How to Practice

Have you ever wonder, can you hold your breath for longer?

James Nestor in his book Deep has an exciting story about the breathtaking competition that pushes the boundaries of human abilities. Only with a single breath, divers will submerge to depths of 300 feet, to grab a flag that hangs at the bottom of a piece of rope. At those depths the water pressure is bone-crushing. A typical trip down and back takes nearly four minutes. But these freedivers are able to train their bodies to do nearly the impossible.

Actually, freedivers are improving their breath-hold times for years with the apnea tables and other exercises.

Safety first!

The static Apnea tables are designed to be done in a safe environment. It’s forbidden to perform the tables near water without a person who is informed what are you doing.

Know your limits and train without feeling too uncomfortable. Consistency is more important than intensity. Better slow progress than no progress at all.

Don’t Hyperventilate!

Hyperventilation tricks your body into thinking you have more oxygen than you do by reducing the amount of CO2 in your bloodstream.

When you breathe, the oxygen coming in is converted into CO2. When you hold your breath, this CO2 starts to build up, and when this buildup begins to reach a critical level, you feel that overwhelming urge to take a breath and get some new oxygen into your system. When you hyperventilate, you reduce the amount of CO2 in your blood, but you don’t boost its oxygen. These lower levels of CO2 delay the activation of the body’s “need to breathe” reflex far past the point where it should have been triggered. In short, the reason you can hold your breath longer when you hyperventilate isn’t because of an increase in oxygen, but because of a decrease in CO2.

What it is:

Apnea table workouts aim to make our bodies adapt and get used to low levels of oxygen and high levels of carbon dioxide.

Before you start

You should measure your best time in the Tables Best Times section of the app. Upon a new best time your O2 and CO2 tables are going to be recreated for your new time.

You can hold your breath on inhaling or exhaling. There is no general rule which one is better.

If you are already experienced enough to practice in the water the inhale tables are considered to be safer. If you have less time in the day, exhale tables can save you some time. You can start with inhale tables for a month and switch to exhale tables for the next month, just to surprise the body and move away from the comfort zone.

CO2 Table

This table gives you less and less time to recover in between breath-holds. So the co2 in your blood and tissues slowly build up throughout the exercise. This slow increase develops your tolerance to the CO2. People who have a really strong, or early desire to breathe need to concentrate on CO2 tables.

Here’s an example of a CO2 static apnea table:

Let’s say your best hold time is 1min. and 30sec. The maximum hold should be no more than 50% of that time.

1. Breathe 1:00 – Hold 0:45
2. Breathe 0:52 – Hold 0:45
3. Breathe 0:45 – Hold 0:45
4. Breathe 0:38 – Hold 0:45
5. Breathe 0:31 – Hold 0:45
6. Breathe 0:24 – Hold 0:45
7. Breathe 0:17 – Hold 0:45
8. Breathe 0:10 – Hold 0:45

During your rest period, it’s important to breathe normally – don’t hyperventilate! Here you can use the Hold Prep breathing assist just to make sure that your breathing is consistent during the current exercise and different workouts.

O2 Table

While CO2 tables train your body to deal with high levels of CO2 in your system, O2 tables condition your lungs to store more oxygen, and your body to operate on lower levels of it. With O2 tables, your breath holds will get longer while your rest periods will stay the same.

Here’s an example of an O2 static apnea table:

Let’s say your best hold time is 1min. and 30sec. The maximum hold should be around 75-80% of that time.

1. Breathe 1:00 – Hold 0:36
2. Breathe 1:00 – Hold 0:40
3. Breathe 1:00 – Hold 0:45
4. Breathe 1:00 – Hold 0:49
5. Breathe 1:00 – Hold 0:54
6. Breathe 1:00 – Hold 0:58
7. Breathe 1:00 – Hold 1:03
8. Breathe 1:00 – Hold 1:07

Again during the rest period, just breathe normally! And again here you can use the Hold Prep breathing assist just to make sure that your breathing is consistent during the current exercise and different workouts.

Simple Training plan:

Measure your inhale best time. Start with 2 weeks of doing the CO2 Inhale tables. After that switch to 2 weeks of doing the O2 Inhale tables. After the first month, measure your exhale best time and switch to Exhale tables for the next month. Use the same 2 weeks schedule.

When you gain more experience you can make both tables on the same day separated by at least 6-8 hours. However, keep in mind that quality is more important than quantity.

When you already feel comfortable enough you can switch the CO2 table with Wonka / One Breath. Or create your custom tables.

What to expect:

The 3 stages of breath-hold

In the first stage, you’ll get an urge to take a breath because of the CO2 building up in your system, and if you resist it, your diaphragm will start having contractions. You can train yourself to go through these contractions.

In the second stage, your spleen releases up to 15% more fresh, oxygen-rich blood into your bloodstream. When this oxygen-rich blood hits your system, the body calms down and an experienced freediver will often feel a surge of energy. In this stage, you should learn to listen to your body and know your limits.

Because stage three is the loss of consciousness. Your brain uses about 20% of your body’s oxygen, and will just shut down when it senses there’s not enough in your bloodstream. If this happens underwater, the exit can be fatal.

Where and when to do it:

Find a place where you won’t be disturbed. Depending on your training plan you should spread your workouts in the time when your stomach is empty. You can still do the training on a full stomach, but you are going to feel more discomfort.

How to do it:

The breathing. 

1. Find somewhere comfortable to sit or lie down. If you can, close your eyes.
2. No deeper or faster breathing than you would normally. Use the Hold Prep breathing assist if you feel difficult to stay consistent.
3. Depending on the hold type (inhale or exhale):
   1. Inhale – Take a deep breath in around 75% of your full capacity, then exhale everything, then take a really deep breath… as deep as you can manage. Hold
   2. Exhale- Take a really deep breath… as deep as you can manage, then exhale everything, then take a deep breath in around 75% of your full capacity and finally exhale around 50 – 60% of your full capacity. Hold
4. Relax. Every move or tension in the body is going to reflect on your performance.

The retention.

Stop the air escaping at the glottis or the back of the throat, not at the lips. Never release any air until you intend to breathe again. Relax your mind and body.

What to keep in mind:

A good physical condition is critical for your overall success. If you don’t feel well, take a day off. Drink a lot of water during the day. Eat healthily and don’t overeat. Don’t drink coffee or alcohol before your workout.

Consider including aerobic and anaerobic training in your physical training regime!

Learn More

The best place to learn Wim Hof Breathing is from the official Wim Hof Website or a certified instructor. This article is just a brief introduction to the breathing practice. Which is one of the three pillars in the Method. Read more about the pillars and the method.

Safety first!

The breathing method contains periods of deep, rapid breathing that decrease the CO2 in the blood. In rare cases, hyperventilation can lead to dizziness and loss of consciousness. Never do the breathing close to water or operating any vehicle. If it’s your first time doing the workout there should be a person that is knowing what you are doing.

What it is:

A controlled breathing exercise developed by Wim Hof and one of the pillars in the Wim Hof Method. It starts with a brief period of hyperventilation followed by a brief period of breath-hold for at least 3 cycles.

What to expect:

This is a controlled hyperventilation exercise, so you can expect physical, mental, and emotional sensations normally associated with hyperventilation, like lightheadedness and tingling in the hands and feet. It is normal to feel intense emotions or end up crying or laughing during the breathwork. Afterward, you may feel energized, awakened, or euphoric.

Where and when to do it:

Find a place where you won’t be disturbed for around 15 min. It’s preferred to do it in the morning, before breakfast. (Hof advises doing the workout on an empty stomach.)

How to do it:

The breathing. The app is pre-built with 3 breathing patterns(Breath of Fire, Breath of Fire slow, Breath of Fire fast) for the method. The one that is in use with the pre-build Wim Hof, Free, and Wim Hof, Fixed is Breath of Fire. – Learn how to change it. Follow the breathing pattern for 30-40 cycles. – Learn how to edit it. Or you can press the breathing ball after the 10th cycle to go into retention.

The retention. After the last exhale, hold your breath as long as you can. It’s not unusual to reach somewhere between 1-3 minutes, and as you practice, you can expect your breath-hold time to improve.

The recovery. When the urge to breathe gets uncomfortable, press the empty breathing ball and take a deep inhale, hold it for 15 seconds.

Repetition. Repeat the hyperventilation-and-breath-hold cycle for a total of three or four cycles.

After the last recovery. If you feel fit enough you can do another 5-10 breathing cycles. Take a deep inhale, and while holding your breath make as much as you can push-ups.

What to keep in mind: This exercise should feel strenuous but never too uncomfortable. It should be done without forcing anything. If it becomes too hard or unpleasant, simply stop the exercise and try again later—it gets easier with practice.

FAQs on Wim Hof Website