Top 5 Tips For Swimming an Ice Mile
Photo credit: Ole Sahl Lyager
Author: Dorte Lyager
At Endurance Swimming, we love challenges and we love ice swimming. Ice swimming is an incredibly dangerous and potentially fatal sport if you don’t know what you are doing and the same holds true even when you do know what you are doing. It is not a challenge to be taken lightly by any means. We asked 4 time Ice Mile swimmer Dorte Lyager AKA TheIcyDicey to give us her best tips to a safer and successful Ice Mile! Here is what she had to say:
If you are going to take up one of the toughest swim challenges, you need to be prepared. The scary, dreaded, challenging and yet alluring Ice Mile needs your full attention, if you are going to make it.
An Ice Mile is an English mile – 1609 m – in water at 5.0 c or lower, wearing only swimsuit/trunks, a regular cap and googles and nothing else!
It places great demands on your swimming technique, your cold tolerance and your mental ability to stay focused while swimming.
You will be challenged in a way that you have never been challenged before and it can be life threatening if you are not prepared and can be life threatening even if you are an experienced well prepared ice swimmer.
Here are my top 5 tips for those who are considering swimming an ice mile:
1. Proper Acclimatization!
It is extremely important, that you train your cold water endurance as well as your swimming. It might take you several seasons to build up the tolerance for the cold. You must go slow – don’t force your training! You can get nerve damage or even die! Don´t do that. It would be stupid and you would not be around to make it to your Ice Mile goal.
To acclimate properly, I recommend that you swim about 2KM open water (without any neoprene) 3-4 times a week during the summer and continue this routine as the temperature drops through the fall and into the winter!
I follow the specified Jedi-Swims from the Polar Bear Challenge they are the perfect training plan for an Ice mile. If you can do them and still be in good condition, then you will in great shape for your Ice Mile attempt when the water hits 5.0
2. Efficient Swimming – Find Your Sweet Spot
In the water you will loose heat, but if you keep your pulse low (i.e. 105-110 bpm) you will delay hypothermia onset. You have to find your sweet spot between efficient swimming with a low pulse and not being in the water for longer than necessary.
3. Know Your Signs!
Get to know your body and your reactions. Make a swim diary where you keep track of water and air temperature, how long time you stayed in the water, your distance, how you felt in the water, how you felt right after the swim and how the recovery went. For recovery you want to make note if you had suffered after drop and for how long.
You always want to pay attention to any specific signs from your body during the swim. One of my signs is if my little finger sticks out to the side. When that happens, I know I'm have to consider getting out of the water. Some typical Big Red Flags include but are not limited to: Clawing hands, a drop in cadence, a locked jaw, or feeling warm!
If you know your physical signs, then you can swim with confidence and more freely in the water.
4. Prepare Mentally
An Ice mile is a huge mental challenge. Your brain will tell you to get out several times because it hurts…very bad! The last 200 to 300 meters can be very scary and you need to be mentally prepared. If you are in good physical condition (none of the signs mentioned in 3), then you will need to overcome your brain’s desire to get out of the water.
A tip that I highly recommend is to record a motivational speech on your phone. In this speech, you review how the swim will go. Talk yourself through the swim. Make sure to occasionally include positive affirmations like: You love being here in the water. Now there are only 400 meters left. That is nothing. You can easily do that. You're fine. You are strong.
Listen to that recording 2 to 3 times or more per week. When you do this and your mind starts to tell you things during the swim, it will most likely tell you what you had in your motivational speech. It is a lot better to hear “You are strong” than “Oh, I want get out right now!”
5. Get Warm – Know The After Drop!
If you have acclimatized as suggested in tip 1, then you have also experienced that your body continues to cool after you get out of the water. You have probably experienced shaking and laughing hysterically about 10 to 15 minutes after you get out of the water.
Therefore, it is important to get warmed up as soon as possible after a swim - preferably in a warm bath or sauna. External heat is good for counteracting the cold that continues to be conducted into the body. It is a myth that the after drop is due to blood flow from the extremities and that you have to warm up yourself. As long as you are not so hypothermic that you need medical attention, then external heat is good :) You can read more about after drop and how to warm up safely here.
So enjoy the hot tub or sauna after your swim with a clear conscience!
For all you aspiring Ice Swimmers out there, we hope you found these 5 tips helpful! We wish you the best of luck on your ice swimming journeys.
Before attempting cold water or ice swimming of any distance, please first consult a medical professional to determine if this is safe for you. We highly recommend you also work with a professional coach with ice swimming experience to help guide you through all the dangers associated with ice swimming to ensure a safer experience.
About the author:
Dorte Lyager started ice swimming in January 2016 at the age of 44 in an attempt to alleviate her bipolar disorder. She became fascinated by the long-distance ice swimmers and chased her first ice mile for 3 years before finally succeeding in November 2019. Along the way, the cold had done the trick and Dorte no longer takes medication or has symptoms of her bipolar disorder. In the 2021/22 season, Dorte has so far made 3 more Ice Miles, so she is now up to 5 in total! Follow Dorte on Instagram, Facebook and see her IISA Bio!