Ankle weights

[k374]

I just completed my confined water dives today and the instructor told me I needed ankle weights (which I had to buy for $29.95/pr of course :shocked2.. I was told my legs are too buoyant and are rising. Are these really necessary or is this a bunch of BS?

 

[Belmont]

My daughter was told to get ankle weights but I did not believe it was a good thing to fix her floaty legs problem.

After two weeks of tech training she has overcome that problem successfully.

Heavy fins would help. My daughter wears Jet Fins with springs.

 

[rstofer]

Let it go for now.

Down the road, you don't want to wear ankle weights because it just increases the mass of your legs (down low, at that) and increases the amount of work required for finning.

A lot of things will change as you get more experience with diving. You might even decide you like the GUE method of frog kicking where you actually bend your knees to about 90 degrees. Down the road...

See: YouTube - Frog Kick

There are fins that are more or less buoyant than others. Did you pick a set that are particularly 'floaty'?

For now just go with the flow and get through the open water drills.

Richard

 

[SDAnderson]

As an interim solution, ankle weights work well but they do have downsides. Like training wheels on a bicycle, most new divers who start out with them will eventually find that they are no longer needed. Think long term, work on buoyancy and trim, remember prone is good and don't sweat it if you need a little help for awhile.

 

[k374]

I am wearing Atomic Splitfins and I think they are quite buoyant especially when combined with the neoprene booties.
I have another issue...sometimes I find myself rolling a bit to one side? Any ideas why that happens?

BTW, what is "trim"?

 

[rstofer]

I am wearing Atomic Splitfins and I think they are quite buoyant especially when combined with the neoprene booties.

BTW, what is "trim"?

Trim refers to your horizontal position in the water. Too much weight up top and you swim face down. Too much weight down low and you swim face up. Get it right and you will be exactly horizontal without movement. This takes time and you are unlikely to get it right in you first several dives. Worry about it later.

It would be nice if the instructor helped get this perfected in OW but it probably won't happen until a little later.

If you watch some of the 'finning' videos, you will see folks with absolutely perfect trim. They maintain it by moving their clasped hands in or out and moving their legs up or down. Like balancing a teeter-totter.

Richard

 

[rstofer]

I am wearing Atomic Splitfins and I think they are quite buoyant especially when combined with the neoprene booties.
I have another issue...sometimes I find myself rolling a bit to one side? Any ideas why that happens?

The only thing that can cause this is being off balance side to side. Maybe the tank is too far off center. Maybe you have more weight on one side of your weightbelt that the other. Some weight, somewhere, is creating a net torque causing you to roll. A sloppy loose BC can allow the tank to shift sides.

Richard

 

[teddyg04]

My daughter also had the floaty feet problem (made safety stops interesting...). She tried heavier fins (my Apollos) - problem solved. Ankle weights are really hard to use; they don't stay in place and, as mentioned, make finning harder. See if your instructor will let you try some heavier fins.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

I just completed my confined water dives today and the instructor told me I needed ankle weights (which I had to buy for $29.95/pr of course :shocked2.. I was told my legs are too buoyant and are rising. Are these really necessary or is this a bunch of BS?

You got snookered if you bought the weights. Many times simple things like moving the tank lower will greatly address this issue. Trim should be addressed in OW during your pool sessions. If it is not your training is lacking. It does not take long to make the adjustments. Other techniques such as hand position previously noted can help as well. Heavier fins are another answer but still a gear solution to a mainly technique issue. That said I use fins that are negatively buoyant not because of that but because they are what I'm used to and they allow me to do the kicks I do more efficiently. Ankle weights can be useful for some when diving dry but again are really nothing that practice and proper technique will address as well and not cost extra.

 

[H2Andy]

ok for the short term (i.e. to get through training). however, that's a lot to pay ...

i suggest you ditch the ankle weights and move weight around further up into your body. you can move your tank up, or move weight up into pouches on your tank straps. you can also get negative fins to help.

ultimately, ankle weights are just a short-term solution. you don't want to rely on them to nail your trim.