Need Some help/advice

[BreathlessSight]

I was wondering if anyone could sum up what they think is the best exercise to be able to hold your breath longer and actually see results. Im doing some tests and I have noticed that though one guy, a triathlete, cant hold his breath any better than someone who isnt. My guess is that its about consistancy, just getting out there and doing it a few times a week. Though exercise helps me cuz it makes me more relaxed. And thats what I think the key is, Relaxation.

If anyone could help. Just wondering how people can hold thier breath for 5 min with ease. Thanks for all the future info.

 

[jome]

The answer is unsurprising: by doing lot and lots of breath holds...Sorry to say there is no big secret or silver bullet

Just be safe when you do it. Either on dry land or with a buddy when in water.

Don't try to make huge leaps at a time, but try to improve consistently by a few seconds. Also, don't settle for a preparation, keep trying different approaches and see what works for you.

For example, on the first try, hold your breath until you clearly feel the urge to breathe. Then the next day, when you hit that moment - just count to 10 before starting to breathe. You will notice that even though it feels bad, you're actually ok...And gradually you learn to distiguish between just feeling like you want a breath and really needing to breathe

 

[XyseR]

the urge to breath is very werid...your body tells you to breath, but you still hold your breath. IMO doing physical activites while breath holding helps a lot. running/hacky sacking/biking/just whatever...even push-ups. what help me get better is i <i>really</i> want to go longer.

 

[BreathlessSight]

Ok so its just all mental? Thats what I thought but have you been 100ft? Actually have a watch that said you hit it? Well thats where i play so I was wondering how to get deeper. It just seems like there is nothing left in your chest at that depth and when you ascend lactic acid is killing your legs and it just feels like your pushing your body to the limit.

I know the basics I just need some advanced advice. Maybe from an amature freediver or pro even. I tell you one thing Im not wanting to pay 700bucks for information with a class. But help would be great. Thanks

 

[pkotik]

Ok so its just all mental? Thats what I thought but have you been 100ft? Actually have a watch that said you hit it? Well thats where i play so I was wondering how to get deeper. It just seems like there is nothing left in your chest at that depth and when you ascend lactic acid is killing your legs and it just feels like your pushing your body to the limit.

I know the basics I just need some advanced advice. Maybe from an amature freediver or pro even. I tell you one thing Im going to pay 700bucks for information with a class. But help would be great. Thanks

I do hope to be seeing updates from you for as long as there are Deeper Blue forums.

 

[BreathlessSight]

heh well I ment to say I wont pay that much for a class. I have done a couple certs on scuba and they dont cost total that much. I just wish there was more of a comunity of freedivers here in Okinawa to learn from. kinda like Mr. Miagee and the karate kid :martial

I do appreciate everyones help but its just not what I am looking for I guess...

 

[pkotik]

It may be that many of the participants in the forum perceive that a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, and so are not inclined to impart it. I know I'm not.

There is no connection or analogy between scuba instruction and freediving instruction. If you want to do a cost analysis involving freediving instruction, perhaps the right one is to compare the cost of a proper freediving course with the costs to your heirs of your funeral and lost lifetime income.

I hope you get proper training.

 

[BreathlessSight]

community usually refers to a group of people who interact and share certain things as a group.

I know that people passions will share secrets and things with people that share the same passion. I know I would.

Maybe its just being selfish for the sake of money.
Freediving kept me from dying along time ago so if it comes to that I would accept it. Heirs at funerals? Doubt it, plus I know Im in the right hands.

You only got one life to live

But I wouldnt mind supporting the freediving community and if thats where all that money will go to then thats ok. I understand your point but Im still going to try to find that one person who can help.

 

[pkotik]

Heard it all before. Over and over. I hope we never read about you in the news.

 

[BreathlessSight]

Well what do you suggest I do to get to your level? Maybe this isnt coincidence. Can you please point me in the right direction? I just want to be able to go deeper for spearfishing and for the thrill yet I am wondering about safety and thats why I seek the answers so bad. Seriously Paul I really love freediving and it has giving me something to look foward in life. If it does mean w/e amount of money I will find a way to make it and take a course.
Thanks
kev

 

[pkotik]

I urge you to embrace the sort of humilty I had to when, after 40+ years of unschooled freediving, I came to understand how very lucky I'd been not to have a) lost my life, and b) caused a great deal of pain and loss to my family, friends and freediving in general. I urge you to seek out and take proper training. I don't care who with, as long as they are more-or-less at or above AIDA standards. There are numerous threads and articles in Deeper Blue about the various educational resources available in the world.

If you're not able to travel for this purpose, think about recruiting enough students where you are to incent a serious instructor to come to you. It's been done before.

Tuesday is the 4th anniversary of a freediving death that was close to me. There have been many others. All were preventable, most easily preventable.

Good luck.

 

[BreathlessSight]

Thanks Paul. There is actually a very well known freediver here in Okinawa and I had contacted him awhile ago. Maybe you know him, Ryuzo Shinomiya. Well its 80,000 Yen for the class for 3 days. With the yen rate to dollars being at about 114 yen to the dollar thats around $700 bucks. Just need to find the time off work to get 3 days to do it. Thats the hard part, not so much the money.
Well thanks for the advice, I was just seeing if I could get info for free around deeper blue. I have seen one post that had a lot of info but Im sure its not enough. Well I wont test my limits until the class but for now Im still going to go down to get fish and of course always have someone with me.
Thanks again for steering me in the right direction. If there is anything else dont hesitate to stop and correct me. Take care and thanks for you time, I greatly appreciate it.

 

[cdavis]

Hi Breathless,

Find the "search" function and you can look up almost anything on the forums. There is a huge amount of info available.

To your feeling of chest compression at 100 ft, look up diaphram stretches and negative dives. Both will make a big difference in compression feelings and ability to clear. Be very careful of hurting yourself with negatives if you decide to try them. Go very slow.

Glad to see you reconsidering a course. You can learn a lot on the forum, but its no substitute for a course. Its not just your life. A good diving buddy of mine is alive today because I took a course. I figure mine cost me about a grand, total, and was the best money I ever spent. With good training, you will find 100 ft to be not so big a deal.

Connor

 

[pkotik]

Thanks Paul. There is actually a very well known freediver here in Okinawa and I had contacted him awhile ago. Maybe you know him, Ryuzo Shinomiya. Well its 80,000 Yen for the class for 3 days. With the yen rate to dollars being at about 114 yen to the dollar thats around $700 bucks. Just need to find the time off work to get 3 days to do it. Thats the hard part, not so much the money.
Well thanks for the advice, I was just seeing if I could get info for free around deeper blue. I have seen one post that had a lot of info but Im sure its not enough. Well I wont test my limits until the class but for now Im still going to go down to get fish and of course always have someone with me.
Thanks again for steering me in the right direction. If there is anything else dont hesitate to stop and correct me. Take care and thanks for you time, I greatly appreciate it.

Remember, too, that having somebody with you is exactly the same as having nobody with you unless that person knows how to provide competent supervision. I've known more than one spearo who died hunting with his 'buddy". Usual story told by the survivor: "We were hunting same as always, then after a while I noticed Bob wasn't around. An hour later I found him - on the bottom."

 

[BreathlessSight]

So this class is going to prevent all these bad things from happening? What if I took up some freediving books? Like the Manual to freediving or Terry Maas book? Will those sufice?

 

[Waterysmile]

Although it is a fair chunk of money you could ask, as pkotik points out above, what is a life worth? I bought Manual of Freediving in July and attended a **AIDA last month and it is only now that I could be of assistance to a diver. Reading stuff is good but practising rescuing someone from 10 metres under supervision is something else.

 

[fcallagy]

Hi Breathless,
All the info above is right I had to travel overseas to do the two courses I have done despite reading on here for a while and getting manuel of freediving. There is simply no substituite for hands on knowledge passed on in a practical manner.

Don;t want to piss you off by harping on about courses but none of the books give a great insight as to how heavy or awkward a passed out diver is or how easy/difficult it can be to recover them. I found it relativly easy to get someone up from 10m with bi-fins but very hard with a mono my point being I wounldn,t have learnt this from books or info here. I haven;t heard of anyone regretting doing a course.

 

[jome]

I would like to point out that there are also a lot of dedicated AIDA instructors out there doing courses just out of love for the sport. I'm not saying I find it in anyway distasteful to get paid to teach, I think it's cool. But there are instructors working in clubs etc that do it for basically no profit. Perhaps not in Okinawa, but at least that is an option in many parts of the world.

At least here, we operate only though non-profit dive clubs. A typical "introduction to diving" kind of session (which pretty much covers AIDA*) I would charge a nominal fee of about 20e, which about covers pool expences etc. And I have never turned away an interested diver or asked them for money if they like to come see what it's all about.

I'm sure that's the way it works in many places...no?

Just as a point that there is an alternative to PFI etc. Of course not every instructor has a string of world records, but they are still pretty good instructors. And some not far from WR-level anyway...

 

[fabrice]

Right to the point Simo. And being a great athlete does not necessarily makes you a good teacher.

 

[SpeerO]

Manual Of Freediving is a great read... Itll tell u everything u need to know! Get it and read it if u can. then whenever u get the chance to take a course then go for it... at least by reading the book ull have a great idea what the course is about when u start it.

I read the book then did AIDA ** & *** and think the book helped a lot beforehand!