Tips for Achieving Good Trim

[ppo2_diver]

Achieving and maintaining good trim while scuba diving is easier than you think. Here are a few tips to help you out.

1) Weighting - All of your weight should be near or on top of your back for easier support of the weight. Weight should be placed towards the diver's center of gravity (.i.e. the pivot point on the body typically near the belly button region).

2) Stretch the arms - The arms should be stretched in front, not down, of the diver. Think of it like laying in bed on your stomach. When your arms our out in front, your more stretched horizontal. When you tuck your hands into the body, you'll get the "hunch" feel.

3) Head position - This is critical as the body will follow where the head goes. The head should be tilted back, against the tank valve. This also allows for easy head rotation for a wide field of view. When the head dips, the shoulders will also dip throwing you out of trim.

4) Chin position - This goes hand in hand with the head position. In order to keep the head pinned back against the tank valve, stick your chin out. Look at it like how a turtle sticks it's head out of the shell. It sticks it out and up. By doing this, this will help keep the shoulders back and the head back and up.

Lastly, enjoy your dives!!!!!

 

[Cha_]

Duane,

very good advice, I'm about to take class and get certified

 

[DivemasterDennis]

Interesting comments, but here are some other considerations: Head on tank valve is not fun- especially in warm water with no hood. You may want to lower your tank enough to not hit it with your head. On weight distribution, it also depends on how much. In a dry suit or thick wetsuit with more wight, where you need a weight belt, distribute it evenly on sides and back. In using an integrated BC, if it has back pockets, put 24% to 35% of weight there, and the balance in the pockets. Hand position for me is where I can use them. I am a "down the sides", or clasped at the waist guy. I usually have a camera, so I hold it against my body. Many new divers initially keep their left hand on the low pressure inflter, which, though not ideal, is fine until you are comfortable otherwise. Be comfortable in the water. Do what makes you comfortable.
DivemasterDennis

 

[TSandM]

1) Weighting - All of your weight should be near or on top of your back for easier support of the weight. Weight should be placed towards the diver's center of gravity (.i.e. the pivot point on the body typically near the belly button region).

Just a quick note about different environments . . . we have thought this way, and have found that, with our students wearing very thick neoprene, it is surprisingly often true that they are feet-light, especially in the plastic fins or splits that beginners often choose. We discovered that overuse of trim pockets or camband weights actually caused our students the trouble we were trying to solve.

Where you have to put your weight depends on a complex interaction of things that sink and things that float, and it will be different with different tanks, different fins, different exposure protection, and different body sizes and shapes. The posture things that are mentioned in the OP are ALWAYS valid, and if you have your posture right, a quick attempt to hold still will tell you where the weight needs to go.

 

[AZFlyingDiver]

One of the most helpful things I did was spend time in the pool with my equipment configured in different ways (like for warm water, with my drysuit, etc.), and then taking time just to play with weight placement. Simply, I got into a hover around 10 feet, assumed a good, streamlined dive position, then completely relaxed and saw what happened. If I tipped forward or back, or rolled over, I adjusted where I placed my weights. It takes a bit of trial and error, but I found my pivot point eventually. For me, diving my 3mm and an Oceanic Biolite BCD, I found having half my weight in the waist pockets and the other half in the cam band pockets did the trick; for my drysuit, I found splitting my weights between the BCD and a weight harness, along with ankle weights did the trick.