Between November and March is the worst time to be in Germany (which is why I am glad not to be there at the moment). The sky is generally overcast in a thick gray layer of clouds, which have a good chance of precipitating snow or just rain. Since the temperatures typically dance around the freezing point, neither of the two options makes a whole lot of difference. The snow is likely to melt, and the rain could just as well freeze to ice. What is a given, is a constantly uncomfortable cold and wet weather. For me, this is the perfect time to go to the sauna. For others, such as a good friend of mine, it's ideal to go for a swim in a nearby lake!
Skip the Heat, Just Go for the Cold!
In most of my series The Art of Bathing I've focused on the contrast-heat method, meaning switching from hot to cold, and back and forth. From personal experience I can say, once your body is properly heated up, after a sauna, for example, taking a plunge in ice cold water, or rolling around naked in the snow, are truly fun and relaxing things to do. In this case, however, there is one major difference: there is no heat to prepare you for the dip in the cold!
Winter swimming has its firm place in many cultures and religions, you can read about in more detail. What people do (myself not included, because I don't feel ready for such a feat), is go out to a frozen lake, where they may even have to cut a hole in the ice, and immerse themselves in the cold water. Swimming is usually out of the question, as they don't stay in long enough. But once their bodies start getting righteously cold, they come out, dry themselves off, and put their clothes back on. It makes me shiver just to imagine it!
A First-Hand Account
The other day my friend told me about her most recent winter swimming experience, which I would like to share here. The temperatures were right around freezing, with plenty of frost on the ground, but not prolonged enough to make the lake freeze. She ventured out to the Krumme Lanke lake, next to the Grunewald of Berlin, and took a bath in the ice cold water.
The first minute is horrible, she says. Following that you can feel the happiness hormones come out. Then it's bad again. The skin stings and is numb, and hands and feet become icicles. And then you notice exactly where the cold blood flows in your body.
She managed to stay in the water for four minutes, which was a personal record for her. When she came out, her skin was so numb that she could hardly feel the towel. Once she'd dried off, she immediately bundled up in her winter clothes and went for a walk. She had self-heating pads in her boots, still it took her a good 6 kms before her feet warmed up. But after the first kilometer she could feel the cold blood reach her brain, which is when she knew that the cold bath was worth it.
What's the Point of it all?
First and foremost it's a psychological thing. Overcoming one's limitations and confronting one's fear is an important motivating factor. The way my friend described it, when she went out to the lake, she felt like a lamb that takes itself to be slaughtered. Coming out of the water, however, she felt proud, which I believe is a very modest expression for the euphoria after achieving something incredible. But that is only one of the various benefits of winter bathing.
Among the happiness hormones created by the body, both dopamine and serotonin meet the profile, falling into the realm of physical activities, being close to nature, doing something for oneself, and celebrating achievement. As for the endorphin and oxytocin, I'm sure there is plenty of those in the mix as well. (If not, try doing winter swimming with a lover!) All this makes it pretty worthwhile, though these are only the short term benefits - which my friend said last forever anyway.
Brown Fat, a Jacket You Wear on Your Inside
When it comes to the kinds of fat in our bodies, a seldomly mentioned fact is, how brown fat (unlike the more common white fat) is a natural way to insulate our bodies from the cold. Not surprisingly, pregnant women and children have a higher amount of brown fat, which may be why kids tend to lose their jackets all the time. So how can we build up this good type of fat in our bodies? That's right: by exposing ourselves to the cold! And such radical dips in ice cold water in the middle of winter is an excellent way.
As you would expect, taking such a cold dip also strengthens the body's immune system, making winter swimmers less likely to contract infectious diseases. At the same time, the oxidative stress the body experiences during these brief cold baths will improve the body's antioxidative protection in the long term. Finally, to return to the psychological effects, the improved mood states, reduced stress, and more vigor of the winter swimmers has an overall positive and lasting effect on the physical body.
Having listed all these benefits of winter swimming, I should actually be totally convinced to submit myself to such a practice too. However, that is not the case, by far. After all, I am still a total wuss about the cold. I mean, I don't mind exposing myself to it, if there is a sauna or a hot tub nearby. But to go out into the lake in the winter, with only the warmth of my clothes to look forward to afterwards... I still can't imagine that.