Scuba Gear for Women: Fixing the Fit Problems No One Talks About
More women are getting scuba certified today, than ever before. Traditionally a male dominated sport, women now represent around 30% of new divers.
While becoming more visible in the industry, there are still subtle and silent barriers that women face while progressing in this sport. One of the biggest challenges and barriers to entry is finding appropriately fitting equipment.
Most scuba gear has been designed with the average male body in mind; so petite, bustier or curvier women often have to deal with ill-fitting gear. While your instructor may not tell you this, having gear that does not properly fit or feel comfortable will significantly impact your progress and comfort underwater. This is why many women invest in their own gear early on in their scuba journey.
In recognition of Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day on March 8, we have put together a guide to help you navigate shopping for scuba gear. Pull up a seat, because today we’re going to talk about the stuff you don’t feel like explaining on a boat full of men.
Rental Equipment Pitfalls:
As a woman diver, you have likely had one or more experiences with rental gear that has impacted your dive. Regardless, of your size or shape you might have experienced one of the following:
- BCD chest straps cutting across breast tissue
- BCD riding-up at the surface (especially jacket-style BCDs)
- Excess squeeze across bust in wetsuits
- Sizing up on a wetsuit to fit your thighs or bottom
- Restricted breathing sensation from ill fitting wetsuit
- Cramps, blisters or fatigue from ill-fitting fins
- Unavailability of proper fitting equipment
- Bruised hips from weight belts
- Leaky masks on smaller faces
Most dive center rental fleets optimize for average male sizing with mid-range body proportions. This means that outlier sizes are more difficult to find especially in smaller dive centers or remote locations.
Women who are petite, curvier, larger-busted, plus-size, short-torso, small feet
are more likely to fall outside that “middle” and are more likely to have to compromise on comfort and fit when choosing rental gear. If you have found yourself spending more of your dive fiddling and adjusting your gear, know that you are not alone. However, options do exist that are tailored to women divers that will make your dive experience more enjoyable.
When you own gear it means you know that it specifically fits you. You don’t have to worry about anyone guessing your size or making comments about your body. It also ensures that you are not at the mercy of a rental fleet that does not offer your size.
Wetsuits
Women generally report feeling colder than men on dives. And while there is no scientific proof for this, factors such as hormones and percentage of body fat versus muscle can impact how women experience prolonged exposure in the water.
Trying on a wetsuit is never a fun experience, especially when a dive bro is sizing up your body to try to figure out what size to put you in. This is why many women invest in their own suit, especially if they are an outlier size-petite, big busted or plus size.
Fit is critical when finding a wetsuit and many people size too big when first buying a suit, overlooking that the suit will stretch once it is worn and submerged in water. Most basic wetsuits have 10–30% stretch. What this means in practical terms is that if a panel measures 50cm across, 20% stretch means it can extend to about 60cm under tension. Some suits such as the Aqualung HydroFlex 3mm wetsuit features super-stretch neoprene, stretching up to 250%, this is particularly useful for women with different upper and lower body proportions.
Our Pick: Aqualung 3mm Hydroflex
Your wetsuit should fit snuggly on land. It should be a little tight zipping up but you should easily be able to reach your arms over your head and touch your toes once you have it on. You should feel a little tight but no pressure or restrictions on breathing.
Our Pick: Bonassi Colombo 3mm Shorty
When choosing a size, you will likely have to size up one or two sizes from what you wear in typical off the rack clothing. If you are typically a XS or S, don’t be offended or upset if you need to size up to a Medium or a Large.
Our Pick: Aqualung 5.5mm Women's Wetsuit
Wetsuits and women’s sporting equipment tends to skew small so always consult the size chart and if you are in between sizes always size up. Whenever possible visit the store to try on wetsuits to get the perfect fit.
Our Pick: Aqualung 1mm Women's Hydroflex Wetsuit
Base Layers
Base layers are the secret that no one talks about. Too often you are told just to wear a swimsuit under your wetsuit and while that provides basic coverage it doesn't protect your skin. Choosing a protective base layer to use under your wetsuit is going to make sliding in and out of the suit significantly easier.
Neoprene works by trapping a thin layer of water that your body warms. By adding a base layer you add insulation which helps to minimize cold shock when water first enters the suit and reduces heat loss.
For some people Neoprene can cause a rash, chaffing or irritation. This can lend to a sensation of tightness of breath, itching or general discomfort when you are diving, which is something your dive master or instructor might not even consider. By adding the base layer you are putting a layer of protection between you and the neoprene protecting your skin.
Our Pick: Xico Dive Center Rash Guard
On warmer days in the Caribbean you might want to indulge in the feeling of the sea against your legs and decide to ditch the wetsuit all-together. A long sleeve swimsuit or onesie is perfect for warmer days. It leaves your legs free while providing sun protection and a layer next to your skin and between your BCD to prevent chaffing.
Our Pick: Floral Sports Onesie
Even on warm Caribbean days the wind can be chilly during your surface intervals. The sun is strong here so investing in a sun protecting shirt can be a great addition to your scuba kit. Protecting you from the sun and wind pre and post dive.
Our Pick: Women's Hooded Dry Fit Sun Protecting Shirt
Buoyancy Control Device-BCD
A Buoyancy Control Device (BCD) is the scuba vest you wear that allows you to float at the surface, descend, ascend, and maintain control underwater.
Most rental fleets use unisex BCD’s which is why you have likely experienced the sensation of your BCD “riding up”, or feeling too loose on your body. This is often a result of the BCD being cut for a male body and your instructor or guide not considering your proportions when selecting a BCD for you.
When you are selecting your BCD it should feel secure, it shouldn't gap at the waist, slide at the shoulder or lift when it is inflated. If you are constantly pulling down your BCD during a dive, it is too big for you. Unfortunately, many rental fleets do not have smaller sizes to accommodate petite women, and might mistakenly put you in a larger size if you are bigger breasted.
You might be surprised to find that when you decide to purchase your BCD you will need a different size than you used in rental gear. Especially if you are transitioning from a jacket style to a wing style you will find that it is more streamline. If you also move from a unisex style to a women’s style you will see a significant difference in how the BCD adjusts to your shoulders, chest and midsection.
Our Pick: Women’s Scubapro Hydros
When trying BCD’s it should wrap securely around the ribcage, sit midway in the shoulders and the adjustments shouldn't be maxed out.
Here are the cues to look for:
Shoulder Position: The BCD should sit, not hang. The shoulder straps should sit midway on the shoulders, not sliding off the edge, without any gaps near the collarbone. And when fully adjusted, the straps should feel secure but not digging in.
Waist Fit: When you first close the BCD without adjusting it should feel snug at neutral. Ideally, there should be room to tighten it further but not be at the very end of the Velcro or strap.
Underarm & Side Comfort: The BCD should fit comfortably without gaping under the arms or cutting into the sides when standing relaxed.
Remember that you will be wearing your wetsuit with different thickness of thermal protection, so whenever possible try on the BCD with the type of wetsuit or rash guard you will most typically use.
If possible ask a friend or dive buddy if you can try their BCD before buying so that you can test it in the water. A basic surface test for fit, is when you are upright at the surface, the BCD shouldn’t ride up toward the ears, the tank band area should feel stable, and it shouldn't float upward.
Diving Boots
Unfortunately, dive boots tend to be created in men’s sizing. They are neither truly unisex or women specific, but rather designed from average male shoe sizes. This is why it can be difficult for women to find a well fitting boot.
Women typically have narrower heels, a lower volume midfoot and different arch proportions. Creating a women’s specific dive boot isn’t just about smaller sizing but it requires a different foot mould, narrower heel shaping and different ankle cut. While women-specific dive boots exist, they are rare.
Our Pick: Aqualung Manta Boots
Not officially marketed as "women’s boots", we have found that in practice, divers note that the Manta boots tend to fit narrower and feel snugger than most boots. Users note that they tend to be more contoured and offer a tighter fit for women’s feet.
Our Pick: Aqualung Echozip Ergo Dive Boot
Ergonomically designed with an anatomically shaped footbed for comfort and support. The Aqualung Echozip dive boots give the sensation of adapting to your feet over time. The stretchable neoprene will slightly conform to the shape of your foot with repeated use. Because of this and the lower-profile, more contoured narrower heel and ankle women report that these boots fit more securely.
Diving Fins
When it comes to fins, the biggest issue for women is that most fins are designed around men’s sizing, so for women the foot pockets can feel loose. This poor fit creates pressure points which can cause painful blisters or cramps from awkward foot angles.
Many scuba fins are sized around men’s feet, but the Seawing Nova is available in smaller sizes that fit women’s feet snugly. These fins provide powerful and efficient propulsion due to the innovative fin design. The self-adjusting bungee strap and ergonomic foot pocket provides a secure fit. The wide range of sizes also make these a great choice for women with smaller feet.
Our Pick: Seawing Nova Fins
If you prefer not to use a boots the Bonassi Squid Fins are a great option for warm water Caribbean diving. Designed for a snug fit, the softer foot pocket and blade work well with smaller or narrower feet, giving better control and efficiency. These fins are also available in an XS-S size which is great for women who typically fall outside normal fin sizes.
Our Pick: Bonassi Open Heel Squid Travel Fins
Dive Computers
A dive computer is a critical piece of safety equipment in your dive kit. And many women report when purchasing a dive computer being steered toward “simpler” computers rather than being shown full-featured options. Or alternatively, being pressured into buying a higher end computer than actually meets her specific needs.
For women with smaller frames many of the dive computers on the market will feel too big and bulky for comfortable diving. So it is important to try on different styles and see what feels comfortable and what matches with your current diving style and your diving ambitions.
Our Pick: Garmin Descent™ G1 Solar
Lightweight with a sleek, modern look the Garmin Descent G1 Solar weighs approximately 66 grams. It isn't just a dive computer, it is an all-in-one dive computer + smartwatch with fitness tracking, heart rate monitoring, notifications, and Garmin Pay, so you can wear it across multiple sports, not just diving. It is the entry level of the Garmin Dive computers and does not offer the option for Air Integration, however the simple and intuitive design paired with the comprehensive log through the Garmin Dive App makes this an ideal choice for most recreational divers.
If you are looking for strictly a dive computer that is long lasting and durable and will advance with you as you progress through your diving journey this is the best option. The Shearwater weighs approximately 125 grams (about 4.4 oz) and provides a full-colour LCD display about 5.59 cm (2.2 inches) across and a 320 × 240 pixel resolution. It includes an integrated digital compass and air integration w/ up to four transmitters. The rechargeable USB-C battery gives up to ~30 hours of dive time, and the internal log can hold hundreds of hours of dives. As dive computers go it is as advanced as about 90% of recreational divers will ever need.
Our Pick: Shearwater Peregrine TX Dive Computer
It includes Air, Nitrox & 3-Gas Nitrox modes and uses the trusted Bühlmann ZHL-16C algorithm, which covers essentially all recreational diving profiles. The only limitations is that it doesn’t support things like trimix / helium diving, closed-circuit rebreathers (CCR), or advanced technical dive planning, but those are specialized needs that far fewer than 10% of divers pursue.
Trimix and CCR are tools for specialized, highly trained divers operating beyond recreational limits. And as we always advise divers to buy for the diver you are now with room to reasonably grow, and if/when you get to more advanced requirements, you will be upgrading your gear anyways.
It’s realistic to expect a high-end dive computer like the Peregrine TX to remain useful and capable for many years, typically 5-10 years with proper care.
Final Thoughts
Whenever possible we recommend you try before you buy.
Xico Dive Shop is open daily from 11am-8pm and have a full range of sizes for you to try.
Don't be shy to bring your gear with you if you are trying to match up pieces. For example, if you are trying on a BCD it is perfectly acceptable to and even recommended to bring your wetsuit that you will most frequently use to try underneath. Same thing if you are purchasing boots, bring your fins or if you are buying fins, bring the boots that you will most often use.
If you have a dive buddy that you can ask to test out their equipment for fit and feel you can get a better idea of how the gear will work for you underwater.
At Xico Dive Shop we have all of our products available online for shipping anywhere in Mexico. We always recommend that you consult size charts and ask size recommendations as athletic wear fits differently than standard clothing sizes.
Remember, that when you invest in gear that fits properly you improve comfort and performance.