“It’s a bunch of guys, that have got absolutely nothing in common, all different ages, walks of life. But then you dip your balls in the water and you’ve got everything in common. You feel so much empathy. And then when everyone’s coming out of the water, they’re laughing and then people contact each other. No one’s jobs are important. People are just asking about their well-being.” Marc Millar, Edinburgh Blue Balls swim
group
The January issue of Outdoor Swimmer magazine is out now. The recent growth in cold water swimming has been driven partly by interest in its mental health benefits, but come to the water and the majority of swimmers are often women. But a new wave of men’s groups are swimming explicitly for mental health, breaking down the barriers to men talking about their problems. In our cover story we meet
one such group, the Edinburgh Blue Balls, and explore men’s mental health and the importance of community.
Here's a taster of what else you can find inside the new issue.
Features
- The Ice Queen: Kate Steels’ Ice Sevens
- Swimterview: Ella Foote swims with body positive campaigner and cold water convert Jules Von Hep
- The Epic Eriksons: Father and son marathon swimmers Jon and Ted Erikson
Columnists
- Sarah Thomas – On not setting goals
- Joe Minihane – Exploring your local swim spots
- Simon Griffiths – Attitudes to outdoor swimming
- Alice Goodridge – Ice swimming
- Simon Murie – Travel trends for 2022
- Caroline Saxon – The ups and downs of cold water swimming
Coach
- “What drills should I use in the pool?” Olympic open water medallist Cassie Patten answers your queries
- Pool Page: Post-festive session from Dan Bullock of Swim for Tri
- Direction of Energy: How to swim faster and more efficiently by Swim Mastery coach Tracey Baumann
Plus
- On Test: Changing robes and skincare
- Eco Pages: Herons and annotating maps
- Swims Around… The Peak District
- Swim List: Winter swimming championships
And also!
- UK and international event listings
- Event reviews
- Open water news roundup
