Run and Pond dip

I took a different route today to my normal run. It's one that is a bit shorter(6.4Km) and goes through woods but it does have its advantages. The first is that is a lot more secluded and much further away from houses; second it has a much denser undergrowth and thirdly there is a small pond at the halfway mark.

The first two advantages mean that I can (if I want to) run part of my route in just my trainers and much less likely to be caught out by other people running, cycling or walking their dogs and also less likely to be seen from other parts of the wood (especially as I take very unfrequented paths). The last advantage means that I can also do some cold water endurance at the halfway point.

Today I managed both the above. Running around 2km naked and able to take a 3 minute relax in the ice covered pond. Last time I was there I managed 2 minutes and felt OK. so I pushed the time up a bit today. It did not take me long to warm up on the return leg. The air temp was around -1C with a brisk wind chill, the water had ice on it so I guess the water temp was around +1C or+2C (I need to buy that watch with the thermometer built in). The pond is really only deep enough to sit in so the swimming will need to wait for a deeper pond, river or lake.

The forecast is for some snow and temps of -3C overnight so although its not a normal run day tomorrowfor me, I may just venture out and do the same run shirtless tomorrow too!