Swimming Guides - OpenWaterHQ

Can You Swim with an Ankle Monitor?

Ankle monitors are surprisingly sensitive. If you’re not careful, you could easily set one off, and then you’d have a ...

Can You Swim With a Ruptured Eardrum?

If you’ve hurt your eardrum recently but the pain has since subsided, that doesn’t mean you are out of the ...

Can You Swim with a UTI? What You Should Know

Dealing with a UTI is a pain, and you certainly don’t want to do anything that might worsen it. However, ...

Can You Swim With Road Rash?

It’s common sense that if you’re wounded, you should rest until your wound is recovered. Do not participate in any ...

Can You Swim with Press-On Nails?

For many of us, a trip to the pool or beach isn't just about cooling off or getting a tan; ...

Is it Safe to Go Swimming in the Ocean After it Rains?

After a bout of rainfall, the skies clear up and the sun emerges, and you are probably raring to take ...

Can You Swim With Two Strand Twists?

When you've got a head full of fresh, stylish two-strand twists, you're not sure if you can, or should, take ...

Can You Swim With Passion Twists?

The sun is shining, the water is inviting, and you're ready to dive in. Only, there's one issue: you've just ...

Can You Swim in an Indoor Pool During a Thunderstorm?

It makes total sense why swimming outdoors is dangerous during a thunderstorm. Well, what about in an indoor pool? Contrary ...

Is Swimming Good for Whiplash?

Whiplash is a common injury that can occur due to sudden jerking motions, often as a result of car accidents ...

Open water swimming is pretty self-explanatory; it is simply swimming in any outdoor bodies of water including the open ocean, lakes, and even rivers. You can do it casually or competitively, such as in triathlons.

At the highest level, you can compete in prestigious competitions such as the FINA World Aquatics Championships, the FINA 10 km Marathon Swimming World Cup, and even at the Olympic Games. It is a discipline acknowledged across the world, as there are official events worldwide.

Wearing a wetsuit is highly recommended due to the risks involved with open water swimming. In competition, wetsuits are either permitted or restricted based on the distance of the swim and the water temperature.

In this section, we have compiled a list of all our guides related to open water swimming.