Well I have completed my first outdoor swim in a wetsuit and I loved it once I got in. I did an Intoduction to Open water swimming in Surrey whilst I was on holiday. Our first hour was spent learning about swimming outside, the dangers, how to go in safely, putting on a wetsuit, etc.

We discussed the dangers which varied from what is under your feet – this is where glass, shopping trolleys and weed come into play plus in the sea jelly fish. Also what you have to look out for evidently ducks and geese will get out of your way but swans will challenge you and they would probably beat me! We also learnt how to identify hypothermia and the fact if you swim somewhere new you can expect a little bit of an upset stomach. At this point I began to wonder why I was doing this. We also learnt you can’t walk around naked after a triathlon but you can kick people and roll over the top of them at the start of a swim – life is strange violence is fine but being naked isn’t.

Then we got into our wetsuits unfortunately there was only a man’s one left for me which was a little big but ok. Finally we went out to go into water. We walked in up to our shoulders and pulled our wetsuits open to let in our layer of water and got out again, we then walked in and did a 20 metre swim which I managed front crawl. Next was a variety of swims between bouys and then a swim across the lake back to the changing rooms. By now I was doing breaststroke which was quite difficult because the suit was a little large but I was relaxing and loving it. I would have stayed in longer but followed advice to get out and struggled out of wetsuit, and I mean struggled! I then learnt that you must always have a hot drink handy, thank you to the hotel who let me have a flask of hot chocolate. The other thing evidently is cake is an essential part of after swim routine – this I can live with.