How to apply Apnea training to Spearfishing....

[gill]

I am reading one of the really popular apnea diving books and I find myself wondering how to apply this to spearfishing. There is no way with a gun in your hand and hunting you can do all of this relaxaion etc.....

I am very new to the sport. I am just trying to get realistic expectations.

Also, if I can hold my breath for 2 minutes with no training, what is a reasonable goal to shoot for after a bit of training?

Thanks!

gill

[cdavis]

Hi Gill,

Believe it or not, relaxation is one of the primary keys to effective spearfishing. Sometimes the techniques are a little different, but the end result needs to be the same. What's in the book is a great starting point. From there, work out what is effective for you.

If you can do 2 minutes dry, no training, 4 minutes dry is a reasonable goal. If you are doing it wet, make sure a spotter is with you. Figure time spearing will be much less. How much less depends on so many things, it can't be estimated by anybody but you.

Good luck,

Connor

[gill]

Thanks, Connor. That is a lot of help. I will shoot for 4 minutes. I am really excited about this new sport.

-gill

[rydergrove]

when fishing with apnea, you must take many many things into consideration. first step is take a day just with your fins mask and weights and swim around spotting fish. notice how close you can get to each different type remember each species is built to expect predetors from different angles or look for food in different places, learn how they feed and how close you can get to them. practice free dving in way that you will never let them out of your sight.

Take one evening (with a freind) one torch fins gun mask etc. and go out looking for prey, notice how much closer you can get. Take some time think slow dive slow smoothly etc you really have to blend in close to your environment, try a camoflague suit.

[gill]

Thanks, Rydergrove. In the Apnea training book they advocate keeping your head straight in line with your spine so as to alleviate any extra stress/muscle contraction. This is one instance in which i think it would be next to impossible to do. I am just trying to figure out what to take and what to leave behind from this book.

[marginatus]

in most of my dives i descende in that way... it's better to get to the bottom with less eford and to give the fish some confidence and curiosity (by not looking to it ) and, as i descend, i look for any fish aproaching in the midle water...
but that's just me.
sorry for the speling

Fernando

[gill]

No, that is a great help, Fernando. I appreciate the reply. It makes sense.

-David

[cdavis]

Gill,

All good advice above. One exercise I found useful, and still use sometimes, is what I call relax by sections. When you are diving, start at your head and consiously relax all the muscles, then neck, upper chest, arms, all the way to your toes, one section at a time. Then do it again, and again and again. You will be surprised to find how many muscles are tensed, and how fast they tense up again. It helps teach how to keep everything relaxed except what you really need to use.

Connor

[Tommy85]

Gill I have found the worst thing I can do is try to dive deep, when I put pressure on myself to dive to a certain depth i struggle to stay relaxed. When I just dive and forget about depth and time I have my best results, you will still know when to come up there is no point stressing your self about how deep you are going

A trick that has helped me shoot a lot of fish is just drift down to the bottom when you get to 4-5 metres you should be able to sink without kicking (save your O2) then just sit on the bottom, fish are curious they will come for a look and present an easy shot

Be carefull the urge to breathe will dissapear when you see a big fish, you still need to breathe, a fish isnt worth your life

hope some of this helps, Tommy