1. Be a Solo Diver: This rule doesn’t entail ditching your dive buddy and diving alone. By all means stay close to your buddy and be ready to help him. But as far as your own safety is concerned, pretend he’s not there or won’t be when you need him, in other words be self reliant. In any emergency your most dependable rescuer is yourself. Think solo, plan smarter and rehearse beforehand how you could deal with a situation so that if one arises you know how to react without wasting time looking for a rescuer.

Keep at hand all the dive gear and equipment you may need as if you were diving solo. For example: Have your own completely redundant air source, like a pony bottle, instead of relying on your buddy’s octopus. You may want several cutting tools instead of just one, mounted so you can reach at least one with either hand. Be prepared for yourself and carry your own backups.

2. Be Lazy: Mimic a sloth. Doing everything in slow motion will stretch your air supply. Move like you’re too exhausted to move. Every fin stroke, arm movement or even a head turn requires a lot more energy under water as it’s almost 800 times more dense than air. Energy in diving equals oxygen, so the faster you burn energy the faster you empty your dive tank. It’s that simple.

It takes a conscious effort to move at slow motion speeds, but practice will make it second nature. The payoff is bragging rights over your air-hog buddy at the end of the dive. Be lazy out of the water before and after a dive too. Sit down as much as possible and relax to conserve energy and you won’t feel fatigued. Most importantly stay lazy with your body in order to stay alert with your mind.

3. Breathe Efficiently: One of the first diving no-no’s you learn is to never hold your breath. And certainly don’t. To significantly improve your breathing efficiency, reverse your normal breathing pattern from inhale-exhale-pause to inhale-pause- exhale, the pattern many experienced divers adopt naturally over time. What you have to keep in mind is the pause you take when your lungs are filled is not held with your throat closed and most definitely not forced.

The few seconds pause while your lungs are full of air allows more time for gas exchange, so you take in more oxygen and dump more carbon dioxide with each breath. Therefore, your need to breathe will lessen and you will get more cycles out of your cylinder. This breathing technique is not taught because a pause can be confused as holding your breath with a closed-throat. So, if you aren’t sure of the difference or of not inadvertently closing your throat to pause, don’t try it.

4. Avoid Using Your BCD: Using the BCD (Buoyancy Control Device) throughout a dive for control is a mistake made by many divers, especially rookies. Since water is denser, momentum gathered takes a little more time to slow or stop. While you’re squirting a little more air in you BCD thinking you’re a little negative, before you realize it you’re actually a little positive. But you won’t feel positive because you come to a stop and pause there for a moment or two before that little squirt of air in your BC begins gathering its strength before raising you slowly.

Naturally, you need to use some judgment and assess the need to use those buttons when you’re dropping like a rock or rising like a cork. But, as you zero in on neutral buoyancy you don’t want to mess it up by touching the buttons again. You can make depth changes of four or five feet by using your lungs alone, without messing with your buoyancy compensator and losing that hard-to-find neutral buoyancy.

5. Don’t Overdo the Gear: By don’t overdo the dive gear we don’t mean offload your weights, ditch spare regulators or don’t wear a dive computer, it simply means don’t let your equipment get the better of you. Diving with an all new kit of diving equipment with a fancy new dive computer on one hand, an underwater camera in another and a squeaky new BCD you’re unfamiliar can be overwhelming. The use of your dive gear should be intuitive and not take up your attention. Another reason to avoid carrying extra gear apart from unnecessary fidgeting is the temptation to seek security in equipment rather than in technique. As a general rule, get more experience before more gear.

That said, we like to encourage divers to own their own gear and not rent, because owners know their gear better and take care of it better. We also think divers should buy their gear new and of top quality. There’s no such thing as too much performance and you definitely can’t put a price on safety.

*Image credits: photos by aa7ae, riandreu and pjf@cpan on flickr

© Aquaviews - SCUBA Blog, 2011. | 5 Tips To Becoming A Better Diver is an original article from Aquaviews.net | Be the first to comment!

Scuba diving is just one of those sports where you can never know it all and you’re constantly learning new things. As you do different types of dives in different places or simply under different conditions, your experiences teach you more about the sport every dive. What’s more is, if you dive with different people, be it on dive trip or a liveaboard, talking to other divers of various experience levels is a great way of picking up tips and tricks about stuff you’ve never even thought of before.

Here’s a look at some random scuba tips we’ve picked up over our dives:

• For divers with a mustache, a little zipper silicon or petroleum jelly (vaseline) on the mustache helps your scuba mask seal over it better.
• Always wet your BC tank strap before securing your tank. Why? If your BC jacket is dry, no matter how tight you strap your tank in, when it gets wet, it will expand and loosen. You don’t want your tank slipping lower during a dive, do you?
• Never wash your wetsuit in hot water. Neoprene expands in hot water and loses some of the flexibility, so it is best not to soak your wetsuit in hot water when rinsing it off after use. Many scuba divers jump straight into a hot shower with their wetsuits on after a cold water dive, which can drastically reduce the life of your suit.
• Before donning a wetsuit or other neoprene items, spray the insides with a watered down hair conditioner to slip into it more easily. Or better yet, check out Suit Juice for a more environmentally friendly option that also helps to preserve neoprene.
• Always carry spare o-rings. Just as duck tape fixes everything on land, o-rings and tie wraps can fix anything when your at sea. Found in a variety of scuba gear, o-rings are needed for regulators, underwater lights, regulators, dive computers, as well as tank valves, and may often break due to pressure and wear & tear.
• Start equalizing before you get in the water. Listen for the pop and clicking sound when you’re on the boat or well before a dive. Do this by swallowing or by using the valsalva method gently. Pre-pressurizing  helps make equalization underwater much easier.
• When diving in hot weather and going into colder water with a camera in a housing, place the rig completed sealed in an ice chest/cooler with the drinks (ask first though ).That way it is tempered and ready to go and won’t  fog up when you dive in. (Silica packets also help with fogging issues).
• Put some folded tissues or silica gel sachets in the crevices of of your underwater camera housing to absorb some trickles of water that sometimes manage to get in.
• A good way to keep track of buddies or anything behind you: Tuck your chin down to your chest and look behind you from underneath your body. It beats trying to turn around!
• In the case of new masks, you can burn the residual coating on the lens by running the tip of a flame over the lens. But before we go any further, a word of caution…don’t try this on plastic lenses (they will melt). Using the tip of the flame, of either a lighter or candle, burn the coating on the lens (it will go black), being careful to keep the flame away from the silicone skirting. Also avoid allowing the glass to become too hot. Wait for the mask to cool and then wipe away the blackened soot with a soft cloth. Repeat until the glass no longer turns black easily. It might take 2-3 times. This gets rid of the coating permanently.

Don’t forget to share your tips and tricks with us in the comments section below!

*Image credits: photo by chesbayprogram on flickr

© Aquaviews - SCUBA Blog, 2011. | Cool Scuba Tips We’re Always Learning is an original article from Aquaviews.net | Be the first to comment!

When we first start scuba diving we don’t put too much thought into how we kick underwater to propel ourselves. As long as we’re moving in the direction we want, divers just sort of kick their way around forgetting the finning tips first taught to them by their open water certification instructors. However, with time and experience we yearn to polish even our most basic scuba skills and rightly so, to be more efficient on air (scuba gold!) and become more refined, better divers overall.

So, going back to basics, finning or kicking underwater affects more than just your movement and propulsion underwater and has more than one technique. Various finning styles used at different times and according to the conditions could really save on effort which in diving directly translates to air consumption.

Here’s a look at the most common finning techniques-

The Flutter Kick

This is most likely the first style of finning you are taught when you’re learning to scuba dive. In this standard kick, the legs move up and down in opposing directions with a fairly straight leg. When performed properly, the action originates from the hips and provides propulsion and forward thrust on the downward stroke of each fin. The body position in this technique involves the hips and legs to be inline with the torso, the knees only bend slightly on the upward stroke of the kick and straighten on the downward stroke while the toes (fins) remain pointed.

The flutter kick works best with long, gentle strokes, using the muscles at the front of the thighs to do most of the work and is good to thrust yourself forward. Diving isn’t about speed though and this style is rarely used by advanced divers as it is more strenuous and could cause a diver to waste energy. Plus, this style of kicking can easily disturb nearby seabed or marine life by kicking up silt or sand, so is best avoided when near the seabed or along a wall.

Modified Flutter Kick

This is the most common and practiced by many. It involves a flutter kick with the knees bend. It still propels the diver but at reduced efficiency and less effort. Good for a slow and relaxed dive. Performed best by those with floaty feet!

The Scissors Kick

The body position in this technique looks like the flutter kick i.e legs straight,knees slightly bent. But, the leg motion is quite different. Instead of the legs crossing each other in an up and down movement, the legs are widened and then brought together sharply (like a pair of scissors closing) and held in that position for a glide count. One leg is dedicated to the upper part of the kick, the other for the downward stroke. This kick is also known as the split kick and is favored for it’s power without the effort of the flutter kick.

This is a great finning style to use when cruising and allows you to swim closer to the substrate without making contact with your fins or stirring up sand or silt.

The Frog Kick

This style of kicking is one of the most popular among cave divers to avoid kicking up silt or sand in confined spaces. In the frog kick the body and upper legs maintain a straight, horizontal trim but the knees are bent so the fin blades point upward on a steep diagonal. You are required to kick similar to the manner used in the breast stroke of swimming but you have to twist the ankle/lower leg at a right angle in order to achieve proper orientation of the fin. Many divers find it relaxing to use the frog kick as a general cruising kick, either by itself or alternating with the flutter kick every few minutes. The frog kick however, does not work very well with some types of fins like split fins.

Short Frog Kick

In this modified version of the frog kick, divers don’t move their legs as far out as the standard frog kick, instead restrict the movements of your thighs and knees while letting the the calves and a flick of the ankles to do all the work. This is a good gentle kick, with not a lot of thrust making it ideal for use in confined spaces.

Backwards Kick

As the name suggest this is for moving away from objects or moving backwards. It’s not an easy or elegant kick, but is useful in many situations. This technique is almost a complete reverse of the frog kick, the fins work through the first half when your legs move out and way from you then pulling them close to your body, scoop the fins forwards and stopped halfway to prevent you from moving forward. The legs are delicately positioned back to the start point and repeated.

*Photo Credits: photos by Magnera, xstevex1,aa7ae, Nemo’s great uncle, ClifB, Saspotato on flickr

© Aquaviews - SCUBA Blog, 2011. | Underwater Finning and Kicking Techniques For Scuba Diving is an original article from Aquaviews.net | Be the first to comment!

Don’t you just hate it when your all geared up and ready for the days dive, sitting in the dive boat when suddenly you feel that queasiness… mistaking it at first to be butterflies in your stomach, the excitement and anticipation of the dive when suddenly you realize, your getting seasick.

The worse part of seasickness is that sometimes, to much embarrassment, it seems to have affected only you, when all the others in the same dive boat are fine.

What is Seasickness?

Seasickness or Mal de Mer , is a form of motion sickness characterized by a feeling of nausea and in some cases, vertigo, experienced after spending time on a boat. Seasickness can affect anyone; even the most seasoned sailor or diver can be suddenly plagued by its symptoms.

The ailment is a form of vertigo. All vertigos result from a disturbance of equilibrium in the ear. The problem is attributed to disturbance in the balance system of the inner ear (vestibular) system. Your sensory perception gets out of sync as these nerve fibers attempt to compensate for the unfamiliar motion of the ship moving through water.

Symptoms

Some of the symptoms of seasickness are:

• Drowsiness
• Nausea
• Dizziness
• Headaches
• Cold Perspiration

Prevention & Remedies

While in the dive boat, try to sit amidships (in the middle of the boat) on the water, always look at the horizon, lean back against a firm surface and avoid neck movement. The idea is to prevent excessive movement or rocking and allow your senses to provide stabilization inputs by glancing at the horizon.

Don’t sit near the exhaust or engines of the boat, as the diesel fumes may aggravate your condition. Sit facing the wind where you get plenty of fresh air. Most people recommend not reading while in the dive boat, and prevent using binoculars for extended periods.

Try to suit up as quickly as possible and be the first in the water. The effects of motion gradually tend to wear off as time passes on the boat.

Always get a full nights rest before a dive, and if you’re hung-over, you will almost certainly be motion sick. Many divers suggest having a light breakfast before a dive, and even claim that nibbling on biscuits on the dive boat may help prevent seasickness.

If the above preventive measures don’t help, you can always take a seasickness pill as soon as the symptoms occur. If you are diving however I would suggest taking a pill the day before the dive just so that you would know if there are any side effects beforehand, rather than finding out once your 30 feet underwater!

Acupressure wristbands that claim to prevent seasickness are often used, even though it is said to be more of a placebo affect rather than the actual science. Seasickness patches and other seasickness products are also available nowadays that you can stick onto your skin before boarding the boat, and can be obtained with a prescription from your doctor.

All of us at some point or another have experienced the effects of motion sickness. It is nothing to be embarrassed about, and its effects wear off as soon as the unfamiliar motion ceases. You will be right as rain as soon as you jump into that cool water so don’t let this malady ruin your diving.

Photos by Capt Kim, star5112, michael 7601, subnet24,

© Aquaviews - SCUBA Blog, 2011. | Dealing With Sea Sickness When Diving is an original article from Aquaviews.net | One comment

Nothing can ruin a dive more than having that white haze in front of your eyes throughout the dive. Foggy scuba masks are often the cause of frustration for divers, especially if your dealing with a new mask. Spit, as you’ve probably heard, is the most common foggy mask fix. But, if you’re like me and just the thought of having to spit on demand makes your mouth go dry or you cringe with disgust, then these other options to keep your mask fog-free will sound so much better.

There are many different tricks and concoctions that divers use nowadays to create their ‘miracle’ mask defogging solution. Here’s a few of our anti-fogging solutions:

Brand new masks usually have a coating of silicone left over from the manufacturing process on the lens that will cause it to fog constantly, no matter how many defogging agents you try. So, first you’ll have to treat it to remove any traces of this coating before using it on a dive.

Toothpaste- Rub toothpaste with your finger to coat the lens and leave it overnight, before wiping it off with a soft cloth or washing it. This works well to remove the residual silicone coating on new masks. A simple non abrasive toothpaste, preferably without beaching agents works good for this. People often use toothpaste even as a day to day defogging agent before dives. It works well and leaves your mask smelling minty fresh!

Flame trick- In the case of new masks, you can burn the residual coating on the lens by running the tip of a flame over the lens. But before we go any further, a word of caution…Don’t try this on plastic lenses (they will melt). Using the tip of the flame, of either a lighter or candle, burn the coating on the lens (it will go black), being careful to keep the flame away from the silicone skirting. Also avoid allowing the glass to become too hot. Wait for the mask to cool and then wipe away the blackened soot with a soft cloth. Repeat until the glass no longer turns black easily. It might take 2-3 times. This gets rid of the coating permanently.

For used scuba masks, there a a number of quick fixes and alternatives to using saliva. Our best picks are-

Baby Shampoo- My favorite pick of an easy and effective foggy mask fix is baby shampoo. A few drops rubbed onto the lens and rinsed of just before a dive works wonders! Why baby shampoo instead of regular shampoo you may ask. Well for one, most baby shampoos have a “No tears” formula which is hypo-allergenic and doesn’t cause your eyes to sting even if you happen to have some in the mask after rinsing. Secondly, they are also biodegradable and generally friendly to the environment. And lastly, they leave your mask smelling great!

Glycerin- Either in it’s original form available at your local pharmacy or in the form of glycerin soaps or dish washing detergents, they work in the same way baby shampoo does. Put a few drops on the inside of the mask, rub them in and rinse. However, a downside of these are that if you happen to get water in your mask during the dive and it comes it contact with your eyes, they can sting.

Commercially available de-fog solutions- Most dive stores or diving websites sell specially created mask de-fog agents that come in convenient spray bottles. There have been mixed results and quite a bit of debate as to which commercially available product works best. So make sure you don’t spend a fortune on these products when you have so many cheaply available alternatives. Pictured right is Sea Vision 2 OZ. Spray De-Fog Bottle

Papaya Leaves- A little local island tip I received when diving in Asia was that if you crush and rub papaya leaves on your mask lens, you mask won’t fog. So I gave it a try and “voila!” I enjoyed a fog free dive!

So take your pick the next time you go diving, and do let us know your favorite tricks to keeping your mask from fogging during a dive, in our comments below.

* Photo credits: photos by lolandese, kkalyan on flickr

© Aquaviews - SCUBA Blog, 2011. | Solutions For Foggy Scuba Masks is an original article from Aquaviews.net | One comment

In past posts we’ve discussed the fundamentals of buoyancy control, looked at tips to achieve neutral buoyancy and even shed light on how to perform a weight check in order to determine the correct amount of weights one should wear when diving to achieve that buoyancy. But buoyancy still remains and issue for many divers, plus there’s always room for improvement for those more comfortable with their buoyancy when scuba diving. So, whether you’re a diver struggle to perfect that buoyancy or you’re just looking to polish on your already good skills we have a few points for you to consider to fine tune your buoyancy control.

Breath Control
Now it’s already been said everywhere and a lot of times, but is worth mentioning again. It’s important to learn controlling your buoyancy not with your BCD inflate and deflate but rather with your breathing. The only adjustment you should need is to release a bit of air from your BCD to compensate for the air you use and definitely not as an elevator. When you inhale, you increase your displacement and buoyancy and automatically tend to rise slightly while when you exhale you tend to sink. Now this way of buoyancy control doesn’t require you to hold you breath, it’s a matter of timing your breathing and paying attention to how full or empty your lungs are to ascend or descend a little. With a little practice it becomes second nature and you can ascend or descend a few feet solely by breathing in or out as a lung full of air can add as much as 10 pounds of buoyancy!

Weight Distribution
Whenever we talk about buoyancy it’s stressed that you need to be wearing the right amount of weights. But, distributing that weight correctly is just as important as it can make a difference to your buoyancy. The distribution of weight however, depends from diver to diver and also according to the dive. For instance if you’re into underwater photography and want to take pictures along a wall, a head up position may be preferred. But if you’d like to take pictures on the sea bed a head down position might be a better option. Typically though, for the horizontal swimming position which is always recommended to reduce drag, you want to weight forward, towards your sides and stomach to help maintain that swimming position. Weight distribution is not just limited to the weights you wear, it also includes the all the scuba gear and equipment you use on a dive and how it’s worn. To check how well all your weight distributes on you hover in shallow water in a neutrally buoyant state and relax completely to allow your body to turn naturally if it’s heavier on any side. You’ll be surprised that you can even end up on your back or even upside down with this little test. However, that’s how you can determine how you need to redistribute the weight around.

Streamlining
Streamlining not only minimizes exertion and reduces air consumption by improving your hydrodynamics, but it also plays a part in improving your buoyancy. Believe it or not it helps your diving skills quite a bit when your dive equipment is not poking out, hanging off you or getting dragged by you. When you’re tight and streamlined you’ll notice an improvement in your buoyancy. (Read our Scuba Tips on Streamlining to Reduce Drag.)

Physical Fitness
Physical fitness is often overlooked as important for diving but actually it can make a big difference even in buoyancy. It’s the simple fact that lean mass sinks, while fat tissue floats which makes fitness important. When you’re fit, you’re sleeker and more naturally streamlined which makes it easier to control your buoyancy and trim. So, what are you waiting for- you want to be a better diver? Then hit that gym! (wink!).

*Photo credits: photos by iamtimmo, dachalan and Daquella manera on flickr

© Aquaviews - SCUBA Blog, 2010. | Scuba Tips: Fine Tuning Your Buoyancy is an original article from Aquaviews.net | One comment

It’s always been debated whether one needs be a good strong swimmer to be a scuba diver and whether fitness actually plays an important part in this sport, cause of the weightlessness underwater when using a Buoyancy Control Device (BCD). But truth of the matter is that while almost anyone can dive irrespective of their shape or size, a fitter diver does help being a better diver.

When scuba diving you can’t predict the prevailing conditions all the time and if faced with strong currents on a dive, even the most experienced diver’s strength can be put to the test. Poor physical condition reduces one’s stamina and energy levels which can cause fatigue, another major concern that comes with diving that can even put a diver in risk of cutting down his/her air supply, causing undue stress or panic and increasing the chances of decompression illness. Which is why building up stamina and getting your body in shape can improve your underwater performance by quite a bit.

Experts say that with the right exercise and diet plan divers could cut down their air consumption, prevent cramps, stress, sleep problems and tiredness, as well as reduce blood pressure and the chance of decompression illness.

Getting fit through exercise-
Let’s face it to strengthen the muscles you use when you dive i.e your legs, shoulders, arms and back you need to do regular cardiovascular exercise which will improves your breathing and general fitness. You don’t have to go the gym to do cardiovascular exercises – power walking, jogging, cycling, swimming, and even walking up and down stairs will raise your heart rate and improve your stamina. 30 minutes of cardio two or three times a week along with a few exercises targeted at those specific muscles you use in diving is a good way to start.

For the thighs- body weight squats are an ideal way to strengthen those leg muscles that’ll help in a strong current. For the arms and upper body- Push-ups or half push ups (keeping your knees on the ground) will exercise not only your arms but the entire upper body making lifting those heavy cylinders a little easier.The yoga pose known as the cobra pose is a good gentle way of working on your lower back muscles (see how to do the Cobra pose here) to ease that back into lifting and carrying your kit around.

Getting fit by eating healthy-
We all know that getting fit involves eating healthier. And it’s no big surprise that a well-balanced diet will help maintain energy levels, reduce fatigue, help control weight which we’ve seen can help improve our diving. So the next time you reach for that greasy bacon post dive, think twice!

For more details on Scuba Diver Diet questions like -what constitutes a good pre-dive breakfast? Is it okay to eat before you dive? Is having breakfast before a dive necessary? What kinds of surface interval snacks are beneficial? check out our post – A Scuba Divers Diet Questions Answered.

And lastly, we should have to say this but DRINK PLENTY OF WATER! Dehydration is thought to be a major causes of muscle cramps, along with fatigue and sodium/electrolyte imbalance. More importantly, not drinking enough water can also increase the risk of decompression illness, so make sure to get enough water in you, before you get in the water!

*Photo Credits: photos by tobze, mikebaird, foodswings on flickr

© Aquaviews - SCUBA Blog, 2010. | Diver Fitness: Get Into Better Shape To Improve Your Diving is an original article from Aquaviews.net | Be the first to comment!

The occurrence of a foot cramp or a calf cramp while Scuba Diving, is an agonizing experience, which most divers have faced at some point or the other. Often considered a nuisance, these cramps can actually be dangerous if they impede you from swimming against a strong current or getting back to the dive boat.

Cramping occurs more commonly with divers in the four muscle groups namely the calves, hamstring, quadriceps or thighs, mainly due to the finning action causing muscle fatigue in the legs triggering the muscles to spasm. However from these four muscle groups typically the upper calf and the lower calf which are responsible for pointing your toes are most likely to cramp while scuba diving.

To prevent cramps in your calves and feet, it is first important to eliminate faulty or ill-fitting equipment as the cause of the cramps. Check the foot pockets of your fins to make sure your feet are comfortable enough, and that there is sufficient room for them to move a bit. Also check the stiffness and surface area of your fins blades, as often, some divers find it too stiff and that causes calf cramps while fining. Your booties too should not be too tight and restrict circulation or bone movement of the foot, and lastly the strap should not bite into the back of your heel too tightly pushing on your Achilles’ Tendon.

Having eliminated the equipment as the cause of foot and calf cramps, a diver should focus on exercising the two main muscle groups mentioned above i.e the lower and upper calves to get these muscles used to the action and strain caused while diving. Cramping affects those who have taken a long break from regular Scuba Diving more than those who have been diving regularly and exercising the specific muscle groups that cramp. So it is essential that before you plan to get back into diving after an extended break, that you focus on exercising your calves.

There are several exercises to strengthen you calves and feet and it is advisable to get familiar with these at your local gym under the supervision of your fitness instructor before performing them by yourself to ensure you get the form right. Some popular exercises for Scuba Divers are:

Stretching: toe-pulls
Sit on the floor and keep your legs stretched out in front of you. Loop a towel around your feet. While keeping your heels on the floor, pull the towel with both ends, using it to draw the middle of the foot and toes towards the body. Hold the position for 4-5 seconds and slowly return to the starting position.

Gastrocnemius/Upper Calf Stretch
Stand an arm’s-length from a wall and lean into wall, bracing yourself with your arms. Place one leg forward with knee bent in the typical lunge position. Keep other leg back with knee straight and heel down. Keeping back straight, move hips toward wall until you feel a stretch. Hold 30 seconds. Relax and repeat with the other leg.

Soleus or Lower Calf Stretch
Using the same lunge position as the gastrocnemius calf stretch, bend the rear knee while hands are placed on a wall and hold for 20 seconds. You should feel the lower calf tighten.

Toe Raises
Stand on a step with the ball of your feet and toes on the step with your heels suspended. Squeezing your calves raise yourself as high as you can without standing on your toes, then gently lower your heels just below the edge of the step. Perform several repetitions.

Toe Pick-ups
This exercise helps strengthen your toes and improve their flexibility especially while finning. Place a pile of objects on the floor and use your toes to pick them up and move them to another pile. Continue doing sets until fatigue sets in.

*Photo Credits: photos from wikipedia by sv:Användare:Chrizz, and from flickr by : jayhem, hectorir

© Aquaviews - SCUBA Blog, 2010. | Diver Fitness: Prevention of Scuba Related Foot & Calf Cramps is an original article from Aquaviews.net | Be the first to comment!

Shore diving offers diver a freedom unlike boat diving, unless ofcourse you own the boat. Apart from not having to take long boat rides to the dive sites a major plus for those that get sea sick easily, you’re not limited to the boats schedule and can dive for as long or short as you and your dive buddy choose. It’s also a cheaper and convenient option for divers on a budget or for those that just like the flexibility of diving when they want.

The most exciting part however of shore diving is the element of exploration and adventure. Unlike in boat dives, where you are dropped off at the dive site itself and have a captain or dive guide who knows the site, tides, currents and other considerations, but with shore dives you’re mostly on your own (unless you opt for a dive master to accompany you). Shore diving requires you to start planning more than just the dive at the site. It starts with getting to know the conditions and where exactly the site is, plotting a route to get to it, finding the best entry points and techniques, having what will you need when you get there and keeping your scuba gear to a minimum, but having all the essentials as you carry everything on your back to and from the dive site right to exit routes, in short, shore diving requires a lot of planning and preparation to get it right in order to have a pleasant experience.

Here are some handy shore diving tips to remember -

Pre-dive Planning: A lot of shore diving is in the planning. It’s important not only to get information on the dive site you are visiting but also how to get there, gps co-ordinates if you’re using one (which is a good idea) or a map of the exact location for each site’s turnoff, parking and dive entry. This should be easily available at the local dive shop or from fellow divers who have dived there before. It’s important to also get find out conditions such as tides, currents etc,before planning a dive. The dive shops and guides know the shores, the sites and the seasonal conditions and they will be able to give you an experienced opinion as to the difficulties you may encounter. Their advice is invaluable. Use them!

Entries and Exits: Another crucial point of shore diving is the best point to enter the walk and exit it. Not all shore dives are from a sandy beach as we picture it in our heads. A Shore dive entry can range from a simple walk down a sand beach to a clamber over rocks, or a short trip down a boat ramp which could turn out to be slippery as an eel.Waves and rough waters at the point of entry can And in full scuba gear, it’s important to know the right techniques of entry and exit as well. (Read our post on The Ins and Outs of Diving, for the shore diving entry and exit techniques)

Gearing up for a Shore dive: Careful consideration must be made to the dive gear and equipment you actually need, you’ll have to carry everything on your back for the dive so remember that. Going minimalistic is a good idea as it’ll help reduce the weight of carrying excess on the shore and prevents the need of dangling stuff on your BC which will be at risk of breaking if it hits a rock or you slip and it’s very important to keep your hands free too (apart from your fins during entry), for support and to steady yourself if needed. It’s also advisable to wear thick-soled dive boots rather than the soft booties as you’ll be walking in them,sometimes over sharp and rugged rocks. Take a little more weight than you would normally need on a boat dive. As your tank gets lighter, it can be difficult to stay down as you swim shallower back to shore.

Buddy Communication: It’s important to have a reliable and a good dive buddy when shore diving (Read our post on What Makes A Good Dive Buddy). A lot of times you may require your buddy’s help, be it for support when you put on your fins or to co-ordinate an entry or descent, good communication skills and an understanding between buddies really helps here.

Go Slow: As you’re exerting your self to make it to the dive site  alone and not just on the dive itself, play it cool and easy, don’t rush. Rushing an entry or trying hard to get to the site as fast as you can can make you tired and more susceptible to stress in the water. It also increases chance of injury. Take your time, breath, assess the situation and make as smooth an entry as possible. Swim nice and slowly to the site without exerting yourself too much, inflating your BC once you’re in swim-able waters helps so does swimming on your back sometimes. Who knows you could even find some great snorkeling sights worth checking out during the swim!

And lastly, have fun and dive safe!

*Photo Credits: photos by waveneyavenue, tab2space, Explore The Bruce on flickr

© Aquaviews - SCUBA Blog, 2010. | The Shore Way to Do It- Tips for Shore Diving is an original article from Aquaviews.net | Be the first to comment!

After you exit the bubble that is your scuba training, you’re faced with a whole world of different types of diving. You’re next dive trip could have you diving from a liveaboard, a small RIB dive boat or shore diving from a sandy beach or even an inland lake. Since chances are, you’ve only learned the basic scuba entry and exit methods since your training, you’re sure to be faced with some unfamiliar ways to get in the water to start a dive and exit the water after one at some point or another. To anyone used to always doing the giant stride entry into the water, suddenly having to do a backward roll off a small shaky boat can be a little intimidating. But this is due to the unfamiliarity and lack of experience. Good news is, they’re all fairly simple once you’ve tried it.

Here’s a closer look at some Entry and Exit methods to brush up your scuba skills for diving both from the shore and boats-

CLICK HERE if you missed our post on the Entry Methods for both Boat and Shore Diving

BOAT DIVING EXIT METHODS
Hard/ High Boat Exit With a Ladder
It’s almost certain that if a dive boat has high sides or a raised platform, there will be a ladder to help climb out of the water and get back into the boat. Depending on the conditions and type of ladders provided, you can exit wearing your fins or you may have to take them off to climb it.

- Don’t make your way to the ladder if anyone is already on it or still climbing up, keep a safe distance as they may fall back.
- Always watch your fingers as you hold the ladder, you don’t want them getting caught between the ladder and boat.
- If there are swell and depending on the conditions keep your mask and regulator in.
- Get a good grip on the ladder and climb up a couple of rings and pass up your weight belt first or use whatever kit removal sequence you’ve been told to follow by the dive guide).
- After you take your weights off, you may take off your fins before proceeding to get in the boat.

RIB Exit with No Ladder
To get out of a RIB or small boat or even a lower platform where no ladder is needed, you first hand over your weight belt and take off your whole BC kit while in the water. After handing these to a boat hand and keeping your fins on, you need to get a good grip with both your palms on the side ridge of the boat or platform. Then timing your push with a swell (if any), kick up with your fins as you pull yourself up, then twist and plop your behind on the ridge or platform facing the water. It’s just like sitting up on a wall or getting out of a swimming pool.

SHORE DIVING EXIT METHODS

Beach Exit
- Make your way to shallow water until you are roughly hip-level with the water.
- Deflate your BC so that your feet are firmly on the ground
- Facing the beach, remove your fins using your buddy for support.
- Walk back to shore.

Surf Exit Method
- Determine the best route for entry and exit before the dive itself.
- Move as quickly as you can and stand up as soon as you are able.
- If you are not able to stand up comfortably, shuffle up the beach, allowing the breakers to push you forward. Keep your hands in front of you to fend off obstructions.
- Avoid the highest part of the wave.

*Photo Credits: photos by Steve & Jemma Copley, Explore The Bruce on flickr

© Aquaviews - SCUBA Blog, 2010. | Scuba Basics: The Ins and Outs of Diving- Exit Methods is an original article from Aquaviews.net | One comment