How to Hold Your Breath Like David Blaine, World Record Holder (and Now, Me) 211 Comments

Written by Tim Ferriss Topics: Physical Performance

Last night, world-famous magician and endurance artist David Blaine taught me how to hold my breath.

For four months, David held the Guinness world record for oxygen-assisted static apnea (holding your breath after breathing pure oxygen): 17 minutes and 4.4 seconds. His record was then surpassed by Tom Sietas on September 19, 2008. David’s record for doing what I’ll describe is between 7 and 8 minutes.

I was born premature and, unlike David, I couldn’t then remember the last time I held my breath for more than one minute. It has always been my physiological Achilles heel.

What were the results of his training?

My first baseline test: 40 seconds.
15 minutes later: 3 minutes and 33 seconds (!!!).

Out of roughly 12 TEDMED attendees he also taught, all but one beat Harry Houdini’s lifelong record of 3 minutes and 30 seconds. One woman held her breath for more than 5 minutes. Here is a photograph of the session. I’m sitting in the vest, four people to the right of Roni Zeiger, MD, Google Health product manager.

Here’s how we did it…

The David Blaine Method

DISCLAIMER: THIS IS FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY. DO NOT ATTEMPT IN WATER OR WITHOUT PROPER SUPERVISION.

First and foremost, this is not a joke. David himself has almost died on several occasions. See 2:15 forward for a warning:

Moving onward to the method, which we did seated.

These notes were taken on a scrap of paper while performing the exercises. Much of it was written after I lost almost all sensation in my hands following the purging exercises, and after colors began to morph. After 3:20–I really, really wanted to beat Houdini’s record–I was shaking. Needless to say, this means these cliff notes are a bit shaky and may not be 100% accurate.

FYI, the above side-effects are common.

Definitions:

Deep breathing: “Deep breathing” involves taking a big breath in through the mouth, holding for one second, and then exhaling for 10 seconds through your mouth through your almost-closed mouth with tongue pressed against your lower teeth. It should be a hissing exhalation and make a “tsssssss…” sound. All breathing and exercises are performed though the mouth.

Purging: “Purging” involves a strong exhalation as if you were trying to blow a toy sailboat across a pool, followed by a big but faster inhalation. David’s cheeks were puffed out as he demonstrated the exhalation (imagine the big bad wolf blowing the pigs’ homes down). Be careful not to heave or rock back and forth, which wastes oxygen. Keep as still as possible.

Semi-purging: Breathing between the above two. More forceful than deep breathing but less forceful than full purging. Used for recovering after each time trial.

The Steps:

1:30 deep breathing
1:15 purging (if you feel like you’re going to pass out, do it less intensely)

Hold breath for target 1:30, no more
After 1:30:
Take 3 semi-purge breaths

1:30 deep breathing
1:30 purging

Hold breath for target 2:30, no more
After 2:30
Take 3 semi-purge breaths

2:00 deep breathing
1:45 purging

Hold breath for as long as possible
After exhalation:
Take 3-10 hard semi-purge breaths until your recover

Other Observations

David’s record using the above method: 7:47. His heart rate dropped below 20 beats per minute

He had us move our right index finger slightly every 30 seconds or so while holding our breath to indicate we were alright. More motion would waste O2.

He also suggested, and this was incredibly useful, going from A to Z in your head during time trials, visualizing a friend for each letter whose name starts with that letter. Use celebrities or historical figures when needed. This serves to distract you from the fact that you’re holding your breath.

If you continually check your time, it seems you hold your breath for less time. It is the opposite of the above. Too much focus on the time creates tension. All of the test subjects, myself included, had a harder time holding their breath when David announced the time every 5 seconds vs. 30 seconds. If I do this a second time, I will have someone else watch the time for me.

Do not let any air out whatsoever after taking your big inhalations for the time trials. This is important protective training for water-based breath holding. Why? If you pass out in the water (not good), you want the uncontrolled release of bubbles to indicate to those supervising that you’ve passed out.

It is easier to hold your breath if you haven’t eaten for 4-6 hours. It is also easier to hold your breath if you have less body mass to support. David will purposefully lose 30+ pounds during serious training to improve his lung-to-body volume ratio.

Want More?

I’ve finally met someone who screws with their body as much as I screw with mine. There are some incredible possibilities.

Would you like to see more on this blog with David Blaine? If so, follow him here on Twitter to let us know. He has a hell of lot to teach, and I’d enjoy more body hacking and mischief.

###

Odds and Ends:
Tim Ferriss – Most Popular Blog Posts
Tim Ferriss on TED – Swimming Hacks, Dancing, and More

Posted on October 30th, 2009

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211 Comments

Destiny Star — October 30th, 2009, 9:42 am

Fascinating article, Tim! Just found your blog and your twitter and can’t wait to read more from you! Interestingly, my priest just gave me a copy of Letters From a Stoic a couple of days ago.
Reply
Clayton — October 30th, 2009, 9:46 am

17 minutes? That’s crazy! I can’t even imagine how painfully agonizing that would be.

Maybe I’ll give this a try when I need a fun party trick (or want to pass out).
Reply
@AlexBerger — October 30th, 2009, 9:47 am

Very cool! Great tips, i’ve read up on free divers and some of the tricks they use – these sound similar, but with a bit more structure and a better explanation.

Thanks Tim!
Reply
- Richard Wonka — December 14th, 2010, 6:27 pm
  
  You will find that freedivers have quite a good explanation for what Mr. F is doing there. It is called hyperventilation and considered the most dangerous practice in freediving right after diving alone.
  If you are looking for structured information and training for longer breath holds, then consider taking a freediving course with one of the established agencies worldwide (AIDA, Apnea Academy, SSI, FIT, …) . That way you will be less likely to risk you life unnecessarily.
  Reply
  - JP — January 16th, 2013, 2:27 pm
    
    Yup, hyperventilation is very dangerous for freediving. You exchange risk for performance. From what I understand, Hyperventilating not only oxygenates your blood but also drops your CO2 levels really low. The strong urge to breath is caused by High CO2 concentration in the blood before low oxygen causes the same reflex. This allows you to get into more dangerous territory with more likelihood of passing out.
    Reply
    - Christopher — March 30th, 2013, 5:30 pm
      
      JP,
      
      This is mostly true, however it is a common misconception that hyperventilation saturates your body with O2. Regular breathing provides 98-99% O2 saturation. You’re correct in that what hyperventilation does is depletes CO2 so that the urge to breathe comes much later than it should, sometimes too late (when freediving). Although there are certain rare occasions for very few people, it’s quite accepted that low O2 does not offer any type of reliable feedback with regards to the “urge to breathe” or any reliable physiological messages with respect to how long is too long without O2. Elevated CO2 is what gives us the “need to breathe” message” and hyperventilation skews this to an unsafe level when underwater. For this reason hyperventilation should never be practiced for any apnea practice where water is involved.
Raina Gustafson — October 30th, 2009, 9:48 am

Makes me think of Kundalini yoga. I’ve never tracked time while practicing breath retention (kumbhaka in yogic terms), but have experienced all kinds of physical sensations similar to what is described above. It usually makes me euphoric, with a pins and needles sensation throughout my hands, head and face. Other than during Kundalini pranayama, I’ve experienced these sensations only once when having a deep tissue massage done on my abdomen targeting my liver, and on numerous occasions during particularly passionate love encounters. Fun stuff.
Reply
Kyle — October 30th, 2009, 9:50 am

It pains me that you used a video from Ebaum’s World, but otherwise this is completely awesome.
Reply
Mike Rohrig — October 30th, 2009, 9:50 am

There’s always a scientific way to make something better. I used to try to hold my breath longer just by doing it over and over. I got up to 2+ minutes. Amazing you got so far in such a small amount of time.
Reply
Michelangelo Bucci — October 30th, 2009, 9:56 am

Hi from Italy? Did you do it under water? My actual personal record is between 3 and 4 minutes, so I guess that with your method I could improve quite a lot
Thanks for sharing great informations, as usual.
Reply
Ryan Wade — October 30th, 2009, 9:58 am

That is so crazy man!

17 minutes … jeez!
Reply
Kyle — October 30th, 2009, 9:58 am

I once tried to do this in college. Every so often on the swim team we would do an exercise where we would swim 10×50 (fifty yards, ten times with roughly 30 seconds of rest in between) and attempt to do each one without taking a breath.

I decided to take this one step further and see how far I could go while holding my breath. About 65 yards into it things started to go a little dark, but I was determined to make it to the wall and make the full 75 yards. I swam the last couple of strokes in darkness and then hit the wall. I stood up suddenly gasping for air. The sudden standing and lack of breathing caused me to momentarily pass out while I was standing at the end of the pool. I busted my chin on the gutter and had to leave practice.

One of our female assistant coaches was really freaked out by the whole thing. (the obvious issues of trying to hold your breath in the pool) After this little incident our head coach decided to forbid future breath holding competitions.
Reply
- kharris — January 26th, 2011, 7:12 am
  
  Sounds like shallow-water blackout. Oxygen debt is part of the mechanism, but not the whole story. Hyperventilation reduces CO2 in the blood. Blood CO2 levels are the trigger for the feeling of panic which makes us want to breath. We experience O2 deprivation in the muscles, not the brain. Hyperventilation allows oxygen debt without panic. Oxygen debt is a necessary condition for shallow-water blackout, but it is apparently a drop in pressure that triggers the sudden loss of consciousness. Going black is a pretty good sign of oxygen debt, and you can lose consciousness through oxygen debt alone, but a drop in pressure leads to a sudden onset, even if you have a lungful of fresh air.
  
  If you are going to hyperventilate, you need to monitor you muscles. Sluggishness and heaviness in the muscles means you are on your way to trouble.
  Reply
Adam Bate — October 30th, 2009, 10:01 am

Congrats!

Seems like a lot of interesting stuff – I have never broken a minute when practicing with my own methods. Seems like David has the solution.

Thanks for the notes.
Reply
- Tyler Clements — December 3rd, 2012, 2:00 am
  
  I could only ever get like 1.50 like and I was dieing and once in a hot tob got 2.22. But After doing this method. I got 3.01 and I trying it again yesterday and got 3.19 and I tried today and I got 3.38.I can get 2.30 without even hurting now. I am so happy. I can’t wait till I reach 4 mins even though my goal is 5.30 minutes
  Reply
[see comment rules] — October 30th, 2009, 10:07 am

WOW! I have to try this.
Reply
Kyle — October 30th, 2009, 10:11 am

Something else occurred to me.

If you do this just sitting in a chair somewhere, is there any risk of something negative happening to your health? At some point wouldn’t you just lose consciousness and then start breathing again?
Reply
Sean O. — October 30th, 2009, 10:14 am

Wow. Fascinating experiment. Appreciate the instruction. I just wonder what a practical use of the skill is.
Reply
- Clara Keller — April 3rd, 2013, 2:54 pm
  
  It’s good for freedivers who are trying to better their breath hold, mermaids (not as rare as they used to be) and on that term, other underwater performers like the dancers of weeki watchi, and camera people who focus on ocean and other water environments. Oh, I also understand surfers need to be able to hold their breath pretty well, so training with this could come in handy I’m sure.
  Reply
Trace Mayer — October 30th, 2009, 10:15 am

That is crazy. Thanks for the notes. I think training like this would be particularly useful for some extreme situations in the water where you need to conserve energy (riptides, stranded, etc.) Probably dovetails nicely with yoga.
Reply
Jonathan Frei — October 30th, 2009, 10:31 am

17 minutes is amazing. Who holds the record for swimming under water the furthest. That would be a much more functional use of breath holding…
Reply
- Richard Wonka — December 14th, 2010, 6:23 pm
  
  That is David Mullins from New Zealand with 265 metres.
  Reply
Chris — October 30th, 2009, 10:35 am

Just broke 3:30 after only doing the 1:30 cycle. Amazing!

And I didn’t even breath heavy afterwards, like I used to after about 60 seconds without those breathing exercises.

Once again Tim, great stuff!
Reply
Gary — October 30th, 2009, 10:51 am

I totally enjoy holding my breath underwater, what i found helped the most was spending a couple of weeks at altitude and then returning to sea level the results are amazing.
Reply
BCR — October 30th, 2009, 11:09 am

“David holds the Guinness world record for holding his breath”

Actually, no… He held one of the records (there are multiple types) for a brief period though…

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Blaine#Guinness_World_Records

“Ultimately, Blaine held his breath for seventeen minutes four and a half seconds, surpassing Colat’s previous mark of sixteen minutes thirty-two seconds. This was Blaine’s first Guinness record and it stood for almost four and a half months, until surpassed by Tom Sietas on September 19, 2008.”
Reply
Tynan — October 30th, 2009, 12:08 pm

Great post, Tim.

Tynan
Reply
Allen — October 30th, 2009, 12:35 pm

I’d definitely love more body hacking. I can’t wait for the book as well.

We used to play a fun game in the pool. In circular pool (usually above ground) you can get the entire pool spinning by simply running around it in circles for several minutes. Then by hyperventilating before hand you can hold your breath for long periods of time (we weren’t quite as sophisticated in technique). Then you can basically surf under the water as the water spins.
Reply
Robert Fitzsimmons — October 30th, 2009, 12:44 pm

A skill I’m sure can come in handy one day; divers should have to do this for part of their certification. It would save on oxygen in a tank too so one can go deeper.
Reply
- kharris — January 26th, 2011, 7:16 am
  
  Definitely a “no” for extending tank time. This is known as “skip-breathing” among scuba divers, and is one of the things you are taught not to do. Too dangerous. Stillness and calm are the secrets to save extension of tank time.
  Reply
Bryan Hall — October 30th, 2009, 12:58 pm

Thanks for another great technique Tim!

There is a grand competition going on here right now for the best time. I had never gone past about 2 mins 30 secs before and I just hit 4 mins 6 secs on my first try.

There is nothing like a bunch of geeks locked in breath holding combat to bring in the weekend.
Reply
- Tim Ferriss — October 30th, 2009, 4:10 pm
  
  Reply
- chris schaffer — February 9th, 2011, 1:33 am
  
  wow what is your best time?
  Reply
Brad — October 30th, 2009, 1:06 pm

Cool post.

I actually just started messing around with this myself. I’ve been taking baths – just laying there vegetating – but I usually dunk my head under and hold my breath for a while. I can do it comfortably for 40-50 seconds.

I’ve suspected “purging” could be helpful. A couple years ago I was reading Prometheus Rising by Robert Anton Wilson and he gave an exercise to try the yogic “breath of fire” for 100 breaths, which is basically hyperventilating, followed by 100 slow deep breaths through the nose. After maybe about 10 breaths through the nose I thought to myself “I could be here for hours if I actually finish this exercise” because I just barely felt the need to breathe anymore.
Reply
Travis — October 30th, 2009, 1:08 pm

Now thanks to Tim I own my business,_and_ I’ll be able to win money at the family get togethers this Holiday Season!
Reply
Jonny — October 30th, 2009, 2:06 pm

I was underwater for 56 minutes.

Ok, you got me. I wasn’t holding my breath, I had a scuba tank strapped to me.
Reply
David Turnbull — October 30th, 2009, 2:08 pm

Absolutely love this. It’s just one of those wacky skills you don’t really need but are awesome anyway. It’d be neat if it could be done on demand (without that small bit of preparation) but cool nevertheless.
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Mike Siete Cinco — October 30th, 2009, 2:13 pm

Cool stuff Tim. Strangely, as I read through the article, I lost my desire to try it for myself. Maybe someday.

We as a generation, are just scratching the surface of our physical capabilities. Definitely there are limitations, but they are nowhere near as limiting as most people assume.

I think your book will be a catalyst in this area- the “average” person stretching the boundaries of their physical and mental limitations.
Reply
Liam McIvor Martin — October 30th, 2009, 3:09 pm

Just tried this and made it to 3 minutes. I think monitoring my own time is the problem, I’ll go get a few buddies together and try it again. VERY cool by the way.
Reply
Abbey — October 30th, 2009, 3:59 pm

David Blaine never ceases to amaze me. Not so much with what he’s done and can do, but with what he’s WILLING to do and his methods which always seem to include some sort of meditative state that gets his body through the madness.

What I’d like to know about this particular exercise (before I try it) is what the effects (besides the immediate) of holding one’s breath for so long are on the body. I mean, I assume there’s gotta be some loss of brain cells and who knows what else. So… who knows what else?
Reply
Tab Artis — October 30th, 2009, 4:32 pm

Very cool. Thanks for the information, Tim.

I recollect seeing a documentary of Navy Seal BUDS Training in which one of the drills was a no-breath 50 yard underwater swim. Dudes were passing out left and right before making the 50 yards. But each swimmer had a masked diver trailing them in case they passed out. Many did pass out underwater, and had to be dragged out onto the deck to be revived. [As a side note, how hard core are you, when you pass out underwater, rather than rising to the surface for air? Navy Seals are my heroes!}

I tried to do something similarl, but in spite of my best efforts (I’m 46), I kept quitting at about 40 yards. My best effort – I fell short by about 3 yards, simply because I could not see how close I actually was to completion, and I lost my nerve. As you prepare your new book, I’d love to learn how to increase my ability to hold my breath “while moving” so that I could truly test my mettle, and swim that 50 yards without a breath. Tim you’re the best…sick & twisted sometimes, but still the best! Keep up the great posts!
Reply
- Tim Ferriss — October 30th, 2009, 5:40 pm
  
  Thanks for the comment and kind words, Tab! Just FYI, David Blaine did 2 LENGTHS underwater with SEALS with weights strapped to his body. Insane.
  
  Happy Halloween!
  
  Tim
  Reply
  - Phil Wright — April 7th, 2011, 5:49 am
    
    Just a side note Tim, great article however the whole “David Blaine did 2 lengths” thing. Depends how good a swimmer he is? I’m a swimmer and I can do 3 lengths under water without any deep breathing training or techniques. Not belittling his achievement, just stating that the strength or ability of the swimmer makes a huge difference.
    Reply
kadavy — October 30th, 2009, 4:48 pm

Just tried it. It works. Amazing.

I didn’t do the whole exercise, but I got through the first couple of stages, and was able to hold my breath quite comfortably for two minutes – which I don’t recall being able to do.
Reply
Jach — October 30th, 2009, 5:03 pm

Very fun. I made it to 3:35, though had I not been so paranoid about the time I think I could have made it longer. I’ll have to try again sometime with a bud.
Reply
Alex Weber — October 30th, 2009, 5:22 pm

Gah! after just hearing that I feel out of breath. Wow.
Reply
How to hold your breath for longer « Bradley Simpson — October 30th, 2009, 5:43 pm

[...] was a little skeptical after reading Tim Ferris’ blog that I would be able to hold my breath for a significantly longer period of time after simply [...]
Ben Biggs — October 30th, 2009, 7:58 pm

Wow, I was holding my breath for that whole post lol.

I wonder what the health side effects are to this? It would be interesting to do some brain activity tests on David B. for that 17 minutes and see if anything abnormal happens.
Reply
Matthew Holt — October 30th, 2009, 8:27 pm

I wondered why he was on at TEDMED. And I’m still wondering

What exactly is the point of holding your breath for that long?
Reply
- Tim Ferriss — October 30th, 2009, 8:32 pm
  
  To test himself and the upper limits of human potential, I suspect. What’s the point of climbing Everest? Many of the amazing feats in the history of humankind lack clear points other than: it was there, so I did it.
  
  Tim
  Reply
Jonathan — October 30th, 2009, 9:19 pm

Just did my base line test and I managed 3mins first try, granted I was on the swim team for most of my life and was able to hold my breath longer than I can now a few years ago, but still pretty good! When I get a bit more time I’ll try out the breathing techniques and see if I can reach 5mins
Reply
Nestor — October 30th, 2009, 9:34 pm

I used to do lengths underwater for fun, I think my best was 4 – just a normal sized pool, not olympic.

Sounds like it’s basically hyperventilating? The body only measures Co2 in your blood, not oxygen, so if you purge yourself of it you don’t feel the urge to breathe for a longer amount of time
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Cameron Watt — October 30th, 2009, 10:16 pm

Three cautionary words: Shallow water blackout.

My understanding is that this purging greatly diminishes the urge to breathe when you’re running out of oxygen; you won’t get proper warning.

The mention of Mr. Blaine’s low pulse rate is the key to safe, useful breath holding.

When I did free diving, there were two easy, effective ways to do this: being relaxed, and taking advantage of our dive reflex; this being the changes to heart rate and circulation when our faces are immersed in cold water.

Relaxation is the biggest part of it; if you’re already reasonably fit then I believe it’s more important than physical training; yoga really helped my uncle enjoy his diving. Stop worrying about what monsters might be swimming in that big ocean and enjoy yourself.

A little body fat helps in cold water; being comfortable helps with being relaxed. A buddy I swam with was a better athlete than me in every way but suffered because, in spite of being well muscled, he was too lean.

Take it easy and be safe. Look around for a local free diving club.
Reply
DoubleA — October 30th, 2009, 10:58 pm

I cant imagine someone holding there breathe for 17 min?!? thats crazy. My record came in about 2.5 min…i need some training.
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Petr Mára — October 30th, 2009, 11:43 pm

Just quick note – the purge breathing is also known as hyperventilation and thanks to this method you can get lot of CO2 from your body… which is really dangerous, because your body does not give you signals to breath (diaphragm contractions), you feel OK all the time and you can pass out (blackout). NEVER try this in water, because this is the easiest way to blackout and NEVER try this alone. Few weeks ago my friend blackout during his third static apnea after only 3 purge breaths (!). No freedivers use hyperventilation during breath-up, only 2 purge breaths, but not more!

And about the record – Didn’t David use pure oxygen before breath hold?
Check these WR times – http://www.apneamania.com/code/worldrec_main.asp?typeID=spr&specID=amap
Reply
- Tim Ferriss — October 31st, 2009, 12:25 am
  
  Hi Petr,
  
  Agreed on not doing this in water. It’s not worth the risk. David used 02 for his record attempt. His record with the post’s technique is 7-8 minutes.
  
  Tim
  Reply
hugo — October 31st, 2009, 2:04 am

Im sure there is people with multiple injuries from the break dancing post trying to hold their breath right now …
Reply
Roland — October 31st, 2009, 2:35 am

Hi Tim,

this blog post is either the one you did the least research on or you left out a couple of things just to make it a little more exicting…

The commenters before me already pointed out that
A) David Blaines World record was already broken
B) He used pure oxygen before the breath-hold. Comparing it to a normal breath-hold is like comparing a bicycle to a motorcycle.

If you really want to learn about holding your breath, go to the people who coached David Blaine => (http://www.performancefreediving.com/).

They got me from nothing to 5:30 in two days.
Reply
- Tim Ferriss — October 31st, 2009, 4:12 pm
  
  Hi Roland,
  
  Thank you for the comment.
  
  I’ll certainly check things out and revise. I was basing the “world-record holder” part on his introduction and speaker bio for TEDMED. I do make it clear, though, at the bottom of this post that his record using the described technique is 7-8 minutes. I’m not making an attempt to compare static apnea without oxygen to with oxygen, as I agree that would be ridiculous.
  
  Thanks again for the feedback…
  
  Best,
  
  Tim
  Reply
Oleg Mokhov — October 31st, 2009, 6:41 am

Hey Tim,

If you’re a Monkey Island fan like me, then you were thinking one thing: Guybrush Threepwood ain’t so hot anymore with his ability to hold his breath for 10 minutes underwater

Impressive as always to see humans push their bodies to the edge. Reminds me of Dean Karnazes – you do it because you can, to know you’re alive and capable of these feats.

Should come in handy when a) Impressing friends or b) Escaping from life-critical situations.

Thanks for sharing your notes,
Oleg
Reply
Nate — October 31st, 2009, 7:29 am

Really neat stuff Tim. Thanks for laying down the technique. I think Tom Sietas actually holds the record for breath holding underwater at 17 minutes, 19 seconds. He broke David’s record on Regis and Kelly. I bet if David could get his heart rate down on his next attempt he can beat it no problem.
Reply
Mike T Nelson — October 31st, 2009, 7:50 am

Cool stuff Tim! Thanks for sharing, much appreciated!

As mentioned above by others and yourself, the theory goes that some people’s brains (maybe 10% or so) are more regulated by O2 than the standard CO2 and may alter their response to long breath holds (may “blackout” during long extended holds without warning).

Another option is the use of the Earth Pulse unit, which (as odd as it sounds) is a powered pulsed magnetic field that you sleep with under your bed. I’ve tried it and without using any of the cool techniques above my forced breath hold went from 43 seconds to a best time of over 2 minutes several weeks later. May give you an extra edge combined with the techniques above. The Earth Pulse works great for increasing cardio (cardiorepsiratory fitness). .

Rock on
Mike T Nelson
Reply
Daniel Graversen, so — October 31st, 2009, 8:47 am

Hi,
I tried this this morning. I was amazed that I could hokd my breath for over 1 min. It works.
My only problem was that I got a blackout. I was pulled up the water after 3.30 by the coach. .So remember to do this supervised.
In the process of being pulled up I was unfortuned enough to have my shoulder dislocated.So it involved too much pain.

daniel
Reply
- Tim Ferriss — October 31st, 2009, 4:06 pm
  
  Hi Daniel and All,
  
  Please, please, please do not practice this in water. Per the post’s instructions, this is obviously dangerous to do in the water.
  
  Please be safe.
  
  Best,
  
  Tim
  Reply
Tim Ferris and David Blaine — Two of my favorite people together at last - OnlineMagicClub.com – Diary of a Magician! — October 31st, 2009, 11:26 am

[...] you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!Tim Ferris, author of ‘The 4 Hour Workweek’ and body-hack master, met up with David Blaine for a [...]
James — October 31st, 2009, 11:54 am

Hi Tim,

Have you ever experimented with improving the strength of your connective tissue like ligaments in places that are normally weak… Such as the ankles and wrists?
Just curious

Love your blog and book, keep it coming!

James~
Reply
- Tim Ferriss — October 31st, 2009, 4:04 pm
  
  Hi James,
  
  I am working on that as we speak. It will most definitely be in the new book for 2010.
  
  Thanks!
  
  Tim
  Reply
Kai — October 31st, 2009, 12:34 pm

I’m amazed (positively) that so many of your readers like this stuff.

Anyway, having done a lot of windsurfing in the huge huge winter waves of Hawaii I have had some underwater fun myself. Imagine working super hard, completely exacted out of breath working the wave, and wham, you get slammed by the giant wave and you are under water, the water is swirling and you are like an underwater propeller, there is no way you can get up, you might hit the reef anytime, there is no use swimming, the body is screaming for air, you have done this before (in bigger and bigger waves) so you just relax, kick back and observe what is happening. Sometimes you start blacking out, you know that you can only be couscous (and alive) for a few more seconds, you wait, but somewhere you know it will end. Then the swirling stops, you swim up, head over water breath in, only to discover that the foam from the wave is 1 foot high and you breath in the foam water (this absolutely sucks). You cough and then comes the next wave behind it. Nothing in you want to go under water again, but you take a deep breath and dive as deep as you can.

Have fun, stay out of the water when playing this game.
Reply
Rob Rawson — October 31st, 2009, 12:55 pm

Did two cycles of deep breathing and then held my breath for 4 minutes and 15 seconds. I think I could go quite a bit more but didn’t want to push it as I was by myself. I think different people have varying lung capacities and ability to tolerate high CO2 and low O2, it’s always been not too difficult for me to hold my breath for some reason?

“what’s the point of holding your breath” … as soon as we start going down that path it’s not far to get to “what’s the point of anything”. And the answer is, the point of anything (ie. the meaning of life) is whatever you make it (by definition since meaning is made up in your mind) …. ahh this breath holding is making me all philosophical ….
Reply
Mikey Ames — October 31st, 2009, 1:20 pm

Tim,

I did it.
Followed your steps and got bored after the 2.30 round so I went ahead and kept on holding it.

I got to 4.15! I really suprised myself. I did the alphabet name thing and kept my eyes closed as you suggest. By the time I opened my eyes 3 minutes had gone by.
This is so very cool. Thanks for sharing.
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Ramil — October 31st, 2009, 2:30 pm

Hi, Tim!
My name is Ramil. I am from Russia.
I recently read your book. I must say that this is fantastic! You changed my whole view of life. I decided to change much. Even more. I already do it! Thank you for this.

I have a business question. I would like to import to Russia, your product bodyquicken. However, on your web site, I could not find the necessary contacts. You would not write anything like this can be done? or to whom I contact.

Thank you! You’re great!
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Marvin S. — October 31st, 2009, 3:10 pm

Very cool article. Love it when you model people with extraordinary physical abilities and I’m really looking forward to read the book you are working on at the time.
My score after 20 minutes of training was 3m40s. Initially 1m20s =P thats an imrpovement of more than 280%!!!

Keep up the good work Tim, it’s very appreciated.
//Marvin
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Ronald — October 31st, 2009, 3:47 pm

Question as to health risks:

Doesn’t the brain need fresh oxygen after 2-3 minutes? Isn’t this causing the death of a lot of brain cells?
Reply
- Tim Ferriss — October 31st, 2009, 4:03 pm
  
  Hi Ronald,
  
  I am sure this is not good for your brain. I’ve been foggy-headed for the last 48 hours. It’s a cool example of human potential, but I’d treat it like whippets (sp? not the dogs) or binge drinking. Probably not good for you, but if you choose to experiment, do it seldom.
  
  Tim
  Reply
Sarah — October 31st, 2009, 3:53 pm

There are a few skills it seems would be wise to learn and practice, just in case you ever need them. I think about this as a mother who home schools — education consisting of a much broader range than traditional American public school.

Funny that I was thinking about this particular skill within the past two weeks, and your post shows up here.

The most shocking thing is that anyone can learn it very quickly.

Fifteen minutes of practice for something that could save your life?

I’d like to see a video demonstrating this process.

Also, loved your TEDs vid in your odds and ends. I’m particularly interested in your “improve or replace” experimentation with American education. Do you have information on your experiments yet somewhere online?
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jon w — October 31st, 2009, 4:32 pm

I have used the same breathing techniques (hyperventilation followed by slow breaths). In the slow breathing part I can get heart rate down to low 30s (normal resting around 55), and also have less sensitivity to discomfort. The slow, forced breathing together with tensed core helps me stop shivering when cold, and to deal with painful first aid procedures like stitches or having a wound cleaned.
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Stefan — October 31st, 2009, 7:08 pm

Awesome. Thanks for sharing Tim. And damn.. I didn’t know that event was going on in San Diego. i just missed it!
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Mike — October 31st, 2009, 7:10 pm

I tried this and it worked! Amazing technique. I think if I practice it on a regular basis I will be able to hold my breath longer and longer. Thanks for sharing.
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Lucas — October 31st, 2009, 7:11 pm

Did you speak at this event, Tim? Are you able to share with us some of your upcoming schedule, as I am living in California and would like to attend some of these events. Thanks.
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Chris Mower — October 31st, 2009, 7:52 pm

WHAT?!?! Are you serious? This is insane, ha ha! I love it!
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Michael — October 31st, 2009, 9:29 pm

Nice Article Tim!
I cannot hold my breath for long – however a good mate of mine trains to be held underwater by massive waves – as a bif wave surfer..
In this clip he blows out all his air, sits on the bottom for 1:30 then swims 50m.
He trains – sprints up hills etc – after blowing out his air which trains his body to get oxygen from other things like his quads etc… Amazing
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xBQVJVT4Zec
Thanks for the post – I will fwd this onto Mark also..
Catcha
Michael
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Alzimmer — November 1st, 2009, 2:32 am

Awesome I am gonna read that really slowly and learn from it. I was talking about it with a magician friend and was really interested in seeing David talking at TED about this record and give tips. Awesome !
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Rick LaCross — November 1st, 2009, 4:11 pm

Considering that David is a master of illusion, do you think that he might be using some type of trick? He also levitates and reads minds. Comming up with an illusion to hold your breath does not seem like that big of a stretch.
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Ben Long — November 1st, 2009, 4:18 pm

Tim, great post – I like to believe the stories of monks that could do this for 40 minutes by literally controlling heartbeat. I’m convinced they could after watching an amazing doumentary on tibeten monks. Although it didn’t show the breath feats, I did show some otherworldly feats of strength/endurance.

My entire life has been a continuous series of Flu/Strep bouts several times a year since birth. I’ve been taking a popular greens supplement every day for the last two years and haven’t had so much as a sniffle. This green powder I’ve been taking includes Astragulus, an herb used since ancient times in Asia to strengthen the immune system. I have seen a seismic shift in health since taking this stuff daily. There are many other ‘forgotten’ superfoods like this that should be hoisted into the spotlight
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Jon — November 1st, 2009, 5:55 pm

lol Classic stuff…

Now lets see who can hold in a fart long enough
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Paul Winston Smith — November 1st, 2009, 6:19 pm

Sorry – I fail to see how this is an achievement. The loss of brain cells is too heavy a price to pay for any bragging rights associated with extended self-imposed oxygen deprivation. Seriously, how much Macallan scotch can you drink before you pass out? That too could be viewed as competitive with one person “out-achieving” another person in quantity, but at what expense?? One’s physical well-being??

This is very unlike climbing a mountain which some people might deem unproductive. At least when you climb a mountain, you must muster every fibre of human spirit to overcome big obstacles (literally and figuratively!).
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Magic and mHealth at TEDMED and mHS09 | mobihealthnews — November 1st, 2009, 8:23 pm

[...] Then again, the explanation for how a particularly impressive magic trick really works is sometimes more engaging than the trick itself. That certainly was true for David Blaine’s explanation for how he held his breath underwater for more than 17 minutes (he taught attendees at TEDMED). [...]
Tab Artis — November 1st, 2009, 8:34 pm

Paul, I tend to believe that we exist for a genuine purpose and that part of that purpose is to live and experience, to test ourselves, to strive and suffer and overcome, and that by so doing we are enriched and enlarged.

I’ve enjoyed Tim’s book, because it seems rooted in the idea that we are meant for more than living the daily grind while dreaming of greater things. The 4HWW encourages us to create our lives in such a manner that we can experience more, learn more, LIVE more. And, as I see it, testing the limits of our abilities is indeed living more. One of my favorite quotes is from George Bernard Shaw:

“This is the true joy in life, the being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one; the being thoroughly worn out before you are thrown on the scrap heap; the being a force of Nature instead of a feverish selfish little clod of ailments and grievances complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy.”

Sorry for waxing so philosophical. Thanks for the forum Tim.
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Ted Howard — November 1st, 2009, 9:05 pm

Pretty interesting stuff. It reminds me of a technique for high-altitude hikers. One problem with low atmospheric pressure is that the alveoli in your lungs can collapse either entirely or partially. By inhaling deeply then exhaling through pursed lips (like deep breathing), you create extra positive pressure inside your lungs, keeping those alveoli open so your body can get oxygen from the air and release out its carbon dioxide. This trick helped when I went to see the Bristle-cone Pines recently.

Lots of crazy stuff happens with respiration and acidity in our bodies. Ask a scuba expert or a doctor if you really want to know how the technique works and what it’s doing to your blood.
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Rance — November 2nd, 2009, 12:11 pm

One might remind you all of David Blaine’s occupation. He’s an illusionist.
You can find an explanation of this illusion here:

http://www.metacafe.com/watch/2547398/david_blaine_underwater_revealed_trick_underwater/
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cmclaxton — November 2nd, 2009, 12:12 pm

Tim, I have been waiting for you to write about apnea and or freediving for quite some time now! I hope this info will make at least a small appearance in your new book on being super human.

I’ve been freediving for several years now and it is one of the most rewarding things I do. I know your post indicates not to try this in water, but if trained properly, you can safely dive to depths of 75-100 feet on one breath. The feeling of accomplishment you get after a deep freedive combined with the runner’s high-like sensations are often indescribable to someone that has not tried it. Add beautiful under water scenery and you have a recipe for ultimate happiness.

I’m sure you have no problem finding the resources to get into freediving, but to anyone wanting to learn more about it, I started with a great book called Manual of Freediving: Underwater on a single breath by Umberto Pelizzari and Stefano Tovaglieri. It give a nice overview of apnea and freediving and provides some great exercises for building skill.

Anyway, thanks for all the great work and most of all thanks for sharing it with everyone!

Cheers,

Chris Claxton
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- Tim Ferriss — November 2nd, 2009, 1:20 pm
  
  Thanks so much, Chris! Just ordered it
  
  Tim
  Reply
Scottie Duncan — November 2nd, 2009, 12:48 pm

some feat of endurance, it’s pretty amazing what the human mind can do when called upon… I can hold my breath for very short spaces of time, but i will look at the ideas above…

not to attempt long periods in water, but to simply improve my bodies ability to process O2 better…

it will have to wait for a bit though as I have swine flu at the moment… aaaahh
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Roni Zeiger: Add magic and music to medicine | Loans in — November 2nd, 2009, 3:20 pm

[...] We saw the future of healthcare in discussions about robotic limbs, over-the-counter DNA testing, and pills with (edible!) computer chips inside them. Equally eye-opening was inspirational poetry, soul-touching live music, and magicians who made us question our assumptions about the impossible. I even learned how to hold my breath for 4 minutes! [...]
Amanda White — November 2nd, 2009, 3:56 pm

What role does lung size plays in breath-holding ability?
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Sandy — November 3rd, 2009, 8:07 am

Hey Tim (or anyone that knows their stuff), do you have any idea whether this kind of excercise will improve lung capacity? Good post. Would love to hear more about China though.
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Jimmy — November 3rd, 2009, 8:17 am

Pellizzari is a legend. Check the following videos, the second in particular.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GNIuZFHG-kQ

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cate — November 3rd, 2009, 10:40 am

sweeeet! this was fun- i just held my breath for over a minute!

also, a while ago i added you on twitter when you were bribing us with dropbox (honest i am) and i never saw any more info about the dropbox acct. ? did i miss something?
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- Tim Ferriss — November 3rd, 2009, 12:12 pm
  
  Hi Cate,
  
  Thanks for the comment. You might have missed the sign-up link. I protected my updates and send the link out to all of my followers for about 12 hours, then I deleted it and went back to unprotected. I really apologize if you did. We did, however, donate $3 on your behalf.
  
  There will be more fun coming
  
  All the best,
  
  Tim
  Reply
Dynasty — November 3rd, 2009, 11:48 am

Lol. Hey Tim,

You finally found your partner in crime?!, that’s awesome. Saw a couple of David’s old school shows about a month ago. I love what he said about reaching the stage of bliss and emptying his thoughts to reach perfection. What a nirvana experience

Have a blast and keep it up.
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Ben Lang — November 3rd, 2009, 7:56 pm

I just wanted to give you a shoutout Tim. You are a remarkable blogger and a role model to me! Thanks so much!
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Amanda White — November 3rd, 2009, 8:02 pm

Just tried this- I went from 50 seconds to 3:00 without feeling like I was pushing myself. (Going all out doesn’t seem worth the side-effects to me!)

I am an opera singer so this could have practical implications for me and my colleagues. I am accustomed to doing breathing exercises, but ones that are more directed at controlling exhalation speed and pressure than holding the breath.

That’s why I asked about lung size- I’ve never had my lungs examined but at least my rib cage is unusually large from singing opera since a young age- it gets stretched out. So I was wondering how much difference something like that would make. (PS I was born borderline premature, I don’t see that it makes any difference…?)

BTW, Tim- I checked and it looks like your match.com profile is gone. Does that mean you’re off the market, or are you making other date-hacking plans? Do keep us posted!
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Amanda White — November 3rd, 2009, 8:07 pm

I think I’m a little high now… like at an oxygen bar.
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Andy Brady — November 3rd, 2009, 10:08 pm

Tim, You mentioned you thought breahting was your achilles heel and that it was due to being a premature baby. I thought of you immediately when I read this NYT article a few days after reading your post. It describes a breathing method that is used to reduce reliance on medications and prevent or reduce the number of asthma attacks. It is used in Russia and in Australia Insurance will reimburse for training people in its use. The NYT journalist was reluctant to write about it because it is seen as alternative treatment. Thought you could use it if you still suffer from breathing problems like asthma or for your upcoming book. The method is called Buteyko method. The link to NYT article is here
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/03/health/03brod.html?em
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Brandon Weaver — November 4th, 2009, 1:12 pm

I just held my breath for 3:50. I am as flabbergasted as I am lightheaded.
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Round-up on increasing your lung capacity — November 4th, 2009, 2:27 pm

[...] start with this nice post, written by Timothy Ferris, author of “The Four Hour Workweek” and a Lifestyle Design [...]
LX — November 4th, 2009, 5:58 pm

Heh, I got bored before I ran out of breath. But I did double the amount of time I can hold my breath for. That’s just nifty is what it is.
~LX
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End of tour, selling albums, Zerbinetta, holding your breath « Not Just Another Pretty Voice — November 5th, 2009, 2:23 am

[...] is amazing. Tim Ferriss’s blog (one of my like top 3 favorite blogs in the whole world) teaches you how to hold your breath for ridiculously long times. I got to 3 minutes on my first (bumpy, not sure what to do) try, without even pushing myself until [...]
Franken Stein — November 5th, 2009, 4:49 am

Obviously…..some people have too much time on their hands.
Reply
Ben — November 5th, 2009, 6:57 am

Tim this was a great article. It may or may not be related, but do you have any insight on breathing techniques that help slow down your heart rate a lot in a way that would be beneficial for athletic performance? Perhaps this is something you will be covering in your book.
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Bill Leikam — November 5th, 2009, 5:32 pm

How do I sign up to receive notices in my email?
Reply
andy brady — November 5th, 2009, 9:34 pm

Tim you mention that you thought breathing was your achilles heel since you were young and I wondered if you suffered from asthma? well I saw this New York Times article in called “A Breathing Technique Offers Help for People With Asthma” shortly after reading your post here and I thought you and those interested in another breathing technique maybe it could be part of your upcoming book even?

The article describes a method for controlling your breathing to prevent or treat asthma. Seems the method has some scientific support to it. The technique is called the Buteyko method it teaches people to breathe slow and shallow through their noses, which then breaks the cycle of rapid, gasping breaths,and airway constriction all of which which hyperventilating during asthma attack just worsens because blowing off too much CO2 will increase airway constriction.
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Curtis — November 6th, 2009, 3:04 am

There is no way he held his breath for 17 minutes.

He has misdirected Oprah and the rest of us. Crazy magician trickery.

If in fact he did hold his breath for that period of time…WOW.
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Joe AARP — November 6th, 2009, 8:19 am

Uh…I’m still trying learn break dancing. No seriously, I just made it to 2:38. Not bad for a smoker.
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Charlie Thiel — November 6th, 2009, 9:12 am

Tim, This was amazing, but I also followed your lead on swimming and the total immersion swimming techniques in order to prepare for my first triathlon (another thing you indirectly inspired me to get into). My swimming practice was killing me and I was quite worried about the swimming portion of the race. Then I starting using the swimming techniques you found so helpful. Wow! Swimming became easy and fun (and faster). Thanks for linking me to that information. The only problem – the swim portion of my triathlon was cancelled because of poor water quality… agh! Oh well, more time to practice!
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Tore — November 6th, 2009, 10:07 am

It is amazing that you could go from under one minute to over three and a half with those tips. I used to like doing long dives in swimming pools, but after having read the recent study called “Holding Breath for Several Minutes Elevates Marker for Brain Damage”, I do not dare doing breath holding experiments anymore.
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Brian Radvansky — November 6th, 2009, 7:29 pm

This reminds me of the childhood fun of passing out on purpose. I had a friend who was able to do this on his own, just by holding his breath and squeezing two points on the front of his neck. I never mastered the technique, so he would employ a choke hold of sorts.

I’d wake up, a few seconds later, drooling, able to muster things like “Why didn’t you do it yet? Oh wait. You did.”

The science of breath is a world in itself. I’d like to see you go deeper into this realm. Perhaps see how different ways of breathing affect cognition and focus.

Thanks for the post, Tim.
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Uly Vlamides — November 7th, 2009, 10:33 am

I am 82 years old and have pulmanary problems and nueropthy. During a visit with my doctor he suggested swimming to help my lungs and excerise, I joined a Health Club and started at 0…Now a year later I can swim 25 yards under water which was huge as I had to hold my breath for over a minutes and using a lot of energy getting there makes it more difficult….I also can swim a mile on my back going back and forth…so all of this has helped my condition and increased my energy level and being able to hold my breath put me on that path….Uly Vlamides
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Marc Quinn — November 7th, 2009, 12:22 pm

Hi Tim!

Love this! Just made 2min40secs. Not bad!!! I noticed my body start to convulse after a while. I’ve been fascinated by freediving for YEARS but never ever did it. Now I live in London, the time’s perfect! I found a class the other day after I read this article and am going for the first time this week!

Thanks for the reminder
Marc
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Jacob — November 7th, 2009, 12:44 pm

Yep, breath holding is cool. I’m a big admirer of freediving.

BUT – as Rance wrote before me. David Blaine is an illusionist – and this IS a trick.
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Vasilak — November 7th, 2009, 6:23 pm

Awesome post Tim. Got over 3 minutes on my first shot.

Do you know any good exercises to practice for truly increasing lung capacity? Do you think this method contributes, or is it more of something to do as an occasional trick?
Reply
Jonathan — November 7th, 2009, 6:37 pm

Wicked post… I can always expect something original on this blog….

Thanks for sharing

Peace
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How to hold your breath like David Blaine, World Record Holder : Red Dot Magic – Singapore Magic Portal — November 7th, 2009, 7:47 pm

[...] David Blaine held a Guinness world record for holding his breath in a astounding timing of 17 minutes and 4.4 seconds. Tim Ferris publishes Blaine’s method on his blog in details. [...]
Nikka — November 9th, 2009, 1:58 am

It’s nice to learn these tips and tricks on how to hold your breath. Thanks for sharing this very entertaining piece!
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Morgan Coudray — November 9th, 2009, 6:28 am

Fascinating article, I’m currently in Ko Tao, Thailand practising apnea for snorkeling so this was timely and I will go home to beat my 2:14 minutes.
cheers
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chris — November 9th, 2009, 5:02 pm

Thanks a lot for this article. It really works. I never could hold my breath longer than 30 -40 sec. now i can 1:30 min. after practising for half an hour. Great.
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a.m. — November 10th, 2009, 2:17 pm

Hi Tim,

I subscribe to your blog, but this is not my favorite post.

I think your strongest posts concern business efficiency and creative marketing, which I’d like to see more of from you.

I’d also like to see more from you about finance, too. Not many people write well about finance, but I’m sure you could do it well (if you possess the knowledge)
Reply
Ben Biggs — November 11th, 2009, 12:32 pm

Tim-

Got any more content on the subject of business endurance for startups? I would like to see a disertation on how to succsefully plan a startup for the first year of operation. I know that’s vague but you could use common variables (x money each month, x number of sales, etc.) and put them into a scalable model for a startup (maybe use Brainquicken as a case study?).

Also it would be radical to see some more content on rapid skill acquisition. (ex. Advancded mathematics, musical instruments, etc.)

I’m doing my own research on the web a-long with the enormous f-ing gold mine of information that your site is. Just thought I would throw it out there.

Cheers-
Ben
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Brendan Wenzel — November 11th, 2009, 3:28 pm

This is really cool! I love how you learn how to do some of the most random things that most people wouldn’t even consider. Forget the old saying, “I wanna be like Mike”

I wanna be like Tim!
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JON — November 11th, 2009, 7:37 pm

Doesn’t the brain need fresh oxygen after 2-3 minutes? Isn’t this causing the death of a lot of brain cells????
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rbrtstar — November 11th, 2009, 10:57 pm

Thank’s for an awesome post

I guess you won’t have time to read this since you get hundreds (thousands?) of messages everyday

Anyways,

This is my passion

[URL in name per comment rules]

Best regards

@rbrtstar
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izdelava spletnih strani — November 13th, 2009, 7:52 am

hahahha, 17 mins, thats crazy
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Leroy — November 14th, 2009, 2:25 am

Well, it could stop someone from drowning some day…or maybe…aah…I don’t know. What a silly thing for a bunch of grown people to sit around doing.

Tim Is that an example of the “eccentric billionaire behavior” that you spoke about in the book?

If so, I want to do it some day.
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heuristic — November 14th, 2009, 11:44 am

Were you wearing your frog shoes when you were doing this? Say, whatever happened to the frog shoes anyway?
Reply
Lee — November 14th, 2009, 6:35 pm

Great Video. I love pushing my personal limits.
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Brian — November 15th, 2009, 6:41 pm

This is pretty unrelated but do you golf at all? If not, have you ever thought of doing a piece on the most efficient way to get decent at golf.(Shoot somewhere between 80 and 90). It would be very helpful.
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suman — November 15th, 2009, 9:04 pm

Tim,

How are you?…Are you ok?….No blog updates for 2 weeks now !

Best Regards
suman
Reply
thinkpointclick — November 16th, 2009, 9:32 am

Interesting, pushing the limits of the human body. I think this is a fascinating exercise although I am sort of left questioning why you would want to do this? I think that if you are doing it as a part of some sort of mental and physical test or some sort of esoteric or practical training… go for it. But the idea of doing it “just because” leaves me a bit concerned about the nature of people in general. Influenced by the whims of our environment.
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Jay — November 16th, 2009, 11:37 pm

Tim, you are one inspirining guy!
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Casey — November 17th, 2009, 9:35 am

Amazing stuff, Tim. I got to 2.5 mins today… trying to break 3 before next week.
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Elliott (Set Yourself Freelance) — November 18th, 2009, 5:52 pm

Hmmm… sitting in the middle of a crowded cafe with a latte in one hand, laptop in the other..

May wait until I get home to try this one

Elliott
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Dynasty — November 19th, 2009, 10:29 am

Hey All,

Just want to wish everyone a Happy, yummy Thanksgiving Holiday! Am thankful for the awesome comments on this blog.

You guys rock! Best wishes to everyone
Reply
Harry — November 20th, 2009, 12:13 am

Yo this next post better be fucking awesome. I’ve been waiting for so long…
Reply
Ronald — November 20th, 2009, 5:19 am

That is amazing 7 minutes and he taught you how to hold it longer. That guy is awesome.
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Scott — November 20th, 2009, 11:44 am

Hi Tim,
This is an unrelated question but I figured this is the best way to reach you.

It would be great for myself and others if you would write a blog post on how to Timothy Ferris my job search. I have figured out that looking for job postings online is a waste of time, and the more direct and supposedly productive approach of identifying key decision makers at companies involves a lot of calling and emailing without much response.

How would you approach a job hunt if you were looking to get the most responses in the least amount of time? For the record I am fresh out of college and looking for a job in sales, and everyone has told me they are only looking for people with experience.

Thanks Tim,

Scott
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@camcollins — November 22nd, 2009, 4:52 pm

This is great! I can’t wait to try this technique in the Bahamas. You can’t spearfish in the Bahamas with compressed air unless you are a commercial diver and I believe this certification is reserved for Bahamian citizens only. I’ve noticed that the older I get the less amount of time I am able to stay underwater. Using these techniques and being able to pressurize properly should do the trick.
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Trini Pilgrim — November 22nd, 2009, 5:42 pm

Hi Tim
Just got a hold of your book and it has been a great eye opener. I am actually just reading about ‘Dreamlining’ in your Systems reset chapter and have 3 questions for you- As a best selling author; namely

1) What are the different steps you took to convert your ideas into a best selling book
2) How did you identify your potential customer base
3) How did you choose the right channel to market your book (I am considering a blog page & e-book – want to write a book about my own experiences of overcoming redundancy but I am unsure of the most suitable approach for developing my idea.?)

Thanks for the response.

Trini
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Heyward — November 23rd, 2009, 6:26 pm

@ Tim Ferris

Timmay! Any plans to “Tim Ferris” standup comedy? I’m a comedian, and success (doing a set on a late night show) takes a longgg time. A lot of people do it 2-3 years before they even get PAID. I’m sure you could smash that.

“I don’t want to be seen in the public eye as a comedian.”

Well, you could quit right after you achieve a goal…like “Get offered 10,000 for one gig.”
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Stephen Wise — November 24th, 2009, 5:04 pm

I’d like to see the video of you holding your breath also.

Speaking of videos..
..so when’s the next RANDOM episode coming? I’m anticipating some more Tim + Kev shenanigans
Reply
Robert Henry LaBonne III — November 25th, 2009, 1:01 am

Tim we have not heard from you in a while. Waiting for some big news. Possibly the new book for Christmas?

RL
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christian — November 27th, 2009, 4:52 pm

I find this amazing. The only thing I dont get is that Davids hair doesn’t look wet in the Oprah clip when he is under water for 17 minutes and 4 seconds. How can that be?
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kj — November 27th, 2009, 6:28 pm

Empowering experiments are always worthwhile if you believe testing yourself and breaking through the negative limitations we allow to dominate our mindspace. That being said, i would be interested in techniques related to holding one’s breathe when being held down by large waves. Got any insights or legit links? Could you imagine holding a similar seminar at Mavericks with Jeff Clark as your mentor? I could arrange such an event for you and the Google dude you were with…
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Yushan — November 28th, 2009, 7:58 am

Wow! It is so amazing.Tim,you are so cool!
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Nathan Pope — December 2nd, 2009, 2:26 pm

I tried this out the other night and I got my breath from 45 seconds to 3:45 just going through the steps you talked about. The whole process took about 20 minutes for me.

What a good way to spend a quiet evening at home!
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VIs Major — December 2nd, 2009, 4:06 pm

This method should be taught to childern when learning to swim in general. I can think of a single example; a friend is trapped at the bottom of a pool and its going to take some effort to untangle whatever he’s tangled in. You might not get 3 whole minutes because of the physical aspect of saving someone, but if they are taught to RELAX when holding their breath to rescue someone and use the least amount movement.. etc.. etc.. it just seems to me like this is something that should become common knowledge, like the front crawl.
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Cathie — December 9th, 2009, 5:19 pm

All you out of country folks, I would love to partner with you!!!
I have started a sight at Shopify, and would like some help.
I live in California.
If you have something elese in mind other than my idea I would be open to that as well.
Contact me if you are serious!!!!
I am open to all offers.
All the Best
Cathie
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andy brady — December 11th, 2009, 11:37 am

wow some people are crazy.
Never do this in water even TIm has said that is crazy and potentially lethal. Read the comment of guy who fell and gashed his head.

Spearfishing and this technique, or snorkeling and this technuique DO NOT MIX it can kill you becuase of the technique you could pass out by accident. and so if you dont have a spotter with scuba gear right next to you like I am sure David Blaine doing the navy seal thing ,( and for that matter I suppose the navy seals had spotters too. )

As for freedivers doing this technique breath control and such is the whole point of free diving I mean they cant do it well with out learning lots about it I bet. So I assume anyone doing it for real will know or find out what is safe and not safe as far as passing out from a breathing technique.
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Uly Vlamides — December 18th, 2009, 6:36 am

I would like to update my comments about beibg 82 yrs. old holding my breath swimming under water from a month ago, now I have held my breath from 2:45 to 5:01 above water new under water 25 yard swim is 50 seconds old record was 62 seconds…I never was a swimmer and reading David Blains achievements has given me the fountain of youth by holding my breath and swimming under water didn’t sound like any thing I could possibly do….but I did and it has been huge for me…I can’t wait to get in the water every day
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Shawn McVey — December 26th, 2009, 5:09 pm

Tim,

I follow your blog 24/7– I have read the book, travel frequently, and train relentlessly for a wide range of sports. I wanted to patch through a link from PFI that I thought you might be interested in. PFI is: Performance Free Dive International. I am an avid free diver/ spear fisherman and thought you would like to check out the “F3F Cayman Grand Prix.” It is simply amazing. I have attached the vimeo link — take a peak, its pretty incredible. I am going to begin my free dive certifications for intermediate, and advanced range diving in Monterey CA. My friend took the course and made it up to 127 ft. on the fourth day of instruction. The video and additional performance free dive info is linked through the Performance Free Dive Institute website. Check out the videos section and view “Upcoming F3F Scooter Racing Event in Grand Cayman, May 2010.

Best,
Shawn M.
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Davy — December 28th, 2009, 2:45 am

Hi Tim

I have quoted a piece of your article in our article “Round-up on increasing your lung capacity”
http://www.runaddicts.net/health/round-up-on-increasing-your-lung-capacity

Best regards

Davy
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kodie love — December 29th, 2009, 8:02 am

i did it last night and held my breath for 4 minutes 42 seconds but when i went spear fishing it was 18 meters deep and i could only hold my breath for about 2 1/2 miuntes to 3 minutes
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Tommy — December 30th, 2009, 2:58 am

I discovered this as a kid. I am 44 now, but used to love snorkling off the beaches in Okinawa when my dad was there flying for the USAF in the ’70s.

I also was on a swim team for years, and a life guard. The technique you are describing was what we call hyperventilating, as a prep for a dive without scuba. It dulls the pain reflex from the CO2 buildup. I always thought (perhaps correctly) that it flushes the otherwise normal level of CO2 from the bloodstream and lungs.

Some emotional control is paramount, and the postiive assurance you experienced as part of a guided team would help of course to that end. Myself, I did all this years ago, and can at will hold my breath for 5 + minutes at any time with 2 minutes prep. for the venting CO2 from my sys.

BTW, I can also tell you how to survive and repeatedly enjoy a 100′ freefall into fresh water. Its not the impact, but the balance, choice of departure postiion, and winds. Its not a big deal at all but the experience is flat out nuts. Best from a suspension bridge, safer and the feeling without a cliff wall nearby is more astonishing. The naked zoom DOWN. Falling as fast as you can think, and faster.
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Graham — February 24th, 2010, 11:00 am

Just read Bryan’s comment (comment information) Bryan Hall-October 30th, 2009-12:58 pm) and have to say that’s hilarious!

A bunch of geeks locked in breath holding combat. Brilliant. In fact, Tim, as a writer, you should suggest that to the writers of Big Bang Theory on TV. I can already picture Leonard walking in on Sheldon, Raj and Wolowitz locked in combat. Too funny.
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anon — March 2nd, 2010, 11:57 pm

The way David speaks reminds me of someone with a brain injury hmmmmm
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A — March 11th, 2010, 7:01 am

This tech sounds kind of dangerous (read the article summary, haven’t watched the video). Look up the effects of hyperventilation- way too easy to have a black out using this system of “purge breaths”. There are much safer ways to have long breath holds without using that. As a side note, breath holds in water should never be done without adequate saftey measures including a competent buddy. Preventable deaths are always a tragedy.
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steve — March 13th, 2010, 1:07 pm

I used to read a series of books called The Destroyer -a cop framed for murder,”executed” , brought back to serve the govt as a secret assassin-He was trained by a Korean in the art of Sinanju….one of the parts of the training regimen was control over breathing (and body), I took their exercises to heart and could hold my breath routinely under water for 4 + minutes.

I often would hold my breath while waking pretending I was in a swirl of noxious gases which would clear after the next two telephone poles down the road… the effects of working in a state of oxygen deprivation are incredible!

The muscle pain is one… your legs feel like you have been whacked with a bat, your skin crawls sometimes, there is that ‘darkness’ he mentions and often you feel an intense need to let loose – (bladder , everything) of course I dont, but I wonder if thats what happen when you die.. when doing that breath thing while at rest, my heart beat lowers to maybe 40 bpm….havent dont this stuff in years.. should try it again!

This is excellent,better living without chemistry!
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Heather — April 4th, 2010, 4:10 am

Wow. I feel like children should be taught these techniques in school while they’re young. It would certainly help to know how to hold your breath in case of any situation where you need to stay underwater.
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Jorg — April 15th, 2010, 5:39 am

Nice article, but sometimes the fast way is not the good one. In this case it’s actually a dangerous one with all the purging going on. Just a recipe for being on the edge between nailing it and a blackout.

This is already an old article but it taught people to hold their breath (even over 7 minutes on regular air) in the correct way and some patience: http://shark-freediving.com/2007/03/06/top-10-on-how-to-hold-your-breath-longer/

Oh and the pure oxygen breath hold are just stunts. Stig Severinsen from Denmark broke the record two weeks ago with a 20:10 minute breath hold: http://shark-freediving.com/2010/04/02/stig-sets-new-o2-static-record/
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Jon — April 19th, 2010, 2:30 pm

Hey this is really great, though I’m in no hurry to rush out and try it. I think you’re willingness to try everything is inspiring – you must have more fun than anyone
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David Catleugh — April 23rd, 2010, 5:24 am

Great blog. Had a quick try, and held my breath for just over three minutes on my first attempt. Amazed.
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Maccanz — April 26th, 2010, 1:33 am

Top tip – don’t bother attempting this after you’ve just been for a run!(bit stupid, I know…)
Did manage to get over 3 mins with first attempt yesterday though. Goal – 5 mins by the end of the week.
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parviz — April 26th, 2010, 2:25 am

WOW i tries this and i held my breath for 3:39!!!!
thanks for posting! this article rocks, BTW i thought i was going to pass out lol
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Tristan — August 24th, 2010, 8:25 pm

i really loved this article! im 14 and me and my little sister go swimming alot, i did the steps above and my record before hand was 1:09, now its 2:46!! im very shocked, (and lightheaded lol) but this really helps me, now i can hold my breath long enought to go freediving, and all sorts or neat stuff! plus in my highschool we get to go to the pool for sports and ill be the best one at holding my breath! LOL! thanks for the awesome writeup! you helped me ALOT!
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Armin — August 31st, 2010, 6:26 am

Thx for the inspiration Tim!
Always wanted to enhance my ability to hold my breath. In 2 weeks I’ve registered for an Apnoe course… [edited]
My baseline before was 1:10 minutes.
I’ve followed your instructions with a stopwatch and made it to 4:01 minutes. Totally awesome I’m practically blown away!
BTW, the trick visualizing friends faces in an alphabetical order totally worked for me too!
Thx!
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josh — September 30th, 2010, 11:35 am

did the first 2 (deep and purge) and hit 2:30 holding.. this is amazing!
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Ray Sanchez — November 16th, 2010, 7:25 pm

Maybe one day I will be able to hold my breath for at least 4 minutes.
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- bagel — May 25th, 2011, 12:57 pm
  
  Read my post at the bottom friend:)
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steven — December 6th, 2010, 9:02 am

i read a book by a man called win wenger and he encourages underwater swimming as a way of triggering extra blood flow to the brain by increasing the level of Co2 in the blood. This opens up the carotid arteries, bathing brain in a higher amount of blood. This is supposed to boost brain power. He has a whole program on boosting your brain power but one of the things he recommends is underwater swimming every day for one hour for three weeks, building up the length of time that you can hold your breath for to about 3 mins if possible. I would love to know if anyone has knows of truth in this. There is a japanese inventor dr nakamats who has patented many inventions who holds his breath and has an underwater note pad where he takes notes claiming the underwater exercise helps him to make connections and solve problems. The book is the einstein factor,

http://www.winwenger.com/ebooks/guaran3.htm. here is an excerpt and explanation.
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- Richard Wonka — December 14th, 2010, 6:21 pm
  
  There is a lot to be learned from freedivers and breath holds of more than three minutes are common in our sport. The current world record being 11 minutes and 35 seconds.
  
  Sadly, what Mr. Ferris advocates is a very dangerous practice and at the same time counter productive for longer dives/breath holds.
  
  If you have any questions on how to do this safely, do look me up.
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david ennew — December 10th, 2010, 4:19 am

i cannot believe how stupid and irresponsible people have been in attempting these techniques .All through the commentarys people have left there has been no indication of safety mechanisms or support being put into place by those having a go at this. breath holding is a dangerous thing to do by yourself .DONT DO IT UNSUPERVISED ! Let me say that again.DONT DO IT UNSUPERVISED.!!!!!!! Do Yourselves all a favour and go onto youtube and type in Shallow Water Blackout .Also look for the safety presentation by Erez Beatus on shallow water blackout . Before some one dies.NEVER DO BREATH HOLDING ALONE>EVER.
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Morgan Coudray — December 14th, 2010, 2:10 pm

@David: you’re 100% right. As a freediver, the first thing one needs to do is be supervised and hyperventilating (ie: purging) can lead to blackouts because you are tricking your body’s trigger mechanisms by lowering your blood’s CO2 levels.

You can actually go much much further in breath hold time without purging and learning to simply accept your contractions. The proof is right here in the comments: I posted in an earlier one that my record was 2:14 (check above) and I’m currently sitting at 5:02 WITHOUT using such techniques. This is a beautiful sport and such shortcuts lead to accidents.

Tim, please take that into consideration or contact me so that I can put you in touch with some worldclass freedivers. Cheers
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Morgan — December 14th, 2010, 2:13 pm

@David: you’re 100% right. As a freediver, the first thing one needs to do is be supervised and hyperventilating (ie: purging) can lead to blackouts because you are tricking your body’s trigger mechanisms by lowering your blood’s CO2 levels.

You can actually go much much further in breath hold time without purging and learning to simply accept your contractions. The proof is right here in the comments: I posted in an earlier one that my record was 2:14 (check above) and I’m currently sitting at 5:02 WITHOUT using such techniques. This is a beautiful sport and such shortcuts lead to accidents.

Tim, please take that into consideration or contact me so that I can put you in touch with some worldclass freedivers. Cheers
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Richard Wonka — December 14th, 2010, 6:15 pm

What you’re publishing is counter-productive. (and dangerous)

The breathing described is hyperventilation which does not enable you to hold your breath longer, but instead increases Oxygen consumption, and thus _reduces_ the possible breath hold times.

What it does instead is removing warning signs, so you may very possibly hold your breath until you black out. – and without a buddy around that might well be the last thing you do.

When publishing stuff, please do some research before hitting the [send] button.

Sincerely,

Richard Wonka,

Apnea Academy Instructor
AIDA Master Instructor
Freediver
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Xiousgeonz — February 7th, 2011, 5:07 pm

There’s a rule in swimming breastroke that you have to break the water surface with your head once each stroke — I think that’s the current rule. In my time you *could not* completely submerge yourself.
Reason for this was that breastroke as it was swum then (it’s less true with teh “making it almost like butterfly again” adaptations) is faster, completely underwater, so people would hyperventilate before events… pass out underwater, usually when *almost* done the race so they’d coast at high speed into the wall and cause injury and death.
But hey, if people are goin’ for Darwin awards… and I’m sure oxygen deprivation is really helpful for the ol’ brain tissue… just consider what happens when infants have that happen with the ol’ umbilical cord!
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Tony D — March 6th, 2011, 3:04 am

It’s funny. I am one of those pickup guys. I teach men how to be more successful with women.

When I send them in to speak with women, they’ll ask me, “What do I say? I can’t think of what to say!”

I say, “Don’t think.”

When David is in that deep place, where he drifts away…that’s the pure spirit.

Or he’s full of shit.
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bagel — May 25th, 2011, 12:50 pm

Just wanna say awesome article!! Ive never been a strong swimmer and have horrible stamina, as of last week the longest i could hold my breath was 1:18. I stumbled across this article in an attempt to beat my friends best time of 2:08, which by the way he is an excellent athlete and works out every day, I on the other hand dont and currently have two blood clots! It seemed an impossible feat but after just two sessions of the above mentioned technique I went from my previous best to smashing his time with 4:03, f’n outstanding!! Also i smoke a pack of cigs a day so if I can do it anyone can. Thanks Tim, you have a fan for life! Cant wait till the next time i go spearfishing:)
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Cows to you — July 15th, 2011, 12:38 pm

e didn’t actually hold his breath, when he came out of 17 minutes his hair was dry, it must have been some sort of optical illusion.
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Ivan — August 12th, 2011, 6:03 am

I have tried to hold breath and i couldnt make it. Is it easier to try under water ?
@Cows to you
His hair wasnt dry. (?)
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- Charlie Hoehn — August 14th, 2011, 4:26 pm
  
  Do NOT attempt underwater.
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Craig Smith — August 24th, 2011, 10:31 am

Yeah that is a long time holding the breath. I wonder how many brain cells he killed holding his breath that long?
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Raktim Pal — August 29th, 2011, 8:44 am

Awesome man. Really nice article. Really helpful. got to 2:38 as my maximum time. Will practice this everyday.
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AXZM — October 19th, 2011, 2:11 pm

Wow. Fascinating experiment. Appreciate the instruction. I just wonder what a practical use of the skill is.
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David A — November 12th, 2011, 2:49 pm

I’d like to know his plan for quick wieght loss.I saw where he reduced for some challenge he was doing.
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janene — November 23rd, 2011, 1:42 am

I don’t understand..
If you are holding your breath, how can you do these ‘purging breaths’ if you can’t inhale..?
sorry if this sounds heaps stupid..
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James Flood — January 15th, 2012, 10:08 am

Most cetrainly worked for me, heres my first 3 results.

1st go – 1:55

2nd go – 2:11

3rd go – 3:00
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Liz — February 11th, 2012, 5:02 pm

My great great uncle James ‘Professor’ Finney held the underwater swimming record in 1882 – he did 340 feet at Prince of Wales Baths, Blackpool, in full costume.

He had a music hall act, swimming in a tank on stage , and broke his own underwater record on stage in London in 1886 – 4 minutes 30 seconds.

In September 1898 he swam from Blackpool to St Annes Pier in 5 hours 17 mins and also holds the 1 mile Open Water Championship, being the then fastest swimmer on record in water of 50 degrees. He swam his mile in 29 minutes and 59.5 seconds.

I’d love to know if he still holds these records!
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Andrew — March 6th, 2012, 7:10 am

Great article! I always thought I was weak at holding breath, I hated how I always gave in to the feeling to breathe when I was swimming (by coming up for air). I just did 1.5 minutes of deep breathing and 1.5 minutes of purging, and then I was able to hold my breath for 2.5 minutes. The beautiful part of it, is that I hardly pushed myself at all, I still felt very comfortable, so I think I could go for 3.5 minutes for sure.

It was really odd, 2 minutes in and still feeling that comfortable with holding my breath.. Didn’t feel a need to breathe at all.
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Colin — March 8th, 2012, 3:21 pm

I am normally sceptical of anything that promises immediate results, however I was happily suprised when i managed 2.30, and 3.45 on my fist and second breath, then 3.50 on the final breath.

This really suprised me, as I had just the day before timed myself at 1.30 no technique. So to more than double this in a single session was incredible.

I used to hold my breath unconsiously as a child and would only realise as I deeply exhaled, I remember as a 9 year old I could hold my breath for 2.30 without the technique. This was the peak though as I gave up on swimming and with it the need/desire to hold my breath for extended periods.

I speculate that my smoking has something to do with the fact that as a 9 year old I could hold my breath longer sans technique than i can now. Luckily with this though I manageed to smash my record and with it regain some of my manlihood.
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Craig — April 28th, 2012, 10:55 am

Need to update,the official world record for holding one’s breath belongs to Swiss free diver Peter Colat at 19 mins 21 secs & he did this underwater http://news.discovery.com/human/breath-holding-human.html
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- Clara Keller — April 3rd, 2013, 2:57 pm
  
  I definitely think that it’s easier to hold breath underwater… water is so soothing and relaxing
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Bryce — June 2nd, 2012, 10:47 pm

I think there are a few things to improve this. I’m not sure all the structure is necessary. On my first shot I got 4 minutes. I got 4:30 on my second try with a damn cat crawling all over me. A few key notes to my success: I had a hard workout today and my heart rate is pretty low right now. I’m also in my bed, ready to fall asleep. Basically my body needs very little oxygen.
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Joe — June 28th, 2012, 2:17 am

Can someone please explain to me how to purge, semi purge, … Its the first time for me to read such exercises on training a breath hold.

So lets say: the steps are:
1:30 deep breathing, and that is taking a deep breath after exhaling all of the old non-fresh air out of the lungs, and re taking a fresh one in.

It says: to hold for one second and exhale it during a 10 seconds time. Means slowly deflate ur lungs.

Well, what about 1:30 m/s, does that mean i would keep repeating that deep breathing step for a time of 1:30 seconds on my timer? then i move to semi purge?

…etc!
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Brandon Kicker — July 15th, 2012, 9:48 pm

So if this is the preparation, if you were going to do this before swimming how far in advance would you have to do it?
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- Like Yo — July 23rd, 2012, 8:07 pm
  
  Oh chicken nuggets will do
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limitpusha — November 23rd, 2012, 10:33 am

normally i’m like dying at a minute, and can push maybe 1:30. after doing only the first part of this exercise i held my breath for 3 minutes and could have held it for longer, wasnt even feeling out of breath, i stopped because i just wanted to hit 3 minutes lol. will try again after full exercise and see what i can get, this is amazing
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John — January 27th, 2013, 9:44 am

Hi! Last week i saw a video about David Blaine holding his breath for 17 min. I was so amazed and inspired by him, that i had to try it. Last week i could only hold my breath for one minute, but now that I’ve learned what to do by David Blaine, Today i beat my record and got 4 minutes flat! I will continue to try to beat my record and be inspired by David Blaine
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Denaj — February 9th, 2013, 3:56 pm

I wonder the benefit of this to swimmers.
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Clara Keller — April 3rd, 2013, 2:55 pm

I look forward to trying this!
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Trent Crane — April 20th, 2013, 8:51 am

This is amazing. My previous best last night before I tried this was 1:30. After one time through the mentioned exercise, I reached 3:45 on my last breath hold. I’m a believer! Thanks for teaching me this!
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nathaniel allen — April 23rd, 2013, 6:17 am

hi i was thinking about doing this but i dont want to get brain damage in the process so how can i avoid this from happening ? thank you.
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- Cas — May 7th, 2013, 8:04 am
  
  As long as you don’t pass out too often you’ll be perfectly fine
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Cas — May 7th, 2013, 8:03 am

Hey man,

I’ve been trying to hold my breath for quite a while now without techniques, my max was at 2:30. The second after I read this article, I tried this (even though I’m in a public library), just did 1 session (1:30 deep breathing and 1:15 purging). Managed to get to 3 minutes without even shaking or whatsoever, I’m sure when I try this the way it should I can make 3:30 as well. This is fucking awesome, thanks!
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