Question High Altitude Athletes.... Less efficient at depth?

[Doc Harry]

Earlier in the thread when other posters said that CO2 was the normal driving factor in causing respiration you said they were wrong; specifically, “totaly false”. Multiple times IIRC.

This is also false.
You're reading into my words what you want to see.

 

[kinoons]

O2 has nothing to do with the need to breathe. Co2 is the triger.

Totally false.

It was once. Pardon my mistake for saying multiple.

Your brevity leaves lots of room for interpretation. So, for the third time, perhaps you could expand on the statement so we can learn from it.

 

[Doc Harry]

It was once. Pardon my mistake for saying multiple.

Your brevity leaves lots of room for interpretation. So, for the third time, perhaps you could expand on the statement so we can learn from it.

It's simple. Both O2 and CO2 drive breathing.
But it's more complicated than simple gas tension. pH and pulmonary compliance can also drive breathing. It's not simple.

 

[J-Vo]

I've theorized about smokers having reduced CO2 sensitivity. But I think there are other factors. Most smoking divers with great SAC rates I run into are from a generation when smoking was more acceptable and therefore have been diving a very long time. None smoking divers with similar backgrounds tend to have similar SAC rates. Don't discount the proficiency that comes with a lifetime of diving every day.

 

[dmaziuk]

After I quit my breathhold swims went from "somewhat tense" to effortless over the same distance. That translates to exactly zero change in SAC on SCUBA.

 

[BRT]

Detune his reg. I've had this problem with rental regs more than once: if I don't forcefully puff into it at the end of the inhale, it'll just freeflow into my mouth and out the nose.

Also, why is exhaling through the nose a problem? -- I do it half the time and the only downside is spit/baby shampoo does not work as well as Sea Drops. So I use Sea Drops.

+1 on this. Finally got and adjustable reg for our dive buddy. I couldn't figure out how he could have bubbles coming out of his mask all the time. The new reg took care of it and his air consumption dropped to normal.