Cold Water Swimming
You can go wild swimming in London and it could change your life
Everyone who has tried cold-water swimming agrees there is nothing quite
like it - exhilarating, challenging, energising and addictive – those
are just a few of the words used to describe the feeling of what some
are now calling 'wild swimming'. But fun is not the only reason people
are taking up the hobby. Swimming outdoors is not just beneficial for
our physical health, but also for our mental wellbeing. A study
published in British Medical Journal Case Reports provided the first
case report that cold water swimming may be an effective treatment for
depression.
One man who’s leading the research into cold water swimming is Prof Mike
Tipton, an environmental physiologist at the University of Portsmouth.
An open water swimmer himself, he studies how people react to sudden
immersion. He says that the mood benefits of cold water swimming can be
divided into two phases: the initial ‘cold shock’ response, and then
adaptation that happens over the longer term. First, adrenaline courses
through your body, your heart races, you panic. Although you can’t sense
it, your blood pressure is skyrocketing, and glucose and fats are being
released into your bloodstream, providing an energy source should you
need to make a quick escape. This is the classic ‘fight-or-flight’
response. Cortisol, a stress hormone, is released from your adrenal
glands, while a surge of beta-endorphin hormones in the brain provides
pain relief and gives a sense of euphoria. In Portsmouth, Tipton puts
his volunteers through a formalised version of a cold swim to measure
how they adapt to cold shock. He sits his volunteers in a hanging chair,
lowers them into a trough of water at 12°C, and keeps them there for
about five minutes. Tipton notes that it only takes six immersions to
halve the cold water shock response. In other words, your body learns to
adapt: your heart and breathing rates only rise half as much, you panic
less and you can control your breathing. This adaptation makes you less
reactive to the shock of cold water, but it could also make you less
reactive to everyday stress. Although physical and psychological stress
can affect the body in different ways, they also share common elements.
There is a great sense of community and camaraderie amongst cold water
swimmers. There is nothing that brings people together like facing a
challenge and sharing the experience as a group. One of the finest
places to swim in London is West Reservoir in Hackney, follow the link
below to find out more.
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