A cold plunge in the river can be a thrilling experience when you visit us at Granö Beckasin. The phrase cold plunge, of course, is individual and relative. Does 21 degrees celsius in summer feel colder than an ice wake in January?
However you feel about that: cold plunging is best approached with a little bit of knowledge. In an article in the Swedish magazine Femina, psychologist Helena Kubicek Boye, author of the book Wild swimming (Roos & Tegner), gives her best advice to a beginner cold plunger:
- Consider beginning with a cold shower. Start with just ten seconds. Breath calmly and count to ten breaths. Next time you try twenty seconds. When you can do two minutes, you are definitely ready for a winter wild swim.
- Begin plunging outdoors in the late summer or early fall, so you get used to the water getting increasingly colder. Try 2–3 times a week to begin, so you establish a habit quickly.
- Pause before entering the water. Collect yourself, breathe slowly in and out. Feel how each breath fills you with warmth and serenity.
- Enter the water slowly and gently. Be present. Be in the now, and notice how the water feels on your body.
- Breathe slowly, even if you get an impulse to hold your breath.
- Plunge calmly, keep breathing in and out with slow, calm breaths.
- Notice your breath, your swim strokes and the sensation in your body. Don’t fight the cold, instead embrace it.
Good luck with your cold wild swims!
