Info A SATurner starts diving*... (*trials and tribulations of a 50+ year old out of shape guy learning to dive)

[johndiver999]

Enjoyed the stories!

Being fat has some distinct (thermal) advantages and the extra weight (while underwater) is of little consequence, but being "out of shape", is not really conducive to safe, fun diving. It's not golf.

"Out of shape" could encompass a large spectrum of physical conditions and I am not in the best shape myself, but you will be a better (and safer) diver if you can improve fitness. I try to do the stuff I hate, simply so I can go diving - for the most part.

Here's a tip for wetsuit diving (from a hotel in cold weather)... rather than worry about a dry suit or bringing two suits. Bring a decent sized cooler, fill it with hot water from the shower, throw you suit in it, and then put on a steaming hot suit in the parking lot. If you have a car and don't want water sloshing around, you can fill 3 gallon jugs, place them in cooler for the morning ride, and then pour them in the cooler. You can also pour a little down the suit, right before you get in, this will eliminate any cold water seeping in on descent.

 

[SATurner]

Reflections on the journey so far: (part 1) (maybe a few questions too)
DISCLAIMER: Again, I am here sharing my lived experience(s) and yours might be different and that's okay. I am not claiming that my way is the best way or even a good way. My hope is that this might be information that someone can use to help them decide that SCUBA diving is something they want or don't want to chase after.

With all of the information out "there" on the internet, it can be quite easy to go down a rabbit hole when trying to learn about something. One unfortunate thing that the internet also brings is a lower standard for "subject matter experts." What I mean by that, is before the internet, people had to do things to learn them, and by doing so, there were errors made. From those errors, methods to avoid them were designed. People collaborated on research and deferred to those who might have more experience or time doing "a thing." Getting the "message" out meant needing to publish in a magazine or book to reach a greater population.

Today, anyone with an internet connection can anonymously sign up for an account on any number of different platforms and begin "sharing" or "creating" content. Right, wrong, or indifferent, the standards for content have had the bar lowered so far it would be difficult to limbo under unless one were an atom's thickness. I know there is good content out there, but finding that can be daunting. Have you ever researched a new topic only to find that there are about three sites which all have the same information, just different enough not to be considered plagiarism?

It is surprisingly easy to get certified:
I say this not to start up some conversation about how this organization is better or different than that organization. I am not here to drag people to a certain certifying organization. To date, my experience has been with PADI. What little information I have seen about the different organizations shows me that each have pros and cons but all come to an agreement on the minimum standards for certification.

Think back to your early school report cards. You weren't graded by the A, B, C, ... system, you started off with a S for satisfactory or a U for unsatisfactory, maybe something like E for exceeds expectations, and there might have even be NE For not evaluated. Notice I put minimum standards in bold earlier. Now stop and have a serious inward look and ask yourself "do I go through life doing the absolute minimum I have to do to get by or do I exceed the minimum?" What I am getting at here is that if you chose to get certified to SCUBA dive, please realize that the training you get is only crossing the lowest possible threshold of safety.

Wait a minute, I am not saying that you didn't learn, I am not saying that you can't dive. I am saying that you don't know what you don't know. I don't know what I don't know and that makes it really difficult to figure out what questions to ask in an effort to get better an learn. If you're lucky, you might get an instructor that goes above and beyond the minimum standard threshold. How will you know? What effort(s) will you put in to challenge what you are being taught? To question the why of things instead of just blindly following. Don't be afraid to have to conversations with your instructor in the shop, the class room, via email, in the pool, on the boat/platform. If you're unsure or have questions or don't 100% fully understand, ASK! Not asking suggests to the instructor that you are "no bubbles, no troubles" and that they are simply reinforcing what you already know.

Let me give you a simple example that I personally need to dig into more. Why is it so important to continue to "blow bubbles" whenever you don't have a regulator in your mouth? Why must you always breath? Why can't I hold my breath? I get the basic concept of not wanting a compressed gas inside your lungs should you change depth due to expansion, but my mind goes a bit further. It goes to "if I am at a constant depth with an inhale of air off my tank, how is that going to expand inside of me? The only change is that the air has gone from the tank to my lungs. Does the air expand when outside the tank or does it stay at the same pressure/volume at the same depth? If it expands outside of the tank, why would I want to take deep full breaths, as during the "pause" between breaths, that expansion could overinflate me? So, there, I have shared something that I need to wrap my head around better but didn't want to discuss with my instructor. I know, do as I say, not as I do, but to be honest, this is a conversation I will have with my instructor and several others because, I don't know that there is one correct concise answer. In the constant effort to continue blowing bubbles, I often found myself blowing them too fast. Lesson, blow baby bubbles, not daddy bubbles. This is something that I will need to practice because the reality is without practice very few things are ever done well.

So, if you are willing to put in the time with the materials and you can complete the minimum skills in confined and open water, you will get certified. This isn't a lot unlike when you first learned to drive. You had a learner's permit and then a driver's license without necessarily being prepared for everything that could happen while driving. Did you have to change a tire to get a license? Check the engine oil? Hopefully this makes sense.

 

[SATurner]

...., but being "out of shape", is not really conducive to safe, fun diving. It's not golf.

"Out of shape" could encompass a large spectrum of physical conditions and I am not in the best shape myself, but you will be a better (and safer) diver if you can improve fitness. I try to do the stuff I hate, simply so I can go diving - for the most part.

Here's a tip for wetsuit diving (from a hotel in cold weather)... rather than worry about a dry suit or bringing two suits. Bring a decent sized cooler, fill it with hot water from the shower, throw you suit in it, and then put on a steaming hot suit in the parking lot. If you have a car and don't want water sloshing around, you can fill 3 gallon jugs, place them in cooler for the morning ride, and then pour them in the cooler. You can also pour a little down the suit, right before you get in, this will eliminate any cold water seeping in on descent.

This is great feedback. Personally, I have never been a gym rat or enjoyed exercise. I have and do enjoy playing though, in my youth, that kept me fit enough, but as time and burgers march on, so do some pounds. I can't think of a single person that went from skinny to fat overnight. It takes time for the mind and body to change from one to the other, so to think that reversing that process will happen faster than it occurred is quite silly. Saying that probably put me on the fad diet sales "hit list." As the saying goes, the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step....

Great tip on warming a suit. Thank you.

 

[SATurner]

Reflections on the journey so far: (part 2)
Cost(s) to get started:
If you are unsure if diving will become a passion, a hobby, or something to do once a year on vacation, it might be difficult to swallow some of the initial costs to enter the sport. There might be some ways to ease the initial cost(s) though. For example, you can potentially schedule "book/e-learning" training and go through the materials at a different time than you go through the confined skills training which could also be different that when the open water skills occur. I don't have a good feel for how long you might be able to space these types of things out, and maybe I am wrong in my thought on this.

I don't suggest walking into a dive center and getting fully kitted out before you know for sure "what" diver you are. I had to at a minimum have mask, fins, snorkel, boots, bag, and SMB. Top of the line isn't required at this point, but please realize that sometimes it is necessary to purchase something that is purpose built for the task. Those aqua socks for sale at the beach for $10 might work, but we all know they won't last very long and end up stinking like cheap payless shoes. Put that $10 to the right gear.

So, to start, you'll have the minimum kit (dictated by dive center), the course materials, pool time, and open water time. I would guess that the cost of the course materials should remain fairly constant, but realize that it might be possible to find sales on them. The cost of pool time and open water time could vary as this is based upon what the dive center wants to charge. Think of this as "market value" pricing. If you are somewhere with a lot of dive centers, it might be cheaper for you that someone who has a single dive center that covers a several hour drive territory.

I am not going to try to put pricing into this as prices change with any number of variables, but the message here is again, I am sharing what it took me to "get in."

You will likely be able to rent your environmental protection (wet suit), BCD, and reg set. Again, the pricing for this is set by the dive center and what the market will support.

I know Amazon exists. Can you walk into Amazon and discuss whether you should get a piston or a diaphragm regulator? I suppose you could ask questions or research on the internet to get an answer. Your dive center would be likely to be happy to engage with you in a conversation asking you questions you might not have thought about. Will Amazon service that regulator for you when it needs serviced? Will your local dive center be able to service it? Will you have to send it off to be serviced? Will the manufacture's warranty be supported? What I am trying to get at here, is be thrifty with your money, but don't be a jerk about it. Think of the difference in prices between Amazon and the local dive center as the cost of knowledge. Knowledge isn't always free. Don't be that person that goes to the local dive center spending hours and hours asking tons of questions to just walk out and buy from Amazon because you saved $50. How much did it cost that shop to be open while you were there? I get it, in today's world businesses need to compete, but we still need brick and mortar stores and constantly purchasing from online puts most of those stores in jeopardy.

 

[SATurner]

Reflections on the journey so far: (part 3)
Rental Gear:
For the love of all that's holy, don't treat your rental gear like the majority treat a U-Haul or rental car. Don't use it and abuse it and then return it claiming that "it was already that way."

As you have likely come to realize, some of the gear isn't cheap. Renting the gear out probably isn't the "cash cow" that you might think it is. Let's take a BCD for example with some realistic but likely not exact numbers. Say that BCD cost is $500. The rental of that is something like $10~$20/day. So, we'll settle in at $15/day. Simple math shows that $500/$15=33 1/3. So, that single BCD that fits you just perfectly will need to be rented 33 1/3 times before it begins to show profit. Yep, I know I am not putting depreciation in there. My goal is to get one thinking about the benefit(s) of renting and the costs that the dive center will occur by renting.

If you go out and abuse the gear, you are now increasing the cost to the dive center and also potentially increasing the likelihood that they will stop renting equipment. When you rent it, you should be willing to accept that if you break it, you will need to pay to have it repaired or replaced. If this isn't something you agree to, then purchase your own gear to abuse.

Wet suit rental. Guess what, everyone that has ever used that wet suit before you has likely peed in it. I have yet to hear of anyone catching something from a wet suit. I mean you aren't in there buck naked are you? Do you carry spare toilet seats with you so that you don't have to sit on a used one in a public toilet? It's just a fact of life, accept it and move on. Anyone who tells you that they haven't ever peed in a wet suit is also just as likely to tell you that Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, and the Tooth Fairy still exist. I am sorry if I have dashed anyone's beliefs with this statement. If you can't cope, purchase this item first.

 

[johndiver999]

I can rent a $40,000 car for a $100 a day (or less) and a $250 BC for $20 or a $60 mask and snorkel for $10.

Remember the dive shop paid half what you will and they will sell it for probably close to their cost, as a used item in a year or so. Plus they use the gear for their own training purposes. Rental costs are actually pretty high, especially if you compare to buying USED gear (since that is what you are renting).

 

[SATurner]

Reflections of the journey so far: (part 4)
Pace yourself: (a bit of something light hearted to get me out of crabby old man ranting mode)
Sounds easy right? It might not be as easy as it sounds though.

I remember just before jumping into the pool, the instructor said, "okay, now we're going to swim 200 yards without mask, fins or snorkel." That doesn't sound like much of a challenge to someone who swam on the high school swim team for four years. That same person that swam the 500 yard freestyle regularly at meets because everyone else was a "water sprinter." I remember the instructor saying, "pace yourself, you can't touch bottom, and you can't stop. You have to finish in one try." "Ha Ha! child's play," I thought to myself.

Remember those high school days at this point are coming up on thirty-four (34) years ago. That's thirty-four (34) years of life (aka at least eighty-five (85) new pounds) hanging around my neck (read belly) as I slog from one end of the pool to the other. Thoughts that went through my mind in no particular order:

• Dear God! Why on earth did I wear this silly exposure shirt for this? It feels like it weighs thirty (30) pounds.
• Why am I swimming with my head out of the water? You know it's easier to put your face in and go, it's just chlorine, stop being a sissy. This takes so much extra effort.
• I have to keep up with that guy next to me, even though he started two laps ahead of me. He's also at least fifteen (15) years younger and in better shape. Round is a shape right?
• Was that 5 laps or 6? Did he say 8 laps or 8 lengths? God I hope it was lengths. Dammit, it was laps.
• Air! Air! Why can't I get enough air?
• I hope they can drag me out of the water if I start to sink.
• When will it ever end?
• Damn, he's done and I still have to go at least two more laps.
• Look what you've gotten yourself into this time.

So, yeah, that was a bit more difficult than I thought it would be. The mind might be able to recall the high school days of easily swimming 200 yards, but the body was definitely shouting a loud "F you for making me do this!" For the love of all that is holy, someone bring me an oxygen mask. I don't think my heart has beat this fast in years. Is it going to keep beating? Can everyone else hear how loud it is?

"Okay, now that you finished that, we need to do a ten (10) minute survival float or tread," the instructor said calmly. "Dear God man, I can't even breath and now you want me to tread water?" I thought in desperation. Wait a minute, he said float or tread. "So you mean I can just kick back and float for 10 minutes and pass this?" I asked. "Float or tread," was the response. I spent the next ten (10) minutes lying there in the water. Floating, hearing my heart pounding, feeling the chilly Florida air coming into my lungs. "What have I gotten myself into?" playing over and over like a CD on permanent skip. To be honest, for the rest of the day I felt like I was still trying to catch my breath.

This wouldn't be the first time I heard "pace yourself" over the course of the training. It also wouldn't be the first time I thought I understood only to realize how little did I know....

So, there it is in two simple words. If you want to be good at SCUBA diving, pace yourself. This can apply to so many things, how quickly you go through the training materials, how quickly you purchase your own equipment, and how quickly you move in the water. Pace yourself.

 

[hook]

I'm a 1953 model who got certified at 45. Eventually my high school students who wanted to learn to dive worked me into becoming an instructor so I could certify them in Alaska. If you can dive in Prince William Sound, you can dive anywhere. I remember being part of the "Gray Panthers" at my instructor certification group. We knew how to prepare and all passed our. PADI certification. I'm not a high number instructor, but the students have been prepared. Scuba is a perfect activity for those with a good vintage. The whole concept is to stay calm, breathe deeply and slowly so your tank will last longer.

Get the best gear you can afford. I have used the same regs for decades. They will last if you take care of them. I just bought my second wetsuit. I got a custom wetsuit 25 years ago and it still fit, but the stitching
was showing way too much strain. You can get your moneys worth with quality gear. Your Scubapro Jets may outlast you. My wife still uses her twin jets she used in our original certification courses.

You will do well because you like to breathe underwater. You seem to have a desire to learn more, that will take you far. Enjoy your dives and work on getting the budget manager underwater. That will improve the cash flow process.

My wife and I are planning on celebrating our 50th anniversary this year on a liveaboard in Indonesia. We can't afford this type of luxury every year, but this is worth it and the CFO has happily given her approval. Diving has given us a way to be closer because we are both enjoy it. Initial cost is high, but the time together diving is an incredible dividend.

John

 

[SlugLife]

and told you I would do my best to research before asking questions.

Some basic research is nice of course, but sometimes asking questions is the better way to go. You don't know what you don't know.

This is the retelling of what I have experienced.

I created a similar post for learning Sidemounting.

"Sidemounting With Benefits" - Lessons from a newbie Sidemount Diver

I thought this might be a fun thread, where I share observations, lessons, and situations I'm facing as a newbie sidemount diver. It's likely I'll embarrass myself and invite plenty of critique by creating this thread (be nice), but it's better to take & share learning opportunities than hide...

scubaboard.com

I managed to get a Snorkel Pro mask

I'm not familiar with that mask. Is it a snorkeling mask or a Scuba mask? Regardless, the most important thing is having a good seal. Put the mask against your face, breathe in and see if (or how long) it sticks.

trials and tribulations of a 50+ year old out of shape guy learning to dive

You only have one life. Might as well live it. I probably procrastinated 5 years on getting my scuba-cert, from the time I seriously wanted one.

, and a SMB (Surface Marker Buoy) in order to take the class.

This seems a little odd. I'm not entirely against every diver having an SMB, but in my open-water class, we weren't required to have or use one.

Every one felt great, and I realized that while I had a mask, it likely hadn't been properly cared for and might need replaced.

You're lucky, most scuba-masks do not fit my face well.

Yes, I found myself constantly thinking about this or that, which didn't allow me to "see" all the "stuff" around me. I had tunnel vision and my situational awareness was terrible. Oh crap! I just blasted the bottom with my fins and stirred up a bunch of silt. Do better!

This is normal for several reasons. It's a combination of being "task loaded" in an "alien environment", covered in lots of unfamiliar gear, and actual literal tunnel vision caused by refraction.

TIP: I could have rented two wet suits to avoid putting on a cold one. I'll remember that next time.

You can actually layer up wetsuits if they're the right size as well. It will restrict your movement, but if (for example) you have a 2mm and a 5mm, you might be able to wear them both to get an equivelant of a 7mm wetsuit.

Upon descent, I learned that it was 5'~7'. Oddly, that wasn't uncomforting to me.

I dive in absolute zero vis sometimes. So long as I can feel the bottom, I'm usually fine (also so long as I'm pulling up fun-loot like sunglasses).

Remember, I had hoped to be able to get all the way through Advanced Open Water during this trip.

AOW might be a little challenging to go straight to form OW

I already have some questions that I will throw out. I'll keep them confined to this thread again with the goal of helping others. Thanks for reading.

It's fine to create another thread if you have a specific topic, that may result in a long-form discussion. I can't imagine many people will read past the wall-of-text. Not a criticism, just a reality of attention spans and how much time people have.

DISCLAIMER: Again, I am here sharing my lived experience(s) and yours might be different and that's okay.

You already said you were new in the beginning of the thread. This isn't facebook or twitter, hah, people here are fairly chill.

Why is it so important to continue to "blow bubbles" whenever you don't have a regulator in your mouth? Why must you always breath? Why can't I hold my breath?

You don't have toe exhale every last bit of breath, but rather you want to keep an open airway and allow air to escape. One of hte big-dangers is you may not be managing your bouyancy as well as you like in an emergency. Remember how you got tunnel-vision? If you have some kind of incident/accident underwater, it's likely you'll experience the same thing, and may accidentally hold your breath while ascending because you haven't built up good habits.

Also, in an emergency ascent, if you're going up, it's almost like having more air, because the air expands.

Skip-breathing, where you temporarily hold your breath, also tends to cause you to use more air overall. You'll start to get a CO2 hit, which then forces you to breathe faster, and it can take a while for your breathing rate to come down.

Now, if you're worried about the idea of ever being OOA, and your buddy isn't there to rescue you, you might consider looking into having a "pony" bottle or redundant air source. More info here:

What Are Your "Pro-Tips" for Safety, Redundancy, and Accident Handling

What are your "pro tips" (or amateur tips) for improving one's safety when diving? This can be equipment, redundancy, skills, training, mindset, pretty much anything! This can also be relevant to accident-prevention, incident-handling, self-rescue, other-rescue, etc. Disclaimer: Per usual...

scubaboard.com

 

[SlugLife]

I know Amazon exists. Can you walk into Amazon and discuss whether you should get a piston or a diaphragm regulator?

No, but you can do that with ScubaBoard, and then buy online from places with good reputations like DiveGearExpress or piranhadivemfg. A lot of the dive-training agencies like to propagandize new divers "support your local dive-shop" like a mindless mantra. I mean .... support businesses that are honest and treat you well. But not all dive-shops are created equal, and penty of people (myself included) have been screwed over by dive-shops.

Your dive center would be likely to be happy to engage with you in a conversation asking you questions you might not have thought about.

And possibly sell you something you don't need.

So, there it is in two simple words. If you want to be good at SCUBA diving, pace yourself. This can apply to so many things, how quickly you go through the training materials, how quickly you purchase your own equipment, and how quickly you move in the water. Pace yourself.

Even better than pacing yourself, GO SLOW! It has tons of benefits (more in the post below)

What Are Your "Pro-Tips" for Safety, Redundancy, and Accident Handling

What are your "pro tips" (or armature tips) for improving one's safety when diving? This can be equipment, redundancy, skills, training, mindset, pretty much anything! This can also be relevant to accident-prevention, incident-handling, self-rescue, other-rescue, etc. Disclaimer: Per usual...

scubaboard.com