Somewhere Between Freediving and Snorkeling

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Gryz

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Location
Pennsylvania
Hi,
I love Scuba but sometimes I enjoy snorkeling just as much if not better. I have no experience with freediving and do not wish to go down nearly as far as they do, but I would like to explore around 35ft or so. I know I could not do that as of now, but I would like to learn to hold my breath a lot longer than I can now. Is there anything I can do to practice without being in a pool to help this?
 
Well Walter is going to slap me but what you are reffering to could be considered skin-diving.

As for holding your breath a lot of it is about fitness and what you do on the water. I can't say I have done a whole out of the water lot to help my range. I have probably been into the 20 something range and that's beyon any surface visibility around here. I'm hesitant to dive into a range I can;t study first. it would only take one tangle of monofilament to ruin my day.

I have relaxed and tested my static time. When i had a car with a dial clock I would do it while driving down the highway.

Just as in scuba diving a good solid deep breathing style will help. Get this my... skin0diving, the surface swim part. When skin-diving your diaphram is working against a few inches of water column and it's a fair work-out. Using a rowing machine also seems to hellp tone the abbs and such. Lastly singing to the radio loudly and with verve when alone in the car is good. Pay attention to your breathing getting as many long notes from a breath as you can. Go ahead laugh!

As far as on the water, relax before going down. You may take 3 very ddep breath. I like to do an extreme exhale on the next to last breath. Pull in a deep breath, fins up in the air to help you sink, maybe 1 pull with the arms and swim down smoothly. Being in PA with a significant wetsuit you will want to get your weight dialed in. I'm securely buoyant on the surface and go nearly neutral around 15 feet. Remember to clear you ears and manage mask squeeze.

A lot of duration seems to come from learning to pace your dive and from learning your limits and staying safely within them.

Do not overdo the deep pre-dive breathing or you risk shallow water blackout. A buddy that dives alternately to you and observes is suggested. Allow ample time between dives.

Pete
 
Thank you

I was also wondering if holding your breath longer takes practice....will timing my static, and doing it several times a day help?
 
Anything that has you challenging the CO2 trigger to breathe will be a step in the right direction. A lot of it is a head game. Clear your lungs and relax.

Even in 1 session it takes me a while to get into the groove. Off season I do skin-dive laps at the Y. :30 of hard surface swimming then :30 of "diving" It takes a few passes before I go the full 75 feet. In open water it's a lot less tangible.

Pete
 
Grysinski:
Hi,
I love Scuba but sometimes I enjoy snorkeling just as much if not better. I have no experience with freediving and do not wish to go down nearly as far as they do, but I would like to explore around 35ft or so. I know I could not do that as of now, but I would like to learn to hold my breath a lot longer than I can now. Is there anything I can do to practice without being in a pool to help this?
hey Grysinski, good advice from spectrum. First and foremost, make sure that you are breathing correctly. Your breathing should incorporate your diaphragm. You will also hear this referred to as "belly breathing". It's the way we start out breathing after birth. Watch an infant breathe sometime. You can do a net search for diaphragmatic breathing, belly breathing, yoga breathing and even pranayama. Lots of exercises to utilize and strengthen this muscle. Personally, I use (and like) the inspiratory/expiratory muscle trainers.
I also think that too much emphasis is placed on static breath-holds. If you want to be able to dive comfortably to 35 feet, you need to work on dynamic apnea skills. For example, an exercise I use to simulate a 100 foot dive is to walk a 100 foot distance while holding my breath. My neighbor has a 100 foot section of fence that I walk down and back. This is training your body to function in a deprived oxygen state and to develop a tolerance to the build up of carbon dioxide. Start out with much, much shorter distances and work your way up at a slow pace.
A recurring theme that you will certainly here from this forum is that safety is paramount and of course it is always suggested that you consult with a physician before starting any exercise program!:D
 
Hey freediver - nice to be able to have that exact distance available for dry land training.. :wink:

There are some things you can do as well that will build CO2 tolerence. I currently workout in the gym on alternate days from the pool. I do cardio on an elliptical machine at every 2 minutes, I do a breath hold for 15-20 seconds. This while keeping the same rhythm of 120 cadence on the machine. The first few might seem ok - but once your heart rate is elevated, you will find that they become progressively more difficult. The whole point is to maintain a level of exertion while developing higher CO2 tolerence.

I've always said that freediving isn't for weekend warriors to those whom I have worked with. DO this routine and discover how much you will adapt to holding your breath during a freedive.

Much of the relaxation for freediving has to do with interally asking yourself why you are freediving. Don't make it about a competition - even with yourself. Do it for the sheer love of the sport - and you will discover that dropping down will be easier.
 
One of the best things you can do is dive a lot. Go to the pool, lake, ocean, river and just do it. A gradual progression is the best approach. You'll see that once you learn to relax you'll get much better very quickly. Proper weighting is important too. Don't get focused on the depth, just listen to your body relax and have fun!

As for dry land training empty lung breath holds work well for me. The anxiety I feel at the end of an empty lung hold is similar to what I feel at depth. Empty lung holds helped me deal with that anxiety. Diving at depth is much easier after this training. The key is exhaling completely when you do this.

If you have acess to a tall building. Hold your breath at the top floor, descend as many stairs as possible and then climb back up. Don't take a breath before you get back to where you started. This is an OK simulation of a dive, more physical exertion upon ascent. Keep your training gradual, be careful not to pass out on the stairs.

Finally take care of your ears, clearing ears and sinus is very important for skin diving.
 
Thank you,

You talk about proper weighting....all I am really interested in doing is snorkeling around, and then if I see something I like, I can go under for a decent amount of time, come up and then search some more.

Do I need to be weighted to do this?
 
If you are in PA and wearing anything more than 3mm you will want weights. Even with my 3mm in freshwater I wear a 3 pounder.

If you go out now for instance you probably want a 7mm suit, maybe a 5 down where you are. I may go out one evening this week in 50 degree water and will wear my full 7/14mm wetsuit, for this I will carry 20 pounds in freshwater (26 in salt). With that I will be comfortably buoyant on the surface and will be able to swim down without burning a lot of oxygen. Arch my back and give a kick or 2 and I'm on my way up. Without weighs I''d be a surface bound cork.

Pete
 
How about somewhere warm, say Mexico....

Do you weight yourself like you would if you were diving?
 

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