Tip of the Week: Cooling Off After a Challenging Swim Practice

January 19, 2009

Ever find yourself burning up in a challenging swim practice to the point where your head feels like it is on fire?  This effect is magnified if you are training in warm water, especially if the pool temperature is 83 degrees or warmer.  You can take advantage of the fact that water transfers heat much better than air and that you lose a lot of heat through your head.  That’s right; the key to quickly cooling yourself down is by splashing your face.  Just dunking your head underwater will help, but it’s not optimal to cool off fast. 

Here’s the best way to do it.  Hold both forearms flat to the water with palms facing up, keeping your hands and forearm just below the surface.  Then arm-curl your forearms towards your head quickly, keeping your wrists limp.  This allows your hands to fly quickly toward your face, sending the water towards with speed.  Stop when your hands get about 6 inches from your face.  It should feel like you are flicking water at your head.  This does a great job of covering your face with a uniform splashing of water.  After doing this several times you will start to feel cold, even if the water is 85 degrees.  The effect is even greater if you take your swim cap off.

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