ankle weight question

[victor]

Mine are black.

But nobody answered my original question: does relative muscle mass make a difference for floaty legs?
It seems to me it might as muscle weighs more than fat. Am I thinking correctly?

"Since fat has a lower density than muscle or bone, fatter individuals will have a lower total body density than leaner individuals." see http://www.unm.edu/~lkravitz/Article folder/underbodycomp.html

Thus if you only had fat from the knees down then yes floaty legs might be an issue.

However from personal experience most of the fatty deposits are above the legs, and below the neck, (my wife disagrees about the neck bit in my case :cwmddd: ), therefore I expect it only increases the total lead requirement.

 

[trigfunctions]

I don't know anything about the muscle mass idea, but you might check your booties? I had trouble keeping my feet still until I realized my big 5 mil booties were very positively bouyant. I got rid of them and haven't ahd any problems since.

 

[Web Monkey]

Mine are black.

But nobody answered my original question: does relative muscle mass make a difference for floaty legs?
It seems to me it might as muscle weighs more than fat. Am I thinking correctly?

Yes, fat floats and muscle sinks, however I suspect your problem requires a redistribution of existing weight (or buoyancy), not additional weight, like ankle weights.

Do you use a wetsuit or a drysuit?

Terry

 

[skybird]

Ankle weights are rarely a good idea.

Could you elaborate on WHY ankle weights are rarely a good idea? What makes weights placed on ankles worse than on the waist, in a BC pocket etc? I am fairly new so would like to hear opinions and facts from everyone I can.

 

[SeaHorseWoman]

Thanks, Walter. I just have to work harder.
Now tell me WHY ankle weights are rarely a good idea.
Also tell me about that 4 hour dive. The 40-50 minutes I''ve done are not long enough for me!

 

[SeaHorseWoman]

Thanks, Walter. I just have to work harder.
Now tell me WHY ankle weights are rarely a good idea.
Also tell me about that 4 hour dive. The 40-50 minutes I''ve done are not long enough for me!

 

[JodiBB]

I also use ankle weights and find them quite helpful. My tank is already as low as I can position it and I have neutrally buoyant split fins (black). I like having the weight around my ankles rather than more weight in my BCD (which is already getting lighter with more practice and dives!).

 

[boulderjohn]

Yes, more muscle mass in your legs will make them less buoyant. You don't have to wait for the muscle to build up, you can put your legs were you want them, you are not an inanimate object.

Ankle weights are rarely a good idea.

I agree with Walter on this.

When I see students with "floaty legs," they are usually bending their knees, perhaps as an unconscious reflex. I see it all the time with fin pivots. People start with good position, and then as soon as they start to become positively buoyant, the knees suddenly flex toward 90 degrees. The legs are no more buoyant at that point than they were a second before when they were perfectly straight.

 

[Walter]

Thanks, Walter. I just have to work harder.
Now tell me WHY ankle weights are rarely a good idea.

On a dive, you are constantly moving your legs. Ankle weights unnecessarily add to your workload. Your air consumption will suffer and you can suffer from CO2 buildup. The bottom line is, it's simply not necessary, we can put our legs where we want them.

Most of the time a person has "floaty legs" they are not floaty at all, the diver is either underweighted or has too much air in their BC.

Also tell me about that 4 hour dive. The 40-50 minutes I''ve done are not long enough for me!

I don't remember mentioning a 4 hour dive in this thread.

 

[CIBDiving]

Now tell me WHY ankle weights are rarely a good idea.

They don't have a good reason why ankle weights are a bad thing. They only parrot the "party line".