ISE Fitness Requirements Published by Achim Schlöffel on 2010-05-26

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Dear ISE Members,

after the first annual ISE Meeting on May 8th we went back to the drawing board and started to change some things within the structure of ISE as well as in the classes / perquisites.

Some of You might have noticed that at some pint we already started to work on the fitness requirements and added the opportunity of a run instead of a swim.

During the meeting we addressed this topic again and after an intense and thoughtful discussion we decided that we need a better and more realistic fitness test.

As ISE is always focused on having the most qualified experts for every topic we laid the fitness issue in the hands of HQ-Staff-Member Bernd Rentz.

Bernd Rentz is a certified social pedagogue and a natural health professional. On top of that he has years of experience in teaching Karate as a Shihan 7th Dan and works as a professional fitness trainer for several groups. His diving career started in 1981. He is an active diving instructor for various organizations and is a member of the ISE Quality Assurance Board. His website can be visited at www.balancebalu.de.  

Before I go into the details of the new requirements I would like to add some additional information about the “why” and the thoughts behind the requirements. While it is unquestionable that technical diving needs a certain level of fitness it is also without doubt that the level required depends much on the kind of diving done. .

The three main points of discussion were:

a)    Does the BoE need a fitness test at all?

b)    Is there a difference between the test for male / female divers?

c)    Is the test age related.

a)    Every diving class requires some sort of swim test or a test of the general aquatic skill of its participant. As ISE requires a BoE Student to be a certified diver we can assume that the person met the requirements for his initial training agency. Furthermore The ISE BoE is intended to be an entry class that should act as a starter into a more solid form of diving might it be technical diving or simply more solid recreational diving that allows the diver to accomplish his dives easier and in a much more safe way that will in the end result in more fun on the activity at all. ISE does not require a special equipment configuration from the BoE student as we want the student to be open for all, be able to test and leave the class as an educated customer that knows why he or she need to buy certain gear and what serves his or her needs best. As a continuation of this philosophy we will not require a BoE fitness test. Of course, if a student has a tremendous problem within the class and the instructor decides that the participation in the class might not be safe, it is up to the instructors to remove the person in question from the class. For the following Levels (I / II / III) the requirements are described as follows. Instead of a simple swim test that can be a good proof but might also be not objective at all the new test will give a much better view on the individual and also allow the student with weaknesses in certain discipline to still proof his or her overall fitness.

b)    There is no difference for the male or female divers. The tank has a certain weight, the ladder is a certain height, so the strength the diver needs to accomplish the given task is the same all the time.

c)    Also regarding age there is no difference in the requirements. Basically it applies what is pointed out under “b”  

ISE Fitness Requirements: 

Level I (Exploration / Wreck / Cave) 

400 meters swimming in less than 15 min & free dive a distance of 15 Meters. 

or alternatively

Snorkel 800 meters (with fins) in less than 18 min. & free dive a distance of 25 meters

or alternatively 

Run 1000 Meters in less than 5 min. 

Level II (Exploration / Wreck / Cave) 

600 meters swimming in less than 15 min. & free dive a distance of 20 meters

or alternatively

Snorkel 800 meters (with fins) in less than 16 min. & free dive a distance of 30 meters

or alternatively 

Run 1000 Meters in less than 4 min. 

additionally 

10 pushups & 6 pull-ups & 30 sit-ups in 40 sec

Level III (Exploration / Wreck / Cave) 

1000 meters swimming in less than 25 min. & free dive a distance of 35 meters

or alternatively

Snorkel 800 meters (with fins) in less than 14 min. & free dive a distance of 50 meters

or alternatively 

Run 1000 Meters in less than 3:30 min. 

additionally 

12 pushups & 8 pull-ups & 30 sit-ups in 40 sec

The new fitness test is mandatory from today on and will be included in the course descriptions in the next few days if not already done.

Kind Regards

Achim R. Schloeffel

ISE-President

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