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[00:00.04]From VOA Learning English,

[00:02.60]this is the Health & Lifestyle report.

[00:07.72]Even as temperatures kept dropping

[00:10.84]in China's northeastern "ice city" of Harbin,

[00:15.32]excitement rose among a group of swimmers

[00:19.76]who enjoy jumping into freezing waters.

[00:25.28]The daily event, known as ice swimming,

[00:29.08]is a winter tradition in Harbin.

[00:33.20]Swimmers train daily throughout the year

[00:36.40]to get their bodies ready for the unusual swim.

[00:41.72]Reporters from The Associated Press

[00:44.44]recently visited the city

[00:46.48]and spoke with some of the swimmers.

[00:50.96]To create a pool in the Songhua River,

[00:54.88]the swimmers first had to break

[00:57.76]a 10-centimeter thick cover of ice.

[01:01.28]Then they removed the ice pieces,

[01:05.28]took off all clothes except bathing suits

[01:09.60]and prepared to enter.

[01:12.88]One by one, they jumped into a freezing,

[01:16.88]10-meter-long pool.

[01:20.28]Some of the swimmers reported

[01:23.04]that their legs and arms quickly went numb

[01:27.36]after entering the water.

[01:29.80]The outside temperature

[01:32.00]was about minus 13 degrees Celsius

[01:36.12]and the water temperature remained near freezing.

[01:41.88]One of the swimmers was Chen Xia.

[01:45.00]She came from Zhejiang province

[01:48.08]about 1,700 kilometers further south.

[01:53.80]She decided to jump into the river

[01:56.40]even though she had a cold.

[02:00.12]Chen said the winter waters where she lives

[02:03.76]are warmer than those in Harbin.

[02:07.80]She said the experience

[02:09.76]strengthened her confidence in winter swimming.

[02:14.04]She has been taking part in the activity

[02:16.92]for about 20 years.

[02:20.32]The 56-year-old Chen said the freezing waters

[02:24.64]made her skin feel like small pins

[02:27.80]were attacking her body.

[02:30.04]But, she added that the experience

[02:33.20]still brought her happiness.

[02:35.28]"I felt prickling all over my body.

[02:38.84]But it still made me feel blissful," she said.

[02:44.76]Yu Xiaofeng lives in Harbin,

[02:47.84]a city that sits near the border with Russia.

[02:52.00]The 61-year-old said winter swimming in the city

[02:56.12]dates back to the 1970s.

[02:59.32]At that time, locals saw Russian

[03:02.64]Orthodox religious believers

[03:05.40]being baptized in the river.

[03:08.92]Later in 1983,

[03:11.36]an official winter swimming group

[03:13.84]was established in Harbin.

[03:17.52]The city also holds an ongoing winter celebration

[03:22.04]known for its huge, detailed ice

[03:26.08]and snow sculptures.

[03:29.44]Winter swimming is considered a sport in China.

[03:33.92]But it gained popularity much faster in Harbin

[03:37.72]than in other parts of the country.

[03:41.72]Today, Yu said the city is considered

[03:44.88]a "holy land" for winter swimming.

[03:48.72]Yu said the winter swimmers

[03:51.08]appear to have better health than others.

[03:55.00]She added that she has felt a great sense of family

[03:59.36]and joy in the community

[04:01.52]during her 30 years of winter swimming.

[04:05.96]While the AP reporters did not quote

[04:08.56]medical experts for this story,

[04:11.00]some of the swimmers said they believe

[04:14.04]ice swimming is good for their health.

[04:17.80]During the COVID-19 pandemic,

[04:20.40]the group even came up with a new saying

[04:23.48]to describe the experience.

[04:26.12]They would rather "suffer through winter swimming

[04:29.88]than line up at the hospital," Yu said.

[04:34.64]You Decang is a 76-year-old winter swimmer

[04:40.04]who said he believes the activity helps keep him healthy.

[04:45.36]He noted that he has never caught a cold.

[04:48.92]You added, "If I go just one day

[04:52.40]without winter swimming,

[04:53.96]I feel quite uncomfortable."

[04:57.36]And that's the Health & Lifestyle report.

[05:00.20]I'm Anna Matteo.

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Words in This Story

numb –v. to cause (a part of the body) to lose sensation

further –adj. going or extending beyond

confidence -n. a feeling or consciousness of one's powers or of reliance on one's circumstances

pin –n. a piece of wood, metal, or plastic used especially for fastening things together or for hanging one thing from another

prickling –v. to cause or feel a slight stinging or tingling sensation : prickle –n. a tingling sensation

blissful –adj. full of, marked by, or causing complete happiness

baptize –v. to dip in water or sprinkle water on as a part of the ceremony of receiving into the Christian church

sculpture –n. a three-dimensional work of art (such as a statue)

quote –v. to speak or write (a passage) from another usually with credit acknowledgment

uncomfortable –adj. feeling discomfort