Just one day indoors recovering from the winter storm period and I just couldn’t stay in any longer. Each day in front of a computer is 200 grams of fat gained and each day outdoors is a curbed appetite, closed fridge door and 200 grams of fat lost. The lake has gained the best part of a metre of water – which is an astonishing amount – but it is all from snow and ice so it’s bitterly freezing. It took a few minutes to get the face and neck accustomed. There was a stiff wind blowing and after the swim and getting out of the wetsuit (which is remarkably warm in near freezing water) I went for a proper dip with just swimming trunks on to get back to work on “cold adaptation” having been unable to do this for a couple of weeks. The water has a strong burning effect and just seconds in the water and the entire body was as red as my face in the photo below. At no time during or after was there any shivering – but a hot coffee was appreciated once dressed. The news that I was skiing off piste tomorrow prevented the follow up of the swim with a planned bicycle ride for an hour.
