How to conserve air.

[Teamcasa]

What are some methods to making your air last longer while diving.

The pat answer is No, just dive more and you will get better.

While true, Robint suggests a good method below. I'll just add my spin.
I tell new divers to slowly count to 4 when inhaling and just as slowly exhale to 5. This will insure that you don't get whacked with a CO2 headache by trying some other, artificial method (like skip breathing) of breathing.

time...... you will get better with time.

also, work on a rhythm. One diver I know used a counting method to help him get better. He would breathe in slowly counting 1, 2, 3. Then hold and out 1, 2, 3. He would do this for the whole dive. After several dives he found himself doing it by natural reflex. He said it improved his air consumption by double. I have tried this for the first few minutes of a dive, especially if I feel like I am breathing too fast. It does help.

robin

 

[fnfalman]

Proper weighting. Good trim. Good buoyancy control. Good swim techniques (no hands, proper finning techniques), slow in&out breathing. Lots of practice.

 

[Diver0001]

What are some methods to making your air last longer while diving.

There are only three ways:

- slow down
- relax
- let the water "carry" you

R..

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

What are some methods to making your air last longer while diving.

The most fool-proof method for reducing your air consumption rate is simply diving as often as you can. Air consumption is a function of several factors ...

- your physiology
- your technique
- your mental state

... and controlling all of these factors gets easier the more you practice it.

Physiology you can only do so much about. Someone mentioned working out. That helps ... especially cardio type workouts ... but not as much as ...

Technique. Lots have mentioned buoyancy control. That's key, because it helps you work less hard to maintain the position you want in the water. Proper trim reduces the amount of water you have to push out of the way as you travel ... water's heavy and makes you work hard to move it, and working hard makes you breathe hard. Learning to use your fins efficiently ... a good "gliding" kick can often get you from point A to point B with much less effort than a standard flutter kick. Again, less work = less breathing. Don't swim with your hands ... your motor's in the back. Hand finning is really inefficient, and you don't get the benefit out of it for the amount of "fuel" you'll burn. Besides, if you're carrying a light and/or camera, you'll have better things to do with your hands anyway. But perhaps the most important factor is speed. Diving is just like driving ... the faster you go the greater amount of fuel you'll burn getting from point A to point B. Stomp on the accelerator and your "mileage" goes waaayyyy down. Same principle applies. Slow down ... you'll see more anyway. Nobody ever saw more by going fast ... and you're just burning fuel needlessly. And finally ...

Mindset. Yes, believe it or not, your air consumption rate is directly affected by your mental state. A little bit of stress will change the way you breathe. And changing your breathing will affect your buoyancy control (keep in mind that your lungs are just little BCDs and affect your buoyancy in the same way) ... which gets back to the technique thing ... and suddenly you find yourself in a viscious cycle where you are working harder and getting more stressed trying to correct the problem. So relax ... put your mind in a positive mental state, and don't let little mistakes bother you. Work them through methodically, without worrying or hurrying ... and you'll be amazed at how much air will be left in your tank at the end of the dive ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[dive_gorilla]

Everybody on this thread hit the nail on the head. I see by your profile you're a new diver. Rest assured that if you dive often, your consumption will go down somewhere between 20 and 30 dives.

Beginners make the mistake of working too hard underwater. Remember, it's not a race; more like a walk through the park. Take time to smell the coral

 

[Nemrod]

What are some methods to making your air last longer while diving.

I skip breath. Skip breathing could result in no breathing. YRMV

N

 

[Dr Neil]

Your personal physical fitness has a lot to do with it as well. If you huff and puff on land, you'll really suck air at depth.

Count your resting respiration rate on land. If it's over 12 breaths per minute you long term goal would be to reduce you respiration rate by at least 1/4.

Practice slooow deeep breathing on land. The "muscle memory" will carry over to your diving.

 

[Seamaster6]

Take a PADI Peak Buoyancy class.

 

[knotical]

If there is a shortcut for new divers, it’s this:
Exhale fully to remove excess CO2. CO2 is what makes us want to breathe more.

 

[Thalassamania]

Good buoyancy and trim will make major changes in your SAC rate. Trying to conserve air will just give you nasty headaches (seriously). If you're cutting everyone else's dive short even though you're dialed in ... really: get a bigger tank!