padi float thing

[s7595]

the official word from padi world head quarters
a padi rep email me back stateing you can float or tread water or do both as long as the time is 10 mins
I have been to the local swim pool , the float is much easier now
just tweaks my back muscles
will call instructor next week to finish course

 

[Orion DM]

Thats what I remembered (Nice to know I do actually recall part of my divemaster course)

Glad the practice helped you.

Good luck.

By the way, someone asked about this, when I did the Open Water you used mask snorkel fins for the 300 meter swim.

For the Divemaster there are 2 swims (and 1 float with hands out of water for a while and 1 tired diver escort for 100 meters) one is with mask snorkel fins and one without. Can't remember the distances. These are all PADI standards by the way, YMCA, NAUI, LA county etc... I am not familiar with.

 

[EliteDetail]

All I did to pass that part was lay on my back and use my lungs as a floatation device. breat in deeply and hold it for about 30 seconds and keep doing that for the intire 10 mins, I passed that with ease, it was the 20 laps they had us do in the pool that almost got me! but hey I made it..yeaaaa me!

good luck man ill sure you will get it.

 

[Robert Phillips]

Here's something I used when I was younger to be comfortable for a long period of time floating in the water (I grew up on the Colorado River and spent many summers floating for miles on it.)
Get in the pool and swim out to the deep end, relax and take a deep breath. Do you float or sink? You should float unless you are naturally negative by a lot! Hold your breath for as long as is comfortable, you are not trying to break any breath hold records, just a comfortable amount of time, like 15-20 seconds, when you exhale you kick your legs to keep your head above water. You can scull youor hands to maintain position, but dont use them to keep you afloat, you just waste energy. Exhale quickly and completely, then take another deep breath, not quickly like you are trying to hyperventilate, just a nice, full lung expansion breath. Up you come again with no exertion. Relax again and if you do this right and stay relaxed, you only have to kick when you feel yourself sinking, as you exhale. You get into a pattern:deep breath, relax, exhale, kick, inhale , relax. I find I can float like this indefinitely and most times just get bored doing it.
If you can find a pool that has a deep end that is deeper than you are tall, that would be ideal, but it doesnt matter.
I can actually swim the entire length of my pool by just doing a couple frog kicks (no fins, just feet) without using my hands to keep my head out of the water. I just kick when I exhale.
In salt water you are more bouyant than fresh, so it is even easier. With a wetsuit, you dont even have to kick to float

 

[eod]

The two last posts points out the key to floating, breathing correctly. I was having problem floating from the first time I was in the water (like 20 years ago) until recently when I read about controlling bouyancy with your lungs in the OW manual. I went to the lake this summer, swam out and tried to float, no problem at all! Just hold air in your lungs and exhale, inhale and hold. Theres everything there is to it.

 

[s7595]

that style works
but not with me , according to the life guard ,bone dense has a lot to do with how you float , a relative of mine can float so easy and yet he weighs much more than me
what works for me is to arch my back sticking my chest out very high ,squeeze my but checks tight , lay my head as far back as I can in the water , very trying as your muscles get sore
arms way out to the sides and slightly back toward head

 

[crayman]

Dont Worry too much about being able to float some people just cant flaot something to do with muscle mass lung volume and that.

If you are diving and have a BCD failure (which I havn't had in over 4000 dives ) Just remember your wetsuit will keep you afloat once you drop your weight belt. I dont know of anyone who can sink wearing a wet suit and no weight belt.

But there is a couple of things you can try 1. relax 2 relax
3 fill your lungs and do slow shallow breaths.
4 wear a life jacket (hahaha) :

 

[SOUTH DEVON]

tips on how to float for 10 minutes in a pool that work;

1. Ask if you can wear a wetsuit in the Pool, even a Shorty will give you significant buoyancy or just turn up in a wetsuit and say you forgot your swimming shorts(I did)

2. breath in and out keeping your lungs full of air all the time, in other words don't breathe out fully otherwise you will sink!

3. Keep your arms extended fully behind your head this will counterbalance your legs and help you stay afloat!

 

[SubMariner]

If confined water conditions require students to do this wearing a buoyant exposure suit, students must weight themselves for neutral buoyancy.

IOW, wearing a wetsuit means the person will be weighted to compensate for the addtional buoyancy of the suit. The Instructor WILL check to make sure this is the case.

No cheating!

 

[s7595]

submariener
you are so write
my instructor is a "by the book kind of guy " wich I respect totaly
I can say that on monday nov3 ,I will enter pool and pass
for me to float I have to arch my back squeeze my butt
arms out to sides
as I stated before with todays equipment , I belive the float is
over rated by padi
common sence and diveing safetly is more important to me
I will play by padi rules and float and pass do open water dives in fla as way to cold up here