A mouse going in, a lion coming out– winter swimming gives you strength

 Mirka Törmänen, who lives in Espoonlahti, is an avid winter swimmer and has enjoyed swimming in cold waters since her twenties. “The weather is never bad for swimming,” she says.

Mirka Törmänen swims throughout the year – anytime, anywhere. A swimsuit and a small towel are packed along in her bag when she, for example, goes jogging in Nuuksio or Kirkkonummi.

“My friends laugh and say that I am an annoying jogging companion because if I find even a small puddle, I will take a dip in it.”

Törmänen lives in Espoonlahti, and the distance from her home to the local winter swimming club’s swimming spot is a couple of kilometres. Especially in the autumn, when the water is warmer than the air, she goes swimming every day.

When it gets dark, visits are reduced to three times a week.

“Every time I go swimming, I get the feeling that I need to go there again soon.”

Not even the birth of her children curbed her winter swimming enthusiasm. Törmänen tells how, 20 years ago, she transported her newborn daughter in a carrycot to the winter swimming hut in Espoonlahti, took a dip in the water and then, after swimming, began to breastfeed the baby.

Törmänen swims in all weathers, and neither strong winds nor temperatures of twenty degrees below zero will stop her from doing so.

“I scurry into the water as a scared little mouse, but I come out as a lion. The blood really circulates, the endorphins rush and I feel full of strength,” Törmänen says with a laugh.

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According to Törmänen, winter swimming has brought with it numerous positive effects.

First of all, winter swimming has improved her sleep quality and peripheral blood circulation. Where she used to feel cold even in the summer when she was young, now she cannot wear socks. Worries and troubles also stay behind in the water every time.

“Winter swimming gives me so much strength in my everyday life that it is difficult to even explain it.”

Thanks to winter swimming, Törmänen has also been able to say goodbye to winter depression. Previously a summer person, she has transformed into an autumn and winter person who is downright eager for the darkness and frost.

For years, Törmänen’s husband joined her on the way to the winter swimming spot, but never went swimming himself. One day, however, he decided to give it a try and since then he has also been an active winter swimmer.

Thanks to winter swimming, the couple has avoided unnecessary quarrels whenever life threw a spanner in the works.

“We had a phase when it felt like the whole world was crushing us, but after each dip in the cold water we were like different people,” Törmänen says.

While she still swims in the cold water for a long time in the autumn, in the winter she just breathes and keeps her hands on the edge of the ice for a few minutes. She does not keep track of time, she simply comes out when she feels like it.

Törmänen recommends winter swimming to everyone. It is easiest to start by just continuing to swim after the summer, as the waters slowly get colder.

“You can start with just a few seconds and gradually lengthen the time. There is no need for pushing yourself in this sport.”

Espoo has a total of 11 winter swimming spots. New members are accepted especially in the autumn, but memberships are also available at other times.

Explore Espoo’s winter swimming spots

Text: Jaana Kalliokoski

This article has originally been published in the Espoo Magazine 3/2023.
Read other articles in the Espoo Magazine.