All sports require a certain degree of physical fitness, and the same is true of scuba diving. While it’s a relatively easy sport in many respects, it is more strenuous than other activities most of us are accustomed to. While you don’t need Herculean strength or Hermes’ running ability, or even Poseidon’s capacity for swimming, you do need to attain a certain level of overall fitness in order to enjoy safe, injury-free scuba diving.
What is Fitness to Dive?
When we talk about fitness to dive, just what are we discussing? In a nutshell, we’re talking about cardiovascular health, a certain amount of physical strength, and the necessary mental and emotional fortitude to deal with the stress that sometimes accompanies diving. Scuba diving offers challenges that are much different from those most of us encounter in everyday life; even the environment is completely different from what we’re accustomed to. In addition to attaining fitness, it’s vital that divers maintain their fitness levels and get regular checkups.
There are several reasons it is so important that divers ensure they maintain fitness to dive:
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The body loses heat while underwater; being physically fit helps to mitigate this physical stress
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Breathing gases can be challenging to breathe; if the cardiovascular system isn’t in top shape, breathing can be compromised and the risk of toxicity can increase
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The act of swimming, particularly against current and under pressure, is physically demanding
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Pressure changes exert force on the body’s internal structures. Being in good overall health can help to reduce the potential for damage
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A diver who is mentally and emotionally fit for diving is much less inclined to succumb to anxiety or suffer a panic attack while underwater
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Divers who maintain fitness and ensure they submit to regular wellness checks are less likely to suffer from complications caused by known or unknown medical conditions.
Ways to Increase Fitness for Scuba Diving
While we might wish the opposite were true, simply diving a lot is not enough to ensure you’re fit to dive. You may believe that swimming and carrying heavy gear on occasion is enough – but the fact is, unless you dive a few times each day and help other people carry their gear on a regular basis, you’re not getting enough exercise via these activities.
In order to attain and maintain the necessary level of fitness, and in order to improve your level of physical fitness in order to enjoy certain types of technical diving, you will need to make intentional exercise part of your regular routine. No, you don’t have to become a gym rat, but you do need to push yourself toward greater fitness. Not only should you strive to build strong core, arm, and leg muscles, but you should also work toward increasing aerobic strength and stamina. Good lung capacity will help make diving and activities surrounding it more enjoyable, and it will also help save you in the event of an emergency.
Try to get some cardio at least five days per week, and strive to get weight training in between three and five times weekly. Remember to take a day off from strenuous exercise each week, and remember to consult your physician if it has been a long time since you worked on physical fitness. Start where you are and slowly build up your strength and stamina – you’ll be amazed at the way you feel and look, and you’ll love how easy it is to get into your wetsuit once you drop those few extra pounds that might be clinging to your waistline.
Basic Physical Fitness for Scuba Diving
The advantages of being physically fit are numerous, but like all other good things in life, you’ve got to put in some effort to get the results you are looking for. As you work toward improving your fitness level, keep the following basic fitness requirements in mind:
- 400-Yard Swim – Divers must be able to swim 400 yards (any stroke) without the help of any swimming aids
- Divers must have the ability to stand up and to dive while wearing all required equipment.
- Divers need to be able to float or tread water for 10 to 15 minutes, depending on the organization conducting testing
- A diver must be able to snorkel for a minimum of 800 yards with no aids other than fins
- For optimal diving, males should have a body mass index of 22 or less, while females should have a body mass index of 28 or less
Accidents Caused by Low Fitness Levels
Maintaining physical fitness is one of the best ways to ensure preventable accidents don’t happen to you. While it’s true that lack of fitness does not play a role in all accidents, it does play a role in many. Some common scuba diving injuries and accidents that it contributes to include:
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Heart-related problems – To qualify as a diver, your blood pressure will need to be within a predetermined safe range, as cardiac muscles work differently when subjected to the pressure-intensive underwater environment. If you have high blood pressure, your heart will be forced to work even harder, increasing the likelihood of cardiac arrest and other heart-related issues.
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Decompression Sickness – DCS can happen to anyone, but it is more likely to affect divers who are out of shape, particularly those who have inadequate lung capacity.
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Inner ear squeeze and other accidents are more likely to happen to divers who are not fit.
If you have any of the following issues in your medical background, it’s vital that you consult a physician before considering becoming a certified diver:
- Previous heart attack
- Asthma
- Epilepsy
- Frequent fainting or blackouts
- Hypertension
- Hernia
- Ulcers
- Behavior health issues such as claustrophobia or severe anxiety
- Frequent sinusitis
- Frequent bronchitis
- Migraine headaches
In addition, your doctor will want to know about your history of smoking, as well as whether you suffer from diabetes or have high cholesterol; this is particularly true if you’re over the age of 45. He or she will also need to know if you are taking and medications.
While diving is a fun sport nearly anyone can do, including many people with physical challenges, it’s vital that you build and maintain the fitness level required to dive. Not only will you enjoy your time underwater much more, your entire outlook on life is very likely to improve.