Here is a video that I made of me doing my cold water swim.
This one is at Center Lake in Tustin, Michigan. The water was most likely 40 degrees Fahrenheit/4.4 degrees Celsius as when I temped it the next day it was 40 degrees. My video stopped recording part way in and then I started again so there are two parts to the event. It's on instagram, but I think anyone can view it.
Part 1:
Part 2:
We have a name for our Polar Dipping/Swimming/Chilling Club...
Calm, Cool, and Collected: A Celebration
We have a page on instagram if you want to follow it. It's called:
CalmCoolCollectedACelebration
I discovered that "A Celebration" is the name given to a group of Polar Bears. It seemed fitting also because we are Celebrating! We are celebrating our friendships, life, nature, icy cold water, and so much more!
We have been adding members too!! My friend Chris and I were the starting members. My children Allison, Clara, Emily, and Ben have all done it a few times now too. My youngest son, Jesse wants to go in so badly. He has been taking cold showers and has been in the lakes up to his knees at the most. I'm just a little nervous of him taking it on too quickly as he's only 8 years old.
We talked to a man and his son Dylan one day about what we were doing and the next day, Dylan joined us. He's a young teenager but he went full in, under the water and everything. He stayed in for quite a few minutes too and that was his first time!
Chris has been swimming 31 times now including our first dip on February 27th and I've been in 28 times! Our longest stay so far was at Lake Billings in Manton, MI. Chris and I stayed in for 16 minutes, splashing, swimming, loving it as much as in summer. I floated on my back and just stared at the beautiful blue sky above me. I love listening to the sound of the water swishing around.
Last weekend, I was in the Upper Peninsula with some of my kids. I got to swim in Lake Superior (The coldest lake in the U.S) and Lake Huron. I also swam in Lake Michigan in March. I hope to swim in Lake Ontario and Lake Erie as well to complete the Great Lakes Collection.
I am really loving this! There have been only a couple of days where I felt a little bit off about it and that's because they were super windy days. I don't like the wind. It's a challenge though that I hope to overcome and embrace. Some people think we are crazy, and maybe we are, but your body really does adapt to the cold and amazingly quickly too. It feels good, the coolness of the water, the sun on your face as your body is submerged in cold, the sound of nature all around.
Here are some of my favorite photos from these adventurous days.
I am loving this!!!
Center Lake Tustin, MI
Center Lake Tustin, MI
My Fourth Time in the Water
My friend Chris chopped a hole in the lake for us to have a place to ice dip close by.
I'm calling it a Polar Swim because we are staying in a bit, not just dipping in and out.
Yesterday March 3rd, Chris and I did our 3rd swim for the year. He actually stayed in for 2 minutes! I stayed in for a minute and 20 seconds. We both know that we can stay in longer physically and mentally. We WANT to, but we are trying to make sure we stay safe and do it gradually even though we want to stay in longer now.
I'm not joking at all when I say, it really isn't bad after the initial shock from jumping in. Think of it, often in the winter, the water is warmer than the air. Yesterday might have been close. It was about 40 degrees in the air. I'm not sure how warm the water is, but it has to be warmer than 32 or it would be ice.
I was a little worried about Allison jumping in yesterday because she is so small. She did really well though and she liked it too. She didn't stay in too long but long enough to overcome the shock and be able to talk.
