Random things I'm learning along the way ...
- Thread starter Kimela
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For me, I wear a full body lycra skin. I have a few bumps that need gliding over.
Ginger is reported to be good for avoiding seasickness, although I'm not sure if your ginger candies have enough ginger to be effective.
High protein snack bars are excellent surface interval food.
Baby shampoo works as well as any defog liquid.
Ear drops, lubricating eye drops and skin moisturizer are all valuable.
Converse allstar sneakers work well as dive boots with some fins. They have drain holes, are good for walking across shore or parking lot, and get some street cred.
Tights for men and women prevent abrasion and stings when diving in warm water with only a rash guard.
Shopping plastic bags work for me in helping to slide into a wet suit.
Fisherman's neck gaiter helps protect from the sun. You can pull it up, put on sun glasses and a hat and be well covered. When time to dive you can leave it on your neck, or pull it up over the back of your head and secure with the mask strap.
A hood is a good addition to conserve heat.
Bring extra batteries or if yours are rechargeable, bring a power strip. Electric outlet adaptors if travelling abroad. Extra SD card for your camera
Inexpensive, small dry bag to hold room/car keys, snack, sun glasses, sunblock, dry shirt
Your report on weighting is interesting. Sounds like 8#s with only a rash guard might be too much?
Lastly, and most importantly, dive with an OCD buddy. They will bring all the tools, o-rings, extra batteries, de-fog etc. so you can just relax and take pictures.
High protein snack bars are excellent surface interval food.
Baby shampoo works as well as any defog liquid.
Ear drops, lubricating eye drops and skin moisturizer are all valuable.
Converse allstar sneakers work well as dive boots with some fins. They have drain holes, are good for walking across shore or parking lot, and get some street cred.
Tights for men and women prevent abrasion and stings when diving in warm water with only a rash guard.
Shopping plastic bags work for me in helping to slide into a wet suit.
Fisherman's neck gaiter helps protect from the sun. You can pull it up, put on sun glasses and a hat and be well covered. When time to dive you can leave it on your neck, or pull it up over the back of your head and secure with the mask strap.
A hood is a good addition to conserve heat.
Bring extra batteries or if yours are rechargeable, bring a power strip. Electric outlet adaptors if travelling abroad. Extra SD card for your camera
Inexpensive, small dry bag to hold room/car keys, snack, sun glasses, sunblock, dry shirt
Your report on weighting is interesting. Sounds like 8#s with only a rash guard might be too much?
Lastly, and most importantly, dive with an OCD buddy. They will bring all the tools, o-rings, extra batteries, de-fog etc. so you can just relax and take pictures.
I, too, have a small head and finding the right head cover to keep the hair in was a challenge. I use a traditional Lycra (not silicone) swimming cap. It has never come off during a dive and it fits snug enough that you don't get a pressure headache. My hair is just long enough to get a tiny ponytail which fits inside the cap. The Cressi works well for me and I got it on Amazon. The thing to look for is a double-stitched elastic rim. The ones with a single stitch rim are prone to slide off. I tried the silicone cap also and cut a small hole through the top to allow the air to flow up and through the cap, but it started to slide up and by the end of the first dive it was completely off my head and hanging on at the back of the mask strap. Search on Amazon for Cressi Super Stretch Swim Cap.
We already do! Freedivers LOVE our Leave-In Conditioner for easing on their open cell suits.
It would work great for closed cell too! Biodegradable Leave-In Hair Conditioner | Stream2Sea Ours is a nicely concentrated formula so watering it down is an option to make it more economical for this use. And like with all of our products, all the ingredients are tested and proven safe for aquatic life! 
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Likewise for cruise ships. Unfortunately, they don't carry your baggage for you in a separate compartment and give it back upon arrival. If you plan to do any diving from a cruise, ask the op you'll be diving with if they will have tools that you think you might need, and plan accordingly. They'll take your wrenches and screwdrivers as you get on the ship and they won't give them back. A Klein 10-in-1 can do a lot of things, but I'm sure how Carnival expected me to dismantle a ship.
My trigger is anything sugar and carb heavy without protein. Donuts for breakfast is the fastest way to sharing that breakfast with the fish.
jonhall
Contributor
These reminded me of random things I've learned.
I usually do boat dives and if the water is warm I usually only take and wear full foot fins. April 2019, the last 2 dives I did in Kauai were shore dives - Koloa Landing for those familiar with it. No one had warned me about the entry which was walking part way out to a buoy over an uneven bed of rocks ranging in size from tennis balls to footballs. I survived the first trip out, but walking back in, I jammed and scraped several toes. On the second dive I put on a pair of ankle socks I had - which didn't help - and somehow got to the buoy, put my fins on, did the dive, and hobbled back to shore after the dive. I learned to BE BETTER PREPARED!
I'm telling a story on my dive buddy. Nov. 2019, we were diving on the Big Island. On our departure day at the Kona Airport, we put our checked luggage through once we arrived. For my buddy, that left him with a backpack he carries with all of his dive gear in it and another small carryon. When going through TSA, they found his dive knife. It was too late to get to his checked luggage, so he had few choices. Me.....I would have donated the $72 knife to the airport but he gave his carryon - not his backpack and gear (which weighs a ton) - to his wife and for some reason his phone. He walked out of the airport and started walking back towards the main road. Over an hour passed and we were getting a little worried - no idea where he was and no way to contact him. Finally he shows up to the gate with his head/face wet with sweat and when he takes his backpack off, his whole back is wet. He found a place where he could mail it to his home. He wasn't going to give up that knife. I learned to double check my packing, but more importantly to ALWAYS REMIND YOUR TRAVELING/DIVE BUDDY TO CHECK THEIR BAGS!
I usually do boat dives and if the water is warm I usually only take and wear full foot fins. April 2019, the last 2 dives I did in Kauai were shore dives - Koloa Landing for those familiar with it. No one had warned me about the entry which was walking part way out to a buoy over an uneven bed of rocks ranging in size from tennis balls to footballs. I survived the first trip out, but walking back in, I jammed and scraped several toes. On the second dive I put on a pair of ankle socks I had - which didn't help - and somehow got to the buoy, put my fins on, did the dive, and hobbled back to shore after the dive. I learned to BE BETTER PREPARED!
I'm telling a story on my dive buddy. Nov. 2019, we were diving on the Big Island. On our departure day at the Kona Airport, we put our checked luggage through once we arrived. For my buddy, that left him with a backpack he carries with all of his dive gear in it and another small carryon. When going through TSA, they found his dive knife. It was too late to get to his checked luggage, so he had few choices. Me.....I would have donated the $72 knife to the airport but he gave his carryon - not his backpack and gear (which weighs a ton) - to his wife and for some reason his phone. He walked out of the airport and started walking back towards the main road. Over an hour passed and we were getting a little worried - no idea where he was and no way to contact him. Finally he shows up to the gate with his head/face wet with sweat and when he takes his backpack off, his whole back is wet. He found a place where he could mail it to his home. He wasn't going to give up that knife. I learned to double check my packing, but more importantly to ALWAYS REMIND YOUR TRAVELING/DIVE BUDDY TO CHECK THEIR BAGS!
@living4experiences and @VikingDives - I may get that SharkSnot! The name is a bit off-putting, but also makes it intriguing! Reef safe and not a bad price after dilution - gets good reviews on Amazon. Thanks!
Another oddball thing - I have a hairy neck, so my hair gets pulled by my wetsuit. I wear a gator (the kind you use to protect your face/neck from the sun) to tuck into the neck of my wetsuit. Works well.
Another oddball thing - I have a hairy neck, so my hair gets pulled by my wetsuit. I wear a gator (the kind you use to protect your face/neck from the sun) to tuck into the neck of my wetsuit. Works well.
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The cheaper conditioners also generally contain the highest amount of siloxanes (non-biodegradable silicon polymers). I've always found it slightly amusing when freedivers - who on average seem to be more "alternative" and "organic" than us among the hoi polloi - use copious amounts of cheap hair conditioner to get into their open-cell wetsuits...
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