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How long can you hold your breath? 
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What's "the HUET"?

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Google is my friend. I've never heard it called that before.
No, these days you get an Airpocket to breath from.
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50 seconds is just me messing round in a swimming pool.

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Mon Feb 08, 2010 8:42 am
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If one is diving so close to the limits that +/- 1% will make a difference then the error has already been made.


Mon Feb 08, 2010 8:44 am
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brataccas wrote:
Nick wrote:
Yeah - and I managed a whole day!!!!!1!!ONE!!11


I could manage two days if I really wanted, all you do is blow up a baloon with your breath in it and hold the baloon for the required period of time, simple :cry:


So you'd actually stay awake for two whole days just to prove that you can hold your breath for that long?

Tying the balloon to your finger doesn't count, by the way ;) :P :lol: :etc:

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Mon Feb 08, 2010 9:04 am
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I can only do about 45-50 secs last time I tried. My lung capacity is crap.


Mon Feb 08, 2010 9:20 am
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45 seconds, which seems a bit rubbish. I don't know if poor lung capacity makes any real difference, since your blood holds far more than a single lungful of oxygen?

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Mon Feb 08, 2010 11:07 am
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There is a technique used by free divers called purging.

You breathe in and out very hard and very quickly for about 10 seconds (basically hyperventilating) and then take a final big breath of air.

This will lower the CO2 levels in your blood as much as possible and also make you very light headed. This then allows you to increase the length of time you can hold your breath for.

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Mon Feb 08, 2010 11:11 am
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Fogmeister wrote:
There is a technique used by free divers called purging.

You breathe in and out very hard and very quickly for about 10 seconds (basically hyperventilating) and then take a final big breath of air.

This will lower the CO2 levels in your blood as much as possible and also make you very light headed. This then allows you to increase the length of time you can hold your breath for.

That's very dangerous.

It lowers the CO2, but does not significantly increase the O2 levels. Because your body reacts to the CO2 and not the O2, there is a very real risk that you'll pass out and drown when your O2 drops.

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Mon Feb 08, 2010 11:13 am
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Just did a minute. Are we purely holding the breath, or are exhales permitted? Is it just the time between inhales that we're counting?

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Mon Feb 08, 2010 11:19 am
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I'll expand a little more on what I said earlier and if I'm wrong on this, I'm sure Cloaked Wolf will correct me (for "Correct" read "Flame") :lol:

Typically, when a molecule of haemoglobin arrives back at the lungs following a trip around the body, it will have given up (at rest) only one of the four molecules of oxygen that it carries, so it only needs to pick up one more one each trip.

So, and this is speculation, that molecule of haemoglobin (contained in red blood cells) could make four journeys through the body without picking up any more oxygen and life would be sustained. This takes some time and in my theory, you should be able to hold your breath for a good few minutes before all of this oxygen is used up. YES, C_W there are other factors involved that would (I'm sure) sway this theory a little, but this is breathing 101! :)

The thing is, that as oxygen is being used up, CO2 levels rise and the body is FAR more sensitive to the rise in CO2 and increase in blood and fluid acidity. The normal, overwhelming urge to breath normally comes from the raised CO2 and reduced pH in blood and cerebro-spinal fluid. Lowered oxygen levels do not normally provide a strong stimulus and can actually lead to respiratory depression.

So, if you had a lungful of pure oxygen when you inhaled, this, to me, should not make the blindest bit of difference as it would not affect the rate at which oxygen is used up and CO2 produced. You would still reach a point where the urge to breath is so strong you'd have to give up.

NOTE. I am not an expert on breath holding, so I don't even pretend to be especially knowledgeable in that field. My information is based on what I do know through my job.

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Mon Feb 08, 2010 11:21 am
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JJW009 wrote:
Fogmeister wrote:
There is a technique used by free divers called purging.

You breathe in and out very hard and very quickly for about 10 seconds (basically hyperventilating) and then take a final big breath of air.

This will lower the CO2 levels in your blood as much as possible and also make you very light headed. This then allows you to increase the length of time you can hold your breath for.

That's very dangerous.

It lowers the CO2, but does not significantly increase the O2 levels. Because your body reacts to the CO2 and not the O2, there is a very real risk that you'll pass out and drown when your O2 drops.

Yup, I didn't do it, I get light headed when try to blow up balloons.

It is something they do though.

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Mon Feb 08, 2010 11:21 am
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ProfessorF wrote:
Just did a minute. Are we purely holding the breath, or are exhales permitted? Is it just the time between inhales that we're counting?


When I do breath-holding in the water, I exhale. It certainly feels like it helps, but I'm not sure how much. I always only carry out this test in the water so that I CANNOT inhale, but exhales I allow.

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Mon Feb 08, 2010 11:22 am
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Lowering CO2 by hyperventilating is a neat trick. The danger stems from the fact that you lower the partial pressure of CO2 in the blood, but it is almost impossible in a healthy individual to increase the oxygen levels in the blood as haemoglobin is normally saturated with oxygen anyway.

When you dive, the pressure on your body artificially raises the partial pressure of oxygen in your lungs- almost as if there is more O2 inside than there really is. As you surface, the pressure on your body is released, the partial pressure of oxygen in your lungs drops and the reality of low oxygen levels hits you and you pass out.

It is known quite simply as shallow-water blackout. It should not affect me (or you) floating on the surface as I do at the pool, because I have not dived and have not therefore increased the pressure.

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Mon Feb 08, 2010 11:26 am
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JJW009 wrote:
Fogmeister wrote:
There is a technique used by free divers called purging.

You breathe in and out very hard and very quickly for about 10 seconds (basically hyperventilating) and then take a final big breath of air.

This will lower the CO2 levels in your blood as much as possible and also make you very light headed. This then allows you to increase the length of time you can hold your breath for.

That's very dangerous.

It lowers the CO2, but does not significantly increase the O2 levels. Because your body reacts to the CO2 and not the O2, there is a very real risk that you'll pass out and drown when your O2 drops.


Especially if you are free diving as you can have plenty of ppO2 at 10m, but as you ascend this can drop below critical levels and cause you to lose conciousness whilst still beneath the surface.


Oops, didn't read Trigen's post. :lol:

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If one is diving so close to the limits that +/- 1% will make a difference then the error has already been made.


Mon Feb 08, 2010 11:47 am
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belchingmatt wrote:
Especially if you are free diving as you can have plenty of ppO2 at 10m, but as you ascend this can drop below critical levels and cause you to lose conciousness whilst still beneath the surface.


Oops, didn't read Trigen's post. :lol:


I don't read most of the crap that you post either. :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

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Mon Feb 08, 2010 12:18 pm
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JJW009 wrote:
45 seconds, which seems a bit rubbish. I don't know if poor lung capacity makes any real difference, since your blood holds far more than a single lungful of oxygen?


Hmmm.... maybe I'm just generally crap? :roll:


Mon Feb 08, 2010 12:26 pm
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