Kneeling or sitting on the bottom - I keep tipping over.

[The Chairman]

... just bend the knee...

I kneel for no man, agency or fish!

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

As you've noticed, sitting or kneeling isnt as suitable underwater.

If it is required, I adopt a pose like the two images (off Wikipedia) below for added stability:
View attachment 467923

View attachment 467924

If you are going to try resting on the bottom in these ways, check with the dive guide on the surface first if it's ok.

For sitting on the bottom you need a low center of mass, heavy weights as low to the ocean floor as possible. For example a few extra lbs worn low on the hips with a weight belt.

Ideally divers generally enjoy diver position which is much more comfortable, but in answering your specific question, that's the best I can do.

Cameron

Just like “goat” yoga, I wonder when they will introduce underwater “shark” yoga?

 

[JohnnyC]

Just like “goat” yoga, I wonder when they will introduce underwater “shark” yoga?

\

A friend of mine leads goat yoga in Vegas. She doesn't make a lot of money, but the owners of the business do.... It's pretty ridiculous.

I fail to see how 20 screaming baby goats are in any way relaxing. Then again I don't understand most things hipsters do.

 

[The Chairman]

Sounds like she got your... goat?

 

[Chavodel8en]

I kneel for no man, agency or fish!

The King of the North (Florida)!! King of the North!! King of the North!!

 

[boulderjohn]

You have gotten a number of suggestions for adding extra weight, and I can assure you that will likely do the trick.

A number of years ago I posed for a series of pictures contrasting students kneeling to learn skills with having them neutrally buoyant. I had not done skills kneeling for quite a few years, and I was surprised to find when I posed for those shots that I had the same problem you described. I kept tipping over. I added a bunch more weight and things were just fine.

Sad to say.

It is sad to say that because instructors learn that if they want students to be stable in the pool, they have to overweight them. Then they go out into the world of diving thinking they need all that extra weight.

 

[The Chairman]

It is sad to say that because instructors learn that if they want students to be stable in the pool, they have to overweight them. Then they go out into the world of diving thinking they need all that extra weight.

Do we have an acid test for a diver being overweighted here? If you can kneel and be stable, you're overweighted? That's an interesting concept, n'est pas?

 

[boulderjohn]

Do we have an acid test for a diver being overweighted here? If you can kneel and be stable, you're overweighted? That's an interesting concept, n'est pas?

Possibly. I know I couldn't do it without being significantly overweighted.

 

[The Chairman]

An aside: When we had the first DEMA in Las Vegas, I was invited to participate in the world's largest underwater press conference. I had been an instructor for a bit already and was already snobbish about my trim and neutral buoyancy. We were instructed to kneel and I was aghast. I didn't kneel, even back then (2003???), and made sure I had just enough weight. So there I was, all smug, trim, hovering about a foot or so above the bottom and just before they took my question (we were on OTS full face masks and coms) I felt myself starting to float. WHAT??? NO!!! I exhaled and was still feeling like I was ascending to the surface. To be frank, trying to ask a question with your lungs mostly empty was tough. I admit that I was kind of disappointed in myself. On the deck, Rosemary Lunn, from the UK came and apologized. She had gotten into the pool without any weight and was using me to keep herself down. 2 phreakin' phunni! That made my day actually, and Ros and I have been fast friends ever since.