Equalizing & Buoyancy

[farawayheart]

I hope this is the right place to post

#1 Equalizing - how come some people can do it by swallowing, and other's can't?
I personally can, and I know other's can, yet I've never met anyone. And it just baffles me why some can and some can't, and why it appears to be so unusual.
Also, as I go down deeper (I don't mean extreme, just more than 4 metres) it gets harder to do it.

#2 Buoyancy - about a year ago when I first started swimming, I could barely stay under without floating straight up to the surface. I would have to either kick and move to stay down, or let out all my air.
But from about a month ago, it's improved drastically. I have to KICK to surface. Amazing XD
What causes this change? I can't see how it's just from being under, because you can't really "practise" buoyancy, can you? Also, the change seemed sudden.

Thanks for any information you can all give me =)

 

[azapa]

I hope this is the right place to post

#1 Equalizing - how come some people can do it by swallowing, and other's can't?
I personally can, and I know other's can, yet I've never met anyone. And it just baffles me why some can and some can't, and why it appears to be so unusual.
Also, as I go down deeper (I don't mean extreme, just more than 4 metres) it gets harder to do it.

#2 Buoyancy - about a year ago when I first started swimming, I could barely stay under without floating straight up to the surface. I would have to either kick and move to stay down, or let out all my air.
But from about a month ago, it's improved drastically. I have to KICK to surface. Amazing XD
What causes this change? I can't see how it's just from being under, because you can't really "practise" buoyancy, can you? Also, the change seemed sudden.

Thanks for any information you can all give me =)

welcome, and yes, this is the right place:

Equalization: it is quite easy to make your ears crackle on the surface, head up, for many people via swallowing or yawning. It gets harder the deeper you go because of several reasons:
- the air reserve you use shrinks with the pressue and is therefore less available
- you head is down
- tension in general induced by the dive
A classic failure point for EQ is first 4 or 5 M, and then 12 to 15, after that is sorted out progression is slow but more consistent.
- "hands free" eq. as you describe, is wonderful, and you are lucky, work on and improve

Buoyancy:
there is no way in the world, save maybe munching rocks or lead, that with the same air volume in your lungs dives can get easier. to be honest the more you dive on full inhale, the bigger your lungs (and therefore floatability). what is probably happening:
- you are improving your duck-dive (water entry) and finning style, and you are going deeper (becoming less buoyant in the process)
- you are subconsciously inhaling less (look up FRC) or inhaling same but purging on the way down

good luck and try to do a freediving course

 

[farawayheart]

Ooh, that's interesting about the equalizing. So when you say work on and improve, do you mean just keep on doing it, practising?

And hmm, that's odd about buoyuncy. I think the last idea sounds most likely (about not taking in as much), because I don't see how it would be the duckdive as I can literally just float there about a metre underwater and not pop up; very odd compared to before. Also, I've been very naughty and I haven't been practising my breathholds half as much as I should be, so I can't be taking in as much as I should be anyway.

 

[irtrogdor]

another factor that could be affecting your buoyuncy is body fat - have you been exercising more (besides the diving)? The more fat you have, the more you float.

 

[farawayheart]

I have actually lost a bit of weight recently, so that's an interesting possible factor.


Another little thing I had forgotten, related to what apaza said about inhaling - recently, as I dive down, I keep doing a hard snort of air out. I don't know why, I almost do it out of...fun. So that could be taking out big enough chunk of my air to affect buoyancy?

 

[azapa]

I can literally just float there about a metre underwater and not pop up;

sounds David Blaneish

are you using any weight or wetsuit? I have never met anyone who can do that with even half full lungs let alone a full inhale..

 

[farawayheart]

Lol XD
Nope, nothing; just a swimsuit, or bikini. (depending on whether it's my diving lessons or just fun swim with a friend).
I'm next swimming on Friday, so I shall have to experiment! Maybe, embarassingly, I'm exaggerating, if it's really that unusual. The last time it happened was yesterday - I had done a backflop, and was rather paralyzed by pain, so i just floated there for a little while until it faded off - but could somehow the unsual landing, the hard slap, affect this? Just playing around with ideas, since that's the last incident that's fresh in my mind since it hurt so much
Like i said, i shall experiment on friday, float at different depths with different amounts of air.

 

[azapa]

you probably winded yourself! hence no air. be careful with those backflips in bikinis, all sorts of stuff can go wrong

 

[farawayheart]

Good point - I didn't think of that because I feel the need for air, but mind you, I wouldn't have even noticed with my back screaming away!
Lol, i know!! It was a swimming costume, because it was my diving lessons.

 

[Atlantis Fire]

Here's what I know from my experience.

Equalizing: Can dramatically vary from person to person due to technique, lung volume, ear canal shape size and length and all sorts of other factors I probably don't know about. I personally find it easy to equalize on the surface just swallowing, but below maybe a meter it's almost impossible.

Buoyancy: From scuba diving I know it gets a whole lot easier with experience, mostly from being more relaxed doing the diving. Could you be having a much easier time because now you are very comfortable in the water? But as other people have said, changes in body composition have a huge effect. Losing fat and/or gaining muscle can change your buoyancy a lot.