Pool Work & Air Consumption

[Fish_Whisperer]

Yes, another air consumption question:

Living in Tennessee, I don't get the chance to dive as often as I would like, and as a typical n00b, my air consumption is pretty amazing: In Cozumel, I was draining a tank in about a half hour.

The advice to new divers is, "Dive! Dive! Dive! Your air consumption will improve with experience."

Our local Rec Center has a 12' pool. If I go over there and practice with my gear, will this help my air consumption?

Thank you.

-Frank

 

[Web Monkey]

Sure. Part of improving your air consumption involves adjusting your weight for properl buoyancy and adjusting your tank/weight placement to allow you to be horizontal (trim).

Anything you can do to help this will improve your air consumption. However getting more experience diving in open water will help more.

Also, I just did a quick google search and Tenn. seels to have a bunch of lakes. Are any of these available for you to dive in?

Terry

Yes, another air consumption question:

Living in Tennessee, I don't get the chance to dive as often as I would like, and as a typical n00b, my air consumption is pretty amazing: In Cozumel, I was draining a tank in about a half hour.

The advice to new divers is, "Dive! Dive! Dive! Your air consumption will improve with experience."

Our local Rec Center has a 12' pool. If I go over there and practice with my gear, will this help my air consumption?

Thank you.

-Frank

 

[Fish_Whisperer]

I'll look into it, but I suspect the visibility is probably pretty awful... I think I've got my weight where it needs to be, and I do a good job of remaining horizontal...

 

[makomike]

Take the time in the pool to just focus on your breathing. A former CD of mine recommended trying to get your breathing down to about 6 to 7 breaths per minute. Not by holding, but by slowly and deeply breathing. I'm almost there and has made a huge help. I can definately tell the difference when i'm concentrating on it and not. Now if i can just do it second nature...but honestly i have alway been good at gas cosumption. Always trying to be better though. Good luck and go for it in the pool. There are other threads on how to figure your gas consumption (SAC). Something to look at if you haven't yet.

 

[Fish_Whisperer]

Thank you, Mike. It's something I'm definitely going to work on. Good luck on your move to Maui!

 

[makomike]

Thanks very excited. Wife and I have never been. Good luck to you also. Dive when ever you can! I made the mistake years ago to lay off when i got busy. Looking back I find that was one of my biggest mistakes in life. Cant believe i gave up diving for work! By the way i have done alot of quarry/lake dives and the vis may suck at times, but you will be a better diver for it. Kinda cold now for a wetsuit though. Have fun stay safe!

oh by the way. The vis usually gets pretty good this time of year at least in Indiana. No swimmers and the algae is not blooming. The cold would likely adversely effect your gas consumption. If you do go go with someone who dives those conditions.

 

[ItsBruce]

Practicing in the pool will definately help reduce your air consumption. In particular, it will help you relax while diving and that will reduce your air consumption. On any dive you do, including pool dives, you should log how many cubic feet of air you use along with your average depth. That way you can tell how your air consumption develops. If fact, lie at the bottom of the pool and relax there for 30 minutes and see how much air you use. Then compute your air usage in cubic feet per minute at the surface. From this you can predict usage at other depths while fully relaxed. Of course, usage increases when you perform work, but that is harder to track as different dives require different amounts of work. Nonetheless, you will be able to track your progress. Please note that different people will use different amounts of air under similar circumstances and that there will come a point where you can't really improve.

As a test, I had my yoga teacher breath off a scuba tank just to test her air usage. She is 5' 3" and weighs around 110 lbs. In 10 minutes on dry land, she has never dived and used 0.43 cubic feet of air per minute. I, after years of diving, used 0.57 when I did my last usage test! Thus, in the off season, you might want to consider yoga, or at least some cardio exercise.

 

[dkktsunami]

Practicing in the pool will definately help reduce your air consumption. In particular, it will help you relax while diving and that will reduce your air consumption. On any dive you do, including pool dives, you should log how many cubic feet of air you use along with your average depth. That way you can tell how your air consumption develops. If fact, lie at the bottom of the pool and relax there for 30 minutes and see how much air you use. Then compute your air usage in cubic feet per minute at the surface. From this you can predict usage at other depths while fully relaxed. Of course, usage increases when you perform work, but that is harder to track as different dives require different amounts of work. Nonetheless, you will be able to track your progress. Please note that different people will use different amounts of air under similar circumstances and that there will come a point where you can't really improve.

As a test, I had my yoga teacher breath off a scuba tank just to test her air usage. She is 5' 3" and weighs around 110 lbs. In 10 minutes on dry land, she has never dived and used 0.43 cubic feet of air per minute. I, after years of diving, used 0.57 when I did my last usage test! Thus, in the off season, you might want to consider yoga, or at least some cardio exercise.

Good suggestion about yoga breathing. This can be practiced while jogging. For example, inhale through mouth (to simulate diving) for one stride, and then exhale for the next four strides. Then try to increase the exhalation phase. I typically inhale for two strides and exhale for the next eight or ten. It's necessary to find a pace and breathing rate that are compatable for an indefinite period. It's possible to get rate down to four or five breaths per minute while jogging, and I am no athlete. Am also 62 yrs. old.

 

[Goose75]

Most begginers swim too fast. Practice slow movement. It will make it harder to stay trim so you'lll be practicing bouyancy as well. Better bouyancy means less adjustment to the BC that can now go to you. Less activity means less oxygen used.

Swim like a Sunday driver and watch the consumption change.

 

[Fish_Whisperer]

Fantastic. Thank you again, Mike. Thank you too, Bruce. I really appreciate it.

I'm in good shape and I run and lift weights three times a week, so conditioning isn't the problem. Hopefully, I can get some good figures by experimenting in the pool, and then use the SAC, as well. Thanks again.

Thanks too, DKKTsunami and Goose. I'm glad that diving in the pool, (if that's the best I can manage, for now) won't be a waste of time.

-Frank