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.

That’s incredible!

I swam 2.5k last week my longest yet, but I was horribly cold for the last bit and struggled a bit. I’m going today but will go back to 2k, or even less if it’s cold. I’m not a winter swimmer, so will be retiring my wetsuit quite soon and going back to the pool. I think my lake is 18, and I started this year when it was 18.5 so I’ll see how far I can go!

I've found that I warm up better by dressing lightly then the car can warm up my skin rather than layering up and trapping the cold in.

I didn't make it last winter- too much wind and rain, but the winter before, the centre at the lake set up a sauna. That really helps!

I went yesterday and wrapped my clothes around a hot water bottle which was pretty nice. Where I go has changing rooms, I don’t think I’d cope without! Makes it easy to strip top half , layer up, then fight with the wetsuit on the bottom half.

It was super choppy last night, half the time I didn’t know which way I was facing. I’m pretty proud I wasn’t fazed at all.

Just found this excellent thread in the hope of finding some tips for surviving the cold water, will have a proper read through and may be back with questions!

Mine does have changing rooms but they're somewhat basic and not necessarily warmer than outside so I tend to do the dry-robe dance at the car.
I did use the changing rooms my first year.

It makes me laugh in waterpark season when people come in and baulk at communal changing. The regular swimmers don't tend to be inhibited.

Thing with changing for me is that I like to strip off fast and I can’t do that under a dryrobe , I’ve tried! I just ended up taking ages and still being wet. The changing rooms are open to the elements essentially but have a shower curtain so I can get naked and then dry and warm super fast !

I have given up for the winter now , temp has gone below 17 so that’s me done, as I can’t swim as far as I would like and my technique is all over the place . Already looking forward to returning in May!

I'm just getting started for this year; it was a slow start 😂

Where I go has got ‘changing rooms’, they’re rather rudimentary and I don’t use them although I had to the other day when I went straight from work and didn’t have time to change before I left, they’re sort of wood chip panels nailed together with a shower curtain covering each ‘doorway’.
Normally I just chuck my clothes on over the top of my wet costume and drive 10 minutes home. Now it’s feeling properly cold I stick on my dry robe. Felt like a twat before so I kept leaving in the car 😂

So glad this thread is still going. Can anyone give some safety tips on sea swimming. I have swum with my dog who is a water breed, but once was in and out of the water for about an hour. When I came to leave I couldn't bend my fingers to attach her lead. I was wearing a wetsuit and it was about 20' that day. Also any advice on rip currents? Thanks in advance.

The first rule of rip club is know what they look like and don't get in one.

If you're in a rip, don't swim against it, relax and make sure you keep your head up and breathe. You're not in massive danger, you won't get dragged out to sea.

Either let the water take you out a bit first or swim parallel to the shore until you're out of the rip and the waves will help you get back in.

Thanks 😊

Good to see this thread revived.
I've had a wonderful summer swimming in the Serpentine, Hyde Park. Off to Crete next week for some more summer swimming. The temperature drop is going to hit when I return!
I'll be off to the Lake District in October for some lake swimming and then the rest of the year back in London.
Have signed up for the Polar Bear challenge this year. Have done 2 winters as an extreme penguin so wanted something new this year.
Happy swimming everyone

Greetings all! Nice to meet you all.

We've got a few days beautiful 'summer' weather in SW Scotland! But I'm a bit ill so putting off the enjoyment until tomorrow/Friday at the latest in the hope that I'm up to it by then.

Off to google PBC in the likely forlorn hope that I'll manage it...

Well I went in yesterday! It was a lot warmer than I expected. Every time I manage a dip I remember, I ALWAYS feel good after - need to hold on to that memory!

Had a look at the challenge. I don't actually do any 'swimming' to speak of, it's more of a 'wallow'/'wade'/'paddle'. Maybe next year...

Hi @lifesabitchandthenyoudie did you check the classic levels? All you need to do is dip your shoulders under the water twice a month. Couldn't be simpler than that!
Have just enjoyed a pre-breakfast swim in sunny Crete

I had an amazing swim earlier this week. I went for the full wetsuit- temperature was a bit borderline so I went conservative and ended up staying in for an hour covering my first mile of the year.

It was so still! The only ripples were from the small number of swimmers and wildlife.

I'd had such a long gap for various reasons, but when I finally went back a few months ago, I'd forgotten how immersive it is. It's just a total sensory delight.

Yeah I've gotten out of the habit but I do enjoy the sensations of water, and often the view. One time it was quite misty and still and it felt like floating in space.

Brrrrr! I'm warming up now after a 14° swim. The swim was fine, but I definitely need to master the super quick change because it took me forever to get my socks off by which time I was freezing. And I probably need some fleece pyjamas too wear.

I'm sure my lake posts optomistic temperatures. It was alledgedly 16⁰C, but I've got a thermometer on my tow float that was in the water and that said 13⁰C when I came out the other day. There's definitely temperature variations in there anyway. Depth, exposure to sun and more exposed sections do make a difference and I can often feel them going round.

I tend to keep a note of air and water temperatures and what combination of layers I wore to help guage for next time/ season.

Do you have any tips for speedy removal of neoprene socks? I think I was faffing around all wet for around 5 minutes before I got them off.

Maybe get layered up and do feet last?

The secret to getting neoprene socks off is to wear pop socks underneath. I have a pair of 40 denier ones that have done 3 winters and they make the neoprene just slide off

Socks are a blooming pain. I've ended up with a thin pair of children's surf socks, but they're a scrum because I have tiny but high volume feet.

I can only wear my thick "small" adult ones with my full wetsuit because my toes don't reach the hoofy part and they fill with water. They're also that daft mid-calf length but can't actually grip onto the width of my musles so have to be layered under the wetsuit to stay on. They are much thicker though so I wear them over the children's ones which works better.

Changing is not a quick process 😂

The way to easily get socks off as it gets colder - don’t laugh 🙈 poo bags

it’s a game changer, and I always have some in the car.