Sea Swimming
Sea and open water swimming is rapidly growing in popularity and many participants are noting the benefits to their mental and physical health. Sea swimming has been noted by participants to be transformative, causing changes in mind, body and identity; connecting, enabling a sense of belonging to nature, place and others; and finally re-orientating, through the disruption to the sense of time, space and body swimmers can find alternative and expanded perspectives about themselves and their world.
Sea Swimming and the 5 Ways to Wellbeing
All these effects positively impact on wellbeing and indicate that sea swimming offers benefits that go far beyond just a way of improving fitness. The action of sea swimming can also be linked to improving our wellbeing through its link with the 5 Ways to Wellbeing. The 5 Ways to Wellbeing are small daily actions which have been shown to improve wellbeing when completed and include:
- Connecting with others
- Being active
- Taking notice
- Keep learning
- Giving to others
Through sea swimming, 4 of these 5 Ways to Wellbeing can be achieved:
- Connecting with others – You should never sea swim alone as it can be dangerous, so join a sea swimming group, or head along with someone you know
- Being active – you’ll be heading out for a swim
- Taking notice – during your time in the sea or on the beach, take notice of your surroundings, or if you are heading out to a guided session, there may be a meditation session before or after to help you take notice of your breath
- Keep learning – sea swimming can be a gradual process, with swimming skills or cold water tolerance increasing over time
However many sea swimming groups are also volunteer-led, so once you feel you have built up your skills as a sea swimmer, you could ask your local group if they are looking for additional support in order to give your time towards helping others.
Sea Swimming Safety
Sea swimming does come with obvious risks so it is important to understand these risks, and how you can stay safe before you head into the water. For information from qualified swimming coach, Sarah Wiseman, via swimming.org, click here.
You may also find it beneficial to download the following apps, alongside keeping an eye on the weather, to help you to keep an eye on calmer waters and weather.
My Tide Times
Download on App Store
Download on Play Store
Magic Seaweed
Download on App Store
Download on Play Store
Local Sea Swimming Groups to help you get started
If you are unsure of where to get started and are looking for advice from fellow sea swimming peers, there are several local swimming groups with Facebook groups or websites through which you can ask questions and access advice, click on the relevant link below to access a group:
- IceGuys (Facebook)
Group for men, meeting on Sundays from 5:30pm at Roker Beach, Sunderland, keep an eye on the Facebook page for the most up to date information - Seaburn Swimmers (Facebook)
Members swim daily meeting at Little Italy, Seaburn, join our Facebook group to keep up with the most recent meeting details - Roker Bathing Club (Facebook)
Meet at 09:30 every Sunday at Roker Beach, Sunderland, join our Facebook group for the most up to date information on the group
