Overweight instructors

[adurso]

No, I did not say that they shouldn't be allowed to. I said that there are minimum requirements that should be met. And, as previously stated over and over again, I am talking about FITNESS, not weight. Although, they tend to be related.

I also didn't say that people that want to do something shouldn't be allowed to do it. I said the idea that anyone SHOULD be allowed to do anything without scrutiny is a problem. I also stated that you should know your own limitations and figure out how to overcome them. My issue is that there is a PC idea that obesity is not a problem or not a hinderance in any activity and that it's not a factor in deciding whether you SHOULD do it or not. But in fact, it is. And because it is, you should know that you might have to prep yourself, your body, to do certain things. And that you should also have to maintain yourself. But instead, people feel they can and should just jump into things and that no one should be able to say anything about it!

Perhaps I misunderstood this quote:

My gripe is this whole PC idea that everyone SHOULD be allowed to do anything.

My bad

 

[Clammy]

Perhaps I misunderstood this quote:



My bad

Oh yeah, I don't think putting that into it's own sentence was the best way for me to word it. I looked at that too. Sorry for the confusion.

 

[adurso]

Oh yeah, I don't think putting that into it's own sentence was the best way for me to word it. I looked at that too. Sorry for the confusion.

De nada

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Getting back to the original post ... being overweight is not really the issue. Not being able to set a proper example for your students is.

Turns out this is a very new instructor ... and a not real experienced diver.

If she's motivated to teach, she will start by improving her own skills and learn how to set a good example for her students.

Instructors must, first and foremost, develop and maintain a reputation for quality instruction. Even in a place like Puget Sound ... where scuba diving is a very popular activity ... it's a small, enclosed community. People learn who's good and who's to be avoided. It follows you around, one way or the other.

Instructors should not be judged based on their body shape ... I know some who are overweight and have developed excellent reputations as quality instructors over the years. But we SHOULD be judged on our ability to provide quality instruction, and to turn out divers who are capable of planning and executing their own dives in a safe and responsible manner. That starts with being a good example to your students.

That's really what really matters here ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[flowerchild]

I think nerves had a lot to do with this situation as well. It was her first time instructing, hence the dual-instruction with the other new instructor. There are a few things to factor in here and you have all discussed them well. I think the other instructor is a natural, maybe she can work with him a little bit on the side to get insight and to become more comfortable teaching and relax a bit when in class. Not everyone is comfortable speaking or demonstrating in front of people right away - its called stage fright! It happens to everyone.
Anyhow, I will just say that I give her props for giving it a go with instructing. Just like us beginners (I am newly certified - by the other instructor in that class) it takes some time to get used to things. Give her time and some positive critisizm (sp?) and I think she'll be just fine.

 

[ScubaSteve]

I think nerves had a lot to do with this situation as well. It was her first time instructing, hence the dual-instruction with the other new instructor. There are a few things to factor in here and you have all discussed them well. I think the other instructor is a natural, maybe she can work with him a little bit on the side to get insight and to become more comfortable teaching and relax a bit when in class. Not everyone is comfortable speaking or demonstrating in front of people right away - its called stage fright! It happens to everyone.
Anyhow, I will just say that I give her props for giving it a go with instructing. Just like us beginners (I am newly certified - by the other instructor in that class) it takes some time to get used to things. Give her time and some positive [-]critisizm[/-] criticism(sp?) and I think she'll be just fine.

While I agree that in a new role, people can be a little nervous, I think we need to be really careful about how tolerant we are of instructors that are allowed to instruct when they cannot demonstrate 100% of the skills for any reason at all. If she is too nervous to do it, then I suggest she work with a group of trained divers in a mock "training scenario" until she is comfortable. Someone who is that nervous may also be too nervous to react safely to a problem that arises. Bottom line is, it is not different than the students she is teaching. If they cannot perform a skill, then they must practice it until they can and only then do they get certified. She should go through the same.

 

[jmitch3938]

Actually, look at its as this way..she actually did teach you...what NOT to do..and how to be..but, fortunately the DM could step in and assist as is his/her duty to do and support the instructor..
: )

 

[Slonda828]

I'm not judging anyone by their cover. I'm not blanket covering that everyone who is obese is UNABLE to do things. What I'm saying is that there is an attitude that everyone who is obese SHOULD be allowed to do the same things as someone that is fit without scrutiny. It's so taboo in the United States to talk about weight or to restrict anyone because they are overweight. Yet you yourself are still trying to lose the weight, good for you by the way. I doubt that you would argue that it is indeed safer and better to be fit period. Whether it's for diving, running, or just plain breathing and living. It's just better, safer, and makes you more physically able to handle physically stressful situations. So why is it that no one is able to tell another person that they should get fit or that they should meet a minimum fitness requirement? Like I said before, having the skills can mitigate some physical issues just as being physically strong can mitigate some skill issues, yet no one says that because you are super fit, you don't need the skills. I think skills are probably more important but being physically fit is something that effects everything else you do. It also doesn't take a lot of money or gear to do. It takes a little self control and a little time.

I have to agree with you Clammy. I think that this attitude we as a society have nowadays about how anyone can do anything is just not correct. I would raise the point of being a dismounted soldier on patrol in Iraq. Carrying 75 lbs of combat gear is not the place for women or fat people. Sorry, that's just life. If you happen to be fat, or a woman, and in the Army, and you can carry 75 pounds of combat gear on foot patrol...good for you, you are exceptional. Have a cookie.

Moving on, I don't particularly care if overweight people dive. If someone were grossly overweight and I thought that it impacted their ability to dive, I wouldn't dive with them. If they were an instructor and I thought it impacted their ability to instruct, I wouldn't learn from them. I think that it's fine if you're old and put on some weight, it happens. I'm only crowding 30 and I don't weigh 150 pounds anymore either. But if I think it means you can't tow me back to the boat or you hog out all your air in 15 minutes, then you can be someone else's dive buddy. That's not because your fat. That's because your (in my mind at least) dangerous.

This post is my personal opinion, and is not supported by empirical evidence other than my experiences. If the reader doesn't agree, I accept that. Then you must also accept that I am not going to agree with you on this matter and we can agree to respect on another's views as they are.

 

[doggpaddle]

What I remember from my rescue class, which all PADI instructors must have taken, is that a rescue diver should be in good physical shape. I'm an instructor now - responsible for the welfare of everyone I supervise in the water. I have co-taught with senior instructors when I was a new instructor, and I co-teach now with new instructors, BUT this is to help new instructors learn, like OJT (on the job training). I don't know from one class to the next who will be in my class, or how well or bad they will do. But what I do know is that when a fellow diver or student is in distress, coming to their aid can be very stressful and exhausting. Instructors or dive buddies who are in good shape stand a better chance of effecting a positive rescue/assist in challenging conditions than one who is not, however each divers history should be taken into account. I would rather dive with or under the supervision of another diver that has does not perform poorly in an emergency situation than one that does, regardless of their ability to put their fins on unassisted.

 

[bowlofpetunias]

:blinking:I have had obese diving friends who were much more fit than those with "acceptable weight" Comments about just "needing a little willpower" and exercise? I know people who ARE exercising, swimming laps, doing cardio but still very overweight. I have a couple dive buddies who have bought into this BMI stuff and have dropped heaps of weight till they look haggard and ill. They are experiencing problems diving because they get cold so quickly and get out of the water shivering and with white patches on their skin and still haven't met the BMI!!! Their air consumption has increased as well. Tell me how this is good for diving?

News flash folks some of us DO inherit genes that keep us slim fairly easily and others do not. Age effects that as well. I used to raise show horses... some we had to pour food into to keep them in "show shape" some of the others we had to virtually starve. That is a fact of life.

If the problem is incompetence as a trainer it should not be tolerated if the problem is judging someone on their appearance that should not be tolerated either! I can not judge the OP because I do not know the individuals involved.

It does seem to me that some of you will get a surprise in a few years. When I was young weight came off with "a little willpower and exercise" now it is a lot harder and compounded by the damage I did to my body with my sporting passions. Exercise options are restricted by work schedules and arthritis. The perfect diver may be a young slim, fit, non smoker and non drinker. Gee I wonder how it would go if we required instructors to be good examples by abstaining from alcohol and quitting smoking?:shocked2:

I'll stick with my mature, overweigh, non smoking, non drinking group because our experience and commitment to safe diving practices have worked so far. We even have people who occassionally need a little help getting fins on and off! Cool heads and skills are more important than weight. My opinion for what it is worth.

OP I am glad to hear you came out of the course safe and feel you learned what you need. If you honestly feel this isn't the instructor for you... go spend your money elsewhere. I hope you have many years of safe diving ahead of you.