Why is Scuba Diving So Tiring?

The kind of tiredness that we experience after doing something active and adventurous can be immensely satisfying—especially if we're in a location where we can have a quick snooze in a hammock under some palm trees!

However, when scuba diving is your activity of choice, it's important to be self-aware when it comes to tiredness. This is a positive habit for ensuring safety in and out of the water and is something that every scuba diver should engage in.

But, you may well ask, why is scuba diving so tiring in the first place?

There are lots of reasons why it's perfectly normal to feel tired after scuba diving, ranging from the effort of moving through the water to experiencing anxiety when first breathing through a regulator.

The good news is that with the right information to hand, you can assess whether the degree of tiredness you experience is normal exertion, a sign that you can work on your diving practice from a psychological perspective or something that you should worry about.

Today, we're going to break down the ins and outs of scuba diving fatigue, illuminating answers to questions like_why is scuba diving so tiring,_ so that you can dive with confidence.

Why Is Scuba Diving So Tiring? Let's Break it Down:

For some scuba enthusiasts, post-diving tiredness might feel akin to what we experience after a really intense gym session—some muscle fatigue and a bit of lethargy that lifts after refueling with a snack, getting hydrated, and having a chill for a while.

However, if you ever feel dizzy or light-headed after a dive and eating and drinking don't make any difference, then it's important to be alert to the risks of decompression sickness.

Read on as we cover all of these reasons why scuba diving is so tiring and more.

The Exertion of Moving Through the Water

Because of the feeling of weightlessness that we experience when scuba diving, it's easy to imagine that it isn't a very intense form of exercise, but that's actually quite far from the truth.

In fact, all of those slow, tranquil movements that you make underwater can burn anywhere between 300 and 600 calories per hour, which is the equivalent of going for a slow jog or a steady run. We're sure you'll agree that jogging or running for as long as a scuba diving session would leave most people feeling pretty tired!

Even though our movements when submerged aren't as fast as the ones we might make on dry land, our bodies have to do a lot more work to stabilize us and are constantly subject to the resistance of the water.

Water is much denser than air, so raising your arm to point or kicking your feet requires more energy.

There are some tactics, however, that you can use to minimize how much energy you burn through.

Try to avoid fighting against the water, and certainly the current. Consciously slow your movement and take your time—being underwater is a joy, so there's no need to rush! Making sure that your buoyancy and weighting are on point will also help to minimize movement-related fatigue.

If in doubt about how to get set up correctly, ask your diving instructor for assistance.

The Scuba Diving Prepare and Pack Away

When asking themselves why scuba diving is so tiring, many people forget to think about all of the efforts that they make on either side of being in the water.

Listening to the brief, preparing your scuba rig, figuring out the best route to your entry point, transporting people and kit to location, carrying everything down the beach, or sitting in the sun on a boat can all demand a fair amount of our energy. And then, when the dive is over, everything has to be done in reverse before you can debrief and put your feet up!

If you find yourself getting very fatigued when you go diving, you can try to reduce this part of the process to a certain extent. Making choices like opting for diving locations with accessible entry points and comfortable facilities can help.

You can choose a dive center that will assist with getting your kit on site or take you by boat to the most convenient location. You can also be mindful not to carry too much at once, avoid wearing your weight while carrying your gear, and so on. In this area, mindfulness goes a long way.

Scuba Fatigue and Water Temperature

As you might have guessed, being wise to water temperature is always a big priority for the Sea Temperatures team!

We know all too well how important it is to be prepared for the temperatures of the water when diving in because water is a very efficient thermal conductor. You see, being in 70ºF (21ºC) water is very different from standing in air at the same temperature.

This is because water is around 25x more effective at conducting temperatures than air, which means that when we are submerged, our bodies will lose heat_much_faster.

When we get cold in the water, our bodies work very hard to keep us warm enough by making us shiver and constricting our blood vessels to keep more of our blood closer to our organs—which in turn makes it necessary for our hearts to work harder.

All of this is bound to contribute to scuba diving tiredness, but there are things that we can do to minimize temperature loss.

Whenever you plan a scuba diving trip, be sure tocheck the water temperature first and take the right diving apparel with you. This will include choosing the right thickness of wetsuit to insulate your body in proportion to the water temperature. In warmer locations, a 2mm shorty might be fine, but in colder locations, a 7mm full-length wetsuit with a hood, cloves, and booties may be a must. Or you might opt for a drysuit to stay the warmest.

You can also prepare lots of warm dry gear and a hot drink for as soon as you come out of the water, to help you get back up to temperature quickly.

The Psychological Impacts of Diving

While it's absolutely true that scuba diving is a great way to relax once you've got the hang of it, some new or nervous divers experience anxiety and stress in the water that can leave them feeling tired afterward.

They might not even realize, it because they don't feel distressed. But things like breathing too quickly when still getting used to using a regulator, clenching muscles because the sensations of diving feel quite strange, or elevated heart rate purely because the experience is so different from anything else are all entirely normal responses!

Of course, on occasion divers may find that they feel a little claustrophobic under the water, or they may even encounter vertigo when looking down at the seabed below them.

All of these factors can contribute to answering the question,why is scuba diving so tiring?

To combat these kinds of fatigue, you can work with an instructor that you trust, at your own pace. You can also avoid going on dives that exceed your experience level, and build a support network with your diving buddies.

Finally, it helps to actively remind yourself to relax and breathe more gently under water—sometimes we get so excited, we can ramp ourselves up without meaning to. With time, as all of the sensations of diving become more familiar, these kinds of underwater stresses will inevitably melt away!

Decompression Sickness Or “The Bends”

Last but not least, we come to the kind of post-diving tiredness that should always ring alarm bells.

It's good to know that when scuba divers listen carefully to their instructors and follow great practices when coming back up from a dive, decompression sickness is not something to worry about. That said, because this condition can be so serious, it is very important to understand the risks, various prevention strategies, and signs to watch out for in case something goes wrong.

So what exactly is decompression sickness? Sometimes also known as DCS or “the bends”, decompression sickness is an injury that can be sustained by the body when a person ascends too quickly in the water. This can cause nitrogen bubbles to form in the bloodstream as the pressure outside of the body decreases more rapidly than the body can adjust to.

Decompression sickness can be life-threatening, so it is essential to always ascend slowly and cautiously. Symptoms can include extreme fatigue, dizziness, loss of coordination, tremors, aches and pains, eyesight issues, confusion, coughing, and stomach pain. If any of these symptoms manifest after scuba diving, it's best to get checked out immediately.

Happily, avoiding the risks of decompression sickness is as simple as returning to the surface in a slow and controlled manner. That's why your diving instructor will teach you to do safety stops on the way up—pausing for a few minutes at certain depths to allow your body time to adjust to the pressure changes.

One of the core functions of dive computers is also to aid with safe ascents, so if you're planning on becoming a dedicated scuba diver, a dive computer will probably be a great investment.

For more advanced divers, switching from air in your tanks to nitrox, which contains less nitrogen than the air naturally does, can also help to minimize the risks.

Finally, staying hydrated and avoiding flying on diving days will support your body's ability to regulate its internal pressure.

Hopefully, now you'll feel more confident in answering the question, why is scuba diving so tiring? Do you have any tips that we missed? If so, we'd love to hear them!

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