Open water swimming is swimming in its purest, most natural form. Strip away the lane ropes and walls, and you are left with an ancient practice that reconnects us directly with the natural world. Incorporating open water swimming into your routine isn't just another workout—it's tapping into a vital physical skill that preserves mobility, boosts cardiovascular health, and sharpens mental strength for life.
Open Water Swimming
At The Cold Water Method, we believe that immersing yourself in natural bodies of water is essential for total well-being. Exposure to cold open water triggers a powerful physiological response: it boosts circulation, reduces stress, and releases a flood of endorphins that leave you sharp, grounded, and deeply energised. Whether you are stepping into a lake, a river, or the sea, every swim challenges your mind and restores your body.
Coached open water swimming sessions for all abilities. Whether through focused 1:1 coaching or our weekly group sessions, we give you the support, technique, and confidence to elevate your performance and unlock the true power of open water.
Introduction to Open Water Swimming
Foundational Open Water Swimming Coaching - Group Session
Transitioning from the pool to natural water requires a shift in both mindset and technique. This session serves as our foundational group coaching experience, offering a structured, calm, and supportive environment designed to ease you into the elements.
You will learn the fundamentals of safe cold-water acclimatisation, efficient stroke mechanics, sighting, and controlled buoy turns. We respect every swimmer's journey and progression is entirely at your own pace as you build stamina and confidence.
This pathway is perfect for triathletes looking to improve their swim, pool swimmers making the transition to natural water, or open water swimmers wanting a relaxed environment to improve distance efficiency or technique. To join, you should have the basic ability to swim 75 meters continuously in a pool or open water.
£7 per Session - Thursday & Friday 430-6pm
Advanced Open Water Swimming
Advanced Open Water Swimming Coaching - Group Session
Structured training for confident swimmers looking to build stamina and skill. Designed for capable swimmers ready to move beyond casual laps, this structured session focuses on building endurance, hitting new distance and speed milestones, and mastering the natural elements.
You will learn the skills needed to navigate group dynamics comfortably, covering advanced sighting, precision drafting, and pack swimming.
To help you track your growth, we incorporate distance tracking and time-keeping so you can clearly understand your performance. Whether you are aiming for a personal milestone, an event, or simply a stronger swim fitness routine, these session plans provide the blueprint to get you there.
This group is tailor-made for long-distance swimmers, triathletes, and any fitness-minded swimmer looking for a structured training environment. To join, you should have the foundational capability to comfortably swim 250 meters of continuous freestyle in an open water environment.
£7 per Session - Thursday & Friday 430-6pm
1:1 Open Water Swimming
1:1 Open Water Swimming Coaching - Individual Session
Personalised coaching designed exclusively around your goals. 1:1 sessions offer a direct and focused route to swimming improvement, providing completely personalised coaching tailored to your exact needs.
These sessions can cover any facet of swimming, from stroke analysis and pacing work to guidance for those overcoming aquaphobia or managing water anxiety. We also focus heavily on the foundational safety of cold-water immersion, ensuring you learn the proper techniques to enter natural water environments safely. Your coach adapts completely to you, providing expert instruction from either in the water or from the lakeside depending on your comfort level.
This premium pathway is suitable for all abilities, welcoming everyone from nervous swimmers building basic water confidence to experienced athletes looking for micro-adjustments to their technique.
£32 per Session - Every Monday - Friday 6-10am
Winter Swimming
Cold Water Swimming & Winter Acclimatisation - Group Session
As the water temperature falls, open water swimming becomes a different discipline. These winter sessions are designed to help you develop confidence and control in progressively colder conditions, while learning how your body responds to cold water immersion.
You will learn how to enter cold water safely, manage the initial cold-water response, control your breathing and recognise when it is time to get out. Sessions combine swimming with controlled immersion, breathwork and education, helping you understand your own limits and gradually adapt to lower temperatures.
As winter progresses, we will work with progressively colder conditions, learning how the risks of cold-water immersion increase as temperatures fall and how to adapt safely to more challenging conditions. We will also cover preparation, safe rewarming and what happens to the body during and after cold-water immersion, helping you understand how to recognise and manage your own response to the cold.
The aim isn’t simply to tolerate colder water, but to develop a better understanding of cold immersion, build confidence and learn to remain calm and in control.
This pathway is suitable for swimmers wanting to continue swimming outdoors throughout winter, from those experiencing their first cold-water season to experienced swimmers looking to develop their practice further.
£12 per Session - Saturday 10-12am
Endurance Swimming
Bespoke Endurance Programmes
Specialist coaching for swimmers preparing for major open-water challenges, from marathon swims to Ice Miles and ultra-distance events.
Every programme is built around you, your goal and the demands of your event. We can create a bespoke coaching package combining personalised training plans, coached open-water sessions and individual support, depending on what you need to reach your target.
Your programme can cover endurance development, pacing, stroke efficiency, training volume, feeding and hydration strategies, fatigue management, mental preparation and progressive cold-water adaptation.
Whether you are preparing for your first major distance swim or taking on an extreme challenge, the aim is to develop the fitness, efficiency and resilience needed to perform when the distance and conditions begin to test you.
This is for committed swimmers with an established fitness base and a specific goal in mind.
Get in touch to discuss your objective and we’ll build a coaching package around you.
There is a £10 registration fee to become a member of the cold water method and participate in our sessions. All new members are awarded the Cold Water Method Pink swimming cap to wear during sessions.
Summer Season
APRIL - OCTOBER
Winter Season
NOVEMBER - MARCH
All of our Open Water Swimming Sessions are held at
Mawdesley Lancashire
