Clothing for cold water swimming and warming up afterwards

Short answer: With winter bathing, what matters is not the swimsuit but the clothes you put on afterwards. Dry, soft clothing close to the skin brings the warmth back faster than most people expect.

After the dip, minutes count

The body needs to warm from the inside, and the first minutes after a dip decide how the rest of the experience feels. Dry clothes straight onto the skin come first, the jacket comes after. See bamboo undershirt for women . The faster the dry layer goes on, the faster the shivering stops.

Soft layers rather than heavy ones

Heavy layers over cold skin warm slowly, since the body itself has to warm them before they do any good. Several thin layers work better, because they trap warm air between them from the start. See bamboo clothing for women .

Feet and hands warm last

Fingers and toes warm slowest, because blood flow there is the first thing the body scales back in the cold. Dry socks in your bag do the most for comfort and should go on as soon as the swimsuit comes off. See bamboo socks for women .

The role of hair in cooling down

Wet hair draws heat from the body long after the dip itself. A dry towel wrapped around the head right after the bath makes a noticeable difference to how quickly the shivering stops.

The order matters

Always put the dry layer on before you start walking or moving around much. Movement can feel like it warms you, but it mostly just shifts the cold air around until the clothes are changed.

A thermos as part of the routine

A warm drink right after the bath helps from the inside, but it does not replace dry clothes on the outside. The two work best together, not as a substitute for each other, when the body needs to warm back up.

How long to stay in the water

Most people only need a few minutes in cold water to get the effect many are after. Staying longer does not make the warming up afterwards easier, if anything the body takes longer to recover the longer the dip lasts.

Several dips on one trip

Some people take several short dips instead of one long one. Between dips, a dry layer is still what decides whether the body manages to warm properly before going back into the water.

Washing and storage

Wash the soft clothing at 30 degrees and let it dry fully between trips, so it is ready straight away the next time you head out. Damp clothes left in your bag warm you less well the second time.