Cold Water

It’s a simple act, ditching your clothes and steadying your breath. Before you inch down into that brutal, icy clench. Every time I do it, I go through the same internal cycle – "Why the hell am I doing this? I feel like I’m on fire. Why didn’t I stay in bed? Aw okay, here we go. Good God, that stings…"

Thoughts break out in erratic patterns. The devil on your shoulder chitters inanely. Then comes the steady revelation – "Wait, I feel... okay? Numb, maybe? Am I alright? Okay, this is less painful. Breathe now. Reach out. You’re okay."

On each entry, a reset occurs. You’re rooted to the moment. You forget everything you carried to the water. Suddenly you’re connected to a part of yourself you don’t usually have access to. At the same time, you can’t shake the suspicion that maybe this is something our species has been doing for a very long time…

In Cold Water we follow lifelong outdoor swimmer, Jack Hudson, on a shuddering journey from the pandemic-stricken lidos of London to the geothermal rivers and 2C bays of Iceland. Along the way, Jack reconnects with his semi-aquatic family, meets weathered ice swimmers (Colin Hill, Pedro Ordenes, Anna-Carin Nordin) and recounts some of the most famous endurance swims, like Lewis Pugh’s minus 1.7C kilometre at the North Pole and Lynne Cox’s crossing of the Bering Strait as the Cold War thawed. He also explores the science of exactly what happens to our bodies when submerged into cold water. While training with his brothers for some of the toughest feats that exist in this mysterious sport: the dreaded sub-5C Ice Km and Ice Mile.

Back in 2019, roughly 7.5 million people swam regularly in open water. More than ever before, swimmers are looking for new and exciting ways to find space, get back to nature and prioritise physical and mental wellbeing (for themselves and those closest to them). This book is a diarised account of five years spent doing exactly that – a natural follow-up to Jack's first book, Swim Wild (Yellow Kite Books). Cold Water offers both experiential and expert insight for aspiring outdoor swimmers and future cold water converts. Find out how to source urban training spots, discover the best nutrition for cold swims, learn how to manage the ‘afterdrop’ and ‘deep water fear’, meet expert coaches with advice to hone your technique and plunge into the dark art of tuning your physiology through cold water immersion.