Next time I beach dive (here in SoCal), I'll just bring some cash to pay some teenager to help me up and to schlep my gear up the stairs!
Accomodating inabilities
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Next time I beach dive (here in SoCal), I'll just bring some cash to pay some teenager to help me up and to schlep my gear up the stairs!
ArcticDiver
Contributor
I hipe resurrecting this thread is OK?
Balance seems to be the big problem. One of the PTs tells me that loss of balance is very common once people get past about 40. If something is not done she says that the loss of balance leads to falls; which in turn are a leading cause of injury.
She recommended one of those little Balance Disks. They come in various forms; some solid, some inflateable. You stand on the thing and do nothing else at first. Then, after awhile you can start doing tasks like bouncing a ball, etc. She says that with training just about all your youthful balance can be regained.
As for me I get dressed standing up (including socks and shoes) and do such silly things as brush my teeth while standing on one leg. I've noticed that since I've been doing that my balance has greatly improved.
So, apparently she is correct; training can improve balance.
Balance seems to be the big problem. One of the PTs tells me that loss of balance is very common once people get past about 40. If something is not done she says that the loss of balance leads to falls; which in turn are a leading cause of injury.
She recommended one of those little Balance Disks. They come in various forms; some solid, some inflateable. You stand on the thing and do nothing else at first. Then, after awhile you can start doing tasks like bouncing a ball, etc. She says that with training just about all your youthful balance can be regained.
As for me I get dressed standing up (including socks and shoes) and do such silly things as brush my teeth while standing on one leg. I've noticed that since I've been doing that my balance has greatly improved.
So, apparently she is correct; training can improve balance.
fisherdvm
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I really need to start using Motrin. But I have bad memories about terrible gastritis even from 200mg of the stuff in the past. All I take now is Tylenol. I find that alternating swimming with running helps both. Can't swim everyday, as my shoulder is continously sore, and can't run every day, or my back will hurt. I never lifted weights, but it might help?
I feel the pain on my right hip, where I fell on a dive boat trying to catch my son and keep him from falling nearly a year ago - when ever I over exert. Old injuries really never heal, completely. It still bothers me that I can't run at the pace I did 10 years ago without hurting my foot or ankle. It is not the heart that can't take it. It seems like it is the joints.
I feel the pain on my right hip, where I fell on a dive boat trying to catch my son and keep him from falling nearly a year ago - when ever I over exert. Old injuries really never heal, completely. It still bothers me that I can't run at the pace I did 10 years ago without hurting my foot or ankle. It is not the heart that can't take it. It seems like it is the joints.
Diver Dennis
Contributor
I must say Lynne, that this is a terrific thread! I thought I was the only one with aches and pains. My major problem is arthritis in my right hip, car accidents and football. I have problems putting my right fin on at times and can't do it when I'm wearing tanks so depending on the situation I have to get help. This was very tough at the beginning, I didn't want to be a wuss or admit that I was having problems. Now I just accept it as part of my diving. I do have of course all the usual aches and pains and take Advil or Tylenol every morning.
It seems that when I'm in the water though, it all goes away...
It seems that when I'm in the water though, it all goes away...
danclem
Contributor
Well, at 59 I share the vision (or lack there of), so prescription mask w bifocals and a Galileo computer. No problem with balance: I think back country skiing and mountain biking help.
The one thing I have not seen mentioned is getting cold easier. After trying out three or four undergarments the past couple of years, I finally moved to a Weesle Extreme and am nice and toasty taking underwater photos in Puget Sound and BC.
We are just winding up a week in Maui, and I could get used to this warmer climate thing! The frogfish on the Mala Pier were outrageous.
Cheers,
Dan
The one thing I have not seen mentioned is getting cold easier. After trying out three or four undergarments the past couple of years, I finally moved to a Weesle Extreme and am nice and toasty taking underwater photos in Puget Sound and BC.
We are just winding up a week in Maui, and I could get used to this warmer climate thing! The frogfish on the Mala Pier were outrageous.
Cheers,
Dan
OP
Frogfish on the Mala Pier? Very cool! Although that's my favorite Maui dive, I've never seen one there.
Therein lies the problem! The more you exercise, the stronger your heart and lungs get, and the more wear and tear you put on the joints. The good news is that sore knees aren't going to kill you, on land OR underwater
Therein lies the problem! The more you exercise, the stronger your heart and lungs get, and the more wear and tear you put on the joints. The good news is that sore knees aren't going to kill you, on land OR underwater
I am a new diver and have been very fortunate to have great buddies. I have an artificial knee that's scarred pretty bad and flex is poor. More than once I've needed help donning my fin. Spring straps have helped alot. I also frost bite my fingers when I was younger and my hands get cold very easily. Not good seeing as most of my diving is in the great lakes. Just transitioned to smurf gloves. Balance can be tricky at times like when I turtled on a shore exit. The entry/exit was shallow but all slimy rocks. I went down and as the saying goes, I couldn't get up. At least we all had a good laugh.
ArcticDiver
Contributor
Celtic you are far from alone in that. I almost always have my reg in my mouth when entering and exiting the water. I've fallen off boat ladders; slipped on roots at Ginnie Springs; been tumbled in the surf; etc. I've seen lots of other folks do the same thing. But, as long as I can breathe it is merely an inconvenience.
But, with practice balance can be improved. When shore diving I used to need another person to lean on when donning and removing fins. With practice I don't need that bionic leaning pole most of the time. Of course, getting bigger fins that are easier to get on and off didn't hurt either
But, with practice balance can be improved. When shore diving I used to need another person to lean on when donning and removing fins. With practice I don't need that bionic leaning pole most of the time. Of course, getting bigger fins that are easier to get on and off didn't hurt either
Paladin
Contributor
I recently helped my cousin get his boat off the bottom of Smith Mountain Lake in VA and all my infirmities raised their ugly heads to bite me. I have degenerative disc disease in my lower back with some partially fused vertebrae; arthritis in both hips and both knees; and arthritis and a torn rotator cuff in my right shoulder. Getting around on land can, at times, be painful but once I'm in the water the pain seems to lessen dramatically and movement becomes much easier. Except when manhandling steel drums underwater to use as floats to recover a sunken boat. Never again! If he lets that boat sink again, it can just stay down there!
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