A sea bath for happier residents of Hafnarfjörður today
Happiness Days in Hafnarfjörður are in full swing. You can meet happiness today with the lasses at 'Gladari þú', who will drag us into the sea at Langaryrarmalir and then invite us to warm up in the Herjólfsgufan. Take part.
A sea bath for happy Hafnarfjörður residents
„I can't imagine living for long away from the cold sea,“ says Margrét Leifsdóttir, who, along with Tinna Thorlacius, is leading a Happy Cold Bath at Langeyrarmalir at 5:30 p.m. today. The effects are such that it is essential to get into the cold sea regularly. „It's so easy, free and all around us. It's an invaluable quality of life,“ she says.
The event is part of the Happy Days in Hafnarfjörður, which are taking place this September. The days are now halfway through, with a number of events still to come. Now, at the Happy Sea Bath, the Herjólfsgufan is also open between 5 pm and 7 pm, where you can warm yourself up after your bath.
We will all Make yourself happy
Margret and Tinna lead their people into the sea-bath under the banners Make yourself happy, and that's how it will be after today's bath as well. We will all be happier and more joyful! But how will it work today?
„We will ask: Who is going in the sea for the first time? We then split the group in two when we go into the sea, but we warm up together. Then we dance on the beach afterwards,“ says Margrét, welcoming the opening of Herjólfsgufan.
„Then we can swap over, depending on how many of us there are. We'll let the 15 coldest go in the steam first, but the rest of us will carry on with the exercises for about 10 minutes. I hope a few will come to our rescue. Happier. They can wait with the steam. They're used to not getting hot afterwards. They just throw on a dry robe,“ says Margrét cheerfully, recommending that people come in a robe and a jacket.
„It makes such a difference.“ She says the effect of warming up before jumping into the steam is significant. „With the cold bath, we convert white fat into brown fat. It burns more. This happens when the body has to warm itself up. It's therefore better for the body, especially for those who are just starting out.“
Diving into the sea and seeking its effects
Margrét and Tinna have been leading sea baths for five years this November. „The number of people practising sea bathing has increased enormously. It's become much more normal than it was just five years ago. This applies to both sea swimmers and those of us who do cold plunges,“ she says.
„We're not doing a sea swim, but a sea bath. We're just relaxing and getting in for 1-3 minutes. We don't gain anything by staying longer,“ she says, adding, „We're getting the most out of the sea for the least amount of time.“ Interest in it has grown enormously.
Margret herself started sea bathing around 2006, nearly twenty years ago. „Back then, I was going once a week. I was always planning to go twice but never managed to fit it into my schedule.“ That changed when she and Tinna started leading the sea baths, and now she goes three times a week. „It makes a difference because the effects last for two to three days, and then you have to go again.“