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improving bottom times

Thread Status: Hello , There was no answer in this thread for more than 60 days.
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Will Read

Well-Known Member
May 8, 2012
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I can do a 3min wet static in pool but my real world bottom times seem really naff compared to that , with me finding it difficult to see 45 seconds , im convinced its got something to do with my snorkel , I find it quite difficult to get a decent last breath through it, does anyone have any advice on this or have a similar problem ? cheers
 
i found that dynamic apnea and apnea walks helped my dive time (sea) also zazen meditation before each dive to lower your heart rate but i've found doing these training techniques my progress has been slow but steady so there are probably better things to do.
 
Hey guys,
This may help as its helped me greatly, im still new to spearfishing but my dive times have gone from 20-30 up to 45-60 secs. Theirs an app on itunes called apnea trainer and its brilliant.
Im by no means a saleperson for the app by the way.
cheers hope this helps.
ben
 
Reactions: sjurba
Thanks for the replys guys , I will try some of the advice given . Another starange problem I have is after a couple of hours breathing through my snorkel the back of my throat goes quite sore and I develop I sort of snore through my snorkel , which is basically an invoulantary inhalation through my nose as I breath in through the snorkel which sucks my mask to my face ! Has anyone experienced this before ?Thanks
 
I’ve had similar after water has washed in the snorkel :yack from the swell and a bit of the residue remains after clearing it out.

Once a relaxed breathing rhythm is restored it is has been ok, until the next time a wave :wave washes down the tube. It might be that your breathing is not entirely relaxed.
I had poor breathing when I used a snorkel with a vent valve built-in near the mouth piece compared to a more traditional style of standard tube design.
 

Thanks for your response , im on my third snorkel already ! Doesn't feel related to water ingress, just breathing through the snorkel for prolonged period . Pherhaps il try a large bore snorkel next .
 
Big bore, plain Jane snorkel will help but what helped me most is not breathing so much. I was taking 8-10 breaths per minute, gulping air actually. Three or four will work better and not cause that raw throat feeling. If you're going to use a snorkel more than an hour, take a litre or two of liquid with you to stay hydrated. Try some FRC diving. Doesn't make much difference in bottom time and helps you relax when you get used to it.
 
@Will...I am no expert, but have been diving for a few quite a few years and due to where I have lived over the past 15 years I do a lot more reading about diving, that actually diving....I used to also be an elite cyclist in Europe, so I know the importance of oxygen & breathing!!
Firstly!!
Please do not do wet statics without an experienced buddy!!!

With that said....
The info you also gave is also a little cryptic as there are many factors that affect dive times...e.g. correct weighting.
When you say bottom time, do you mean the time you are under the surface or the actual time you are lying on the seabed? Sorry if this sounds like a daft question, but it is important...because...if you have bottom time of 45-60 sec at say 10-12 meters then that would be quite good since if you descend/ascend at 1m/sec this would give you a dive time of roughly 80 seconds. Which is not bad at all.

However, if you are in fact referring to your actual dive time, as being 45-60 sec i.e. from the time you start your dive to the bottom and then breach the surface this is a whole different matter. I am guessing, but I think this is what you meant by bottom time in your original post?

Dive times...
Breath Hold....3 min static VS 45-60 sec dive time
Seems pretty accurate to me.
Very, very briefly (so please do not take this as science lesson critics out there!)
When you are exercising, your muscles convert oxygen to energy...less movement, the longer your oxygen supply lasts.
So
When you are static, you muscles are not using oxygen at even remotely the same rate as they would when you dive...
Static...relaxed mental state, slower breathing, muscles not moving etc.
Diving...slightly more stressed mental state/focus brain highly active (processing data fish/dangers/etc), legs kicking, arms moving etc
See the difference? Your oxygen supply is going to be used quicker....

HOWEVER
You should be able to hold your breath longer with proper training. Do a free diving course...worth every penny.
Teaches you how to practice breath hold, safety and will so you in a safe environment how long you can in fact hold your breath for...when your body starts screaming for air and you feel the cramps (contractions) in your stomach/diaphragm, you have usually got a fair bit of O2 left...

The psychology of breath holding is by far the most important aspect in attaining longer breath holds. This has to be trained.
Met a guy once...great wet static 5min + ... could not dive more than 5 metres without turning back to the surface...dive time 20 sec...
Let's face it most of us do have a little/lot of fear (which is a good thing I believe) when diving down into the deep...Who knows? There could be a big arse spearo eating fish down there taking revenge...We cannot conclusively prove the non-existence of these critters either, since they usually eat the witnesses and are big due to never being caught....
This fear could be causing you to head up earlier....

In a nutshell, I reckon you are on track...just dive, dive, dive! You will get better.

When it comes to the snorkel/breathing issue...! It seems like you are breathing in too many breaths...relax...deeper breaths into your belly, focus...attach a small bottle of water to your buoy and have a sip every so often to remove all the salt from your throat...
It is not the bore which is the problem, rather the volume of air passing into your throat...bigger bore just allows for a quicker flow...

Hope this helps you my friend! Keep at it, do a freediving course, read this...http://www.amazon.com/Manual-Freediving-Underwater-Single-Breath/dp/1928649270&tag=deeperbcom-20

Safe diving!
 

Well thankyou for a very comprehensive response ! Yes I think relaxation is the key and as I become more comfortable in the water I should manage better bottom times . My 30-45 seconds is only in 5m of water and is actual bottom time not including getting down or back up . I have done the theory and pool half of my AIDA 2 star , that has helped and hopefully after I complete the open water bit a will be a lot more comfortable under the water. Im working on interval training now too which I feel has helped me.
The water is a top tip, I will definitely try that . Thanks for all the help
 
What the last two posters said.

There is an adjustment you can make that helps moisten the air and keep spray out of the back of your throat. Breath with the tip of your tongue touching the top of your mouth. This forces the incoming air to go around your tongue, knocks down any spray and increases the humidity of the air so it doesn't dry the back of your throat so bad.
 
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