any tips for reef diving

[stalker']

ive been diving my local reefs for a few years now
and id like to know if someone can help me
and give me a few hints or tips

on diving for longer and being stealthy


i use a handspear because my gun broke and now im hooked on using a handspear i find it more challenging to land decent sized fish

thanks

[Coral Sniper]

Try not to look at the target and always be relaxed. See if the little reef fish will hang around you..If so then you might be doing the right thing ....There are some fantastic hawaiian spearos that use pole spears and do great with them...

[stalker']

thanks for info

[Marwan]

take the snorkel out of your mouth and try to submerge with no slpashing and minimum motion...a lot of reef fish get startled away from the entry of the diver..also if you keep your snorkel in, it makes that glug glug sound as water displaces air and releases bubbles..
another good tip would be to plan your dive..if for example you see a coral head that you expect to find a fish behind or under, then start a bit backwards..and slowly creep on that spot from the angle you decided was the most suitable

[stalker']

thanks for the info marwan

[gladiator]

Hi Stalker:
my tip: look behind your back and you might find a curios fish following you especially if you're dragging your stringed behind you.

[RMI Spearo]

My best tip for reef action mate is to reduce your fin kicking to as minimal as possible. Spearing in areas where there is lots of skittish fish the thing that will scare them the most is kicking of the fins. Just float down and angle yourself at the fish and into a good shot position without kicking.

[stalker']

cheers

for the help guys
when it stops raining ill try these new techniques

[mateusz h2o]

do what these guys said there are many good tips. if i can give my 2 cents id say work on breath hold time. for me it works out well if i dive down and just sit at the bottom or hide in kelp beds, wait as long as i can as still as i can. and hope something nice swims by or even close enough for me to silently get off the bottom and persue it.

[stalker']

yeah im working on my breathhold at the moment

by running going to the gym and boxing

thanks for the tip

cheers

[ikki_jime]

running & going to the gym are okay,boxing will definitely be good for your stamina & overall physical condition but if you really wont to increase your breathhold/apnea time mix a little yoga practice in that, because you must practice right controled ventilation technique before each dive.NEVER HYPERVENTILATE. Hyperventilation is more than 15 deep breaths per minute. Proper ventilation has the following objectives; maximum O2 saturation and minimum pulse rate. This is achieved by slow, deep strong ventilation, relaxation and concentration, and this not overdone.Try with 7-8 deep breaths with long exhalation, top diver can prolongue exhalation on nearly 40 sec.
Then get tree good big breaths & thats it, go down. Try on last breath to fill your mouth with as much air as possible, it wil help you to faster equalize pressure.
If you lack time& opportunities to practice in water you can allways practice this:
-static-in your bed
-dynamic- walking, running even going down&upstairs (simulating your prefered depth)
Hope this helps.
ABOVE ALL: STAY SAFE -if you feel uncomfortable,unrelaxed on the dive-skip this day

[mateusz h2o]

i bought one of thse cheap ass breathing apparatusses on e-bay that say they help build up your breath hold time. i didnt see any increase in hold time but i did see that it helped train heart rate. it helped me slow it down and focus/relax, great tool for $2-$5. just use it when watching tv or doing simple things. might want to look into it.

[Marwan]

just get to the water and dive as often as possible, this will increase your breathold
cheers

[stalker']

thanks for the tip guys

i might buy one of those breathing things
or a sea scooter to get me down quick lol



cheers

[Newbie_spearo]

Originally Posted by ikki_jime

Try with 7-8 deep breaths with long exhalation, top diver can prolongue exhalation on nearly 40 sec.

Hey just curious, I read this and timed my exhale and managed to get a 50 sec exhale. How ever my static breath hold still sucks. I'm doing some CO2 tables and will see how much i can increase it by but what is the significance of a long exhalation?

Thanks