Kurt Kucera

Scuba Diver, Car Enthusiast, Outdoorsman

Exercising to Support Scuba Diving

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Whether you’re a veteran diver or a beginner, there are ways that you can improve your scuba diving experience. One of the best things that you can do is work on your physical fitness. 

Regular exercise strengthens your heart and lungs, which will increase your endurance and help you feel more comfortable under the water. Furthermore, the more physically fit you are, the safer you’ll be as a diver. Here are some quick tips to get you in shape for your next dive.

Walk regularly

It seems overly simple, but it’s true– walking can help you to live longer. Research has shown that people who walk regularly are 50% less likely to die from heart disease than non-walkers. This fact is significant considering that heart disease is one of the leading killers of divers. Try to walk about 30 minutes per day.

Strength train

Strength training will make everything in life easier, including lugging your 50lb oxygen tank around. Leg exercises will help you to swim better. Working your core will help you support your back. And don’t forget that muscles burn calories. That means that the more muscle you have, the easier is it to keep extra weight off and it’s best to be a healthy weight when diving. 

Work on your feet and calves

Your feet and calves are muscles that are most likely to cramp when you are scuba diving. Your feet and calves are not accustomed to the work required by extended dives. Working on these muscles not only strengthens them, but it also increases circulation. The more blood flow to a muscle, the less likely you are to cramp up. Try to do toes grabs and calf lifts as part of your daily exercise routine.

Scuba Diving Tips for Beginners

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Are you considering “taking the plunge” and becoming certified to scuba dive? That’s great! But if you’re looking to join the world of underwater adventure, there are some important things you need to know first. 

Here are some tips for beginners:

  1. Choose a dive school

Before you can start scuba diving, you need to get proper training. So, after you decide to pursue scuba diving, your next step is finding a dive school that suits your needs. Choose a school that is in a location where you’re excited to visit because it will take you at least three days to become certified. It’s helpful to be in a place you enjoy.

After you’ve found a school in an interesting place, do some research. Check out the school’s reviews. You want to know the good, the bad, and the ugly. This is a matter of safety, so it isn’t to be taken lightly. Find out how many instructors the school has per student, how they conduct their safety briefings, and how effectively they communicate. 

  1. Be safe.

Some of the best things you can do for safety as a new diver begin before you even start school. Practice swimming for a few months before you go. You can also start a yoga or Pilates practice with a focus on controlling your breath. 

After your training (but before you jump in), be sure to take seasickness pills if you are prone to seasickness, cover up any open wounds, make sure that you’re healthy and free of any colds or sinus infections, and always double check your dive equipment. It’s also a good idea to practice reaching behind you toward your lower back because you’ll need to do this if your regulator comes out of your mouth. You’ll be less likely to panic when this happens if you’ve practiced recovering in several times. 

  1. Be smart.

Listen to your instructors. Stay close to them during your first dive and follow their directions. Keep an eye on your air tank and be sure to tell your instructor if it gets low, even if you think it’s too soon. Keep close to your buddy and communicate often. Part of diving is not only ensuring your safety, but your buddy’s as well. 

When it comes to sea life down below, keep a strict “look but don’t touch” policy with yourself. It’s OK to marvel at the creatures around you, but you don’t want to disturb them in any way. If you see a shark, don’t panic. Follow your guide’s instructions and proceed as normal, even if you choose to end the dive. Also, be sure to look up once in a while and see what’s around you rather than just below you. 

Common Scuba Diving Injuries

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Scuba diving is considered a primarily safe recreational activity. However, like any other activity you choose to do, there are some risks. The top three scuba diving injuries include decompression sickness (the bends), barotrauma, and animal envenomation. Diving injuries are avoidable if you know the symptoms and signs of injury. Keep these common scuba diving injuries in mind when planning your next dive.  

  • Decompression Sickness – Also known as “the bends,” decompression sickness is an injury that occurs when there is a quick decrease in the pressure surrounding a diver. Bubbles then form in the bloodstream and body tissue because of nitrogen absorbed at depth. A few symptoms of this sickness include: skin rash, itching, joint pain, dizziness, fatigue, and bladder problems. Symptoms will appear about one hour after diving, but could also show up 24-hours later. Severe symptoms include severe neurological trauma such as coma or paralysis. One primary way to prevent decompression sickness is to not push time or depth limits and to keep breathing throughout your entire dive. Oxygen should be administered right away to help alleviate symptoms and divers should then go through recompression therapy.
  • Ear Barotrauma – Ear barotrauma is the most common injury for scuba divers. According to the Divers Alert Network (DAN), “Barotrauma occurs when the pressure outside the ear is greater than in the middle ear space, and the diver does not sufficiently equalize.” If you have ear barotrauma, you will experience: a “full” sensation in your ear, severe ear pain, dizziness, and hearing loss. The best way to avoid this injury all together is to equalize often. However, if you do show symptoms of ear barotrauma see an ears, nose, and throat specialist right away.
  • Animal Envenomation – The ocean is filled with a variety of sea creatures, and it’s important to know that some species could injure or even kill you. DAN explains that envenomation “occurs when direct contact is made and the venom or toxin is injected by bite, puncture or sting.”  Envenomation comes from jellyfish, sea urchins, sea snakes, lionfish, and coral. Stings, bites, and punctures can cause severe irritation; in some cases, they may cause respiratory distress and hypotension. If you experience envenomation stop diving and seek medical attention as soon as possible. The best way to avoid this type of injury is to never handle any marine life.

For a successful, injury-free dive remember to breathe throughout your entire dive, equalize, and never handle sea creatures. All of the common scuba diving injuries are preventable if you take proper action. If you do experience any of these injuries, contact a medical professional right away.

A Short History of Scuba Diving

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A Short History of Scuba Diving

The first known instances of people breathing stored air under water can actually be found on the walls of caves. Cave paintings can be found depicting people using goat bladders to breath under water. Of course, there were many steps along the way the took us from goat bladders to today’s Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus.

The demand valve was the starting point for the scuba regulator we know today. Benoît Rouquayrol, a frenchman, first concepted and patented the demand valve back in 1860. It was initially developed for people to use when entering an area where it was difficult or unsafe to breath, such as a smoke filled room or a poisonous mine. The demand valve wasn’t thought to be used underwater until Rouquayrol met French Navy Lieutenant Auguste Denayrouze. Together, they designed a “regulator” for divers to use underwater with surface-supplied air. It was their regulator that inspired the diving rigs in Jules Verne’s 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, published in 1870.

More than 80 years later, Jacques-Yves Cousteau and Emile Gagnan created the first scuba system.

Compressed air cylinder systems had been developed prior to 1943, but Cousteau and Gagnan’s design was the first free flowed or hand controlled. In 1943, the Aqua Lung system was the first to successfully use a demand valve to deliver a diver compressed air from a cylinder. The single-stage, double-hosed “scuba-set” placed the demand valve and exhaust valve behind the head, able to deliver high-pressure stored air at a pressure divers could breathe.

This was an amazing innovation at the time. For the first time ever, divers could swim without having a direct connection to the surface.

In 1951, E.R. Cross invented the “Sport Diver,” thought of today as the first modern two-stage, single-hose regulator. Although at about the same time in Australia, Ted Eldred designed a similar system called the “Porpoise,” which leads many to debate who deserves the real credit.

Companies everywhere started to independently produce single-hose scuba regulators.

In 1958, engineers from Sherwood Manufacturing modified the piston regulator for underwater. Several other manufacturers adopted the piston design over the other widely used diaphragm design.

Then in 1985, Sam Le Cocq, in partnership with Sportsways, made the “Waterlung,” the first popular single-hose regulator.

Today, materials and size of scuba regulators differ from brand to brand, but the mechanics are actually surprisingly similar to the regulators made some 60 years ago.

Diving bells, hard hat, and surface supplied air laid the foundation for the equipment recreational scuba divers use today. Scuba diving couldn’t exist today without the regulator or self-contained underwater breathing apparatus (where “scuba” get’s it’s name) and compressed air.