How long can you hold your breadth?

[screagan]

I'm a few seconds over 2 minutes. I've never been snorkling though...and I can't wait to see how deep I can dive down March :).

[House_Atreides]

But breathing thru a snorkel tube is not a problem lol :p

[simonv]

If you haven't snorked before, it isn't likely you are diving on your first try. It takes experience clearing water.

[Hilary]

Make sure that if you feel pressure in your ears when you dive while snorkeling that you clear them (pop them) like on an airplane. You can damage your ear drums if you don't clear the pressure.

[screagan]

But breathing thru a snorkel tube is not a problem lol :p

It is if you want to see the ocean floor close up...

[Lou33]

It's a lot of fun to dive while snorkeling. To maximize your bottom time, it is important that you relax at the surface and take slow deep breaths (don't hyperventelate). This will slow your metabolism. When you are ready to dive, take a deep breath, but not so deep that you feel pressure. Then point your head down while lifting your legs straight out of the water (this technique is key). The weight of your legs out of the water will push you down 10 ft with absolutely no effort. At this point you need to clear your ears by holding your nose and blowing. Now use your fins to push deeper, don't waste energy by using your arms. Clear your ears again, you will need to blow air from your nose into your mask to equalize pressure on your face. Now you're at 15-20ft and you have 10-15 seconds to look for lobsters under the rocks, see the coral up close, and tiny animals crawling around. Don't touch the coral, you may kill it. If you take a snorkeling tour, they may insist that you wear an inflatable vest. Just deflate it.

 

I can dive 25 feet for 45 seconds without too much effort, but I have a lot of practice and I took a class on free diving. It is much easier to hold your breath out of the water. My instructor could dive to 40 feet for two minutes and not be out of breath when he surfaces. He has been as deep as 130 feet while snorkeling. Have fun. Practice in a pool if you can.

[eurodolphin]

I have this amazing husband who stays under the water for 5 minutes and 30 seconds, and I'm not kidding ! The first time we went on a holiday together in France, he dove of a rock into the river and it seemed like ages before he came back up. I was worried to death and was already trying to find help when he appeared !

I was very mad at him, because I was so worried, and he just said : "Oh, didn't I mention before that I'm able to stay under water and hold my breath for 5 minutes ?":eek:

I don't know what the reason is that he can do this, the doctor once tested the volume of his lungs and that indeed was more than "normal".

Now I'm used to it, from time to time I just check whether he isn't getting any extra skin between the fingers, like "the man of Atlantis" used to have :)

[10X]

Why not take up scuba diving and stay down for an hour, all without holding your breath?

 

It's more fun thatn snorkeling, too.