I set my C370 to max resistance, it’s not at all hard to breathe on that setting, it just requires a bit more effort. During my deep cert dives and this past weekend we used ponies and I didn’t like their refs because it was too easy to breathe with.
Air consumption vs regulator ease of breathing
- Thread starter Double Hose
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Belzelbub
Contributor
That's great. It appears you have a spreadsheet to answer just about any scuba related question.
Interesting. Though just because Dacor marketed a breathing resistance adjustment as conserving air, doesn't mean it's true. At either extreme end, I could see air consumption increasing.
At low resistance due to leaking as it may be just on the verge of free flow. At high resistance, there is increased work of breathing, which could lead to the diver feeling that they aren't getting enough air. Neither of those conditions would I consider as properly tuned.
In a properly tuned regulator, I doubt there will be any change. At least no change that could be attributed to the breathing resistance. Too many other variables, current, exertion, etc.
How many people think about their breathing day to day. Unless you are doing something like yoga exercise probably nobody. Breathing rate tends to be regulated by our activity and conditioning and trying to think about does not really help. If you want to improve your SAC rate then help the body to require less oxygen. This is achieved by improving buoyancy control, efficient finning, relaxing, slowing down some and maybe improving our conditioning. The body knows what it needs and trying deprive it does not end well.
I had my biggest improvement (going from 18-20L/min to 13-14L/min) after someone told me to imagine I was breathing through a straw. I also got a whooping headache
After that I've found a more natural breathing pattern and have stabilized at 15-16L/min without headaches. I'm guessing I was overbreathing because of my inexperience and discomfort in the water, leading to quick full breaths as I really sucked the air from the regulator (and I have big lungs being a horn player). I think time, experience and more comfort has helped the most, but maybe I needed to try to control my breath for a bit to realize I didn't need the huge sips of air I was taking. Still, I don't recommend controlling it too much, because the headaches are definitely not worth it.
I have had the same experience than you, and came up with the same picture of sucking like through a straw by myself.I had my biggest improvement (going from 18-20L/min to 13-14L/min) after someone told me to imagine I was breathing through a straw. I also got a whooping headache
After that I've found a more natural breathing pattern and have stabilized at 15-16L/min without headaches. I'm guessing I was overbreathing because of my inexperience and discomfort in the water, leading to quick full breaths as I really sucked the air from the regulator (and I have big lungs being a horn player). I think both time, experience and more comfort has helped the most, but maybe I needed to try to control my breath for a bit to realize I didn't need the huge sips of air I was taking. Still, I don't recommend controlling it too much, because the headaches are definitely not worth it.
Had the same headaches when I overdid it.
And settled for something more like slow breathing like in yoga. I think I can get a lower rate when I am dived up, like during a trip, where I dive every day and when not diving too hard stuff … if not I revert to the 15/17L sac you mentioned.
Still trying to improve on this side, but I don’t get as much OC time now since I dive mostly a CCR.
Gone for diving
Contributor
If anything concentrate more on exhaling properly, your reg gives you more dead space, and then you get more co2 out of your system.
When I dive usually everything slows and relaxes, and it's a nice breathing rhythm, with nice deep exahles,
When I dive usually everything slows and relaxes, and it's a nice breathing rhythm, with nice deep exahles,
Gone for diving
Contributor
I have done this when working real hard underwater, and stop to rest and catch my breath. It really does work to slow your heart rate,
but be careful in more ways then one...
www.webmd.com
but be careful in more ways then one...
What Is the Valsalva Maneuver?
The Valsalva maneuver is a breathing method that may slow your heart when it’s beating too fast. It works by having you breathe out strongly through your mouth while you close your nose tight.
www.webmd.com
GJC
Contributor
The primary stimulus for most people to take a breath is the increase in CO2 in your blood. The secondary stimulus is low O2.
The harder your muscles work, the more O2 they consume and the more CO2 they produce. So the less you use your muscles, the lower your SAC rate will be. Making your regulator harder to breath from makes your muscles you use to take a breath work harder. This consumes more O2 and produces more CO2, but the amount may not be enough for you to see a difference in your SAC rate (unless you made it really really hard to breath).
Taking long slow deep breaths allows more efficient transfer of O2 and CO2 by using the most alveoli that you can fill on each breath. This maximizes the off gassing of CO2 from the blood and on gassing of O2. Just don't overdo it and hyperventilate (you can pass out from hyperventilation and hypoventilation).
I believe the best way to increase your SAC rate is to use your muscles as little as possible. Don't work hard and don't tense up. Just relax, flow with the current and enjoy the dive.
The harder your muscles work, the more O2 they consume and the more CO2 they produce. So the less you use your muscles, the lower your SAC rate will be. Making your regulator harder to breath from makes your muscles you use to take a breath work harder. This consumes more O2 and produces more CO2, but the amount may not be enough for you to see a difference in your SAC rate (unless you made it really really hard to breath).
Taking long slow deep breaths allows more efficient transfer of O2 and CO2 by using the most alveoli that you can fill on each breath. This maximizes the off gassing of CO2 from the blood and on gassing of O2. Just don't overdo it and hyperventilate (you can pass out from hyperventilation and hypoventilation).
I believe the best way to increase your SAC rate is to use your muscles as little as possible. Don't work hard and don't tense up. Just relax, flow with the current and enjoy the dive.
I have lost count of the number of new dive buddies who have commented how much more they enjoyed the dive when I have encouraged them to slow down and really look around.
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