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Diving in Sulawesi – Bunaken National Park

TRAVEL

Emma Ong - PADI MSDT

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WHERE ARE WE GOING?

Today we are diving in Sulawesi, Bunaken National Park, which is close to Manado City, North of Sulawesi in Indonesia.

WHY ARE WE DIVING IN SULAWESI, BUNAKEN NATIONAL PARK?

Sulawesi is an Indonesian island east of Borneo, which comprises of several long peninsulas radiating from a mountainous center. This means there is some amazing diving in Sulawesi, and Bunaken National Park is a top choice for diving in this region.

Bunaken National Park is a marine park in the north of Sulawesi island. It is located close to the center of the Coral Triangle. It is known to have the 2nd largest marine biodiversity in the world. Many turtles (Green & Hawksbill) can be spotted here with passing blacktip and white tip reef sharks.

Bunaken National Park is also home to some macro life. Hippocampus pontohi (one of the smallest pygmy seahorses species), are often spotted here. Warty frogfishes and clownfishes have also been spotted on the walls.

The diving is reef wall diving where often, the bottom is not visible.

HOW DO WE GET THERE?

To go diving in Sulawesi, you can fly from Singapore to Manado City 4 times a week. You can also catch a direct flight from Bali (Denpasar), Jakata, and Sorong. The airport is about 1.5 hours away from Tasik Ria Resort where we dived from.

WHICH DIVE SITES ARE MUST-SEE?

Mainland

Critter Circus I

The house reef of Tasik Divers (where I worked) boasts a variety of marine life. Our house reefs spans quite a distance and is broken up into 3 sections. It is a goldmine for muck diving where you be finding critters in the sand and seagrass. Here, we can find pairs and pairs of Ornate Ghost Pipefishes, Robust Ghost Pipefishes, the elusive Lembeh Sea Dragon, the tiny Shaun the Sheep Nudibranchs, spearing Mantis Shrimps, Peacock Mantis Shrimps and often, multiple cuttlefishes. This where we have had divers stay in one spot for over an hour and come up excited from all the little things they have seen!

Critter Cirus II

Right next to Critter Circus I is Critter Circus II. They might be located next to each other but the topography is vastly different. This dive site is covered in healthy hard coral. At the start of the dive, you’d be greeted with Staghorn corals (Acropora) that start at around 3m, going down to around 18m in depth. These corals are homes to schools of fusiliers, damselfishes snappers and groupers! If check some of the sponges here, you might be lucky to find 1 or 2 Giant Frogfishes camping out! And if you’re lucky, you might even see them mid-yawn!

Tanjung Kelapa

About 20 minutes away by speedboat lies our team’s favorite mainland dive site. It is said to have some of the richest Marine Life biodiversity, just behind Raja Ampat and Bunaken National park. We start the dive site along a sloping reef with coral bommies, seagrass, and patches of sand. You can find an abundance of lionfish, various ghost pipefishes, moray eels, cuttlefishes, nudibranchs and the occasional octopus. After spending about 20minutes here, the guide would most likely inch toward the mini wall. It is covered in sea fans, whip corals, anemone with school of midnight snappers, blue-spotted travellies, bumphead parrotfishes, redtooth triggerfishes and the passing Napolean Wrasse. Many nudibranchs, shrimps and crabs can be found here too.

Bunaken Dive Sites

Lekuan 2

There are 3 Lekuan dive sites but Lekuan 2 in particular, is a crowd favorite. Lekuan means elbow, or bend. The dive site is a wall that drops further than one can see. At some points of the site, the wall is less steep and one can see what seems like the bottom. On the walls, you can find scorpionfishes, leaf fish, Gorgorian Seafans and whip corals. In the blue, have a look out for passing white tip reef sharks and turtles!

Celah Celah

Celah Celah means crack – sort of like the space between tiles on the floor. This dive site is wall dive with cracks that go into the wall by almost 7m. These are caves as there’s always direct excess to the surface, even in the cracks themselves. It definitely is a unique experience to be hovering in the crack while looking out into the blue. At Celah Celah, in the blue, we also get the usual larger pelagics passing by – Whitetip reef sharks, blacktip reef sharks, eagle rays, green turtles and hawksbill turtles.

Fukui Point

Fukui Point is the only sloping reef dive site in Bunaken National Park. All other dive sites are walls. Fukui is the name of a Japanese lady who found this dive site many years ago. At the start of the dive, one would notice some artificial reef formations between 3-8m. Part of the reef was destroyed by unethical fishing methods some time ago and the damage can still be seen today. These artificial reef formations were set up for coral propagation in an attempt to offset the damage that was done by the illegal fishing. The artificial reef now attracts a school of snappers that tend to stay near the shallows and under the mooring line. As you continue on the dive, divers will be greeted by stunning healthy corals that are covered in both hard and soft corals. Have a look at the barrel sponges as we often find resting turning in them or on them. At 18-20m (tide dependent), divers can also find a large giant clam! It’s definitely a sight to see.

Bunaken Timur

Timur means east in Indonesian, and this dive site is located at the east of Bunaken National Park. The shallows of this dive site boast healthy soft coral and hence the nursery to many juvenile reef fish. So don’t be surprised if your dive guide spends most of their dive at 10m. Unlike the rest of the walls on Bunaken Island, there’s a larger variety of Nudibranchs on these walls. Aside from the various Chromodoris species that are abundant on the walls, have a closer look and you’ll find Coryphillina exoptata, Nembrothas and many more.

Manado Tua (Muka Gereja)

Manado Tua is a volcanic island located to the west of Bunaken Island and still falls within the Bunaken National Park. Tua means old so essentially, Manado Tua is the old Manado. A long time ago, a lot more people lived on Manado Tua but after an eruption, most of its population fled towards mainland Manado and live in what is now known as Manado City. We start the dive in front (muka) of a church (Gereja) and continue as a drift dive – wherever the current takes us. On the walls, look out for Giant Frogfish, flatworms, orangutan crabs, nudibranchs and in the blue, as always… the usual pelagics – Whitetip reef sharks, blacktip reef sharks, and eagle rays!

DO I NEED ADDITIONAL EQUIPMENT?

When diving in Sulawesi, the temperature ranges between 26-30° Celcius and a 3mm wetsuit is sufficient. Some people can go in shorts and a rash vest. Just be wary that there is an abundance of hydroids and fire coral so make sure you are comfortable with your buoyancy!

It is best to bring your own dive equipment. Rental for a full set of equipment can set you back by about 20-50 USD/Day.

WHAT LEVEL CERTIFICATION SHOULD I BE?

Most dive sites are easy and an Open Water certification (18 meters) is sufficient but as Bunaken is mainly wall diving, being an Advanced Open Water certified (30 meters) will give you the freedom to explore slightly deeper.

WHAT ARE THE CONDITIONS?

The water temperature is generally 26-30°C.

The best diving in Sulawesi is from February to October. Then the rainy season starts. Diving is still possible but visibility may be reduced.

Visibility averages a solid 20-35 meters.

HOW MUCH WILL I SPEND?

When diving in Sulawesi around Bunaken National Park, the price will average about 100 USD for 3 dives including lunch.

A full dive package of 5 Days / 4 Nights with 9 dives including accommodation and meals can cost around 550 USD.

TELL ME MORE

Tasik Ria Manado, the dive center where I worked, is 1 hour 15 mins away from the airport in average traffic. The resort is located on mainland Manado but away from the hustle and bustle of the city.

The dive center is about 45mins away from Bunaken National Park via speedboat and about 1 hr 20mins away via their big boats. The big boats are very comfortable with a kitchen onboard so meals and are cooked and served hot in between surface intervals.

Tasik Ria Manado also has an incredible house reef and is close to a few mainland dive sites that boast a wide variety of macro life. Cuttlefishes, nudibranchs, ornate ghost pipefishes and octopuses.

Other dive center options include Eco Divers Manado and Lumba-Lumba on the mainland and Siladen Resort and Two Fish on Bunaken National Park itself.

WHAT TYPE OF ACCOMMODATION IS AVAILABLE?

The area is mainly resorts with individual bungalows or similar to a hotel room set-up. It is best to stay where you dive as there will usually be diving and accommodation packages.

There are little to no hostel and guest houses available in the area.

WHERE DID YOU STAY?

I stayed in Tasik Ria Manado in 2 different room types; the Garden View and their Pool View rooms. The garden view rooms cost approximately 50 USD/Night and pool view rooms at 75 USD/night.

They are comfortable rooms with hot water and a/c.

WHAT DO WE DO ON SURFACE INTERVALS?

When you’re not diving, you can go snorkeling around Bunaken National Park! But if you are looking for some land activities, you could always check out Mount Tumpa, and hike up to the observation deck to give you an amazing view of the surrounding islands. There’s also a waterfall to visit, the Ratahan Telu Waterfall, and you can also try rafting at Timbukar down the Nimanga River!

How Does a Snorkel Work?

SNORKEL + FREEDIVE

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Snorkeling is a very popular recreational activity especially in warm waters around tropical islands. It allows you to explore the underwater world while remaining on the surface! It is very accessible to anyone with little equipment and no required training. Grabbing a snorkel, mask, and fins is the easiest way to explore coral reefs. But how does a snorkel work?

Marine Science Teacher, Anna Ortega on-site in South Caicos — Anna Ortega snorkeling on a conch survey in the Marine Protected Area off of South Caicos. Photo / Anna Ortega

How Does a Snorkel Work?

A snorkel works by letting a person breathe without lifting their head out of the water when swimming face down. Snorkels are accompanied by masks, which allow the person to see and breathe.

There are several types of snorkels. The most basic models are made from rubber or plastic, shaped into a slightly bent tube with a rubber or silicone mouthpiece attached to one end. They are typically about 1 foot or 30 cm long.

ZIPOUTE Snorkel Mask Full Face

Scubapro Escape Semi-Dry Snorkel

Bairuifu Freediving Snorkel

The snorkeler first attaches the snorkel to a mask with a snorkel release or holder. You will want to get the snorkel release or holder in a good position and ensure it doesn’t get entangled in your hair. Once the snorkel and mask are attached, the snorkeler swims on top of the surface and is able to breathe through the tube (snorkel) in order to observe the reef without having to lift their head to breathe all the time.

Why Can’t We Snorkel Underwater?

You may wonder why snorkels are not extremely long in length (which in theory would allow us to go deeper but still breathe at the surface). This is because the water pressure increases greatly and even at shallow depths the pressure will not allow your lungs to “pull” the air to depth. It is impossible past a certain depth.

Read More: Boyle’s Law in Scuba Diving. Understanding Pressure and Volume.

Furthermore, even a regular-sized snorkel traps Carbon Dioxide (CO₂). CO₂ trapped in a snorkel is called dead-air space. If you inhale CO₂ before the fresh air from the snorkel, it can lead to an air starved feeling and shortness of breath in extreme cases.

Traditional Snorkels

The most commonly used snorkels are traditional types. They are very cheap, easy to use and low volume. Basically, how this snorkel works is by placing one end of the tube in your mouth, and having the other end sticking out and sucking in air from the surface.

Most traditional snorkels are composed of a tube and a mouthpiece. They are light-weight and often made of a rubber or silicone material, making them flexible for easy storing. Scuba divers also use snorkels on the surface and often prefer traditional, low impact and light weights snorkels. Freedivers also prefer traditional snorkels since the sport of freediving is all about reducing the amount of equipment and equipment dependence.

Bairuifu Freediving Snorkel

Mares Dual Snorkel

These snorkels require the snorkeler to constantly manage their airway. Often water manages to get into the tube which needs to be cleared. After a breath-hold dive, the snorkeler needs to preserve enough air in order to clear the snorkel on the surface. The tube fills with water upon submersion and the forceful exhale on the surface blasts that water out of the tube.

This requires skill and practice.

Dry & Semi-Dry Snorkels

Dry snorkels feature newer technology built into the snorkel. They typically feature a drain valve situated at the bottom of the mouthpiece. This is a one-way valve, allowing air and water to escape, however no water to enter. This means that airway control is simpler compared to traditional snorkels. The small amount of water that accumulates with ill-fitted mouthpieces can exit the snorkel via the drain valve without the snorkeler having to constantly blow it out.

TUSA Hyperdry Elite II Snorkel

Cressi Foldable Adult Dry Snorkel

Furthermore, they often feature a splash guard (semi-dry) or ball valve (dry) at the end of the tube. A splash guard simply prevents most of the water from small waves to enter the tube and fill the snorkel. Whereas a dry snorkel prevents water from entering the tube altogether, even when fully submerged. Once you resurface with a dry snorkel, the valve allows air to flow both ways again. Some newer models allow exhaled air to escape the snorkel each time, reducing the amount of CO₂ inhaled each time.

Read More: How To Snorkel Effectively

Even a “dry snorkel” however is no guarantee that no water will enter the snorkel. Ill-fitted mouthpieces or a peculiar angle can still allow some water to enter. For beginners, these snorkels make snorkeling much easier. Many people give up on snorkeling because they do not know how to manage their airway effectively and are sick of breathing in lots of saltwater.

Full Face Snorkel Masks

Relatively new on the market are snorkel masks. These seal around the person’s face, allowing easy and continuous breathing through their mouth and nose. Full-face snorkeling masks keep the airways separate to prevent the mask from fogging up. The snorkel component on top is a dry snorkel design in order to prevent flooding of the full face mask.

WSTOO Snorkel Mask

Greatever G2 Snorkel Mask

Beginners are less likely to perform breath-hold dives (where you hold your breath and dive underwater completely). This is why full-face snorkel masks are very popular among beginners.

It is quite difficult to dive down with the large air pocket trapped near the snorkeler’s face. They do however keep water away from a snorkeler’s airways, which increases comfort for inexperienced ocean explorers. A regular snorkel with a mouthpiece can sometimes be uncomfortable for new snorkelers, so a full-face snorkel mask can be much more relaxing.

Snorkeling and Safety

Snorkeling seems so easy and safe. But is it? When asking how does a snorkel work, let’s consider that it is essentially a tube that you breathe through. A snorkel’s technology does not prevent drowning. This means that proper training and skill can greatly increase the effectiveness and safety of a snorkel.

Snorkeling can be dangerous in certain circumstances; rough water conditions, inability to swim, unfamiliarity with the equipment etc. Similar to scuba diving and free diving, snorkelers must also set personal limits. More experienced snorkelers or divers should always accompany a new and inexperienced snorkeler. It is many people’s first entry into the underwater world and it should be an enjoyable one.

Read More: Our Top Snorkeling Tips for Beginners

Conclusion

How does a snorkel work? Well, it really depends on what type of snorkel you use. However, they all provide air through a tube that is inhaled via the mouth. Snorkeling is often a gateway experience to scuba diving and free diving. In fact, it requires a decent amount of skill to do well, especially when duck diving down in order to get closer to the reef. Snorkels are a wonderful and easy way to start exploring the ocean.

Feeling Sick after Scuba Diving

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Scuba diving is a relaxing activity enjoyed by many people. It is also very safe. So why would some people be feeling sick after scuba diving? What are the causes of feeling a bit ill, and what is the difference between feeling sick after scuba diving vs. having a scuba diving illness such as decompression sickness?

Feeling Sick after Scuba Diving

Feeling sick after scuba diving can be quite common. Let’s first have a look at the minor sicknesses that can be brought on by scuba diving.

Dehydration

If I had a dollar for every dehydrated student I’ve had, I would have about 500 dollars! Every week we will have a student feeling ill after the dives, and most times it is mild dehydration. Common symptoms include; dizziness, tiredness, and difficulty breathing. In severe cases, I have seen students cramp up and lose feeling in their extremities; where they can’t move their fingers or toes. The symptoms can be very similar to Decompression Sickness (we will go talk about this further in this article) so the best way to avoid this is to drink lots of water and electrolytes before and after the dives. Avoid tea, coffee, and alcohol.

Seasickness

If you are not used to being on a boat, you may experience seasickness. This can range from mild (feeling a bit dizzy), to severe (non-stop throwing up/vomiting). The best place when you are feeling seasick is to get into the water as soon as possible. Believe me! Motion sickness is caused by your brain and your inner ear (which controls balance) and your eyes telling you two different things; for example, on the boat, you feel stable, but your eyes are telling you that you are moving. When you get into the water, you will be moving with the water and feeling the movement of the water which stops the seasickness.

The motion sickness can return when you get back onto the boat, and even for a while when you get back on-land. The best way to avoid this is to take non-drowsy motion sickness medication before getting on the boat, staying hydrated with water, and sitting in the middle of the boat (the most stable section) and looking out to the horizon.

Nerves

It is normal to feel a bit nervous before your dives, especially if it is your first dive in the open water. This may cause you to feel a bit dizzy and nauseous before, during, and after your dives. You may feel butterflies in your stomach and feel the need to throw up or use the toilet. The most important thing here is to remember to breathe and try to relax.

Food Poisoning

Most people will scuba dive for the first time on their tropical holidays. This is why the largest concentration of dive shops and certifications are in holiday destinations. So if you are overseas, you might be eating new and exotic food. Food that may not necessarily sit well with your stomach. Try to avoid spicy curries, seafood, greasy food, and questionable meat before your dives.

Physical Exercise

Diving might not seem it, but it is a physical activity and you will be burning calories! Moving tanks, weights, putting on the heavy equipment, engaging your core muscles to get into the right diving position underwater and getting back onto the boat are things that can cause you to sweat. If you are not used to exercising, you may feel it is physically strenuous and this can make you feel sick (think about the first time back at the gym!). Remember to hydrate and take it easy, especially under the blazing sun or in a hot drysuit.

Mental Exercise

Getting your Open Water certification is almost like going back to school! There are physics and dive theory to learn, new skills to get your head around, and exams!! Luckily, it’s not too difficult and quite repetitive (remember the course is open to 10-year-olds too). But learning something new and mentally stimulating your brain can be quite tiring. This can learn to some headaches, dizziness, and even nausea. Take it easy and talk to your Dive Instructor about slowing down the course and doing it in more sizable chunks.

Moving in a 3 Dimensional Space

It’s just the unbelievable fact that you can move in three dimensions.”
Sir David Attenborough

As Sir David Attenborough mentioned, being able to move in three dimensions; forwards / backwards, left / right, and up / down is an amazing and unbelievable notion. This is something that we cannot experience on land without electronics. Because we are not used to this motion, sometimes people can experience vertigo which leads to dizziness and nausea. If you are experiencing vertigo underwater, try closing your eyes to steady the spinning. You could also hold onto your buddy or a descent line. If you are still feeling sick after scuba diving, then lay down and rest for a while.

What is Decompression Sickness

Decompression sickness is caused when the nitrogen that you absorb during a dive forms bubbles in your blood and tissues as the pressure decreases (when you ascend). The biggest cause of this is ascending too fast, or spending too long at a certain depth and absorbing too much nitrogen. Other factors that increase the risk of decompression sickness (DCS) include but are not limited to; fatigue, excessive body fat, dehydration, older agee, and certain existing heart defects, such as a patent foramen ovale (PFO).

First Aid for suspected DCS is 100% oxygen on the boat or on-land. In severe cases, you may need to go into a recompression chamber or hyperbaric treatment chamber to simulate pressure for the nitrogen in your tissues to dissolve again.

Mild Decompression Sickness Symptoms

Dizziness
Headache
Confusion
Extreme fatigue
Tingling or numbness in arms or legs
Joint pain
Weakness in arms or legs

As you can see, some of these symptoms can overlap with other causes of sickness after scuba diving. This is why it is important to ensure you are fit to dive, hydrated, well-rested, and ready for a scuba dive. This will reduce the risk of feeling sick after scuba diving, and will also reduce the likelihood of DCS.

Conclusion

There are many reasons to be feeling sick after scuba diving. Hopefully, it is not a lasting feeling, and most causes of sickness can be explained by mild factors such as nerves or seasickness. Of course, there is the risk that your symptoms may be DCS but this is rare if you follow the basic scuba diving rules. The main thing to remember when scuba diving is to relax, breathe, and take it easy. No wonder we call it the ‘lazy sport!’

Do You Need To Be Certified To Go Scuba Diving?

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Do You Need To Be Certified To Go Scuba Diving?

Scuba diving has gained in popularity in recent years. It is on many an adventurer’s bucket list. Discovering the ocean and experiencing what lays beneath the waves lures many explorers young and old. James Bond strapped a tank to his back and went diving. Did MI6 train him? Did he have a certification to scuba dive? It seems so simple, just breathe, right? Do you need to be certified to go scuba diving?

Scuba diving is a very safe sport. In contrast, it is listed under extreme sports in most insurance policies and diving without certification is not covered. This is due to the potential dangers of scuba diving. Afterall you are breathing compressed air underwater, relying on properly functioning equipment. You need to know what to do if something goes wrong and avoid drowning.

Some Ground Rules

First, let’s define a few parameters of this question. The word “need” for one. Technically you do not “need” to be certified to go scuba diving. What you would need is to procure the necessary equipment as well as figure out how to use it. If you did, you could go scuba diving without being certified.

A far better way to experience scuba diving without being certified is to take an introduction to scuba diving class. These are designed as one-day programs where uncertified divers can experience scuba diving under the supervision of a certified scuba diving professional. These programs will teach you the very basics of safety and equipment use.

Secondly, what is “scuba” diving exactly? Scuba stands for Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus. This means that we take our air supply underwater with us. SNUBA is a system growing in popularity with aquariums and resorts around the world. SNUBA is a long hose that supplies divers with air from the surface to a depth of about 6m. Commercial divers also rely on a surface supplied air source, like the team in the Last Breath documentary. These systems, however, are not technically scuba diving.

Do You Need To Be Certified To Go Scuba Diving?

As established above, you don’t need to be certified to go scuba diving. In saying that, I highly recommend getting certified with an agency before scuba diving.

Scuba diving agencies include; PADI, SSI, RAID, BSAC, NAUI, and more.

Scuba diving is easy to learn. If safe diving practices are adhered to, it is extremely safe. As a result, these rules and practices are taught during scuba diving certification courses. A major focus of getting scuba certified is preventing and managing problems. Scuba diving on all levels relies heavily on redundancy. A lot of backups and double-checking prior to the dive. Very easy to follow safety rules and training limits keep divers safe. Knowing these requires a scuba diving certification. Not knowing some very basic safety procedures can seriously endanger someone.

Read How Hard is it to Scuba Dive?

What about Mini-Dive or Scorkl?

We defined SCUBA above as a self-contained underwater breathing apparatus. The mini-dive or Scorkl are such devices. Essentially these are tiny 3.5L compressed air tanks with a mouthpiece attached. A snorkeler can, therefore, extend their duck dive considerably. As a professional diver, I am horrified by such devices. Disregarding the possibility of losing the tank at depth and not monitoring ascent rates, a certified diver could use these relatively safely.

However, selling them to the general public as a safe underwater breathing device is wreckless. Improper use of compressed air while submerged can lead to air embolism, decompression sickness, lung over-expansion injury, and drowning.

Getting A Scuba Diving Certification

Because scuba diving is so popular today it is relatively easy and inexpensive to obtain a scuba diving certification. Getting a scuba diving certification can cost between US$350 – US$500. These courses generally include your equipment and training materials as well as a training session and 4 dives in open water.

The most popular course is the open water certification. This certification allows you to dive to 18m independently with a buddy of the same or higher certification level. It takes a minimum of 3 days to get your open water license.

A scuba diver certification limits and certification holder to 12m and diving with a professional still, but it can be completed in as little as 2 days.

Final Thoughts

I cannot with good conscience recommend anyone dive without a certification unsupervised. However, it is not illegal to do so. There is no underwater police that will catch you. So, do you need to be certified to go scuba diving? If you do not want professional supervision then yes, absolutely, yes. Otherwise, it is comparable to buying a parachute at the minimart and jumping out of a plane you manage to sneak on.

Calories Burned During Scuba Diving

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Is diving a viable way to lose weight? Are the calories burned during scuba diving sufficient enough to count as working out? Diving is often referred to as a ‘lazy sport’ as we rely on our buoyancy to hover in the water and we use minimal movements underwater to conserve our air consumption. Part of the recommended safe diving practices is to do as little as possible during and after your dive. So how many calories are actually burned during scuba diving?

Scuba Diving and Health

Being in good physical fitness is something most avid divers strive for. It is in the course material for professional diver training to maintain an active lifestyle and stay fit as well as eating a healthy and balanced diet. This is because being unhealthy, out of shape and overweight can increase the risks of decompression sickness.

Calories Burned During Scuba Diving

It will depend on what type of dive you do. Since most of us try to avoid strenuous dives in extreme conditions such as strong currents, extreme cold etc. these are not the numbers we are going to focus on.

But even a normal, easy dive can burn a significant amount of calories.

You will be engaging your core, glute and back muscles when you learn how to streamline your body into a ‘trim position’ to move efficiently through the water. You will also be kicking from the hip, moving your whole leg up and down when using your fins properly. This is working out your body from head to toe during a dive.

PADI estimates that diving for one hour in temperate water can burn up to 600 calories.

In warm, tropical waters the calories burned when scuba diving drop to as little as 300 calories per hour.

We can also consider the out-of-water benefits of diving. Lifting scuba tanks, putting on weights and carrying dive equipment can be compared to lifting weights and doing squats in the gym.

Does Being Cold Burn More Calories?

Temperature is a huge factor when calculating how many calories you burn when scuba diving. Your body seeks to keep a core temperature of 37°C / 98°F, this means in colder waters your body is working harder to keep you warm, meaning you burn more calories. The body’s metabolic functions are increased in order to produce heat. In addition, water draws heat away from us about 20-25 times as fast as air. Therefore, even in tropical water which is still cooler than our body temperature, our body is working in order to prevent cooling down.

To compare these numbers, 600 calories an hour is about the same as jogging and 300 calories an hour is comparable to hiking.

Dive Trips as a Weight-Loss Strategy?

Liveaboards, such as The Junk in Thailand, often conduct 3 dives a day with an optional night dive. These trips are known to be; eat, dive, sleep, then repeat. Scuba divers love to snack often in between dives during these Liveaboard trips and rightfully so.

Partaking in a 4 dive day trip in the tropics adds up to about 1200 calories. The same trip in temperate waters will burn up to 2400 calories a day! The recommended daily calorie intake for men is 2000 and women 1500. This means you burn more than your recommended daily intake.

This is only counting what you burn during the dive and not additional calories burned during logistical activities around scuba diving. Being on a boat, spending time outside in the sun, lifting tanks, preparing equipment, climbing onto the boat after the dives, surface swims, etc.

The Final Word

In fact, calories burned during scuba diving are considerable enough for Men’s Journal to consider them a viable workout option. When on a diving trip and partaking in multiple dives a day that beer at the end of the day can be enjoyed guilt-free. And those cookies during the surface interval. The best part about diving and burning those calories is that you don’t even realize that you are actually exercising!