Hey TL i thought that i would make a blog about one of my most favorite of all hobbies- breath holding.
If you are already not aware, competitive breath holding or 'apnea' is a growing sport that has really taken off in Europe, and is slowly gaining some ground in the US. The sport of apnea started many years ago with ancient pearl and mollusk divers, holding their breath and swimming below the waves to make a living.
Today it is a competitive sport with many different disciplines. The first and most basic of these is called static apnea. The athlete lies face down in the water, and does not move. Static apnea is the discipline of breath holding for time. Normally a diver will lie completely still and try and conserve as much oxygen as possible. Currently the record is 11:34 on a single breath!
Here is a video of static apnea:
The second discipline is yet another pool sport. Dynamic apnea is the sport of distance, and the athlete attempts to try and swim as long a distance as they can one one breath. The discipline is performed in a pool, and can be done with or with out fins. Currently the world record stands at 255m with fins, and 213m with out fins.
Here is a video of Dynamic Apnea with fins:
And here is a video of Dynamic Apnea with no fins:
Competitive apnea is more than just the pool disciplines of static and dynamic. The true form of free diving is performing out in the open water. Here the stakes are much much higher, because the chance for a life threatening incident can be much higher if safety personnel are not in place. The first of the open water disciplines is quite possibly the most dangerous. This type of apnea is called 'no limits' and this is the depth aspect of the sport.
Athletes competing in 'no limits' apnea board a weighted sled at the surface of the water, and coast down a guide water to a preset depth. Once hitting the depth, the diver must then ascend the wire with a bag of air that rockets them to the surface. Currently the world record is 214m under water or about 702 feet!
Here is a video of no limits apnea:
The next open water discipline is called constant weight apnea. This is another depth discipline, but unlike no limits the athlete has to descend down to the pre- determined depth by their own power (with or with out fins) and then return to the surface. In this discipline the athlete can opt to wear a weight belt, however they must make sure that they keep the weights on them the entire time. Just like Dynamic apnea, this can be performed with or with out fins. The current world record is 124m with fins, and 95m with out fins.
Here is a video of constant weight apnea with fins:
And here is a video of constant weight with no fins:
The last open water discapline is called free immersion. Just like no limits, and constant weight the athlete is aiming for depth. However with free immersion, the athlete can use a rope to pull them down. This type of diving was used for a long time by pearl divers, and other divers that need to make a living from the sea. The world record for free immersion is 120m!
Here is a video of free immersion:
Well if you made it this far, thanks for reading through my blog. I will be making a series of apnea blogs, and hopefully i can get some people interested in taking a class or starting to dive themselves. If this interests you, shoot me a PM and i can start giving you a few great resources.
I find that many people don't realize how long they can hold thier breath. It really is amazing what the human body can do, and how long you can actually go provided you have a bit of training, and correct breath holding instruction and technique. Just this summer a friend of mine completely new to the sport held her breath for 3:05 with only 3 weeks of training!
In closing, i hope you enjoyed my blog- AND PLEASE DO NOT TRY ANY OF THIS AT HOME. HOLDING YOUR BREATH ALONE WITH OUT A SAFETY BUDDY IN A POOL IS A GREAT WAY TO GET YOURSELF KILLED SO DON'T DO IT!
APNEA IS DANGEROUS, AND SHOULD NOT BE ATTEMPTED BY NOVICES!
Wow that first movie was amazing! It seems to be fairly popular here in Norway aswell (atleast where I live), but personally I hate the feeling of not breathing It's cool to see how amazing the human body is tho.
I wasn't sure what to think when I was reading the description (actually I knew exactly what to think ) but those freediving videos were really cool. Thanks for sharing this.
Hey np- i plan on writing a bit more about this in the next few days. My hope is just to garner some interest, and perhaps see if some people would try some dry land (lying on a bed) static apnea, and post some times hehe anyway expect something more around sunday or something. The next one will contain a bit more about training, and the physiology of what happens to your body when you hold your breath.
On September 09 2010 23:42 Liquid`Nazgul wrote: Do you have some insider info on risks and deaths and such?
I always appreciate people who do things because they love it even though it may be dangerous. This is some scary stuff.
Yep i am going to explain the physiology of free diving, with the risks, and training in my next article. I am not finished writing it yet- and because i want to make sure that what i am explaining is backed up with current free diving science and physiology. But ya expect some info on risks, and deaths.
deaths are not as common as you think, and more recently a free diver was killed by a shark For the most part death can be avoided with recreational free diving, provided you are properly diving, and are carrying out proper safety technique.
Pretty interesting. I used to do stuff like this when I was younger to compete with my cousin, but she got better and better. She can hold her breath for 5m+ sometimes; she's crazy. I quit because I got scared.
wow what a coincidence, just yesterday i stumbled up on that clip of Nery jumping into that hole, and it was beautiful, I dug around some more and watched his world record dive, so peaceful and amazing, I really hope il be able to try diving some day.
EDIT: I would also be grateful if someone could identify the music in *constant weight apnea with fins* It sounds a bit like Jean Michele Jarre's Oxygen, but different.
I have mad respect for the people who participate in the No Limits category. One of my favorite movies is "Le grand bleu" (The big blue) in which free diving plays a substantial role. It looks so serene and beautiful.
Looking forward to learn the ins and outs of this sport.
Being a surfer all my life, holding your breath is crucial when you get slammed and raked over the coals that's for sure (especially now that i'm in my mid 40's hahah). Myself, I could definitely improve in this area as I've been in a few uncomfortable situations. I'm not much of a diver, but "stay calm" is the key if you ever find yourself in that kind of situation. tough to do tho.
yeah i was watching this show last night covering the diving/swimming training of army rangers and it seems kinda relevant to this. Although I don't think they're staying underwater for as long or as deep, they're constantly fighting to keep themselves conscious and active while under considerable oxygen-deprivation.
It's really amazing what the human body is capable of. I think one of the most important things is to not panic and stress. From my understanding, the ability to stay calm in a situation that is naturally panicking is key
Interesting read but as a former competitive swimmer I have to honestly say that the record in dynamic apnea without fins is laughable at best. I mean I could've easily done 75m+ at age 15 without even trying + everyone who ever swam competitively would know that the 2000 model full body speedo fast skin 1 made for the olympics in sydney is quite hindering and super uncomfortable for doing breaststrokes, that's why you see breast swimmers mostly wearing shorts from waist to knee if you watch some older races (swimsuits are banned from competitive swimming since 2010). iirc Micheal Phelps wore shorts for his individual medley races, the waist to ankle ones for butterfly races and a full body suit for freestyle races, I think I saw him in a full body suit in his 100m fly race in 2008 though (full body suits without sleeves though as the model with sleeves was discontinued after the 2004 olympic games in athens since almost nobody used them, I tested one once and it was super uncomfortable for everything other than freestyle). Anyway, I guess my point is that this guy really doesn't need an $800 swim suit and considering how fast the swimsuit fabrics wear out it just makes me sad to see it going to waste like this. Let a top swimmer practice this for a week and he'll probably end up at around 150m at least.
//nevermind, just googled it and found out that the world record is at 213m
But other than that it is a really interesting and extremely challenging sport for both body and mind.
Sorry for the rant about swim stuff and swimsuit fabrics :D but I guess someone who is interested in free diving might be interested in insights from a pool-swimmer's point of view
Swimming and apnea have almost nothing in common. Considering that i have competed in both, the only thing they share is the fact that both of them are in the water. that is about it, the strokes are different, and so is the mindset.
On September 10 2010 03:26 er.misrah wrote: Swimming and apnea have almost nothing in common. Considering that i have competed in both, the only thing they share is the fact that both of them are in the water. that is about it, the strokes are different, and so is the mindset.
Well, after watching the videos you posted your statement is flat out wrong. The strokes are exactly the same for the pool disciplines, only because they execute the strokes slower to save oxygen doesn't make it different. Also I think there are some similarities considering swimmers need to accustom their body to work on very low oxygen. Swimmers actually do a lot of breathing and diving exercises to do that, of course the aim is very different but I'd say this is a similarity
Cool, but also scary stuff in my opinion. It can't be good for your brain.
I'd like to see a study on long term effects where IQ/vision/memory/overal brainfunction are compared between a group of people who regurlary hold their breaths for 6 minutes and a control group.
I found an article published in 2008 in which they describe a considerable drop in PaO2 and a significant increase in serum levels of the brain damage marker S100B during extended periods of static apnea.
Quote: "It is not possible to conclude that the observed increase in S100B levels in serum after a maximal-duration apnea reflects a serious injury to the brain, although the results raise concerns considering negative long-term effects. At the least, the results indicate that prolonged, voluntary apnea affects the integrity of the central nervous system and do not preclude cumulative effects."
EPT
It's cool to see how amazing the human body is tho.
) but those freediving videos were really cool. Thanks for sharing this.
anyway expect something more around sunday or something. The next one will contain a bit more about training, and the physiology of what happens to your body when you hold your breath. 
For the most part death can be avoided with recreational free diving, provided you are properly diving, and are carrying out proper safety technique.![[image loading]](http://imgs.sfgate.com/c/pictures/2001/06/18/mn_moriarty2.jpg)
