Boyancy and ankle weights

[JillGadget]

Ok.. sorry people, I am an information HOG right now. I try to read and learn everything. With that said, the prev. post on ankle weights is a problem I have. I just got certified in FL. I am 135lb (gulp, gotta be honest), open fins with booties. I was wearing a 3mm wetsuit and used 14 - 16 lb of weights which I thought sounds like a lot from what I read. I had such a boyancy problem (that I did not have when in Bahamas without wetsuit). In addition to boyancy issues my feet were floating in the wind. Even when we did the boyancy check on the ocean floor and did the fin tip my legs were floating up higher and higher. I could not get them down. The instructor mentioned to try ankle weights. I have since bought an integrated BC and am taking an advanced open water class in January at the same place in key largo. Does weighting sound appropriate? Should I get weights for my ankles or just get my boyancy under control? Half of the board believes wts are good and some don't. I don't want to be an adequate diver - I want to become an excellent diver.

Thanks a head of time your all your instruction.
Jill​

 

[coachrenz]

Jill -

I would suggest you try some ankle weights. You just might find yourself more comfortable in the water. They are pretty inexpensive, so, if you don't like them, you aren't out a ton of money. Just remember, that if you add weights to your ankles, you can take some weight off somewhere else.

I also found wearing tank weights was helpful for me as well.

Keep diving and keep learning. And take the info you get here with a grain of salt. There are many people out there who think that if you aren't doing it their way, you aren't doing it the right way. Do what is comfortable for you.

Tim

 

[Cheekymonkey]

You mentioned should you get ankle weights or just get your buoyancy under control. Well definently try the latter first the more time you spend with it the better, I'm not sure how many dives you have completed but the more you do the more you will find little tricks and appropriate weighting to your body to hang comfortably in the water.

On the other hand I have certainly noticed after teaching a few classes, and being present as a divemaster for a ton of classes that some women have a harder time with buoyant legs than other women and most especially other men. Sometimes even doing fin pivot skills women have a hard time even keeping their fins tips on the bottom, but when we bring them into deeper water they can hover neutrally in the water, so for some people its not so much a general buoyancy problem as one part of their body being slighty more buoyant than another. So in that case its not so much a problem with technique and I would say there is nothing wrong with trying ankle weights.

Key thing is though not to just use the ankle weights as a fixit to a spot where you may or may not be lacking in skills. So go ahead and go complete some more dives with a buddy friend of yours that doesnt mind hanging around while you play with your buyouancy, practice may work out the kinks for you.

 

[in_cavediver]

Ok.. sorry people, I am an information HOG right now. I try to read and learn everything. With that said, the prev. post on ankle weights is a problem I have. I just got certified in FL. I am 135lb (gulp, gotta be honest), open fins with booties. I was wearing a 3mm wetsuit and used 14 - 16 lb of weights which I thought sounds like a lot from what I read. I had such a boyancy problem (that I did not have when in Bahamas without wetsuit). In addition to boyancy issues my feet were floating in the wind. Even when we did the boyancy check on the ocean floor and did the fin tip my legs were floating up higher and higher. I could not get them down. The instructor mentioned to try ankle weights. I have since bought an integrated BC and am taking an advanced open water class in January at the same place in key largo. Does weighting sound appropriate? Should I get weights for my ankles or just get my boyancy under control? Half of the board believes wts are good and some don't. I don't want to be an adequate diver - I want to become an excellent diver.

Thanks a head of time your all your instruction.
Jill​

First - since your new - start diving. A lot of issues new divers have is caused by anxiety and the resultant changes in residual lung capacity. Once you have some of the very basics down, start getting your trim in place. Work with a diver (or instructor) who truely knows what good trim is (and how to achieve it). Many divers and unfortuneately, many instructors really don't know what good trim is. Getting good trim is one of the best things you can do to enjoy your dives.

In a wetsuit, I would guess you likely wouldn't need ankle weights. Adjusting where you place your tank, the tank size or wieght pouches would likely have plenty of effect to correct a head down issue. As others have said, ankle weights are cheap (get them at sprawl mart) so it doesn't hurt to try them.

 

[Wilson]

Three excellent posts. We've had the same issues with women's buoyancy in our classes as well. I've known other women who dove with ankle weights, but they all got away from them eventually. Get some dives in, try moving some of the weight to the tanks, but most of all...dive.

 

[Sveta]

I'm a new diver and i had the same problem for the first couple of dives but when my instuctor saw me struggling like this, he spent some extra time with me showing and explaining things. I think mostly it happened because of my fear to use BCD and a regulator, plus i didn't feel confident underwater.
I have another quesiton. I had several dives (within one trip) when I used different weight - 2 kg (4lbs) and 6 kg (12lbs). I know there should be my own ""standard" weight but i had no buoyancy problem diving in the morning with 2 ks and 2 hours later with 6 kgs. Why is that? Maybe i don't need extra weight at all?

 

[spectrum]

Maybe i don't need extra weight at all?

An 8 pound swing is a lot but if you know what you are doing it is manageable, especially if you don't have thick neoprene. If the 4 pounds left you under control with your tank down to about 500 PSI then you would do well to dive closer to that weight.

Pete

 

[spectrum]

I don't want to be an adequate diver - I want to become an excellent diver.​

Just articulating that statement puts you ahead of the game.

Remember that weight and trim are two related but independent concepts. Once you find the minimujm weight that lets you be in control to the end of your dive you have a number to work with.

Using that number and constant gear think of your body as a see-saw. Some ladies do tend to have "floaty feet, it's a matter of body shape. Ankle weights are mass in motion and as such are not totally desirable however if you are kicking down with really buoyant legs that two represents excess strain. Generally the the tenderness that lifts your feet will be in the buttocks ot hips and not out that the feet. With that in mind look to move weight down lower on your body.
* Don't put weight up on your back in trim weight pockets
* Consider using a belt which should carry weight lower on your body than integrated ditchable pockets.
* Consider something like a DUI weight harness that will let you put that weight nice and low (This got rid ankle weights with my drysuit and leveled my wife out too)
* Run your cylinder down as low on your back as is practrical.
* On a lot of BCDs you have control on high or low the whole rig rides by adjusting the shoulder straps. Consier running it lower.

It's a real trial and error thing. Pay attention on every dive and you will find a configuration that lets you float in the surge.

Pete​

 

[tstormdiver]

This is a slightly different situation, I am currently uing ankle weights with my drysuit as "training wheels" until I learn how my drysuit is going to react in different situations. I am hoping that this will only be a temporary situation. Right now I expend much less energy using the ankle weights than I did trying to keep myself in a horizontal position. I would catch my feet slowlyy rising above my head level & the air in the suit trying to run to my feet, making the situation worse. I then have to kick like crazy to get myself in the prpoer position. I am using the ankle weights to help me to feel & maintain the proper position. I've almost got my trim leveled out & hope to be able to ditch the ankle weights very soon.

 

[matt_unique]

This is a slightly different situation, I am currently uing ankle weights with my drysuit as "training wheels" until I learn how my drysuit is going to react in different situations....

Out of curiosity, who taught you that ankle weights are training wheels?

--Matt