Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

The man who inspired the health and fitness movement in the United States

There would be no polar bear plunge without him

Bernarr Macfadden
Bernarr Macfadden

Founded in 1903 by health enthusiast Bernarr Macfadden, the Coney Island Polar Bear Club is the oldest organization in the country. Macfadden is credited with inspiring the health and fitness movement in the United States. In Northern Europe, an icy dip in frigid water after a sauna is thought to have a positive effect on the immune system and libido, and there are control-group studies that show cold-water swimming relives stress, improves memory, respiratory health and antioxidative protection.

That said, cold-water swimming can be dangerous to those not used to it. There is a consistent physical reaction caused when the human body enters frigid water called “cold-shock response.” Almost instantly, the outer blood vessels constrict to maintain core heat and you become weak. That is why most victims have a hard time grasping the rope or life ring during coldwater rescues.

Sponsored
Sponsored

But this is Southern California and the water rarely dips below 60 degrees, but the 62-or-so-degree water we will have on New Year’s Day in San Diego can cause a cold-shock response. Many join after celebrating themselves into inebriation on New Year’s Eve, such as during the Loony Dook in Scotland, where plungers parade in costumes while acting like loonies before the dook, or dunk.

Past Event

Polar Bear Plunge

  • Sunday, January 1, 2017, 10 a.m.
  • La Jolla Shores, 8200 Camino del Oro, San Diego
  • Free

Plungers and onlookers are welcome to join the La Jolla Cove Swim Club’s annual Polar Bear Plunge and chili potluck at 10:00 a.m. on New Year’s Day at La Jolla Shores. The event is free.

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

NORTH COUNTY’S BEST PERSONAL TRAINER: NICOLE HANSULT HELPING YOU FEEL STRONG, CONFIDENT, AND VIBRANT AT ANY AGE

Bernarr Macfadden
Bernarr Macfadden

Founded in 1903 by health enthusiast Bernarr Macfadden, the Coney Island Polar Bear Club is the oldest organization in the country. Macfadden is credited with inspiring the health and fitness movement in the United States. In Northern Europe, an icy dip in frigid water after a sauna is thought to have a positive effect on the immune system and libido, and there are control-group studies that show cold-water swimming relives stress, improves memory, respiratory health and antioxidative protection.

That said, cold-water swimming can be dangerous to those not used to it. There is a consistent physical reaction caused when the human body enters frigid water called “cold-shock response.” Almost instantly, the outer blood vessels constrict to maintain core heat and you become weak. That is why most victims have a hard time grasping the rope or life ring during coldwater rescues.

Sponsored
Sponsored

But this is Southern California and the water rarely dips below 60 degrees, but the 62-or-so-degree water we will have on New Year’s Day in San Diego can cause a cold-shock response. Many join after celebrating themselves into inebriation on New Year’s Eve, such as during the Loony Dook in Scotland, where plungers parade in costumes while acting like loonies before the dook, or dunk.

Past Event

Polar Bear Plunge

  • Sunday, January 1, 2017, 10 a.m.
  • La Jolla Shores, 8200 Camino del Oro, San Diego
  • Free

Plungers and onlookers are welcome to join the La Jolla Cove Swim Club’s annual Polar Bear Plunge and chili potluck at 10:00 a.m. on New Year’s Day at La Jolla Shores. The event is free.

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Pie pleasure at Queenstown Public House

A taste of New Zealand brings back happy memories
Next Article

In-n-Out alters iconic symbol to reflect “modern-day California”

Keep Palm and Carry On?
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader