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Originally Posted by Lazylifter
Wow thats pretty cool!
To think I start spluttering as soon as my head goes under.
Are there any general health/fitness benefits to apnea training?
Supose anything that increase lung capacity is good, right.
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Strangely, they don't increase lung capacity as such; what they do is develop the body's ability to deal with a build up of CO2 etc, by conserving as much O2 as possible through being relaxed etc, which is why CO2 tables are done...when CO2 is high in the system which is when it's yelling at you to breathe, that's when the contractions begin, and some tolerate as much as 5 minutes or more of contractions; myself I can tolerate 30 seconds of them, then I give in
And strangely freedivers can only tolerate the same amount of CO2 build-up as everyone else, as scientific tests have shown, but they adapt to ensure they conserve their O2 for longer than most others can...which really is the difference.
Apnea training also allows the body to adapt to lactic acid tolerance, when training is done dynamically...as in swimming, walking, holding breath. And, I guess, a double bonus is the fact that the EPOC burns loads of calories; on a dive day it can be in the range of 20 cals a minute, which is 1200 cals an hour...but that's taking the temperature of the sea etc in to account.
I have to point out that it is also dangerous, and blackout do occur when people push themselves to the limit, mostly intermediate/advanced practitioners, due to beginners not really holding the breath beyond their comfort zone.
Having said all that, apnea table went well again this morning, although I did endure more contractions than ever, which is cool...I think, if Saturday goes well, I should break my 1:40 seconds...but it will depend on the day
