Emer McLysaght: Waving off the begrudgers

Forget the stereotypes, sea swimming is bracing, ritualistic, addictive and good for everyone

There’s something about the combination of the words ‘sea’ and ‘swimming’ that gets some people’s backs up

I went for my first swim of the year last week. Or should I say, my first “sea swim” of the year. It’s important to make that distinction. Simply saying you’re going “swimming” doesn’t quite capture the vibe, though.

If someone says they’re going “swimming”, it immediately conjures up images of verruca plasters and blue rectangular floats and eyes bleeding with chlorine. Sea swimming on the other hand is urgent and bracing and potentially dangerous. ...