w ripley
Contributor
Dives of an hour or less, unless in a terribly stressed situation, probably aren't a big deal, IMO, as far a hydration goes. Once you get to 3 hours and beyond, I think it becomes very important. Probably more so - on those longer dives - for those of us that are older.
The biggest mistake I see divers of both sexes make is to deliberately not consume fluids before dives because they refuse to install and use a pee valve. It's just stupid, IMO. Combine that with sitting on a hot deck perspiring in a drysuit, waiting for the boat to open the pool for example, and you're really stacking the deck against you.
Smart divers hydrate. Divers with longer profiles also carry hydration packs, and usually mixed with one of the smarter additives referenced above. For me, it's the Hammer line of endurance fuels. And, for long dives, there's proper restoration of your body once you get out of the water. Once out of the water even Gatorade's Recover is fine, sugars and all, again IMO.
You don't jump in the water with low tanks, so why would you jump in under-hydrated?
The biggest mistake I see divers of both sexes make is to deliberately not consume fluids before dives because they refuse to install and use a pee valve. It's just stupid, IMO. Combine that with sitting on a hot deck perspiring in a drysuit, waiting for the boat to open the pool for example, and you're really stacking the deck against you.
Smart divers hydrate. Divers with longer profiles also carry hydration packs, and usually mixed with one of the smarter additives referenced above. For me, it's the Hammer line of endurance fuels. And, for long dives, there's proper restoration of your body once you get out of the water. Once out of the water even Gatorade's Recover is fine, sugars and all, again IMO.
You don't jump in the water with low tanks, so why would you jump in under-hydrated?