Meet the locals: Jonas Colting

My day: Jonas Colting

Jonas is a Swedish triathlete, author, lecturer, entrepreneur and health influencer. For him, Borås is a mecca for outdoor workouts, whether you’re a weekend warrior or an elite athlete.

Join him for an exercise-filled day.

Profession: Self-employed entrepreneur. Organises events, lectures, coaching and camps. Also runs the brand Colting Wetsuits. Interests: I have two little boys and a wonderful wife and I love to spend time with them. We try to get out into nature a lot and walk with our dog. 10:00 am – Gearing up

I start the day by dropping by Simple Café for an espresso with a little collagen powder. It’s the perfect way to give my body a boost before a physical adventure!

10:30 am – Deluxe swimming

Alidebergssbadet in Borås is the heart of my training and I’ve been swimming here since 1985. The outdoor pool is my favourite place to swim and I am 100% certain that no one has swum more laps here than I have. Borås Simarena is right next door, and I would say it’s the best example of how to build an inexpensive and functional swimming arena. I feel incredibly lucky to live here.

I swim for an hour as usual, which is usually about 4,000 metres. The weather is great so my wife Elin comes down with our two sons and I take the chance to play with them in the kids’ pool after my workout.

12:30 pm – Local delicacies

It’s time for lunch and we shop for some finger foods at Ica City Knalleland. They have a large and varied selection of fruit, meat, fish and eggs from local producers.

2:00 pm – Paddle boarding adventure

I ride out to Almenäs beach to go stand-up paddle boarding, or SUP, as it’s called. Almenäs has a special place in my heart because my events, Borås Swimrun and Borås Triathlon, start here. Öresjö is an incredibly beautiful place to go paddling and if it isn’t too windy, I recommend paddling along the shoreline, across the water and then back to Almenäs. From there you can see parts of the Rya Åsar nature reserve, and you get to see completely different views from the water than what you see from land. It’s a little windy today, so I paddle along the river Viskan and away to Ålgården. You can always go SUP boarding in Borås, no matter the weather, and that’s one of the things I love about the city! 6:00 pm – Spanish dinner

It’s a nice evening, so we walk from home in Norrmalm down to the city. As usual, we walk along the Viskan and on the way we can see beautiful buildings and cool street art. Because it’s summer and a Thursday, the stores are open until 9:00 pm so we browse for a little while. When it’s time for dinner, we go to Babbel Restaurang & Bar, which has delicious tapas and hot dishes. The service is excellent and the restaurant has a really nice, homely feel!

7:30 pm – Kids’ play time

We have some time after dinner, so much to the kids’ delight, we walk down to the big, fantastic playground at Stadsparken. They get to round out the day and feeling satisfied and happy, we all walk home in the summer evening.

Alidebergsbadet and Borås Simarena are the basis of my swim coaching and hundreds of people visit Borås each year to train at my camps. ”