Air Hog

[LavaSurfer]

Uh, let's put that one off a bit for newbie divers. Some newbies won't be totally comfortable - or even totally safe - doing this early on. Maybe a good idea once one feels comfortable on the surface and all, but save this for that time.

Go ahead and relax with the reg in your mouth for security and safety. You won't burn that much air on the surface anyway. But do gather your composure before descending.

They could do this an just put the snorkel in thier mouth as long as the situation allows. Most noobs will still have thier snorkel on dives and its a great way to relax and chill. I like to be the first in the water and just float face down till everyone else is in.

 

[DandyDon]

They could do this an just put the snorkel in thier mouth as long as the situation allows. Most noobs will still have thier snorkel on dives and its a great way to relax and chill. I like to be the first in the water and just float face down till everyone else is in.

Perhaps, but I have seen some awfully nervous newbies, and the last thing I wanted them doing is taking the reg out of their mouth for any reason. Besides, how much air are you really gonna' burn on the surface?

If one does remove the reg, hold it in your right hand securely so there will be no hassles in recovering it.

 

[Fish_Whisperer]

Yep. That's pretty much what I do, if I'm out of breath, or I'm waiting for my buddy or the rest of my team: I'll inflate my BC, and then take the reg out of my mouth and just hold it. When I'm ready to descend, I pop it back in, hit the deflator, exhale, and away we go.

 

[LavaSurfer]

Perhaps, but I have seen some awfully nervous newbies, and the last thing I wanted them doing is taking the reg out of their mouth for any reason. Besides, how much air are you really gonna' burn on the surface?

If one does remove the reg, hold it in your right hand securely so there will be no hassles in recovering it.

I get your point but I feel that if they are unconfortable removing the reg from thier mouth at the surface they have no business being under water because sooner or later that reg WILL get kicked out of thier mouth. This is a totally different topic so I will back off.

These divers that started this thread apear to be experienced enough anyway.
How much air can you burn at the surface, a lot if your excited and first in the water.

 

[pfriedel]

My air consumption was poor, but has become much better of late. The reason has been very simple. As someone above suggested, with tongue slightly in cheek, breathe less. It really has been as simple as that, at least for me. My athletic background has been in sports demanding high oxygen consumption (soccer, competitive skiing) and my first reaction while diving simply was to breathe as if was such an athletic event.

Y'know, I had the same sudden flash of realization during my last dive vacation - prior to scuba, my athletic endeavors all focused on keeping as much oxygen moving through my system as possible. Going anaerobic 20 miles into a 80 mile bike ride makes the last 60 miles a lot less fun. When I was down in Cozumel, the big trick was realizing that my muscles really aren't doing that much work, and I didn't have to stay ahead of the lactic acid curve.

Hopefully the same flash of insight will hold true locally in lake diving. I will also admit that my first dive I was a huge hoover (didn't help that I was diving with some guys who managed to grow gills), but that was anxiety and stress and everything related to not diving in a few months.

 

[scubaboyff]

Thanks for all the help. I wish I COULD grow gills, Its hard not to get excited when diving in Cozumel
Thanks again to my fellow "hoovers" and "exhoovers"

 

[brutus_scuba]

Alrighty here's my question ... now take for granted I'm a newbie... but I too am an air hog when I asked my instructor about slowing down my breating or somethign to be more effecient he instructed me not to, and warned me of skip breathing (which was a topic covered in my BOW class)..... a lot of people on here have suggested slowing down the breathing, and that actually sounds dangerous to me.

As for slowing down movments and swimming smooth and relaxed I couldn't agree more, but tryign to control yoru breathign sounds a lil wierd to me...

Input from more exierenced divers?

 

[Fish_Whisperer]

There's a difference between holding your breath and stopping your breath. When I am ascending, I exhale long and slow and never stop my breathing or hold my breath. At depth, when I am using my breathing to control my buoyancy, when I want to rise a little, I will arch my back, pushing my chest out, and keep a full chest of air. I am not closing my throat, but merely delaying my exhale. When I want to descend, I bend forward at the waist, pointing my head downward, and exhale fully. (Again: This is at depth, and has nothing to do with your initial descent at the beginning of your dive, nor with your ascent at the end of your dive.)

It also helps to breathe long and deep, and to pause for a few seconds at the end of each inspiration. In this way, your lungs make the most efficient use of the air you've just breathed in, to take on maximum oxygen and release the most carbon dioxide.

 

[LavaSurfer]

Alrighty here's my question ... now take for granted I'm a newbie... but I too am an air hog when I asked my instructor about slowing down my breating or somethign to be more effecient he instructed me not to, and warned me of skip breathing (which was a topic covered in my BOW class)..... a lot of people on here have suggested slowing down the breathing, and that actually sounds dangerous to me.

As for slowing down movments and swimming smooth and relaxed I couldn't agree more, but tryign to control yoru breathign sounds a lil wierd to me...

Input from more exierenced divers?

Slowing down your breathing and skip breathing are two separate issues.

Slowing down requires practice. When you sleep or relax you breathe very slow and deep. When you get excited you breathe fast and shallow.
Fast and shallow wastes air and contributes to CO2 buildup which makes you feel starved for air and breathe harder.

Skip breathing is holding your breath or lengthy pausing between breaths and that is not good. Even if you don't "Hold" your breath but pause, that is skip breathing. Basically you’re skipping a breath and CO2 starts to build up.

I like to take a fairly quick inhale and then let it out slowly. This gets fresh air in the lungs and starts the CO2 removal process. Some like a slow in and slow out. It really comes down to what you like but if you start to yawn you are accumulating CO2 and need to change your breathing.

The goal here is not getting oxygen into your body; there is more than enough O2 at depth, in fact more than enough. The goal is getting rid of CO2 (Carbon Dioxide) and the only way to do that is to have fresh air (no CO2) in your lungs. Skip breathing holds stale air and starts the accumulation of CO2 and shallow breathing causes re-breathing of stale air from dead air space such as trachea, snorkels and the like.

Keep the air moving and you eliminate the retention of CO2.

Most important is this in my book.

You are new and it takes time and diving to improve your air consumption. I am new too and work on it every dive. I don’t let it get the best of me though and if my consumption rate is up I move on and don’t let it ruin my trip.

Also, Track your SAC rate after every dive. You might find your getting better and don’t even know it.

 

[Fish_Whisperer]

Good points, LavaSurfer. I stand corrected. Thank you.