I must have misunderstood your position in the water. Now I see all is in "specs" - I had visions of your fins above your head and your head down. I do not have the gift of writing so I don't always explain myself as I want to. I see most contributing writers want to do this and the ones that have the experience behind them are all saying the same thing - just different words. Proper experience teaches us more than any book. Books are good also but, experience will stay with you. We all are passionate about this subject because we can agree this issue of trim is an oversight often and divers are not always aware of how it can be fixed easily. They think getting their breathing under control or fitness are the MAIN issues to work on. They are important also but good trim, good buoyancy, and water position can be corrected on the spot - the others can be corrected in time.
Improving my SAC rate
- Thread starter bvbellomo
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The Chairman
Chairman of the Board
Some breathe deep, some breathe shallow... I just breath normal. I do Zen when I dive, so don't seem to breathe as frequently as some, but I never ever skip breathe. I just breathe as I need to. Diving is always fun, but that may or may not help your SAC. Better technique will. Taking a Cavern course will help a lot and you'll see the dark side of diving... we have cookies.
Your state of excitement makes a big difference. If you find diving exciting, your heart rate may be higher along with your breathing. I'm like the chairman and I'm in a Zen mode when I dive, so very relaxed. Figure that's one of the main reasons I have good SAC.
The Chairman
Chairman of the Board
The Chairman
Chairman of the Board
Few divers seem to understand the mechanics of breathing.
Vital capacity: The largest possible amount of air you can expel after taking your deepest possible breath...
Tidal Volume: The amount of breath you breathe in and out on a normal breath...
For most divers, breathing deeply is an attempt to increase your tidal volume and shallow breathing is an attempt to reduce it. Both are flawed in my mind. The former will cause havoc with your buoyancy and the latter will give you a headache. Try to keep your tidal volume normal.
You can easily control your buoyancy by adjusting your tidal volume to occur with either your lungs fuller or emptier. Breathing on the "top" of your lungs, close to your max vital capacity, will cause you to be lighter. On the other hand, breathing on the "bottom" of your lungs, close to your minimum vital capacity, will cause you to be heavier and of course, you will be deeper as well.
You can leverage this, albeit with a bit of effort and a learning curve, by adjusting when you pause your breathing. IE, pausing with your lungs empty, rather than full will allow you be deeper. Of course, almost all of us pause just after we inhale. We feel safer with a lung full of air. So it takes a bit of practice to get used to it. As a caveat, you must always be certain to only use your chest and diaphragm to pause: NEVER OCCLUDE YOUR AIRWAY by using your glottis. That means that you have to keep it open. That's the muscle you use to say "uh-oh". Ascending with a closed glottis can cause injury or death. Keep it open!!!
Finally, in shape or out of shape, getting rid of CO2 is compromised with depth. Try to avoid creating it in the first place and you won't have to worry about it. Get in control of your trim & buoyancy, go slow and learn the five "Ds" of currents: Dodge, Duck, Dip, Dive and Dodge.
This isn't hard if you approach it methodically. I often dive without a bladder, using only these techniques. I breathe normally in regards to my tidal volume. I simply choose to move that tidal volume upper or lower in regards to my vital capacity to control my buoyancy. Hey, it's how I learned to do it back in 1969. The physics haven't changed since then.
Have we gotten off the subject of the original question from bvbellomo from the USA? "Is there anything I can do out of water to make my air go farther?" Possibly, you have found some answers through these comments. I hope so, as you acquire more and more experiences you will learn it is an individual sport. Yes, there are studies and facts out there that are critical and most all being safe is above all the most important part of diving. Looks like my years of diving have taught me one thing and that is to assist when asked. Happy Fishes to you bvbellomo and hope you are back in the water very soon.
Blackcrusader
Contributor
I think the Chairman sums it up best. Also I do not like being exactly horizontal as you get a crick in the neck trying to look up.
Trim does not always mean being horizontal. When I am in a current pushing me along I will often be in the vertical trim to get a better push from the current and also get out a bit further away from walls where the water is faster. I sit like Buddha with my legs crossed passing those close to the wall who are swimming along. They look at me like wtf how is it you are going faster than I am but not moving at all.
Being not so horizontal gives me a better view as well. Watch my diving here and then see my breathing to the others behind me. As the Chairman says use your lungs to control buoyancy and you can descend by exhaling air and stop ascending with an inhale. Ascend as well but do not block your airways. You can see I bubble along on my dives. I do a full intake every few minutes to clear any CO2 but as my diving is so relaxed I am not in sports mode building up C)2 in the first place. My guide took this video using my camera equipment which when in hand adds a little more horizontal trim on my dives.
Trim does not always mean being horizontal. When I am in a current pushing me along I will often be in the vertical trim to get a better push from the current and also get out a bit further away from walls where the water is faster. I sit like Buddha with my legs crossed passing those close to the wall who are swimming along. They look at me like wtf how is it you are going faster than I am but not moving at all.
Being not so horizontal gives me a better view as well. Watch my diving here and then see my breathing to the others behind me. As the Chairman says use your lungs to control buoyancy and you can descend by exhaling air and stop ascending with an inhale. Ascend as well but do not block your airways. You can see I bubble along on my dives. I do a full intake every few minutes to clear any CO2 but as my diving is so relaxed I am not in sports mode building up C)2 in the first place. My guide took this video using my camera equipment which when in hand adds a little more horizontal trim on my dives.
Three things you can do out of water:
1) Yoga - improves relaxation, gives you some control on breathing
2) aerobic gym, you will become less fat, more fit, and capable of prolonged effort.
3) a course of finned swimming, for learning how to use long fins efficiently, if you have access to a swimming pool.
1) Yoga - improves relaxation, gives you some control on breathing
2) aerobic gym, you will become less fat, more fit, and capable of prolonged effort.
3) a course of finned swimming, for learning how to use long fins efficiently, if you have access to a swimming pool.
Isn’t there a 6th “D” for currents? Drift = enjoy the ride!
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