Warm-up Breathe-up Diving Preparation

[3xpr1ment]

Hi again forum

Experimenting with static and dynamic apnea I found out that preparation is an important aspect of every attempt and can highly affect the result. Would be very helpful if you could drop me some lines about how do you prepare (apart from relaxation) before static, dynamic, deep diving maybe some terminology (what breath-up is). Also any reading if available would be very welcome.

 

[efattah]

This is an enormous question. The main important thing is to remain motionless for at least 20 minutes before the attempt. Absolutely motionless.

In some cases people develop long preparation methods, and they find them to help. But, in most cases, it is not the preparation method that helps, but the fact that the preparation method took over 20 minutes, forcing them to remain motionless for that time. They could have equally done nothing at all except relax for the same 20 minutes, with possibly even greater results. For example, compare one diver who does four warm up dives taking 20 minutes in the process. The same diver could have just floated motionless for the same 20 minutes, and done (perhaps) even better that way.

Lately the no-warm up method has become popular. But again long periods of motionlessness are required for it to work.

Similarly, in terms of breathing, the method of breathing which requires the least motion and least effort seems to work best.

 

[aris ioannidis]

wow motionless for 20 min! i should give it a try

So far my breath up has been around 8 min before the official top relaxing and doing full slow breaths, circa 3-4 in-out cycles per minute.

I have not tried any no warm-up, max attempts. For statics I usually do 4-5 statics raising duration by 30 sec each time and keeping about 2 min rest in-between; last one about 70% of the max. For dynamics i usually do two warm up dives: one very very slowly with duration about 80% of my max and a second one on max-attempt pace and about 50% the max attempt's length.

For depth dichiplines i normally do 4-5 dives: 1-2 normal dives around 40-60% of my max, two empty lungs focusing on mouthfill and equalization and a shallow FIM with static.

 

[Simos]

I find that it usually takes ~40mins for my 'dive reflex' to kick in (or maybe it's just the time it takes for me to really relax and my HR to drop).

My approach is not that different from Aris': for dyn I just prefer to do a couple of short dives at faster pace and then a couple of really slow dives and then just lay still and breath up (long exhales 2:1)

For static the best I found so far are 3 breaholds up to 70% max and then 2 shorter dives (of which the last one is just 1 min). Then 4 mins beathup and then max.

Then again, it might be that all the above is just keeping me still for a while like Eric says.

Ps I'm pretty much a beginner too lol
Posted via Mobile Device

 

[rddk]

Personally in static i do 3 exale statics, 1 i exit before the first contraction, 2nd one i exit after really few contractions, than last one i hold contraction for long time, than i do 3/4 minutes of really slow breathing not full but the same we do when we sleep. For dynamic i prepare with a particular breathing: inale, breathold same as inale, exale double of time of inhale, breathold same as exale, and again inale...... than after that i do few dry statics exale, than slow breathing and than i do the attempt.
For dept i do 2/3 exale dives at 10 metres with little static, than breathup slow one and then dive.

 

[KatFish]

Try doing nothing. Close your eyes and relax for about 5 mins on the side then hop in, take a big breath and go. Don't change your breathing before diving. Don't come up if it just feels uncomfortable (it will), keep battling until such time that you as you can't focus clearly on what you are doing any more. Try for a dynamic first. Statics take a couple of months to get used to, but I can almost guarantee that you'll do PBs with this method.

 

[aris ioannidis]

good advice; thank you Kathryn