Preparation for the ice mile swimming
In the preparation for the two ‘Ice Miles’, the athlete completed weekly 45–85 swimming
kilometers. He stopped in 2012 swimming in indoor and outdoor pools and performed
all swim trainings in open water (i.e. lakes) all the year round independent of weather and temperatures. Several trainings were performed in lakes where the distance could
not be measured. Other trainings were held in small lakes where lanes were set and laps
were counted by the support crew to determine the covered distance. He started specifically
preparing for the ‘Ice Miles’ in September 21, 2012, and recorded for specific swim
trainings (i.e. in ice cold water and/or longer trainings) the distances, the times and the
water and air temperatures. In all recorded training units, body core temperature was
continuously measured before, during and after the swim (Table 1). Between September
2012 and January 2015, body mass remained stable at ~112–115 kg.