Swim moms and others that might help- maintaining body temp?

[sassenach]

6yo ds started swim recently. This kid has been a fish all of his life. He has been swimming well (diving to the bottom of the deep end) since he was 2. We moved from Florida to NorCal a little over a year ago. So to set the stage- we've got a kid who has been swimming well for many years, but in a place where the pool temp was usually around 90 degrees.

 

His first week, it was frigid. They do heat the pool (I'm not sure to what temp), but the air temp was under 60. He really struggled with the cold. The following week, the temp jumped up to the 70s and he did great. So today, it was about 65 degrees and a bit breezy. As soon as he jumped in, I heard him say that the pool was colder than usual. I also heard one of the instructors say the same thing. He was shivering so bad, I ended up taking him out 10min early. I took his temp when we got home and it was under 96 orally. Is that even possibly accurate? I took it a few more times as he showered and it slowly raised back up to normal. I'm trying to figure out if this was an accurate reading. So I think I may do a rectal temp, but this kid will FREAK out over that. All of the other kids are FINE with the temp. Nobody is shivering or complaining. At least not in his age group. Do you think that maybe he just can't maintain body heat as well as the other kids? Or maybe it's just the adjustment from Florida temps? Our whole family has struggled with the temp change. This kid has not an ounce of fat on his body.

 

I'm trying to balance this with his general behavior during practice, which has not been spectacular. He tends to go underwater and wander while the coach is talking to them. He is also swimming terribly. He's hanging on the lane lines all the time, and just not swimming as well as I've always known him to be capable of. His behavior is definitely worse on cold days. So I've got a few thoughts bouncing around right now- is the behavior connected with the temp? Is it him just being a 6yo boy? (BTW, he has been disciplined for not listening during practice). What do I do about this temp issue?

 

Any thoughts?

[Hillary in KS]

We have this issue every June with outdoor pools. Once the weather warms up, it's not an issue.

 

On cold days, ds wears one of those insulated wetsuits. It has short sleeves on the arms and legs, so it doesn't inhibit movement too much.

 

We also do cocoa and long, hot showers after practice.

 

On cold days, the coach tends to limit the "Stand around and listen" times. She really keeps the kids moving, and that helps keep them warm. The older kids are able to swim for longer stretches, so it's easier for them than for the younger dc who can swim the lengthy distances.

 

(I also don't hesitate to get ds out a few minutes early, if I can tell he's really miserable.)

[Tap]

Ds14 swims in an outdoor pool year round, even in the snow. Temps from 0-40 are common for 4-5 months here.

 

He is very, very thin and his coach has him swim in a wet suit. It is the thinnest I could buy, short sleves and legs. It cost about $80 and has held up well. You may be able to find a used one if you looked around.

 

It makes a huge difference for ds. He is the only kid of 50 who wears one, but without it he would have had to quit the team, he was aching in the water from the cold. Some people just carry more insulation that others, and I wonder if it has to do with ds's metabolism being so fast, that he does't covert fuel to heat like others do.