Subject: RE: swim technique - breathing masterchief - 2007-11-07 3:07 PM
How much residual air do you guys (and girls) keep in your lungs between breaths? I have fairly muscular legs, which is great on the bike leg, but hell for buoancy in the pool. I find that I have to keep my lungs "inflated" between breaths to keep me high in the water (this is even after doing all the TI drills etc.). I have been told to exhale under water to make breathing easier but if I exhale too much air I start to sink. I can swim this way, but it is with very shallow breathing. Just wondering how other differ on this (this is not an issue when wearing my wet-suit but the purist in me would like to swim better without the suit).
Thanks!
masterchief, you should exhale COMPLETELY before inhaling. Buoyancy shouldn't be a problem when you're swimming like it can be when you drill. I recommend that some folks hold their breath doing the drills, but only because they're moving so slowly in the early stages. But doing whole stroke, figure out how long you take between breaths & start to practice exhaling over that amount of time or a bit longer. If you breathe every 2-3 strokes (there's no need to wait longer ), you'll only have your face in the water for what, maybe 5 seconds tops? I can't imagine that "gradually" exhaling over 5 seconds would have any measurable impact on your buoyancy. But leaving CO2 (not oxygen ) in your system will gradually erode your comfort level. It'll lead to the shallow breathing you mentioned & you'll get tense, possibly feeling panicky.
Without seeing you swim I can't be sure, but you might have some other "issues" - balance, kick quality, body &/or head position - that are getting in the way of seamless, rhythmic breathing. Got video? |