Polar Plunge 🌊🥶🤿
A quick dip in the Icy Atlantic for Special Olympics
Confession: I love the cold! I would much rather be cold than hot so the idea of wearing a bathing suit on the beach in February wasn’t something that I immediately ruled out. When I was asked to participate in a group fundraiser for the Special Olympics by signing up to jump in the cold Atlantic (along with thousands of others), I didn’t think twice about saying yes. This was my first “plunge” so I wasn’t sure what to expect but I was not expecting how many people had on much more than bathing suits. People were in all types of costumes — from ballerinas to smurfs.
The small group I did this with was about half women and half men. When the whistle blew, we all ran into the ocean and then waded in until we were waist-deep. After posing for a photo, we all left the ocean quickly, My body felt fine but my feet were so numb I could hardly feel them as I walked out of the ocean.
Once my small group was all back on dry land, and feeling the excitement of what we had just done, the women in the group decided to go back for a second dip. None of the guys were up to doing that with us. Since we were cold and numb already, why not?
I would definitely do another polar plunge. Have you done one and if not, are you ready to give it a try?
PS — There are many studies that show how ice baths can be good for you. More details can be found in the Links section.
NYE Traditions (in some countries, jumping into water at midnight is a NYE tradition)
Guerilla Art (this is related because some of the guerilla art I participated in was left on the same beach where I started the plunge)
Polar Plunge for Special Olympics
Try an ice bath at home, jump into a cold ocean or lake, and/or donate to the Special Olympics!
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