Too old for tech?

tkoinfla2007 · Dec 11, 2008

Hello I'm 48 yrs old I have been diving for a few yrs now and have a ssi aow rescue I really want to try cave, cavern abd advanced nitrox but have been told by some that I may be to old I don't believe this but it did make me think. Please give me some feed back

Blackwood · Dec 11, 2008

It's going to depend on your personal health and fitness. Below is one of the most well-known, active technical divers around.

He's been diving longer than you've been alive.

austriandiveress · Dec 11, 2008

If you are too old at age 48, thats bad news for a lot of guys I know! I wish you all the very best; good luck!

divestoclimb · Dec 11, 2008

I know some people in their 50's (at least) who've just recently gotten into tech diving in the last couple years. So your age by itself shouldn't be a problem.

MXGratefulDiver · Dec 11, 2008

tkoinfla2007:
Hello I'm 48 yrs old I have been diving for a few yrs now and have a ssi aow rescue I really want to try cave, cavern abd advanced nitrox but have been told by some that I may be to old I don't believe this but it did make me think. Please give me some feed back

Age is one of the presdisposing factors for DCS risk, because as we age our circulatory system loses some efficiency ... but if you're in generally good health, reasonably fit, and use good technique it shouldn't in any way prevent you from pursuring your goals.

I started diving when I was 49, and took up tech diving at the age of 54. Since then I've done over 100 planned decompression dives between 140 and 230 feet ... so far with no ill effects.

Take it one step at a time, plan your deco profiles conservatively, and listen to your body. Nobody but you can really say when you'll be "too old" to do the dives ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

Doppler · Dec 11, 2008

You are likely the best judge... one test you might try is strap on a pair of doubles and see how many squats you can do with them on your back... what Cardio workouts do you do... but all things being equal, late 40s is not in itself too old. I know several folks who started TEACHING technical diving when in their 40s... and that was years and years ago

Blackwood · Dec 11, 2008

Doppler:
You are likely the best judge... one test you might try is strap on a pair of doubles and see how many squats you can do with them on your back... what Cardio workouts do you do... but all things being equal, late 40s is not in itself too old. I know several folks who started TEACHING technical diving when in their 40s... and that was years and years ago

FYI, the link to your blog in your signature is broken. You typed an @ instead of a .

texdiveguy · Dec 11, 2008

Age is something we all have to deal with--lol.

But like so many have said above, you are the best judge of your individual fitness level to move into technical diving.

There are several interesting studies and report on the effects of aging and divers. Do a Google search and you will find some reading.

Common sense which goes along with aging--right?, is one of the best things to apply.

I will turn 54 in a month, and still enjoy differing levels of diving including technical, but I am also more cautious when planning and conducting my dives then I was say even 5 years ago.

Have fun and be safe!

eponym · Dec 11, 2008

Similar to Bob (NW Grateful), I took open water at 51 and my tech/deco training started six years later. Walking back up the beach to the parking lot sporting steel doubles and deco cylinder was slow work, but I would not have traded the challenges and feedback for a month of warm water. (I did the work up in Canada in March, snow falling from time to time.)

I've stopped wishing I'd found diving earlier in my life. Now I'm just trying to make the most of my future opportunities. That includes doing what I can to stay healthy . . .

-Bryan

RikRaeder · Dec 11, 2008

I'm hoping to get into tech (a bit) after a couple years and a hundred or so more dives. I'm not really worried about the age factor (although I was happy to have that confirmed by this thread) as much as the MONEY factor. Helium? Hah! As if. Might as well be breathing gold dust.

Too old for tech?

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