Medical Questions
Fitness and diving
I’ve been practicing weight lifting for several years. Three years ago I approached the world of diving, and I understood the importance of aerobic training. My question is: what would be the best routine to follow on a treadmill to improve my performance in the water? What should my heart rate be while running, and for how long? I’m 40 years old, I weigh 93 kg and I’m 193 cm. I’ve always practiced a variety of sports; I’ve recently switched to tech diving and I’d like to improve my overall fitness level.
Answer from DAN experts:
The optimal frequency for aerobic training should be between 50 and 70% of maximum heart rate (MHR), in your case this means from 90 to 126 bpm. Engaging in aerobic exercise (fast walking, running) and keeping these heart rate standards should also prepare you to deal with sudden changes in heart rate due to an unfavorable context while diving, for example due to unexpected weather conditions during your dive profile. Again, an Exercise ECG will verify that your cardiovascular performance is adequate for any type of dive if you reach 13 METS, a MET being a unit of metabolic equivalent.
