MAN vs DISTANCE

15 / 50 / 150

Three finswims. Three distances. One mission.

Raising awareness and funds for men's mental health and suicide prevention.

The distance is physical. The fight is personal.

Finswim 150 is my long-term cold-water endurance project supporting Mind Sverige and their work in mental health and suicide prevention.

Three numbers. Three projects. One very personal reason.

For the foreseeable future, every major finswimming project I undertake will carry something far more important than distance: men's mental health, suicide prevention and MIND.

I've suffered myself from depression, addiction and abuse. So this isn't a cause I've picked because it looks good attached to an endurance project.

It's close to my heart.

Endurance has been my lifesaver. My distraction. My escape. And, perhaps most importantly, my constant need to be better than I was yesterday.

When things have been dark, having something to train for, something to chase and something that demanded everything from me gave me somewhere to put the noise. Cold water, long distances, structure and discipline became some of the things that helped me find stability when everything else felt chaotic.

I've known what it's like to carry things you don't talk about. I've also known how easy it is for men to keep their mouths shut, put on a brave face and pretend everything's fine.

Too many do.

Some never get the chance to speak.

That's why I'm using what I do best to raise awareness, start conversations and raise funds for MIND and suicide prevention.

Because men's mental health isn't about being weak.

It's about being human.

And asking for help isn't surrender.

It's staying in the fight.

15 km — The Öresund Strait

The first project is a 15 km finswim in the Öresund Strait, using bifins.

The swim is planned for August, conditions permitting. The Öresund is a cold, fast and tidal stretch of water between Sweden and Denmark, with commercial shipping, shifting winds and unpredictable currents.

Nothing about it is easy.

The 15 km Öresund Strait Finswim is the first step in the series, setting the tone for everything that follows: real conditions, real difficulty and no shortcuts.

50 km — The World Record

The second project takes things considerably further.

50 km — a Guinness World Records attempt for the farthest distance swum in open water using bifins only.

Fifty kilometres.

One swimmer.

One pair of bifins.

No shortcuts.

The attempt will be GPS-tracked and fully documented, pushing the limits of what is possible with bifins in open water supported by a safety and dedicated crew.

It's not about speed. It's about endurance, efficiency, technique and the ability to keep moving when the distance becomes uncomfortable.

150 km — Lake Vänern

Then comes the long-term goal.

150 km across Lake Vänern, Sweden's largest lake, in what will be my biggest finswimming expedition yet.

This will be a staged, unsupported cold-water finswim across open water, towing the equipment and supplies required to complete the challenge.

It will be longer. Colder. Harder.

And that's exactly the point.

The distances will get bigger.

The water will get rougher.

The challenges will get harder.

The reason won't change.

Beyond 150

The project doesn't necessarily end at Lake Vänern.

In the future, I plan to continue the progression with further cold-water endurance challenges, including a potential straight-line crossing from Sweden towards Bornholm — another cold, unpredictable stretch of open water with long exposure and changing conditions.

Each swim is a chapter.

Each distance is a step forward.

Each challenge is a way to turn my own history into something useful.

Why finswimming?

Finswimming itself is simple and honest.

A wetsuit. Bifins. A front-mounted snorkel. Goggles.

It isn't scuba. It isn't freediving. It isn't monofin sprinting.

It's endurance.

It's technique. It's efficiency. It's consistency over hours rather than minutes.

Maintaining pace, form and focus in cold, moving water while your legs do most of the work.

There is nowhere to hide.

You keep moving.

And that simplicity is part of why it works for me.

Why MIND?

I've experienced the darker side of mental health personally.

I've experienced depression, addiction, abuse and suicidal thoughts. I know what it feels like when your thoughts turn against you, when trauma follows you into adulthood, and when rebuilding yourself feels like a job with no obvious finish line.

Cold water helped me.

Distance helped me.

Structure helped me.

Goals helped me.

Endurance gave me somewhere to put the noise.

Mind Sverige works to support people affected by mental health difficulties and suicide, and to ensure that people don't have to face those struggles alone.

Finswim 150 is my way of connecting the two.

Taking something that helped me and using it to raise awareness, start conversations and support people who may be fighting battles of their own.

Fifteen. Fifty. One hundred and fifty kilometres.

Different swims.

Same mission.

If these projects make one man speak up, ask for help, or realise he's not alone, then every bloody kilometre is worth it.

If you can spare anything, it will help. If you can't donate, share this project with your network and get it in front of someone who might.

A donation helps.

A share helps.

A conversation might save a life.

This isn't just about swimming.

It's about getting people to the other side.