Diver Training, Has It Really Been Watered Down???

[TMHeimer]

That's the most important part of my plan, everything else is orchestrated to that end. Diving a 120 locally the major limitation is getting out of the water before I'm hypothermic. Towards the end of the dive I'm always in the shallows close to the exit. Other times conditions are different and the dive is more work, I have to insure I'm at the exit with enough reserve energy to make a safe exit.

In any dive there is a limiting factor, it's not always gas or NDL, and a good diver will know his limitations, then plan and act accordingly.



Bob

Yes, cold is a factor here too of course. Also being prone to cramping. At times I will even surface (if shallow) to check exactly how far I am from the exit area. And am cognisent (sp?) of an outgoing tide. With age, the distance I venture offshore has decreased.

 

[AfterDark]

Yes, cold is a factor here too of course. Also being prone to cramping. At times I will even surface (if shallow) to check exactly how far I am from the exit area. And am cognisent (sp?) of an outgoing tide. With age, the distance I venture offshore has decreased.

If only that were the only thing that decreased with age! Cramping! I don't like neoprene gloves However if I am to continue diving I need to wear 1mm gloves or by 45 minutes my hand(s) cramp just shy of useless. My hands don't feel cold, no numbing or other sensations of cold just cramps. Rather unsettling. How bout those calf cramps? I'm not crazy about currents anymore either. I can see most of my diving become short and shallow. This year so far that's what it's been, with some snorkeling thrown in. Glad I still have those old skool 72's! And have you noticed how heavy your gear is getting yet? It's the same gear I was using 5 years ago but the gravity on it has somehow increased! Tragic.

I go heavy on the MIO electrolytes water enhancer before a dive then potassium and magnesium supplements post dive. Those hamstrings cramps during sleep haven't happen since I started that routine. Those hamstrings are right up there with tooth and ear aches on the pain scale. This year I left a 2mm hooded vest on the roof of my car and drove away. It gets expensive too!

That's were my dive training was lacking, we never had geriatric diving training! Maybe they weren't expecting us to need it? Are there any books on the subject of geriatric diving? There must be some old dive geezer out there that can write too.

 

[TMHeimer]

Yes, the gear is heavier too. 14 months ago I was able to climb up those rocks but last week had to doff the unit. My cramping problem is/was heredity I think. It was solved almost completely 10 years ago when the doc said take potassium pills. Then he said I probably don't need them now as the blood pressure pills I am now on will help with cramps. So far I have only cramped a little (which is worse than what had been never with the potassium). But, I am not covering like 10 miles on my shore dives any more either, so by taking it a lot easier I may be avoiding most cramps.
Gearing up with the 7 mil wetsuit and all that weight gets more tiresome.
I have been also feeling the cold gradually more & more each year. I do believe though that it's not age, as I hated the cold water as a 20 year old in NY. After years in Northern Canada with 3 months of average daytime winter temps. of -25F (-40F at night at times), I found Nova Scotia waters to be balmy. After 15 years here though, and the "Arcticness" wears off. Anyway, I keep telling myself that and that it's not age......

 

[AfterDark]

Yes, the gear is heavier too. 14 months ago I was able to climb up those rocks but last week had to doff the unit. My cramping problem is/was heredity I think. It was solved almost completely 10 years ago when the doc said take potassium pills. Then he said I probably don't need them now as the blood pressure pills I am now on will help with cramps. So far I have only cramped a little (which is worse than what had been never with the potassium). But, I am not covering like 10 miles on my shore dives any more either, so by taking it a lot easier I may be avoiding most cramps.
Gearing up with the 7 mil wetsuit and all that weight gets more tiresome.
I have been also feeling the cold gradually more & more each year. I do believe though that it's not age, as I hated the cold water as a 20 year old in NY. After years in Northern Canada with 3 months of average daytime winter temps. of -25F (-40F at night at times), I found Nova Scotia waters to be balmy. After 15 years here though, and the "Arcticness" wears off. Anyway, I keep telling myself that and that it's not age......

Oh no it's not age, that's why these are called the golden years, everything golden. Oh yeah the cold too, there's times I think I'll be diving dry year round soon! Just loading unloading rinsing and storing the gear gets tiresome. At FTW the walk up that short steep boat ramp is turning my legs to jello these days. I marvel at people that start scuba diving at my age.

 

[ScubaWithTurk]

Brendon, Turk's been metricfied now you'll confuse him

Not confused but I have been metricfied to an extent. I can no longer think in feet or PSI as it relates to diving. I know what 32C feels like and I know 19C is cold water here...I have no idea how they relate to F but I have a real world baseline to work off of.

Although when someone tells me it is 3 meters, my thought process goes "1 meter is 3.3 feet so about 10 feet"

 

[TMHeimer]

Since immigrating to Canada 42 years ago, I became fluent in either C or F. Water temp. today was 22C/70F. That's very warm for here, even in Aug. At the end of the 2nd dive I was just a bit chilly. After living in the sub-arctic for years, 10 years ago I'd be diving here in my shorty. Things change.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

Since immigrating to Canada 42 years ago, I became fluent in either C or F. Water temp. today was 22C/70F. That's very warm for here, even in Aug. At the end of the 2nd dive I was just a bit chilly. After living in the sub-arctic for years, 10 years ago I'd be diving here in my shorty. Things change.

Interesting rounding. I always remember that 32,41,50,59,68,77,... F correspond to 0, 5, 10, 15,20, 25, ... C. So 21C is 69.8, 22C is 71.6.

 

[TMHeimer]

Interesting rounding. I always remember that 32,41,50,59,68,77,... F correspond to 0, 5, 10, 15,20, 25, ... C. So 21C is 69.8, 22C is 71.6.

I first acclimated to Celsius using the following--
32F = 0C
0F= -17C
in very round numbers:
-20F= -30C
-40F= -40C ---almost exactly, this is where it crosses over
-60F= -50C
For the higher temperatures I began with +10C= 50F and +16C=60F
Where I lived back then we rarely topped that, so I had to look those up....

 

[JamesBon92007]

If only that were the only thing that decreased with age! Cramping!

I go heavy on the MIO electrolytes water enhancer before a dive then potassium and magnesium supplements post dive. Those hamstrings cramps during sleep haven't happen since I started that routine.
That's were my dive training was lacking, we never had geriatric diving training! Maybe they weren't expecting us to need it? Are there any books on the subject of geriatric diving? There must be some old dive geezer out there that can write too.

Have you had any test results indicating that you have a deficiency of potassium or magnesium? All of my electrolytes show as being normal, but I still get cramps. I have been taking Benadryl before dives and before bed and the cramps are nearly 100% gone, but I just might try the supplements you mentioned even though the blood tests say I don't need them. I've had doctors give me various muscle relaxers but none of them helped. So far the Benadryl has not caused me to fall asleep while diving

 

[AfterDark]

I was taking a diuretic for blood pressure for probably the last 20 years . Every 3 months I had to have blood work done because of the diuretic, everything was normal, but for the last 2 years it wasn't IMO. So I stopped the diuretic, my blood pressure didn't change and still hasn't. My GP concurred with my action. The only time I get cramps now is from the cold and extreme overwork. This took place over the last 3 months. Prior to that I had some very painful nights. I suspect I was becoming dehydrated but the tests did not show that.