Is It Harder To Swim In Cold Water

When you swim, you should make sure you try out swimming in different pool water temperature.

Swimming in a warm pool is always filled with a lot of enjoyable moments.

But when you swim in a pool that is filled with cold water, the fun is also different.

Is it harder to swim in cold water is asked by a lot of people due to this.

This is due to the different swimming experience you get when you swim in a pool that is warm and also in a pool that is filled with cold water.

It is harder to swim in cold water as compared to when you swim in a pool with warm water due to water being more dense, cold shock and risk of hypothermia when you swim in a pool with cold water.

To have a better time swimming, you have to swim in pools with different temperature.

Compare your experience and that will tell you which one is harder to swim in.

In most of the people that swim, cold water pool is usually the harder one to swim in.

Why It Is Harder To Swim In Cold Water

1) Water Is More Dense

When temperature difference sets in, one of the things you will experience is a change in density.

In a swimming pool in which the temperature is warm, the water in the pool will feel lighter.

This helps you swim efficiently and makes your swimming time more enjoyable.

But when the temperature of the water in the swimming pool is cold, the water will be more dense.

This makes it more energy demanding to swim in such a pool that has a dense water.

This is usually due to a difference in the viscosity of the pool water.

When the pool water is cold, the viscosity will be higher thereby making the water more dense.

But when the water in the pool is warm, then the viscosity of the pool water will be low.

This makes the pool water feel lighter when compared to a pool water that is cold.

This helps swimmers swim easily.

2) Your Body Works Harder To Maintain Internal Temperature

The body of the human and that of the animals have an optimal temperature in which it helps the organs of the body function well.

When you are in an environment that is not too cold, your body will work effortlessly to maintain the internal temperature.

But when you are exposed to cold, your body will have to work harder to keep an optimal internal temperature.

This is what happens when you swim in a pool that is filled with cold water.

That is one of the reasons why it is harder to swim in cold water.

This is because your body will have to work harder in order to balance the internal temperature of your body.

If the temperature of the pool water is too low, this can cause serious health damages.

3) Cold Shock

Have you ever jumped into a pool filled with cold water in the cold season?

If you have ever done that, one of the things that you will remember is how your body responded immediately you entered the water.

In such a situation, what you are going to experience will be a cold shock.

This is due to the large gap of temperature difference your body comes in contact with which is different from the temperature of your body.

When it comes to swimming in a pool that is filled with warm water, you will not experience this.

What you will experience is a very warm reception.

This even makes your body organs so happy.

That is why a lot of people like to swim in pools in which the water has been heated to an optimum temperature.

This gives you a pleasant swimming experience and eliminates the chances of having a cold shock when you swim.

4) You Can Easily Get Injured

One of the things that occurs in the body when you expose your body to a cold temperature is that the temperature of the body will also change too.

This cause the blood vessels in your body to constrict.

Due to this, the volume of blood flow to the organs of your body will not be at an optimal level.

This is one of the reasons why people develop numbness when they swim in a pool with cold water.

Apart from having numbness, another thing you will experience when you swim in a cold water pool is cramps.

Having cramps while swimming is a bad experience and will reduce your efficiency when you swim.

This is one of the things that makes it harder to swim in cold water.

This will also lead to pains in your joints too.

If you still carry on with the swimming in such a condition, it could lead to severe muscular injuries.

5) Risk Of Hypothermia

When it comes to safety in swimming, one of the things you have to pay attention to is the temperature of the water in the swimming pool.

Some people usually test their comfortability of swimming in a pool water by dipping their hand into the pool water or using a thermometer to test the temperature of the water.

If the water is too cold at this point, you have to make sure that you stay out of the pool.

But in some of the cases, some people might still want to swim irrespective of the level of cold the pool water has.

This is very bad and will lead to health issues.

One of the things you will experience is a cold shock.

Apart from having a cold shock, you might be exposed to a more severe health casualty if you still remain for long in a pool that is filled with cold water.

Spending much time in such a pool will expose you to hypothermia.

Hypothermia is a very deadly disease that kills easily if the victim is not rescued out of the cold water and taken to a place that is warm.

This is one of the instances that makes it harder to swim in cold water.

This is because if you stay too long in the water, you might contact hypothermia.

This leads to the reduction of the temperature of the body.

This gradually leads to the failure of the organs of the body and then death in few minutes if the water is very cold.

Further Reading

Why People Find It Harder To Swim Than Run

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