1 tank over within 36 minutes

[hypnodiver]

As many of the other posters have said, you're not doing too badly, and you will get better the more dives you do.

On my first dive out of OW, I emptied an 80cuft cylinder in about 10 minutes at 12 metres.

I'm much better than that now.

I found that there were two important things that helped me reduce my air consumption.

Firstly, stop worrying about how much air you're using. By not being concerned about how much air I was using, I was able to relax more and get more comfortable with being in the water, which meant that my air consumption dropped. And a dive when you're not constantly concerned about how you're breathing is MUCH more enjoyable.

Secondly, deal with any equipment issues that affect your comfort in the water. Does all your equipment fit properly? Are you using appropriate exposure protection that keeps you warm throughout the dive? And most importantly, is your weighting correct? Early on it felt as though I was constantly doing battle with my equipment, and getting my equipment (and myself) tweaked to get past that point made an enormous difference.

 

[Neverland]

Dear All,

I' m really impressed from all of your great experiences and advices. Congratulation to all of you who fourfold!!! the bottom time. There is till hope in me...Having a bigger tank is a good idea haha
As many as of you have said i will keep weight check, buoyancy, slowly breathing- but not stopping it, slowly horizontal mooving etc in mind.
As I'm totally in love with the underwater world I do enjoy my divings but I will need lots of time to relax myself as a fish can do.

 

[Blackmore75]

Like some of our friends here have already said, if you relax and breathe normally, just as you would on the surface, you will begin to see an improvement. With experience will come even more improvement, and every time you go out you will begin to see the changes.

Weighting is VERY important, because if you are constantly fighting the weight, you are working harder---thus breathing harder, deeper, and more often.

Be sure you balance the weight to assist you in achieving better positioning in the water as well. I have seen divers who swim almost vertical in the water, end up swiming with their arms and suck a tank dry in no time. As NetDoc mentioned, try practicing diving with your hands folded in front of you. Right about chest level is where I like to be, and it has worked well for me. Give that a shot, and see if it helps.

Sometimes your dive buddy can affect the air time as well. If you dive with someone who will understand and remember that you are fairly new to diving, they will be sure the pace is set up to allow you to relax and not be struggling to keep up. Not all of us are fish, and some swim better than others. If you and your buddy have to surface a little sooner than the others, don't sweat it. You'll get better with time.

I'm sure I am not alone is hearing some updates down the road from you.

Remember, relax, breathe easy and most of all enjoy yourself. Nothing worse than going for a dive and coming up worn out. It's supposed to be a break from the hectic world on the surface!

 

[shmuggy]

I found that when I stopped worrying about my air consumption, it got better. The more relaxed- less stressed- you are will improve this and that will happen as you get more skilled on diving. Don't try to change your breathing pattern- do what is natural- or your body will feel stress and use more air- try not to think about it except to check your air so you know when it is time to go up. One thing I have noticed is that people who move their arms alot use alot more air so keep them crossed as much as you can.

 

[Searcaigh]

Dear All,

Many tks for your fast reply. Some of the people said I breath like on the country too fast. Then I tried to breath slowly and to keep the air in me for a while but it didn't work.
For the weights I think I get 5kg /I'm 164cm and 54kg.
And yes it is true that I'm overexcited when I go into the wather but as I arrive into the deep I feel ok.

Thank you for saying it is normal for a beginner you know I just feel so uncomfortable as I'm always the first in the team who has to come up.

What thickness of wetsuit are you wearing, if 3mm you are definately overweighted

A lot of great advice given, so you just need to get out and dive and slowly adjust weighting to find out the perfect settings. Hopefully you live somwhere that you can dive regularly

 

[Colliam7]

Having a bigger tank is a good idea haha

And, more than a few of us took that approach early in our diving, for just the same reason - if your buddies are diving, say, an 80 cf cylinder, you may want to dive a 100 cf cylinder, to improve you bottom time. My first cylinder was an 80cf, my second was a 120cf. But, ultimately, cylinder size is an equipment solution to a skills / experience issue.

As many as of you have said i will keep weight check, buoyancy, slowly breathing- but not stopping it, slowly horizontal mooving etc in mind.

And, those are the skills / experience adjustments that really matter. And, that will happen with time.

One thing I didn't see you mention - WHERE are you diving? If it is colder water, you may find you breath more rapidly, at least at the begiining of a dive; as hynodiver mentioned, are you wearing exposure protection that allows you to stay warm during the dive?. And, if you are diving colder water, with thick exposure prpotection, that can actually add to the work of diving. If the visibility where you are diving is poor, or the water is darker, you may find you breath more rapidly simply because of a bit of anxiety. Over time / with experience, you will adjust to both situations, and your breathing will be less affected.

 

[drbill]

Relax and enjoy your early dives... longer bottom times will come as you get more comfortable underwater and gain experience. I know some divers with a few years experience who can barelky get 36 min out of an Al 80. When you are diving with more experienced divers who get longer bottom times, just be honest with them and let them know you are new to the activity and may not last as long as they do. I've never been disappointed when buddied up with a new divewr who is upfront about that... only the ones who claim to be the greatest diver in the world and surface after less than 30 minutes while I still have plenty of air to go another 60 minutes.

 

[Nemrod]

You're a beginner. That will improve over time.

But, were not the "others" beginners also?

To the OP, at this point in time, do not worry about it at all, concentrate on learning the basic skills.

N

 

[Zen Diving Inc.]

The fastest way to decrease your air consumption and stay with your buddies for the duration of the dive is this:

1) Breath control: Breathe in for 8 seconds (sip the air) breath out (slowly) for 16 seconds. Practice at home, if you experience difficulty reduce rate to 6/12 then move up when ready.

2) High energy workout/cardio 3x per week.

3) Lung/Mind exercise: plug your nose and breathe thru a straw while sitting for 1hr. If you feel faint, immediately stop the exercise and continue after you recover.

 

[Doc Harry]

Relax. Dive more. Welcome to the underwater world!