Fitness-style ankle weights with drysuit? Dumb idea?

[Ryebrye]

I'm new to diving with a drysuit, and still figuring things out. I just took the class and was using 1.5 or 2 lb ankle weights and they seemed fine...

I'm not sure if I'll need them long term.

I've got a set of ankle weights like these:
(I took out the link because for some reason it wasn't posting for me and I am suspicious it's because I had a link in it... But they are standard 2.5 lb fitness ankle weights from Dick's sporting goods)

I think that they are filled with heavy sand - they are bulkier than the ones designed for diving and use velcro instead of a clip.

How dumb would it be to use those for a couple dives before I decide if I want to get an actual proper set of diving ankle weights?

I was thinking I could even wear them inside the drysuit (if they fit over the undergarments and I can still get the pants on ok, haven't checked yet) if there was a concern about the velcro coming off or getting loose when under pressure at depth during the dive.

Dumb idea?

 

[Degenerate]

Maybe part of your problem could be from having fins that aren't especially negative?
Not saying ankle weights are wrong, just a thought that popped up.

 

[ontdiver]

Last things first: You do not/not want weights inside your dry suit. If you get into trouble they will make things worse.

Get in a few more dives before committing yourself to ankle weights. You may not need them once you get your weight and trim dialed in.

Good point about fins.

 

[grantctobin]

Sounds like the instruction could have been better. What fins are you using? Which suit? Generally they’re a gear solution to a technique issue.

Is what you’re suggesting going to kill you? No. Is it going to improve anything? Doubtful. Those couple dives would be better spent figuring out where the problem stems from.

 

[hilljo88]

Don’t put them inside suit. Will the material and Velcro hold up after repetitive dives? Might not be a big concern. New drysuit divers often take some time to learn how to keep from getting floaty feet. If you can try them out in a pool or controlled environment, go for it. Eventually, you won’t need ankle weights.

 

[Darnold9999]

If sand is the filler then they will not work as well as lead of the same weight. Sand is considerably less dense than lead. Put a lead weight that weighs about the same as your ankle weights in the water and you will immediately see the difference. The ankle weights will weigh almost nothing in water - so bulk without weight on your ankle - not a good solution when swimming.

 

[Ryebrye]

Thanks for the tips. I'm not actually sure I need ankle weights at all... I'm a new diver, and made some friends in my drysuit class who are much more experienced that I'll be going out with shortly - I'll ask them to take a look at my trim etc.

The ankle weights are more used to get a horizontal trim and less a safety issue, I assume? We obviously went over recovering from a foot-up inversion, it wasn't that hard.

For gear, I found a retiring diver who is almost exactly the same size as me (tall and thin) and bought his stash of stuff. That's how I got a used TLS350 that fits very well, it's not bulky at all and with undergarments in it I don't have any restrictions in movement, but there isn't much extra bulk either - which seems ideal. (The owner of the lds I had check it out and replace the seals and leak test it commented that he thought it was slightly more snug than he normally would put someone in but it was in great shape and just mentioned if I switched to some higher loft undergarments to be sure to check for movement restrictions)

For fins I'm using his old wanoka reflex fins which seem pretty neutral.

I was a little overweight last dive with an hp80 and 24 lbs on a borrowed weight and trim system. My notes from that dive are that I was about 2-4lbs heavy based on feedback from my instructor after the checkout dive.

... So it sounds like my best approach should be to get out, get my weight better figured out, and then worry about trim. If my ankles float up a bit (or my head tips down too much) I can adjust where the weight is or get negative fins to counteract it more.

There doesn't seem to much excess air space in the suit by my feet area.

 

[OTF]

Try heavy fins like RK3HD, Hollis F1s, or Jet fins.

Although ankle weights and heavy fins both add mass to your feet which requires more energy to move on each kick, so if you can achieve trim with light fins by any other means do that first. Make sure air isn't trapped in your suit legs. Adjust tank height and harness size. Use trim weights on the backplate.

Slightly off-topic rant:
I'm thinking about trying some exercise-style sand weights even if they're bulkier. I hate how lead shot "soft weights" corrode a little bit on every dive and leak that milky-looking lead chloride water in my gear rinse bin. So I only use solid uncoated lead weights which don't corrode as much. But for ankle weights and a freediving neck weight I need to find something that isn't lead shot. Maybe those exercise weights, maybe custom cast lead, or maybe steel chain with a plastic buckle.

 

[Marie13]

Heavier fins might be something to look into.

 

[broncobowsher]

Inside the suit = bad.
As you are thinking, it is probably just a matter of time to get things dialed in. If running a backplate/wing it might work to move the wing up a hole or drop the tank height a few inches. There are different ways of dialing stuff in. Depends on how you are configured now and where you have room to work with it.

If the suit has pockets, put a couple of the weights off your waist and into the suit pockets. It might trim you out enough to find out what else you need to do to get the weight back where it belongs. I've thrown weights in the pockets a few times (mis-weighted when changing to salt water and need a couple extra pounds). It does sink my feet a little bit, but not uncontrolled. I just correct the weight between dives. But it might give you enough weight down low to at least get started in dialing stuff in.