trouble recovering bc from pool bottom

[rx7diver]

On Tuesday I will go back to the pool and do this exercise again until I get it right. I cannot hold my breath for 50 seconds while swimming or even walking. I am practicing and working on that. My surface dive skills need some work as well.

ladyfish,

In post #15 above I described a similar skill we were required to do, and encouraged you to keep attempting to pass yours, as success will surely come, eventually. I neglected to mention that, as my open water course was a university PE course, physical conditioning was a huge part of it. We were swimming (with and without snorkeling gear) and running and doing other exercises from the start. For example, we were practicing a timed skill, called the "Skin Diving Circuit," which involved repeated surface entries, surface dives (to the bottom of the deep end), removal of weight belt (at the bottom of the deep end), and retrieval and replacing of weight belt, all the while swimming repeated laps and climbing out of the pool. So, from the start of the course we were increasing our endurance and stamina. So, as we attempted to pass skills such as the "Thimble Test," it became increasingly easier to do, due to our constant and improving physical conditioning.

This kind of training you're undergoing is made so much easier if you are pursuing a regimen of physical conditioning.

Safe Diving,

rx7diver

P.S. Lest you think this kind of training is only for the "kids" among us, I was a 31-year-old grad student when I took my course.

 

[ladyfishdvr]

I am walking 3-5 miles a day since last June. Lost 30lbs and can make it up the hill and not be out of breath. My physical conditioning is getting there but not fantastic yet.

 

[fnfalman]

I am walking 3-5 miles a day since last June. Lost 30lbs and can make it up the hill and not be out of breath. My physical conditioning is getting there but not fantastic yet.

Cardiovascular activities/physical trainings are great, but they don't replace the proper mindset. I'm fat and out of shape but I can out breathhold many a young studs with 6% body weight. Why? Because I have done some trainings with apnea breathing and diving.

Some of these drills don't really have any immediate practical applications, but they do give you a measure of how comfortable you are underwater in an unfamiliar environment.

In my apnea diving class, we have to go down to the bottom of a pool, take off one item, then come up. Go down again, take off another item. This task is repeated until we have our mask/snorkel/fins and weight belt all at the bottom of the pool and we're floating on top with a 7mm wetsuit. Then we have to dive down (while wearing a 7mm wetsuit) and put everything back on and surface.

Before that drill, I thought that I was pretty confident in my breathholding abilities (close to 1.5-min underwater while swimming around). Far from competition grade, but pretty decent. When the drill began, I powered my way down to the bottom of the pool, but with so much kicking involved to overcome the 7mm suit's buoyancy, and no mask, I burned through my oxygen pretty darn quick. Took a few tries, but I got to the point where I can dive down and fumbled for the weight belt to keep me at the bottom of the pool, then felt for the mask/snorkel, donned it, cleared it and retrieved & don the fins.

My confidence level rised even more after a few successful executions of that drill.

You'll be the same too when you can dive down and retrieve your gears at the bottom of the pool. I'd say look and see where your weight belt and your second stage are. Dive down with one hand grabbing for the second stage and the other grabbing for the weight belt. Hold onto the weight belt and get the second stage in your mouth. Once you get the second stage in your mouth and breathing, AND with the weight belt in the other hand, you won't be floating up. Then take your time and don your weight belt. You can fumble around with both hands to find the buckle. You got plenty of air in the tank. After that, fumble for your mask. Don & clear mask. Find fins. Don fins. Then don your BC.

 

[Bob DBF]

Just remember it's fun.

As some say, there is no reason for it in training 'cause you won't do it diving and the only reason I approve is that I'm a leftover from the old school.

Well yes and no. As you may have noticed, solving problems underwater is more difficult than on the surface due to the medium you are in and the constraints on your air supply. Becoming proficient at this drill will give you the confidence and time to deal larger issues should they arise. Water skills are a combination of technique and confidence, fnfalman gives a great example of how a difficult drill can help you with both.

My favorite was jumping off a 3 meter diving board with all the gear in my arms, tank valve off, dropping in and gearing up on the bottom. No practical use, but a fun trick.

Underwater without an operating reg in your mouth tends to focus your attention on air, drills like this focus your attention on a problem and you learn how long you can function without air, which is longer than you believe now. It is quite liberating to know how much you can do before you need air and how screwed up your gear can get and you can still sort it out underwater. It will give you more thinking time in an emergency, which is always handy.



Bob
--------------------
I may be old, but I'm not dead yet.

 

[KD8NPB]

My guess is about 9 out of 10 male students might find this statement humorous, motivating and/or fitting to the training; probably less for female students. So what makes it an appropriate statement to those students left out and uncomfortable by it?

It was a college class. We were on our second to last pool session after 5 x 3 hours pool sessions and 5 x 2 hour class sessions. We all well understood dive physiology by then and had images of diver related injuries freshly drilled into minds.

Needless to say, we well understood the "punchline".

 

[Oldbear]

... The instructor ... said if he saw anyone ascending without exhaling after breathing off a regulator, he was going to punch them in the gut. :lol:

I...

Why do you imagine people would feel left out? You can usually tell by peoples body language and facial expression the spirit in which they mean something,
as I would imagine the students in the aforementioned class could.

Cheers,
Mitch

Mitch,

I just do not see the added value to a recreational diving student's learning process of a new skill by telling them "he (the trusted instructor who the student is seeking guidance from) was going to punch them in the gut," if they held their breath.

I know it exists and I have had this type of "motivational instruction" in the military and to me it was appropriate there because stress is apart of military training.

But I do NOT think it is appropriate in a recrecational dive course - at any level.

I do agree with you that you USUALLY can tell if something is bothering a person by their body language or facial expression...but why would you as an instructor even go there in the first place? Again, what is the added value by making such a statement and then seeing if someone is offended?

I am a firm believer that instructors should check their "egos" and "bravado" in at the door before the class starts.

But this is just my opinion

~Oldbear~

 

[261311]

For what it's worth I'd be willing to bet if you assembled a group of 50 people maybe one out of them wouldn't actually find that joke funny and actually threatening. Of which in a group that's all laughing, it reinforces the joke to the one man out anyways. Most would (whether or not the instructor would or not) just assume the comedy in someones vocalization of that. I think it also illustrates how easy and important constantly breathing is if someone would "hit ye' if you stopped".

 

[ladyfishdvr]

Well the pool was closed tonight due to a kid throwing up in it. so I did not get a chance to try this challenge again. I did discuss what went wrong and what I need to work on with the instructor and I am feeling much better about this now. He is not putting any pressure on me. I have next week off as well but I will let you all know how it works out and appreciate all of the advice and support.

 

[Oldbear]

Well the pool was closed tonight due to a kid throwing up in it...

The good news is if this kid throws up in the ocean it only creates a fishy-photo opportunity :uwphotographer::fish::goldfish::fish::goldfish:

...nothing like chumming the waters during a dive

 

[KD8NPB]

Mitch,

I just do not see the added value to a recreational diving student's learning process of a new skill by telling them "he (the trusted instructor who the student is seeking guidance from) was going to punch them in the gut," if they held their breath.

I know it exists and I have had this type of "motivational instruction" in the military and to me it was appropriate there because stress is apart of military training.

But I do NOT think it is appropriate in a recrecational dive course - at any level.

I do agree with you that you USUALLY can tell if something is bothering a person by their body language or facial expression...but why would you as an instructor even go there in the first place? Again, what is the added value by making such a statement and then seeing if someone is offended?

I am a firm believer that instructors should check their "egos" and "bravado" in at the door before the class starts.

But this is just my opinion

~Oldbear~

If I were a student and about to experience a dangerous and potentially deadly lung overexpansion injury, I would expect the instructor to do everything in his power to prevent it from happening.

So what you're saying is : I wouldn't punch you in the gut to save you from an injury.

As said, we all understood it well by then.