Cold Water: 8th December 2019
8th December 2019
Earlier on in the week I had been speaking with my mentor, Kate, about how my cold water progression was coming on. We talked about I was and wasn’t allowed to were for a possible Ice Mile attempt. Throughout the season, which included the summer, I had worn a pair of neoprene swimming shorts to protect my stumps. My left leg stump, ‘stumpy', is an above the knee amputation, it has little in the way of muscle. Therefore, practically no insulation. Dino, my right leg stump ends just below my knee, it has poor circulation. Understandably, getting into cold water concerns me. It worries Marisa and myself the impact cold water will have on my damaged legs. However, none of this actually matters, there are no concessions given if I want to swim a certified Ice Mile. The key is acclimatisation, training and sucking it up.
International Ice Swimming Association Rules:
4.5. The Swimmer can wear:
4.5.1. one standard approved swimming costume, which may not be lower than the swimmer’s knees and, in the case of female swimmers, a swimming costume which shall not be broader than the swimmer’s shoulders and not above neck line.
4.5.2. one pair of the approved style of goggles; and,
4.5.3. one standard silicon or latex cap only;
4.5.4. greasing is only allowed for chafing purposes;
4.5.5. a safety belt, ear plugs, nose clips and mouth guards are allowed for safety purposes only.
4.5.6. Any other accessories including but not limited to, music players and heat bags, are not allowed.
After find out that wearing my ‘cheating' shorts wasn’t possible, getting into the water with just trucks on was my next priority. Heading out that morning anxious thought ran across my mind, was my body going to cope?
After getting changed I soon found myself on the pontoon in nothing but a swim hat, googles, trunks and a grimace. As I slipped into the water the cold took my breathe away. I was in. This is the coldest water I’ve swam in, I was conscious this was the warmest it was going to be, from now it the temperature would drop. I slowly got used to the feeling on my legs, I needed to constantly access how my legs were reacting. Surprisingly, it wasn’t as bad as I had originally envisioned. Before getting in I had made a plan to get out earlier than normal. I spent fifteen minutes in the water that day, leaving the lake satisfied with a good swim. There was no time to hang about afterwards, my boy Leo needed me home, we were off to rugby training.
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