Bagging It, Mitigating The Afterdrop After Cold Water Swims
Courtesy of Nuala Moore.
Dr. Patrick Buck and ice swimmer Nuala Moore discuss the effects of afterdrop and the usefulness of a Blizzard Survival Bag after a cold water workout.
Moore explains, “As [ice] swimmers, we all suffer after drop, particularly when we are exposed to cold environments post-swim. After Drop is a consequence of the cold peripheral blood and the warm core blood mixing as it re-circulates through the cold surface tissues and internally as a person rewarms. This occurs after a swimmer leaves the water and is an often overlooked factor of the support team. This oversight can – and does – result in death. The primary way of mitigating against After Drop is applying the correct rewarming techniques and allowing sufficient time for the swimmer to regain a normal core body temperature.
The time we take to manage ourselves and the effort our team takes to reheat us can be the difference between a positive and negative outcome. I picked up a Blizzard Survival Bag at the World Extreme Medicine conference. I am impressed with the recovery times using the bags especially facing a cold wind.”
For more information on the Blizzard Survival Bag, visit here.
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Southern California native, born 1962, is the creator of the WOWSA Awards, Oceans Seven, Openwaterpedia, Citrus Corps, World Open Water Swimming Association, Daily News of Open Water Swimming, Global Open Water Swimming Conference. He is Chief Executive Officer of KAATSU Global and KAATSU Research Institute. Inductee in the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame (Honor Swimmer, Class of 2001) and Ice Swimming Hall of Fame (Honor Contributor - Media, Class of 2019), recipient of the International Swimming Hall of Fame's Poseidon Award (2016), International Swimming Hall of Fame's Irving Davids-Captain Roger Wheeler Memorial Award (2010), USA Swimming's Glen S. Hummer Award (2007, 2010) and Harvard University's John B. Imrie Award (1984). Served on the FINA Technical Open Water Swimming Committee and as Technical Delegate with the 2011 Special Olympics World Summer Games, and 9-time USA Swimming coaching staff. Note: WOWSA only recommends products or services used or recommended by the community. WOWSA does not receive compensation for links or products mentioned on this site or in blog posts. If it does, it will be indicated clearly on that specific post. See WOWSA's privacy policy for more information.
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