Re: [Paddlewise] Tragedy in Sweden

From: Michael Daly <mikedaly_at_magma.ca>
Date: Fri, 30 Mar 2007 18:59:42 -0400
Doug Lloyd wrote:

> He attributes 
> this to the conditioning regime in cold water. His body has adjusted. I 
> assume fitness and cold-water adjustment are factors precluding 
> hypothermia, both warding of the effects initially and subsequently.

Don't underestimate how much heat you can generate while swimming.  You 
are using both arms and legs and that will put you into the same 
category as sports like cross-country skiing.  In my competitive days, I 
could spend an entire day outside skiing and training wearing what most 
would find cool in an office - and that's at temps well below freezing.

When I finish swimming (~2 km at a time in a pool) I am pumping out heat 
for quite a while afterwords - no towel can get me dry :-)

That's another area where fitness is a benefit - you can generate heat 
for a longer time.  Without training (either in the form of sports or 
hard work) your muscles don't store enough glycogen to keep going.  That 
extends your time to survival.  However, you do need insulation to 
prevent the generated heat from just transferring to the water as you 
move to keep warm.

Mike
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Received on Fri Mar 30 2007 - 16:46:08 PDT

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