Dear fellow swimmers
Embrace the chill, but stay safe
For us Northern Hemisphere swimmers, winter has officially arrived (well, metrological winter, to be more precise). And winter swimming is an odd activity:
exhilarating and accessible but with easy-to-overlook dangers. The risks are manageable, but as it gets colder, your margin for error narrows. The difference between a great swim and a disaster could be just a few extra minutes in the water or too much time faffing when you get out.
Remember, a winter swim isn't over until you've dried, dressed, and warmed up. Factor in how long it will take you to get in
and climb out again. The total time it takes to do all these things determines how cold you get, not just your time in the water. Everything has a knock-on effect. If you spend too long getting into the water, you will have less time to swim. If you get too cold in the water, you will struggle with dressing and get even colder.
To stay safe, give yourself a big margin for error.
Because of the many factors affecting how quickly you get cold, it’s not possible to be precise about safe exposure times to cold water. What is fine one day may be too much on another similar but subtly different day. It’s best to be cautious.
Remember, you get most of the benefits from winter swimming in the first couple of minutes. Why increase the risks when there is nothing
else to gain?
For more on this, and to check out our infographics, head over to our website.
Simon Griffiths
Founder and publisher, Outdoor Swimmer
p.s. Thank you to Warmcor for
sponsoring The Dip this week. If you would like to put your brand in front of 35,000 swimmers, please get in touch.
