Episode 8 – the colder it gets the more we’re enjoying it – NR008 - a podcast by Karen Parry outdoor swimming

Swimming in skins through the winter.

Those of us who do it may understand the quote from this week’s guest, Natalie. “The colder it’s getting the more we’re enjoying it.”

Once we are addicted, getting into colder and colder water can become what we chase. Searching for the buzz that comes from the shivers.

Whatever the reason or the science behind it, some of the therapeutic benefit of wild swimming, for many of us, comes from the cold. Whether it comes through forcing us out of our minds and into our bodies, creating an extreme form of mindfulness, or from the chemical reaction it triggers as our bodies react to cope with the sudden cold. There is enough pleasure to outweigh the pain. And a point at which the pain turns into something else. Something that is easier to withstand. Something enjoyable even.

It’s been a relatively mild winter for many so far, with this weekend bringing the first snow to many places.

How many of us rubbed our hands gleefully, wondering if this would be the time when our favourite body of water dropped another couple of degrees, got a thin skin of ice on its surface, or would be surrounded by snow for our approach?

Over the next couple of months I’ll be exploring a bit more with my guests what it is about wild swimming though the winter that attracts them. Heading over to the Lake District in February looking for colder bodies of water than the North Sea where I regularly swim.

If all this resonates with some of what makes you love wild swimming, why not get in touch and be a future guest on the podcast. We can record interviews over the internet now, so wherever you are in the world, you can get involved.

Get in touch…

Things Natalie and I discuss

Solent swim, Dart 10k, river Wye, river Avon, swimming the English Channel, Alcatraz swim, Big Welsh Swim, Fausto Bathing Club, Dry Robe, Natalie's blog

Further episodes of Swim Wild Podcast

Further podcasts by Karen Parry outdoor swimming

Website of Karen Parry outdoor swimming