Over exertion

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InTheDrink

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UK, South Coast
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I've been seeing various posts and some real life issues that all seem to fall under different banners but when I look at them I can't help feeling that they have a common denominator: over-exertion/anxiety.


I don't want to overstate this and clearly I'm not exactly qualified to make pronouncements in this area but overexertion, increasingly, to me sounds like diver kryptonite.


Do not chase your dive master.


Do not fight currrents.


Do not stress or fixate.


On my last trip we had 3 CCR divers get into trouble between mildly and concerningly because of over-exertion (in my view at least).
I had a serious IPE issue. I think task-loading/stress may not have helped.
Lots of near misses I read about seem to have as a causal factor over exertion or stress.


I've seen countless DMs burn through the water with their students struggling behind. I know that some of them are doing this to keep the dive short as possible.
I've also seen countless divers over-weighted and burn through their gas fighting this and also over exerting.


I do not think that there is enough solid guidance that over-exertion is simply not acceptable in SCUBA.


Be proficient and independent. If your DM is going very fast then bully for him. Stay with your buddy and dive at your own pace.
If your buddy is going too fast tell them to slow the **** down.


Anything really, just don't over-exert.

Doesn't matter how new you are. Don't follow the 'pros'. Follow your own body. Don't over exert.
 
I haven't had many problems under the surface, but I've definitely found myself puffing hard getting into the water and having to do some surface swimming. Relax, breath, never rush starting a descent...that's the ticket.
 
What I see is lack of aerobic fitness. I think it is more prevalent now that in decades past. Divers, in general as a population are older and people in general are less fit and way, way overweight. It has become so widespread that people no longer recognize on weight vs over weight. If a person has some amount of time to work out, it is much better to spend that time---running, walking, elliptical, swimming, cycling, dancing, jumping or anything that gets the heart rate up and the lungs working INSTEAD of pumping iron or doing resistance machines.

I love people watching at the Y almost as much as the beach. Women do the silliest and most useless exercise routines and guys are worse, they pump iron until their biceps are about to explode and have little bird legs and a belly that looks like they have a baby onboard. And then they both go chug a beer.

Fitness reduces stress, increases confidence and increases the stress threshold and makes what is hard for the MAJORITY of people easy.

N
 
Fitness reduces stress, increases confidence and increases the stress threshold and makes what is hard for the MAJORITY of people easy.

I agree completely.

I make no pretense that I'm a fitness guru. But over the last three years I've been running regularly and doing body-weight exercises. Recently I discovered Kettlebells. These are, in my opinion, God's gift to fitness as they are all about practical strength. Diving has a lot of short term, high intensity, asymmetrical movements involved in it, like kitting up on a boat. 10 minutes of two arm Kettlebell swings, side presses, and turkish getups would probably make a divers life infinitely easier. It has mine and it has decreased my run time too... kettlebell-exercises.jpg Included the pregnant women for shame or motivation.:wink: Oh yeah, they aren't expensive, you could probably get four balls (three is all you would need, but four is nice) in varying weights for the price of a mask and fins. Getting to a more oval shape from round has made the overexertion all but disappear that and just letting the divemaster run his own race is helpful too!
 
I've also seen countless divers over-weighted and burn through their gas fighting this and also over exerting.

That's a perception issue resulting in misdiagnosis/cure. "Taking lead off" is irrelevant unless they first know what a BCD is for. They can carry any amount of weight, as long as they first understand buoyancy. Few do.

....they have a common denominator: over-exertion/anxiety..... I think task-loading/stress may not have helped.

Bingo.

These first few responses haven't reflected upon that. Task loading and Stress is the all of it. If it's a comfy dip in a pool or other familiar environment, there is minimal correlation with negative outcomes. It's usually a great dive.

If there is "something to think about", if there is "a new environmental stimuli" presented that causes the uneducated diver to physically over-exert.

Most people do not have a firm grasp on task loading as it applies to SCUBA. A competent Caribbean/US Coastal diver decides to buy a camera for his trip to the South Pacific. Here's what happens next...........

Do a backroll and descend on command. Now he's fiddling with his fragile camera. Crazy currents. Dive over? Now he has to deal with waiting at 15fsw for the pickup boat after shooting his SMB. Now he has to hand gear up to the boatsman. Now the marginal wooden ladders and pitching boat. Task loading is insidious.

We can have the standard SCUBABoard folks who rant about physical fitness, but divers arrive in all shapes, sizes, skills and mental abilities. By all means, pick the dive buddy that you want, assist those divers who may be in trouble that you have the skill sets to execute effectively, but beyond that- the diving populace is what it is.

....It has become so widespread that people no longer recognize on weight vs over weight.
:hm:?

I have seen ultra fit young men go absolutely looney tunes with inability to deal with stressors caused in military amphibious training. For our arena in the civilian market: There is no substitute for progressive steps in dive training- unfortunately the only "c-card" you need to go from Cozumel to The Galapagos is a credit card.

Fitness is a small part of the equation. I can teach any couch potato (or UDTR/BUDS candidate) to safely ascend and inflate his BCD and await pickup. The trick is to get them to understand to recognize when it is time for them, as an individual, to perform these skills and end the activity. There is considerably less peer pressure on civilian divers to "thumb a dive" (abort), but categorizing/approaching them by negatively commenting on aerobic fitness has an unintended effect: they are less likely to do the best thing.
 
What I see is lack of aerobic fitness. I think it is more prevalent now that in decades past. Divers, in general as a population are older and people in general are less fit and way, way overweight. It has become so widespread that people no longer recognize on weight vs over weight. If a person has some amount of time to work out, it is much better to spend that time---running, walking, elliptical, swimming, cycling, dancing, jumping or anything that gets the heart rate up and the lungs working INSTEAD of pumping iron or doing resistance machines.

I love people watching at the Y almost as much as the beach. Women do the silliest and most useless exercise routines and guys are worse, they pump iron until their biceps are about to explode and have little bird legs and a belly that looks like they have a baby onboard. And then they both go chug a beer.

Fitness reduces stress, increases confidence and increases the stress threshold and makes what is hard for the MAJORITY of people easy.

N

Well here's a first. I pretty much agree with every word. Actually every word.

Most interesting for me is your words: "Fitness reduces stress, increases confidence and increases the stress threshold" I agree and I think that's important.

Don't get me wrong, I enjoy a hard dive where I'm being pushed. Quite happy going against a current too.

But there's a subtle but important difference IMO between doing something that you're happy with and something outwardly similar that you're not happy with. So on day X swimming hard against a current on your own terms is very different than swimming hard against the same current on day Y. And trying to keep up with a divemaster (for example) that is diving day in day out on this day Y is just not a good idea.

The body seems to have limited ways of reacting to stress. CO2 build up, panic, fatigue, etc. all can start the foray into the incident pit. Best never to get to the starting point.

Beyond cardio/areobic fitness I also think it's important to stress the value of skills and drills. Practice practice then practice some more. The more FUBAR drills you can do without raising your pulse the better able you will be to deal with stuff when the brown stuff hits the fan. And if you dive enough the brown stuff may well come flying.

Finally, agree once more with N although this is purely subjective: run, cycle, climb, dive, walk whatever. I think this is much better for the body - and soul - than gyms. Gyms have their place but I'm not convinced they replicate normal human movement pretty much at all.
 
I do think there is a good point in warning people not to follow dive guides who are doing foolish things.

I can remember a dive in Indonesia where the guide swam us into the current for five minutes to try to reach a turtle. There was no point to it . . . it was not the only turtle we saw that week, and we blew everybody through their gas in a hurry trying to get there.

Yes, novice divers don't belong on 600 foot walls in areas of high current. But I've also done a dive where the current predictions said we should have been fine, where we encountered currents so strong a scooter couldn't make way against them. It's important that people know that fighting such conditions can lead to worse problems than just tiredness.
 
Well here's a first. I pretty much agree with every word. Actually every word.

Most interesting for me is your words: "Fitness reduces stress, increases confidence and increases the stress threshold" I agree and I think that's important.

Well, every dog has his day.

agree once more with N although this is purely subjective: run, cycle, climb, dive, walk whatever. I think this is much better for the body - and soul - than gyms. Gyms have their place but I'm not convinced they replicate normal human movement pretty much at all.

But the entertainment value (at a gym) is through the roof.

I am not dismissing specific training and experience but if the equation is:

X + Y = Good Diver

Then X is Training and Y is Fitness and it appears that (to me from my observations) that Y has been totally forgotten and left out of the equation.

N
 
I can't recall ever really being overexerted enough to create a breathing or other problem. But most of the time I'm poking around shell collecting. I have decided to rocket here and there for whatever reason, but no problems. However, a lot of strong finning can at times be one of the probably several causes (including heredity) that gives me cramps, at times severe and multiple ones. It may be something others should also consider.
 
I love the fitness discussion in this thread, and agree divers should maintain a level of fitness appropriate to our sport. Sadly, there is a problem with some DM's who "travel" a lot during a dive. They dive the route almost daily, are familiar with the sites and terrain, and sometimes forget that their followers are not in the same circumstances. Divers see and want to observe things, and lag behind if the DM is inattentive. The divers , being on a guided dive, are likely less active and proficient than the DM. Separation from the group can lead a diver to not only heavy exertion, but also stress. I think divers who find they are being rushed or pulled along too fast should say so to the DM after the dive and before another one. Nearly all ( but unfortunately not all) will respond appropriately. And if you are a DM reading this thread, take note. I hear a lot of folks complain about DM's who move too much and too fast. Talk to you divers, let brief the dive accurately including factor of movement and pace, and get their input and expectations. Modify your plan accordingly. And divers, speak up, please. If you are paying $100 or more for a 2 tank excursion, you are entitled to reasonable consideration. Its a recreational dive. It's suppose to be fun. For everyone.
DivemasterDennis
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/swift/

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