Nearly Blackout?

[trux]

All seems to make sense to me apart from the beta alanine helping the production of carnosine. From my understanding and what I've learnt about it carnosine is a precursor to beta alanine there by making it the helper to beta alanine.

It is true that beta alanine is formed by the degradation of dihydrouracil and carnosine, but in the same time:

"Beta-alanine is the rate-limiting precursor of [ame="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carnosine"]carnosine[/ame], which is to say carnosine levels are limited by the amount of available beta-alanine. Supplementation with beta-alanine has been shown to increase the concentration of carnosine in muscles, decrease fatigue in athletes and increase total muscular work done" [Wikipedia]

EDIT: However, personally I am rather opposed against taking any supplements - their long term side effects are usually not well studied, and you may well finished in a much worse state than you originally were, or with your health wrecked, after using them. The effect of carnosine for apnea is positive, but again there is barely someone who knows what effects and side-effects it exactly has. Using beta-alanine definitely presents diverse risks - you can find some documents about them on the web.

 

[Newbie_spearo]

Thanks trux, I believe in the use of supplements if used correctly and not for a prolonged period of time. Each to their own I guess, very good however to hear your thoughts on the issue.

 

[bite ya]

There has been some great info on this thread, think i should start another one titled suppliments? What does everyone think? Would be great to hear everyones opinion and what they take in terms of vits / mins and other suppliments to aid good health and performance.

Shall i start one?

 

[trux]

Shall i start one?

Well, there are already plenty of them here on DB, so better may be finding the most complete one and continue there. When looking for the threads, look up rather supplement than suppliment - I think it is more commonly spelled in that way. Also look for doping, drugs, diet, nutrition and other similar terms - there are indeed already many very informative threads here on DB.

 

[bite ya]

Thanks trux, looked up the apnea diet thread (9 pages of it!!) i've just bought a few lemons and some green tea....ha ha see what happens tonight when i train.

Thanks again, the thresd was very useful!!

 

[keyratfelix]

What has worked for me is exhaling 50-60 percent, take a quick breath not to deep just to get oxygen into your system then exhale fully. The most important thing is to continue to relax and concentrate on breathing even after surfacing. Feel your breath, think about it with a smile on your face... stay in water atleast a min, your heart rates a good indicator, let it recover from the lack of oyxgen.
Im not saying you dont do this already, just giving my experiance.
Good luck, be safe!

 

[bite ya]

Thanks Keyratfelix!

 

[Kattie]

I've been reading this thread with attention as I am quite new to freediving and was wondering if a person with a naturally low blood pressure is more likely to have a blackout than someone with a higher one?

 

[DeepThought]

I've been reading this thread with attention as I am quite new to freediving and was wondering if a person with a naturally low blood pressure is more likely to have a blackout than someone with a higher one?

That seems to be true.

 

[Bill]

"........a person with a naturally low blood pressure is more likely to have a blackout than someone with a higher one?"
Don't know the answer but my body seems to think so. Circumstantial evidence. All my life I've had low blood pressure. Even at age 60 morning bp of 110/60 P50 was common and resting after a long aerobic ride the numbers got ridiculous. After years of sometimes heavy static training, 120/80 p60 is as low as it gets in the morning. Many things have changed too. Older, a little fatter, less muscle, spare parts and no more hard three hour bike rides, things like that.

 

[trux]

Interesting question, but I do not really know the answer. During the apnea, the blood pressure rises, it does not drop, so if you do not black out with your normal blood pressure (before the breath-hold), and as long as your diving reflex is OK (especially the vasoconstriction and contractions), then I do not see why you should black out earlier. I think the naturally low pressure does not necessarily mean unfit for freediving. The problem may be after surfacing, when the blood pressure drops back to normal - so if the low pressure is your problem, doing proper recovery breaths (hook breaths) may be more important for you than for others.

 

[Kattie]

Thanks!
Trux, that's really helpful to know!
Bill, I am glad to see that your BP did not stop you from diving.
So if I understand well I have to be more careful when surfacing and pay extra attention to rescue breaths but I should not worry more than other divers about increasing dive time or depth.
I did a lot of trecking in Bolivia and Nepal and the low level of oxygen never bothered me more than the others (I am actually better than most tourists) so I'll be extra careful but will keep on moving on.
Cheers!

 

[trux]

Bill, I am glad to see that your BP did not stop you from diving.

Not only it did not stop him from diving, but he is going on breaking national records. And that all despite his age comparable to that of some of the younger Egyptian mummies.

So if I understand well I have to be more careful when surfacing and pay extra attention to rescue breaths but I should not worry more than other divers about increasing dive time or depth.

Do not take my word for given. Although I may sound like expert to some DB members, all what's often considered to be in my brain, is in fact just comes from Google. I am only good in searching, collecting, and sorting information, but I am no real freediving or physiology expert. You better consult your doctor if you have any doubts. And in no way try risking diving or doing any breath-holds alone!

I did a lot of trecking in Bolivia and Nepal and the low level of oxygen never bothered me more than the others (I am actually better than most tourists) so I'll be extra careful but will keep on moving on.

Well, then together with Bill you are the best proof that the naturally low BP may not be as bad as it may look like. Perhaps it is even an advantage, because you are already used to lower supply and hence have better predisposition to handle critical hypoxemia. Again, this is just a speculation, and it is not necessarily true. Or perhaps yes, but only for certain individuals.

 

[DeepThought]

Just to make sure, more likely to blackout than X doesn't mean unfit for freediving, I answered that post directly without re-reading the rest of the thread.

A stronger dive response would suggest a stronger increase in cerebral blood pressure near the end of the dive. So in theory a diver with a lower blood pressure and a good dive response could end up with a higher pp02 in the brain at the same blood saturation levels of a diver with a lesser dive response and a higher initial blood pressure.

It seems like blood pressure measurements can be more beneficial when comparing between different performances of the same diver rather than between divers.