the Editor says: In the very first lesson of learning scuba diving, your instructor will always ask you to put the second stage regulator in your mouth and breathe in and out with big, full breaths. Yet truly mastering the correct way to breathe underwater usually takes a good number of tank fills — plus a little natural talent — before it finally clicks. Before that "aha" moment arrives, the new-diver experience is defined by breathless, gasping dives and an elevator-style yo-yo through the water column. As the saying goes, a great instructor takes you to heaven — finish reading this article and you'll learn how to breathe correctly underwater in no time! Full article reprinted from dive instructor 黃彥勛's personal Facebook page.
3 Super Practical Breathing Tips for Scuba Divers!
I believe the most important thing in scuba diving is breathing. You might wonder: it's just breathing — how hard can it be? Go ahead and ask your friends who have already earned their Open Water Diver (PADI/SSI cert) certification; I'm sure they'll tell you they have some very deep feelings about the subject of "breathing."
So what does it actually mean to breathe correctly? Below I've listed a few problems that I think beginners are most likely to run into.
1. Instructor, I Can't Get Enough Air!
Students who are trying a discover-scuba experience or are just starting their course often tell me: "Instructor, the more I breathe, the more out of breath I feel."
The reason is actually very simple: your breathing pattern is "all inhale, no exhale" or "inhale fully, barely exhale." In other words, you take a breath in, but you only let out about 30% of the air. That means your next inhale only has that same 30% of space available, which is why every breath feels like a struggle.
The fix is straightforward: exhale the remaining air completely. Once you do, you'll find that breathing becomes much more comfortable.
2. Instructor, Why Can't I Sink?
Let's assume your weight system is properly adjusted and all the air has been fully vented from your BCD — yet you still can't descend. Take a close look at your breathing. Are you taking one very large inhale in a very short period of time?
Think about it: trying to drag a balloon down into the water is quite a challenge, right? Your lungs work exactly like a balloon. If you keep taking big gulps of air, how do you expect to sink beneath the surface?
The solution here is to adjust your breathing pattern. Breathe slowly and deeply, and you'll gradually begin to descend.
3. Instructor, I Keep Bobbing Up and Down — I Can't Control My Neutral Buoyancy! (The instructor is emotionally exhausted.)
First, let's set aside the scenario where you only think about your neutral buoyancy when your depth profile looks like an ECG reading — wait, let me rephrase that. Let's assume your depth is fixed and you've already achieved neutral buoyancy. At that point, the one factor that will affect your buoyancy is breathing.
Why the up-and-down? If you're still inhaling while you're already rising, the extra air in your lungs increases your buoyancy, so you float higher and higher — and higher — until you turn into a sky lantern (?). Conversely, if you're still exhaling while you're already sinking, your reduced buoyancy will pull you right down to the bottom.
So: when you notice yourself rising, start exhaling slowly; when you notice yourself sinking, start inhaling slowly. The more comfortable you become with controlling your breath, the sooner you'll shed the title of "ECG diver" — and eventually you'll be the one calling other people "ECG divers." (Hey, that's not nice!) That's when you'll know you're ready to move on to the next level.
- If you've finished reading this article and realized your breathing could use some work, take a moment to seriously consider whether you might need an instructor in your life to teach you how to breathe. (Wait — what?)
Cover photo: Photo by James Thornton on Unsplash
Further reading:
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Dive instructor 黃彥勛's personal Facebook page
