Totally Stockholm 1
Some say, with the utmost conviction, that winter
swimming can cure winter depression. Science is divided on the subject, but the Facebook group Kallbad would agree. According to the members of the group, winter swimming not only thwarts your usual winter depression, but also cures anxiety, stress and rheumatism. Furthermore, they’re eager to tell you that other desirable side-effects include shinier hair, better skin and an improved immune system. It’s the cure for everything, it seems. And as the icing on the cake, some experience improvement in their vision as a result of their icy dips. So what’s not to like? Well, perhaps that many of the films the members upload to Facebook display people having to pound the ice in order to break it before they can get their fix. Even I, raised on a diet of raw carrots and never complaining, still feel that having to break through the ice in order to take a plunge is taking it a step too far. However, as the supply of corona-friendly leisure activities is ever-shrinking, and with this trend being so in vogue, I thought I should give it a try. When I depart for Tantobadet on Södermalm on a grey winter Wednesday, I feel like I’m on my way to a first date. The nervousness and uncertainty, of whether it will end in that fuzzy, warm feeling of happiness, or just be a complete belly flop, is definitely present. Upon arriving in Tanto, it feels just about as strange to stand on the pier undressing as it would showing off your worn-out wool underwear on a first date. In accordance with the instructions I’ve taken from experienced winter swimmers, I keep my hat on. The water is grey, the sky is too. The pier ladder? Grey. Now, finally standing there in my swimsuit, there’s no room for hesitation. Splash, and I’m in. It’s eight degrees and very cold. I definitely forget my cocky notions about staying in for three minutes, and I forget breathing too. To describe the experience as enjoyable is an overstatement, but self-torture wouldn’t be fitting either. The feeling post-plunge, sitting there looking out over Årstaviken in a thousand layers of clothing, sipping a cup of tea and sensing my skin warming up again is extraordinary. And lo and behold, the person who said your vision improves has a point. I see clearer now. After this initial bathing experience, I’m developing a taste for it. Let’s do it again. Advent Sunday begins with snowfall and later in the day I make another splash, this time at Norra Djurgården. It’s colder this time and I have to enter from a little beach. I control my breathing better, which according to the winter swimming guru Wim Hof is at least as important as the cold itself in reaching the positive effects from cold baths. I also manage to stay in the water a little longer. When my feet and hands are close to a permanent numb state, I get out and swap my wet swimsuit for two down jackets and three pairs of pants. I feel fresh, in better spirits, happy, and a long way from winter-depressed. Professor Fredrik Nyström has shown that there are positive effects to being chilled, as it increases the activity in the body’s brown fat. It could be the down jackets, but after this swim I think it seems like my brown fat has woken up, and is generating some extra warmth. On December 1, I get to tag along with the experienced winter swimmer and radio journalist, Jack Lantz, to his bathing spot at Riddarholmen in Gamla Stan. “I wouldn’t call myself a winter swimmer,” 9