The first time you decide to swim in cold water, you are probably going to be nervous.
In fact, you will most likely be nervous every time you decide to swim in cold water. I’ve been doing it for 8 years now and I always have to do a nervous wee before I leave the house. It’s a bit like stage fright without the audience. But the internal applause will be deafening once you’ve swum, believe me.
I usually start to feel nervous the night before, worrying about everything: What if I don’t wake up in time? What if I forget something? What if it’s too cold? The reality is that all of those things have happened to me at one time or another, but I still swam and I still emerged grinning from the water afterwards.
If you are coming to outdoor swimming from an indoor pool, there are so many things that will feel unfamiliar and that might worry you. There will be no ladder to climb in, no lights showing you the bottom, and no warm showers for afterwards. But fear not. Follow these key tips and you will be fine.
1. When is the best time to start swimming outdoors?
Ideally you will not start this new hobby in the depths of winter, although I did and I was fine. The water is at its coldest in the early months of the calendar year, as it has had a whole winter of being cold and it takes a long time to heat up. The water is actually at its warmest towards the end of the summer and early autumn. This is a great time to start swimming outdoors as you can acclimatise to the water as it slowly cools down for winter. It also means that you will be more familiar and confident by the time the temperature really starts to drop. This is a good thing as you will already know how your body feels in the water and you can notice any significant changes brought on as the water cools down.
2. How cold will the water be?
It might be anything from vaguely warm to very cold. You might feel a slight tingle as you get in or you might get an immediate brain freeze. The key thing is to remember that you are not here to swim a mile, or to exercise as you would in a pool. You are here to submerge yourself and give in to the water, swimming as little or as much as you feel able. It is not a competition and you should not push yourself at all. Cold water can be dangerous and this is meant to be fun. Maybe just splash about for a minute the first time, and then increase by a minute the next time and so on.
3. How deep will the water be?
The water might be deep. It might be shallow. It might be both – but you won’t know where. There are no handy “deep end” signs on a river bank or lake. Even the shoreline of the sea can be deceptive. So, it is best to go carefully at all times. Never swim too far the first time – you need to respect the water and get to know it before venturing too far from the edge. Ideally you would swim with someone that knows the body of water you are entering, but at the very least, have someone waiting on dry land for you, as the chances are that they will be able to help you out from the edge.
4. Should I swim alone?
No! And just in case you need an alternative answer, the answer is still No! Only very experienced, competent swimmers who are familiar with the water they are swimming in should even think about swimming alone. Safety should be your first and last concern, and swimming with at least one other person is not only advisable, it should be the absolute rule. You never know when you might get cramp, lose your goggles, swallow too much water, encounter some wildlife….and having at least one swim companion will help you figure out a plan of action and get to safety easily.
5. How do I get in?
Carefully! DO NOT DIVE IN. Sometimes it is good fun to dive about AFTER you have been in for a while (as long as your body is acclimatised and you know where the water is deep enough etc) but you really should not use diving as a form of entry. You should enter the water as carefully as possible, gingerly inching yourself into the water one bodypart at a time. This is easy if there is an obvious beach or shallow place, so do try and find one if at all possible. You will probably find that your feet and legs are ok, but as soon as the water approaches your knicker line you could well be shrieking like a banshee. Nothing wrong with that as long as you are careful not to swallow cold water along the way
6. How do I breathe?
This is really, really important. The body’s natural response to cold water is to gulp lots of fresh air in to the lungs. This is called the gasp reflex and is very dangerous to swimmers hitting cold water for the first time. If you don’t have your mouth above the water level you may well end up swallowing instead of breathing, and you can literally flood your lungs with cold water. This is how the majority of drownings occur in cold water; inexperienced swimmers taking an involuntary gasp of water, deep into their lungs. You can avoid this by first of all being aware of the gasp reflex, and secondly, by doing lots of gentle, calm deep exhales as you enter the water. There is a very good video here that you can watch to see how to breathe calmly and deeply until your body is over the shock and your breathing has returned to normal. I know this sounds dramatic, but it really does happen, so practice your deep breathing before you even enter the water for the first time. You may well take a minute or two treading water just getting your breathing settled, but that is fine because until you are calm you cannot really swim anyway.
7. How long should I swim for?
As we noted earlier, this is not a time trial or an endurance event. This is meant to be a pleasure and enjoyable. The rush of endorphins you will feel after swimming in cold water will be the same whether you are in for 2, 3 or 10 minutes. So start with 2 minutes (or 1 if it’s really cold) and then build up from there. Everyone’s tolerance levels are different so please don’t think you have to stay in longer than your friend because you are the same age, size or star sign. Everyone is different and you need to work out what is safe and comfortable for you.
8. How do I get out?
Now, the most important thing about getting in is working out how and where you are going to get out. So hopefully you will already have this figured. Once you are in the water, you may find that a current or big wave may cause you to drift away from where you entered the water, so it is important to decide your exit plan well in advance and have it in your head throughout. If swimming in a river it is always best to swim against the current first, so that you can float back to your exit point. Or, if you want to drift down river, then walk along the river bank upstream and float back down. It is always good to leave your gear visible on the edge of the water, so that you have a landmark to aim for at all times. Similarly with lakes or the sea. Always have your stuff visible so you know where to get out again. It really helps to have bright colours at this point to make spotting your kit easier.
9. How do I warm up after swimming?
This is the subject of a whole blogpost in its own right, but the basic principle is as follows:
- Pop a woolly hat on your head the minute you exit the water
- Slip out of your wet things as soon as possible so that your skin can start to dry and warm up without wet fabric clinging to it
- Dry yourself gently with a towel or wrap yourself in a changing robe and start to slowly add warm layers
- Start with your top half and work down. Your feet will stay warm as long as they are not on cold ground, and you want your core and vital organs to warm up first
- Sip a warm drink if you have one and reach for that lovely piece of cake that you packed the night before