What you eat just might make the difference between a good, safe dive and a real bummer: a trip to the chamber. This quick guide will help you decide what to eat before diving to have the best possible experience.
Six to three days before
This is the time to build your water and carbohydrate stores. Note the order of importance. It is a must to drink enough water so that your urine is ‘copious and clear’ the last few days before a dive. Being well hydrated is thought by many to be vital to the prevention of decompression sickness. Excessive alcohol intake or a bout of local “Montezuma’s Revenge” will dehydrate one rapidly, and it might take a day or two to recover from becoming dehydrated.
Be sure to choose a good portion of your foods from the bread/starch and fruit categories. Roughly one-half to two-thirds of your calories should be from complex carbohydrates (whole grains, pasta, veggies, fruit, etc.) depending on the intensity of your diving. If you’re doing a full week of repetitive dives, stay closer to the two-thirds calories from carbs and eat plenty of calories. Also, make sure you get enough protein by taking in low-fat dairy products, beans, nuts (use for salads and cooking) soy products, and lean meat and fish.
Two days before
This is the day to be sure you have plenty of water in your system and plenty of calories. It’s here that some people get into trouble on long airplane trips by ingesting too much alcoholic beverages. The alcohol acts as a diuretic, directly causing dehydration. In addition, the dry atmosphere of the airplane cabin can cause significant fluid loss.
Most people do well to eat a little more than usual on this day, sticking to high carbohydrate foods and evenly spaced meals. Some people prefer to get the extra calories from food while others like sports drinks or milk. Also, work on getting a few good nights sleep here, because it can be difficult to sleep restfully on a plane trip to the dive site.
Day before
Here is where most divers get into trouble: overeating during the trip to the dive site. Avoid bad eating habits you may slip into if you have to travel to the dive. Eating a little less than usual today will make you a little lighter tomorrow on your dive day, so drop your intake by about 500 calories. One of the worst things you can do is raid the pre-dive pasta bash. Lots of oil-laced pasta, buttered bread, and high-fat salad dressing will only give you plenty of “ammo” for the boat head in the morning. At this point, it’s too late to make up for poor eating earlier in the week. Diarrhea on a dive boat is not a good thing! Stick with broth-based soup, Jello, cereal, low-fat pudding, fruit, vegetables, instant breakfasts, and sports drinks on this day. Be sure to drink a little extra water.
