39 degrees

The water at the lake is back up to 39! I met a friend today for a swim and was just going to do a dip, with gloves and no face in the water, but when I got there the water was so calm and it was really sunny and nice out, I thought it would be a shame to waste perfect swim conditions with just a dip. So, after a little back and forth in my head I decided to do another mock-200. I walked into the water, got up past my waist, and really questioned my judgement, but then I went for it and it wasn't that bad. I did have to remind myself to breathe through it for the first lap, and I had to slow down to catch my breath because I was really sucking wind, but other than that it was much easier than the last swim just a few days ago. When I got out of the water my hands were cold, but not as freezing as they've been. I was only in for about 7 minutes (which is more than the 5 minutes you are allowed for the 200 at the swim fest) and so it wasn't too difficult to warm up and there was no after drop. Getting my face in the water has been hard, but it does seem do-able. I think the secret is not wearing gloves so that I'm more focused on how cold my hands are, as opposed to my face.