Ive been trying to surf bigger waves lately and whenever i try to paddle out, i always end up getting held under when i duck dive or wipeout and i was wondering if anyone knows any ways of training there breath so i can hold it longer.
You need to be researching Freediving sites and look for static breathing and hypoxic breathing exercises. It's not something you want to train through too quickly as it can be dangerous depending on how far you want to go with it--you should ease into the training. OR I'm sure you can find freediving classes somewhere near your area. I've been made fun of for being a Freediver on here before.... but I bet I can hold my breath longer than them.
dude the waves here never get that big just do some basic cardio (treadmill or stairmachine). swimming in a pool is good as well as to avoid those chest high hold downs. good luck.
Im going to costa rica this winter and it'll bigger than what im used to and also the winter gets pretty big here
Exercise: 1.hold breath for 30 seconds/rest for 30 seconds 2.hold breath for 1 minute/ rest 1 minute 3.hold for as long as you can and time it Repeat this exercise at least twice a day (spread out a couple of hours) your step 3 time will get longer after a week or so. But keep in mind that holding your breath while stationary is not the same as when your swimming, so good cardio is important and when you get held down don't panic. Cover your dome, keep a tight body position and wait for the madness to stop. Then find the exit.
Just curious, how long a hold-down are you experiencing? Even in over-head surf both here and OBX, I've never seen more than what seems like 10 seconds personally. I'm pretty sure with DOH you can get a longer hold-down, but maybe 20 seconds max? While not an expert on the matter, anything longer than that I believe would necessitate hold-downs that last longer than a single wave and/or some *really* big surf. The biggest issue I've noticed is that many times you either find yourself A) being winded from trying to either catch or paddle through big surf, B) you're not getting a good breath before you go under, C) you're too aggressive breathing out while under in order stop water going up your nose, or D) all of the above. The best thing you can do if the problem is A) is to get in-shape and properly pace yourself when paddling out and catching waves. Sometimes it can be too tempting to "race" for the line-up in-between sets, but then if you're timing is slightly off, you're getting pounded on the inside while being completely out-of-breath ... that's not a good combination.
10-20 seconds is a long time when your tired from paddling out. If your not an experienced paddler or duckdiver, you will be pretty winded from a paddle out on a bigger day.
Right, that's why I was saying that I don't think it's the length of the hold-down that's the problem, but most likely the fact that the OP is winded ... so the "solution" to his issue is not so much to increase his static breath-hold time, but to get in better conditioning and pace himself so that when he's hit by a wave, 10-seconds is not a big deal. For hold-downs longer than that, I would think he'd have to be in some really large surf (DOH+), and get caught going over the falls or something that would drive him pretty deep and/or keep him in the spin-cycle for a long time.
From my experience, it isn't a single wave hold-down which is a concern, but waves in a succession. I have been in bad situations down on the banks with 2-3 wave hold-downs in larger surf. With proper conditioning and mental control you will be fine.
everybody offering great advice, JohnnyUtah hit the nail on the head. You have to train yourself to take a deep breath before going under, it becomes instinct after a while and you don't even think about it. Secondly, at that moment that your getting thrashed and pushed around, you have to train yourself to let go, go into a completely relaxed state, the more relaxed you are the more efficient you will be with holding your breath, because the power of the ocean is going to win every time. Try doing the breathing exercises as mentioned above, and even the freediving courses that Erock mentioned would def give you more confidence. Whoever is knocking Erock must not have a clue.
I bought an "Expand-a-Lung', a small device supposedly used by SEALS, divers, etc.- about $30 from ebay. It does work if used regularly---by restricting the intake of air and the exhale, it seems to expand lung capacity. Best advice: stop smoking-'anything'- if you want to surf strongly in yer later years.
Lots of good advice here. Like others ave said, you need to relax when the wave is holding you down. If you fight it, you increase your heart rate and waste your oxygen. I got held down one day years ago while my board was tombstoning and struggled to get to the surface. I almost took a breath under water right before popping up. After that I learned to stay calm and you have a lot more time. Learning to stay out of those situations is a good idea as well. It all comes with time.
i posted a thread recently of an online interview with a free diver that can hold his breath under ice water for 22min... a lot to learn from this man http://www.swellinfo.com/forum/showthread.php?17413-Stig-Severinsen-interview&highlight=
keep calm but listen to your body also the typical advice to stay calm is important! but i feel its also overrated. why? because there were so many times where if i didn't make a conscious effort to swim to the surface, climb my leash, or push off the ocean floor, i would of been done. and the motivation to doing that was panic.. am i right? am i wrong? is it both, or one?
you are right, once the wave has ragdolled your a$$ or pushed you to the bottom, it's time to move...but the point i was trying to make was that initially you just have to go with the flow, cause fighting against it is just going to tire you out and make you use up your lung capacity. I've been pushed to the bottom in about 25-30 foot of water and had my head and shoulder pinned to the bottom, I swam as hard as i could to get to the top once i regained control...at that point your fight/flight system starts taking over. Your fighting for your life at that point, and I ain't going down without a fight...and I'm pretty sure most others are wired the same way, otherwise there would be people drowning left and right. The best advice is to know your limits, if your having trouble holding your breath when you get wrecked in head high surf...you shouldn't be paddling out in anything above that.
As other mentioned stay calm if possible. It is pretty useless fighting a rag doll, I just usually try protecting my head with my arms because I surf over massive rocks. It's important to stay calm because if you go down/wipe out quick, you don't get a full breath inhale; mixed with the rag doll situation or a hold down and u just chill out until the violence wears before the surface.
I learned a good training exercise that has helped me tremendously. Get on a spin bike, exercise bike whatever. Maintain a nice medium pace, now hold your breath while doing this for 30 secs, then breath for 30 secs, the hold for 30, then breath for 30.... You get the point. I do this for 30 straight minutes 3-4 times a week. Now if you cant do 30 secs then start at 15-20 secs and work your way up to 30. Good luck!
stop smoking anything? how strong is strongly? are you old? do you smoke? do you know firsthand? definitive facts please and thanks, i'm at the point of damage control not quitting.
