Extremely new, even to the idea of Diving....

[TSandM]

One of the basic things about diving is that it involves being around deep water. Walking down a pier to the dive boat, you're surrounded with water which is often over your head. On the boat, the same. Even shore diving, you may be walking where you could fall into the water. I think anybody who is involved in a hobby that requires that they be in close proximity to water should be a reasonable "survival" swimmer -- That means boaters, surfers, divers, fishermen, etc.

The good news is that it isn't hard to learn to swim well enough to survive immersion. A couple of sessions with a swim coach should be enough to fix your technique well enough to make you a workmanlike swimmer.

 

[fishdelasol]

You will get more comfortable in the water the more you swim. There is no reason to proficient at the butterfly for scuba...diving is very relaxing in comparison. Swim lessons could be a very good thing for you to develop confidence and technique. I teach swimming lessons and the students that gain the most out of the sessions are the ones who want to improve. It sounds like you will do fine. Go try a discover scuba course!

 

[GalleryEccentric]

Thanks for replies! Very Helpful. Today I have learned something, the difference between floating and treading. When I said float, I meant tread above water. Thats the mistake I've made with my terms, I apologize. I'm going to take the advice and sign up for intermediate swimming lessons somewhere, then I have to choose a dive shop in NYC to sign up for lessons. Any suggestions? Empire Divers? Adventure Scuba?

 

[RasRitz]

Be careful with your new "hobby". Before you know it you will have a full on addiction!!! Good luck. With practice your swimming skills will come around. You can do it!!!

 

[jbd]

Any suggestions? Empire Divers? Adventure Scuba?

Regardless of what agency any shop teaches for, try to find a class that doesn't have10 to 20 people in it. Get into the smallest class you can even opting for semi private if you can. It will cost a little more but you most likely get more out of it. Another possibility is to find an independent instructor that typically works with fewer students. You get a lot more one on one time with the instructor. Ask to observe a pool session if you can. There are links to some threads around here about what you need to know before signing up for scuba classes. There is also a list of things to look into posted by Walter. Check the sticky posts.

 

[Fish_Whisperer]

My advice is to learn the sidestroke. It's probably one of the easiest ones to learn for covering long distances at an easy pace, and you can keep most of your face out of the water, if this is something that tends to bother you. When your right side gets tired, you can roll over to your left side for a while. Also, on the surface your BC will act like a life-jacket.

Good luck with it, and I can only echo others' sentiments that your hobby will quickly turn into an obsession. LOL

 

[nereas]

Hello everyone,
I want to find a new hobby and diving seems to be the most interesting on my list. I'm ready to sign up for lessons NOW, however the only problem is this, I can swim, but not well. I swim better underwater than above. My butterfly stoke is horrible, I'm better off swimming underwater. I'm still not sure exactly how to stay afloat in deep water, better yet, I can't stay afloat, I'm doing something wrong. Considering what I can't do, would I even be able to pass the test to start lessons?

I never knew anyone who could not do an overhand crawl stroke (aka freestyle) if they could do the butterfly. So, you're kidding, right?

If you make sure that you are always wearing at least a 3mm wetsuit, then you will float, no matter what. Not a bad idea anyway.

Ask a scuba instructor to administer a basic swim test, and then see where things stand.

 

[emttim]

I never knew anyone who could not do an overhand crawl stroke (aka freestyle) if they could do the butterfly. So, you're kidding, right?

If you make sure that you are always wearing at least a 3mm wetsuit, then you will float, no matter what. Not a bad idea anyway.

Ask a scuba instructor to administer a basic swim test, and then see where things stand.

This is why I think that the swim test for O/W is somewhat pointless. I say somewhat instead of completely because TSandM makes some good points...I never thought about the fact that someone could just as easily fall off the pier or boat. However, if the person is even being somewhat safe, I couldn't see how that would happen under manageable weather conditions. If heavy waves are hitting the boat, sure, you might get knocked over...but if heavy waves are hitting the boat, I wonder if diving would be happening in the first place. Although I haven't boat dived yet, so I can't speak from experience.

Anyway, to the OP, I think you're making a good choice by taking swimming lessons. I did that for several months, and my comfort level in the water really hasn't changed since I was completely at ease in and under the water even when I barely knew how to swim, but it /is/ nice to know. I don't think I'll ever use my swimming skills on a dive trip, but I may use them when there's no SCUBA gear around, so they're useful in general; just not useful specifically for SCUBA imho.

 

[NancyLynn]

This is why I think that the swim test for O/W is somewhat pointless.

The swim test is to test minimum water survival skills. As I recall, the length was about a quarter of a mile, and survival floating (dead man's float) for 15 minutes (incidentally, I freaked out the instructors by actually doing survival floating - apparently they, and everyone they ever tested, assumed survival floating meant treading water).

In order to get meaningful cardiovascular exercise at recreational swimming rates you need to swim at least 30 minutes - farther, for most people, than 1/4 mile (when I have been swimming with any regularity, 30 minutes takes me about a half mile at a relatively leisurely pace). If you can't swim that far (or stay in place in the water for 15 minutes), you're probably not comfortable enough in the water (or in good enough shape) to be diving. It's a good gatekeeping safety mechanism.

 

[flareless]

Yesterday my buddy and I did our first confined water training in the PADI course. I had scuba dived (dove?) 20+ years ago but I want to get certified and do it regularly now. After doing an hour of training the instructor said "ok, now do eight laps of the pool". On lap two I though "oh man, I'll never do this" but after that lap it went pretty easy for me. After the laps were complete he then said "ok, now tread water for ten minutes" . That also went pretty smoothly

I grew up going to my grandparents cottage (on Lake Simcoe, Ontario for anyone interested) where swimming and snorkelling were the primary activity. In the winter I went to their place in Florida where they had a pool and where we often went to swim in the ocean. When at home in the city I had two aunts with pools and a great deal of time was spent there. Overall I have to say I'm extremely comfortable in the water and a pretty proficient swimmer.

One thing I noticed is the instructor watching the swimmers do their laps said "Man, I hate swimming". I thought that was an odd statement for someone who persued scuba to the level he had. As many folks have commented though, swimming and swimming for scuba are significantly different and while you don't have to be a great swimmer for scuba you should be able to at least swim well.

The problem lies in running into an emergency situation. Should you have to swim for a long distance or should you be in a position where you must keep yourself afloat you should be in a comfort zone where you are capable of doing it. While physical fitness is always a good idea I can see how letting it lapse could cost you your life in a "swim or sink" situation. While I'm not terribly overweight or out of shape (5'11", broad shoulders and about 200 lbs - oh and beautiful green eyes ) I'm going to begin toning up, working my legs out more and getting to the local pool to work on swimming skills. I one day plan to get my Rescue Diver certification and the physical demands for that are much greater.

So, bottom line (IMHO); Get your swimming skills up to speed, have a great level of comfort in the water and stay in good physical condition. After all, the life you save - could be mine