Swimmer, 79, braves cold, open waters with a group he put together at Long Island Sound
BRANFORD, Conn. (BVM) — Dr. Joseph Zelson, 79, found a way to still swim after pools closed down in April because of the pandemic. The retired pediatrician and current Yale medical school instructor said his wife does not like it when he swims alone, so he reached out to other swimmers to join him in the open waters.
Zelson said he made a schedule for interested swimmers from his Yale Masters, a swimming group at the university. He also invited other people he had swam with before and told them to meet him for a swim at Long Island Sound.
“This past weekend I had 15 swimmers,” Zelson said. “[This week] the temperature got down to 32, but that day a group of five of us still swam.”
The group came up with strategies that have helped them to bear the cold waters in The Sound. They bought earplugs and heavy wet suits that surfers use, which includes gloves and foot coverings. Some even bring a small plastic tub and a thermos pool of hot water, which he says gets their feet warm enough to drive or walk home after their cold swim.
Although the temperatures have been dropping in Connecticut, Zelson says he and his group have no plans to stop as long as their faces can handle the cold water.
“There is a certain magic about swimming in open water, anything that’s been on your mind, you come out with a fresh view of things,” Zelson said. “As cold as the water is, it feels so good after you’ve done it, really relaxes your body and your brain.”
Zelson said he has been finding ways to keep the group motivated by informing them about the benefits of cold water swimming for the body and mind.
“Some articles came out recently which encouraged the group, cold water swimming is supposed to reduce the risk of dementia,” Zelson said.
With the group of swimmers making a commitment to do this for as long as they can, Zelson says he is grateful for the opportunity to swim with a great group of people, with a few swimmers some days and up to 25 on warmer ones.
“The swimmers think I’m doing them a favor, but in reality, they are doing me a favor because I have people to swim with since I promised my wife I would never swim alone,” Zelson said.
Zelson has been adamant on social distancing with his group and so they keep six feet apart in and out of the water. He said he likes Long Island Sound because they all have their very own lane in the open waters so that they can keep a distance from one another.
As far as the future for him and his group, it is as wide as the waters they swim in. He says he plans to continue to swim in the cold even as a few indoor pools are partially opening back up again.
After being offered the opportunity to compete in a swim group for people 80 and older, Zelson is still deciding if he wants to participate or not. He said he is at a point where he swims for his own enjoyment and does not have the urge to compete anymore as he used to for U.S. Masters Swimming.
Zelson is currently swimming four to six times a week and he swims between one to five miles.
“At my age, you can’t swim really fast and hard, you have to last a mile,” Zelson said.
