sea just no head in after crap loads of runoff pollution over the weekend rains. Fab super tingly legs getting out but took awhile to warm up.

I swim in the sea off N Wales coast - our group has a mix ranging from full wetsuit wearers to skins only all year round. We’ve been going for over 2 years now and try and go a couple of times a week. It was definitely colder this morning - and the easterly breeze made it chilly getting out !

I need to psych myself up for a swim this week. At least I'll have December ticked off then.
The house cooling off last week wasn't encouraging 😂

Typical we get some good sea conditions after weeks of rough & pollution and I’ve got the lergy from the kids 😫hope I can get in at weekend as although v.cold should be calm.

I swam 500m on Thu and Sun, so I'm a third of the way through my Antarctic Penguin distance for December. However I've so far spent 4 days with my DB, DSIL and DN to help them out while DN2 is born, so getting out to a river or pond is off the cards for the moment. I walked their dogs this morning along a beautiful riverbank and felt somewhat imprisoned on dry land!

I've managed 500m, and more comfortably than this time last year. That's every month this year 😎

My feet struggled with the cold last year, it might possibly be Reynalds (I had similar issues when breast feeding 😖). I'd bought "small" neoprene socks that must be size 5-6, so they collected resevoirs of water in the spare inches at the end. This summer I found some neoprene children's surfing booties. They're a bit thin for winter use on their own, but under the adult socks, they're great. Plus the rubbery sole slows the water cooling them down.

It was totally blissful out there. So quiet and still with a gentle glow of sun. I'm so glad I pushed myself out.

I have just done my second icebreaking dip in two days, absolutely mad! Yesterday lunchtime Frensham ponds south of Farnham with a MNer friend, and today at my regular lake which is staffed and lifeguarded. Epic! Felt a bit like that scene in Frozen Planet with the Beluga whales stranded keeping an ice hole open until the spring thaw...

That looks amazing pictures and an ice dip.
alas I’ve not been able to make the most of our calm sea state as spent last 2-wks bogged down with a virus. Hope to get back in next week between the waves

Has anyone any thoughts on cold water swimming with a cold.

I’m more or less recovered head completely clear but still some pain on lungs when I cough which isn’t that regularly. I’m not planning a proper swim but thought I might do a 50m dip, prob skins as even though the lake was frozen over at the weekend apparently it’s now 4 degrees

I don't go in if I can feel it in my chest or feel much below par. I don't want to drain on energy and run into issues in the water or drain too much after and stress my body's recovery.

I take care with things like running with colds too. Even a fairly average one can knock me for a couple of weeks and make it harder. It's not necessarily that I stop, but I keep expectations low and just find it more effort than usual.

I've got The Cough, but have done an outdoor swim earlier this month, and it was likely to be the only one anyway with temperatures/ holidays.

Hi all. Happy Christmas and lovely to see some festive/December dips. I had to have an enforced month off as got hit by Covid but have been back twice since to a balmy 4.7° and 5° swim. Headed to the coast in NYE to get a sea dip in as the year closes and then back to the lake for NYD to see in 2023. Interest med to see how the temperatures differ in the sea!!

Hope you get calm conditions for your seaDip it’s forecast rough and big waves for us until Monday unfortunately. Plus lots of run off pollution from heavy rain 😞

I’ve had a couple of short dips recently but no real swimming as conditions have not been great and it’s feeling really cold now. I missed a couple of weeks sick and then that bitter cold snap just made it feel a lot 🥶! I need a pool swim as not been for a month and miss the monotony of just doing lengths head down 😂

Can I join? I'm a newish lido swimmer. Unheated, of course . Went down to 4 degrees in the cold spell, now 7ish, apparently.
I've been doing it since September and love it, whilst still feeling a teensy bit scared every time I walk to the edge

Welcome @BeBraveLittlePenguin hope you are enjoying your cold water journey it’s rather addictive. This is my 3rd winter sea dipping and swimming but not had too many since Nov it’s only been 11 x as conditions have been really rough then during the only really calm week I was too ill to go. Hope to get in tomorrow in the lull between storms.

Luckily yes it was thank you! Very calm and even had the company of done deals in the distance!! Headed to the lake the next day for a NYD swim and it was 6.5° so going back up again! Probably not for long!!

welcome littlepenguin it’s addictive!!

How’s everyone’s swimming going? I went for the third time this year today. 4.5° in the water. 1.5° air temperature. Did about 200metres. Still just bikini (and woolly hat!)but did wear bootees and gloves this time. Greylag geese were landing on the lake as I was swimming which was incredible.