fat folks and diving
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leadweight
Contributor
At least as far as seriously overweight men are concerned, they burn through an 80 mighty quick.
Yes you can dive safely without shedding weight first .... with qualifications:
- Like all new divers you need a medical from a doctor before you start.
- Obviously, as with any sporting activity, the fitter you are the better. If you're getting into diving to become more active then that can only be a good thing... You are absolutely not unique in being overweight and this doesn't need to present big problems. however; be aware that the hardest part about diving is carrying your gear around (it can weigh up to 30kg) and getting in and out of the water. You'll need to learn your limitations (as we all do) and respect them.
- Once you're under water things are usually very relaxed but there are some conditions, like heavy currents that will make you work very hard. If your cardiovascular fitness isn't that great the strain of swimming in heavy currents can exhaust you very quickly. If your cardo-fitness isn't good then it might be wise to become better-than-average at estimating conditions.... More than one diver has had a heart-attack while grinding his way through a dive that was heavier than he'd reckoned. Although statistically very safe by comparison to other sports, it's *still* a sporting activity. Just know your limits and have a hard-head about aborting and/or scrubbing a dive you don't feel confident about. Obviously this applies to everyone but I'm underscoring it because peer pressure can be a little problem in this sport and if you're not particularly fit your margin for making questionable dives is slightly reduced.
- And the last issue is about how long you can stay under water. (I'll try to simplify this as much as I can). In scuba diving you breathe compressed air under pressure and because of this your body absorbs some extra nitrogen (an inert gas that makes up 79 of air). Because of the extra pressure the nitrogen just sort of forces it way into your tissues (everything from blood to bone). Your body releases it again when you come up so it's not harmful as long as you don't stay under water for too long. To avoid staying for too long divers have special tables (and computers) to tell them how long they can stay before they need to end the dive. However, when they made these tables they used young fit men as test subjects. Your body has more fat than a young fit man and it turns out that fat is pretty good at absorbing extra nitrogen. This means that the time limits shown on the tables are a little longer than is wise for you to use. The trick is to just take that into account and to learn to keep an extra safety margin above what the tables indicate.
There's a bit more to it than that but you'll learn about it in your scuba class. I think I covered the most important points though.
Good luck.
R..
oh i have to post in spurts cuz i'm having trouble keeping up.
Detroit, yes that was much more clear and I appreciate you taking the time to explain that to me.
Ber, I called about the y and it is a lil out of my budget for now. I am out of work for now and with my trip to cedar point coming up and possible dive classes i need to watch my money.
I will keep in touch prob thru pm's tho cuz if i can get a pt job at the y i get a free membership. They are hiring in b-creek but i'm not sure about englewood. I am going to ask about volunteering if not cuz i definitely have more time than money for now.
Detroit, yes that was much more clear and I appreciate you taking the time to explain that to me.
Ber, I called about the y and it is a lil out of my budget for now. I am out of work for now and with my trip to cedar point coming up and possible dive classes i need to watch my money.
I will keep in touch prob thru pm's tho cuz if i can get a pt job at the y i get a free membership. They are hiring in b-creek but i'm not sure about englewood. I am going to ask about volunteering if not cuz i definitely have more time than money for now.
Keep in touch! If you happen to have a bike or rollerblades, the bike path runs right through Brookville!
Ber
Ber
wow liz,
thanks for taking the time to type all that. I haven't been to your website yet but i will visit it soon. Nice to know there are other big gals. I was convinced everyone that dives must be small! I never see movies with big gals in wetsuits.
Anyway, I can avoid the alcohol and all that. I was doing 10 miles on the treadmill with relatively little problems but i have to walk it and it takes forever. However, jogging, running and stairmasters almost kill me even for a few minutes. My upper body strength is really crappy so carrying the equipment could be a problem. I am going to have to get a backpack and see how i do if i load it up. The good thing is, I walk kind of fast so that means less time carrying it around. hehe
amanda,
hehe-- i have heard that too! I just don't like my shape
sniff sniff.
leadweight,
i was concerned about air consumption too-- how long have you been diving and how quickly did you go thru your air when you started?
thanks for taking the time to type all that. I haven't been to your website yet but i will visit it soon. Nice to know there are other big gals. I was convinced everyone that dives must be small! I never see movies with big gals in wetsuits.
Anyway, I can avoid the alcohol and all that. I was doing 10 miles on the treadmill with relatively little problems but i have to walk it and it takes forever. However, jogging, running and stairmasters almost kill me even for a few minutes. My upper body strength is really crappy so carrying the equipment could be a problem. I am going to have to get a backpack and see how i do if i load it up. The good thing is, I walk kind of fast so that means less time carrying it around. hehe
amanda,
hehe-- i have heard that too! I just don't like my shape
sniff sniff. leadweight,
i was concerned about air consumption too-- how long have you been diving and how quickly did you go thru your air when you started?
raviepoo
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Sheesh! From reading some of the ealier posts a person could get the impression that a woman has to be Serena WIlliams in order to go scuba diving. It's just not true. If you're not wonder woman you might want to limit yourself to easy dives that aren't physically taxing. But there is no reason to rule out diving UNLESS YOUR DOCTOR ADVISES YOU TO.
Diving can be a wonderful experience for an overweight person. Without the effects of gravity you can feel totally free in your body.
Use common sense. See your doctor to determine whether there is any reason why the sport would not be safe for you. Be careful and don't push yourself beyond your limits. But for heavens sake, don't be disuaded from learning to dive just because you need to lose a few pounds.
Diving can be a wonderful experience for an overweight person. Without the effects of gravity you can feel totally free in your body.
Use common sense. See your doctor to determine whether there is any reason why the sport would not be safe for you. Be careful and don't push yourself beyond your limits. But for heavens sake, don't be disuaded from learning to dive just because you need to lose a few pounds.
raviepoo
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How often do you see movies with big girls in nurses uniforms or formal wear, or t shirts and jeans or flight gear? The fact is, overweight people are invisible in our culture. They're out there, leading normal, happy lives, having friends and families and careers and hobbies, just like the thin folks. But the media presents a picture of human life that is not real. That picture is skewed to include mostly, young, thin, fit, pretty people.
Real women with curves dive.
Real women with curves dive.
Ber, I just got a bike recently-- isn't the best thing in the world and i haven't gotten it out yet but I will soon! I will let you know more when i find out more info.
rav- yea hon i didn't mean to say we couldn't dive cuz we were big-- I just assumed since I didn't see it there was a reason besides society's views and my limited exposure to the sport. I just assumed it wasn't safe but that is why I asked too. so now i'm clear, K?
R-thanks again for the thorough explanation. I really never even thought about currents and it being difficult to swim. I wonder about the equipment tho. I hope they teach you what kind of a margin to leave. It seems that would set it to an average person vs someone that is really fit. It seems to me that would be safer but what do i know! lol
rav- yea hon i didn't mean to say we couldn't dive cuz we were big-- I just assumed since I didn't see it there was a reason besides society's views and my limited exposure to the sport. I just assumed it wasn't safe but that is why I asked too. so now i'm clear, K?
R-thanks again for the thorough explanation. I really never even thought about currents and it being difficult to swim. I wonder about the equipment tho. I hope they teach you what kind of a margin to leave. It seems that would set it to an average person vs someone that is really fit. It seems to me that would be safer but what do i know! lol
Dr Deco
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Dear Readers:
Overweight Divers
The truth is there is not a big decompression problem unless you decide that you are going to perform dives that would be considered entering into the risky category buy even thin, well fit, experienced divers. By that I mean, A couple of dives a day, with a good surface interval, not a great deal of exertion on the bottom, and assistance reentering the boat should be fine.
Tables
Tables for recreational divers are not trimmed so much that the safety margin is lost. These tables are fine both for thick and thin alike. In our PADI/DSAT Table tests, we had thin and heavy divers; the Doppler scores could not be told apart post dive. These were very safe dives.
Part of the Story
That is the good news. The bad news is that if something should go wrong, some individuals can be at greater risk. This is true for overweight and out of condition divers. These people can load excessive amounts of gas into their tissue and not off gas easily. The special problem with those with considerable adipose (fat) tissue is that this is loaded with nitrogen and it can bubble profusely following a dive that is prolonged for some reason.
These bubbles enter the circulatory system after having formed in the capillaries of the fat stores, the bubbles travel to the heart and lungs and can arterialize to the brain and spinal cord. Paralysis can result without ever having experienced joint pain (the bends).:boom:
Lab Studies
This difference in fat and thin body types with respect to dive outcome is easily demonstrated in laboratory animals when the profiles are very severe. This is especially true in fat rats with their small limbs and large abdominal fat stores. They die before ever having limb problems.
This effect was first noted by Paul Bert in 1880 who observed that his dog, when old and fat, died on a dive that he had perform safely many times before when he was thin and fit. (It is not recorded as to what the dog thought about this experiement.)
Dr Deco :doctor:
Overweight Divers
The truth is there is not a big decompression problem unless you decide that you are going to perform dives that would be considered entering into the risky category buy even thin, well fit, experienced divers. By that I mean, A couple of dives a day, with a good surface interval, not a great deal of exertion on the bottom, and assistance reentering the boat should be fine.
Tables
Tables for recreational divers are not trimmed so much that the safety margin is lost. These tables are fine both for thick and thin alike. In our PADI/DSAT Table tests, we had thin and heavy divers; the Doppler scores could not be told apart post dive. These were very safe dives.
Part of the Story
That is the good news. The bad news is that if something should go wrong, some individuals can be at greater risk. This is true for overweight and out of condition divers. These people can load excessive amounts of gas into their tissue and not off gas easily. The special problem with those with considerable adipose (fat) tissue is that this is loaded with nitrogen and it can bubble profusely following a dive that is prolonged for some reason.
These bubbles enter the circulatory system after having formed in the capillaries of the fat stores, the bubbles travel to the heart and lungs and can arterialize to the brain and spinal cord. Paralysis can result without ever having experienced joint pain (the bends).:boom:
Lab Studies
This difference in fat and thin body types with respect to dive outcome is easily demonstrated in laboratory animals when the profiles are very severe. This is especially true in fat rats with their small limbs and large abdominal fat stores. They die before ever having limb problems.
This effect was first noted by Paul Bert in 1880 who observed that his dog, when old and fat, died on a dive that he had perform safely many times before when he was thin and fit. (It is not recorded as to what the dog thought about this experiement.)
Dr Deco :doctor:
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