Scuba Diving Safety and the Importance of Physical Fitness

A high level of physical fitness is important to be able to scuba dive safely. Good cardiovascular fitness, strength, and flexibility are all important for divers, with cardiovascular fitness being the most important.

Good cardiovascular fitness is important because this kind of fitness decreases our chances of getting 'decompression sickness.' When we dive, and breath air under pressure, our body absorbs nitrogen, which has to be removed from the body during the ascend and after the dive. This removal process is called 'off-gassing.' And the better our cardiovascular fitness, the faster we 'off-gas,' and the smaller our chances of getting 'decompression sickness.'

When a dive is more demanding then usual, because we have to swim against a current, or make a long surface swim after the dive, the fittest divers experience the least discomfort, and therefor enjoy the dive the most.

Two other aspects of good cardiovascular fitness, that benefit the diver, are the 'delayed panic response' and the lower amount of 'body-fat' that are typical for somebody with a good level of fitness. The 'delayed panic response' is the phenomenon that the fitter you are, the more time it takes before you panic when problems arise, simply because you are working well within the limits of your physical possibilities.

The lower amount of body-fat means that we absorb less nitrogen, because fat is the body tissue that absorbs the most nitrogen. And the less nitrogen we absorb during the dive, the less we have to off-gas after the dive. Again, our chances of getting 'decompression sickness' are smaller.

Strength also benefits the diver, when lifting heavy scuba diving equipment, or climbing a boat-ladder in full gear. Another aspect of well-developed strength is that muscle-mass helps to keep divers warm during long dives, especially dives with long decompression stops. When you get cold your muscles start working harder to keep you warm, and the more muscles you have, the easier this is accomplished.

The last aspect, flexibility, is especially important for technical divers with twin-set tanks, who need to be able to close their valves in emergencies. To do these 'valve-drills' you need good shoulder flexibility, and for a lot of divers this means that a deliberate stretching routine has to be followed to achieve this flexibility.

Therefor, good cardiovascular fitness is important for every diver, and extra body strength and shoulder-flexibility are mainly important for technical divers. But every diver benefits from a good workout routine that encompasses all three aspects of physical fitness. You can never be too fit, and fitness serves us in other activities as well, not just when we are scuba diving.

Since being in good shape has so many benefits for us, we should make our 'workout routine' a regular part of our life. With a bit of planning everybody should be able to set aside three or four hours a week for working on their physical fitness.

The benefits of good physical fitness are enormous, and make you a better and safer diver.

Thijs Hottenhuis,
Scuba Diving Instructor, Web-writer and Webmaster of:
http://www.safediving.org/
"The Online Encyclopedia Of Scuba Diving Safety."
http://www.scuba-diving-links.com
"The Biggest and most Up-To-Date Scuba Diving Links Directory on the Internet."
If you love scuba diving, you will love these two websites!

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