How to Increase Your Breath-Hold Time: A Complete Guide
Whether you're a freediver chasing deeper dives, a surfer who wants more confidence in hold-downs, a spearfisher extending your bottom time, or simply curious about what your body can do — learning to increase your breath-hold time is a rewarding and surprisingly accessible goal.
Most beginners are shocked to discover that their first untrained breath-hold is limited far more by psychology and technique than by lung capacity. With the right approach, it's common to double your comfortable hold time within a few weeks of consistent practice — all on dry land, without any special equipment.
This guide covers exactly how to do that, step by step. We'll walk through the physiology behind breath-holding, five proven training techniques, a sample weekly plan, and the most common mistakes that hold people back. Throughout, we'll emphasise safety — because the fastest way to improve is also the safest way.
Understanding Your Breath-Hold
Before you start training, it helps to understand what's actually happening in your body when you hold your breath.
The Urge to Breathe
That desperate need to breathe you feel during a hold isn't caused by running out of oxygen — it's triggered by rising carbon dioxide (CO2) levels in your blood. CO2 is a waste product of metabolism, and your brain's chemoreceptors are exquisitely sensitive to it. When CO2 rises beyond a certain threshold, your diaphragm begins to contract involuntarily. Freedivers call these contractions, and they're a normal, healthy signal — not an emergency.
Understanding this distinction is the single most important insight for increasing your hold time: you have far more oxygen remaining than your body's alarm system suggests. Training teaches your body to tolerate higher CO2 levels comfortably, which is the primary mechanism behind longer holds.
The Mammalian Dive Reflex
Humans share an ancient physiological response with marine mammals called the mammalian dive reflex. When your face contacts cold water (or even when you simply hold your breath), your body automatically:
Slows your heart rate (bradycardia) — reducing oxygen consumption
Constricts peripheral blood vessels — redirecting blood to vital organs
Triggers splenic contraction — releasing stored red blood cells to carry more oxygen
This reflex becomes stronger with training and cold water exposure, which is one reason freedivers improve so rapidly once they start practising regularly.
Safety First
Warning: Breath-hold training in water carries a risk of shallow water blackout, which can be fatal even in a swimming pool. Never practise breath-holds alone in water. Always have a trained buddy watching you. The techniques in this guide are designed to be practised safely on dry land.
Before we get into training methods, let's establish the non-negotiable safety rules:
Never train alone in water. This is the most important rule in all of freediving. Blackout can happen without warning, and even experienced freedivers drown when they ignore this rule. See our safety resources for more detail.
Never hyperventilate before a hold. Excessive deep breathing before a breath-hold lowers your CO2 levels without meaningfully increasing oxygen. This delays the urge to breathe — which sounds helpful but actually removes your body's early warning system, dramatically increasing blackout risk.
Train on dry land first. All of the techniques below work perfectly well sitting in a chair or lying on a couch. Master them on land before applying them in water.
Listen to your body. Tingling in your lips or fingers, tunnel vision, or a feeling of euphoria are signs you've pushed too far. End the hold immediately.
Never push through lightheadedness. If you feel dizzy, stop the session. Rest and try again another day.
Technique 1: Diaphragmatic Breathing
The way you breathe before a hold has an enormous impact on how long you can hold. Most people breathe shallowly into their chest, using only the top third of their lungs. Freedivers breathe with their diaphragm — the dome-shaped muscle at the base of your ribcage — which engages the full lung volume.
How to Practise
Lie on your back with one hand on your chest and one on your belly.
Breathe in slowly through your nose. Your belly should rise first, then your chest. The hand on your chest should barely move.
Exhale slowly through pursed lips, letting your belly fall.
Repeat for 2–3 minutes, focusing on a long, relaxed exhale (aim for an exhale that's roughly twice as long as the inhale).
Once this feels natural, try it sitting upright, then standing.
This breathing pattern should become your default before every breath-hold. Many beginners find that simply switching from chest breathing to diaphragmatic breathing adds 15–30 seconds to their hold with no other changes.
Technique 2: Relaxation and Mental Control
Anxiety is the biggest enemy of a long breath-hold. When you're tense, your muscles consume more oxygen, your heart rate rises, and the urge to breathe comes faster. Relaxation is not just helpful — it's the most effective single technique for increasing your hold time.
Body Scan Technique
Before each hold, do a systematic body scan:
Starting from your toes, consciously relax each muscle group.
Move up through your calves, thighs, hips, abdomen, chest, arms, shoulders, neck, and face.
Pay special attention to your jaw (unclench it), your tongue (let it rest on the floor of your mouth), and your shoulders (drop them).
Take your final breath only when you feel fully relaxed.
Managing the Urge to Breathe
When contractions begin during a hold, try these mental strategies:
Visualisation: Picture yourself in a calm, comfortable place — a warm beach, floating in still water.
Counting: Count slowly. Having a task gives your mind something to focus on besides discomfort.
Acceptance: Rather than fighting the urge, acknowledge it. Tell yourself: "This is CO2. I have plenty of oxygen. This is uncomfortable but not dangerous."
Finger counting: Gently tap each finger against your thumb in sequence. This occupies your mind while also serving as a safety check — if you lose coordination, it's time to breathe.
Technique 3: CO2 Tolerance Tables
CO2 tables are the bread and butter of breath-hold training. They work by gradually exposing you to higher CO2 levels in a controlled, progressive way. Over time, your body's tolerance increases and the urge to breathe comes later.
In a CO2 table, your hold time stays constant while your rest (breathing) time decreases with each round. Because you get less recovery between holds, CO2 accumulates progressively.
Example CO2 Table
This example uses a 1:30 hold. Adjust based on your comfortable max (aim for roughly 50% of your personal best):
Round 1: Breathe 2:00 → Hold 1:30
Round 2: Breathe 1:45 → Hold 1:30
Round 3: Breathe 1:30 → Hold 1:30
Round 4: Breathe 1:15 → Hold 1:30
Round 5: Breathe 1:00 → Hold 1:30
Round 6: Breathe 0:45 → Hold 1:30
Round 7: Breathe 0:30 → Hold 1:30
Round 8: Breathe 0:15 → Hold 1:30
Start with the hold time at around 50% of your maximum static hold. If your best dry hold is 3 minutes, use 1:30 holds. The last few rounds should feel challenging but manageable. If you can't complete the table, reduce your hold time.
Tip: CO2 tables can be done anywhere — at your desk, on the couch, in bed before sleep. Consistency matters more than duration. Three 15-minute sessions per week will produce noticeable results within 2–3 weeks.
Technique 4: O2 Tables
While CO2 tables build tolerance to the urge to breathe, O2 tables train your body to function efficiently at lower oxygen levels. In an O2 table, your rest time stays constant (typically 2 minutes) while your hold time increases each round.
Example O2 Table
Again, base this on roughly 50% of your personal best for the starting hold:
Round 1: Breathe 2:00 → Hold 1:00
Round 2: Breathe 2:00 → Hold 1:15
Round 3: Breathe 2:00 → Hold 1:30
Round 4: Breathe 2:00 → Hold 1:45
Round 5: Breathe 2:00 → Hold 2:00
Round 6: Breathe 2:00 → Hold 2:15
Round 7: Breathe 2:00 → Hold 2:30
Round 8: Breathe 2:00 → Hold 2:45
Safety note: O2 tables push you closer to your actual limits than CO2 tables. Always do these on dry land. If you feel any dizziness, tingling, or visual disturbances, end the session immediately. O2 tables should only be attempted once you're comfortable with CO2 tables.
Most trainers recommend doing CO2 tables 2–3 times per week and O2 tables only once per week, as O2 tables are more physically demanding.
Technique 5: Stretching and Flexibility
Your ribcage is surrounded by intercostal muscles that, when tight, limit how much your lungs can expand. Stretching these muscles can increase your vital capacity — the maximum amount of air you can inhale — which directly extends your breath-hold potential.
Key Stretches
Side stretches: Stand with feet shoulder-width apart. Raise one arm overhead and lean to the opposite side. Hold for 30 seconds each side. You should feel the stretch along your ribs.
Chest opener: Clasp your hands behind your back and lift your arms while squeezing your shoulder blades together. Hold for 20–30 seconds.
Thoracic rotation: Sit cross-legged, place one hand on the opposite knee, and rotate your torso. Hold for 20 seconds each side.
Yoga: Poses like Cobra, Fish, and Bridge are excellent for opening up the chest and ribcage.
A Note on Lung Packing
Caution: Lung packing (glossopharyngeal insufflation, or "GPI") is an advanced technique where you use your throat muscles to force additional air into already-full lungs. While it can increase vital capacity, it carries real risks including lung squeeze and pneumothorax (collapsed lung). Do not attempt lung packing without hands-on instruction from a qualified freediving instructor. It is not necessary for beginner or intermediate breath-hold training.
Building a Training Plan
Consistency beats intensity. Here's a sample weekly schedule for someone starting out:
Week 1–2: Foundation
Daily: 5 minutes of diaphragmatic breathing practice
3× per week: One CO2 table (start conservative)
Daily: 5 minutes of stretching
Week 3–4: Building
Daily: Diaphragmatic breathing (should feel natural now)
3× per week: CO2 tables (increase hold time if previous table is comfortable)
1× per week: O2 table
Daily: 10 minutes of stretching
Test your max dry static hold once per week (with a buddy or timer running)
Week 5+: Progression
Continue CO2 and O2 tables, adjusting times as your max hold increases
Add relaxation practice: 5 minutes of body scan meditation before each session
Consider taking a freediving course to safely apply your skills in water
Tracking Progress
Keep a simple log of your training. Track:
Date and type of session (CO2/O2/max attempt)
Table settings used
How each session felt (easy/moderate/hard)
Weekly max dry static hold
Most people see rapid improvement in the first 4–6 weeks (often going from 1–1.5 minutes to 3+ minutes), followed by slower but steady gains after that. Plateaus are normal — if you hit one, focus on relaxation rather than pushing harder.
Common Mistakes
These are the errors we see most often from people trying to increase their breath-hold time:
Hyperventilating before holds. Taking 20+ fast deep breaths before a hold is the most dangerous mistake. It doesn't increase your oxygen significantly, but it does lower CO2 enough to suppress the urge to breathe — which means you can lose consciousness without any warning. 2–3 calm, deep breaths are all you need.
Training alone in water. We cannot say this enough. Every year, experienced swimmers and freedivers drown during solo breath-hold practice. It only takes one blackout. Always have a buddy when training in water.
Pushing through warning signs. Tingling, dizziness, and tunnel vision are your body telling you to stop. Ignoring them doesn't build mental toughness — it builds bad habits and increases your risk of a blackout.
Skipping fundamentals. Jumping straight to O2 tables before mastering diaphragmatic breathing and relaxation is like trying to run a marathon without learning to jog. Build the foundation first.
Training too often. Your body needs recovery time. More is not always better. 3–4 table sessions per week is plenty. Rest days are when adaptation actually happens.
Comparing yourself to others. Breath-hold ability varies enormously based on genetics, body composition, and experience. A 2-minute hold for someone new to training is a genuine achievement. Focus on your own progression.
When to Take a Course
Dry land training can take you a long way, but there comes a point where professional instruction becomes valuable — especially if you want to apply your breath-hold skills in water. A good freediving course will teach you:
Proper water entry and exit techniques
Buddy and rescue procedures
Equalisation techniques for depth
How to safely test your limits in a controlled environment
Mental techniques from experienced competitive freedivers
We recommend looking into courses once you've been training consistently for a month or two and feel ready to progress beyond dry training. Check out our education resources for guidance on choosing quality instruction, or read our certification comparison to understand the differences between major freediving agencies like PADI, SSI, AIDA, and Molchanovs.
📚 Educational Content Only: This guide is for educational purposes and does not replace professional freediving instruction. Before attempting any breath-hold training, equalization techniques, or depth diving, you must complete a certified freediving course with a qualified instructor (AIDA, PADI, SSI, Molchanovs, or FII). Never practice breath-holding in water without a trained safety buddy present.
Getting Started
Increasing your breath-hold time is simpler than most people think. It doesn't require expensive equipment, a gym membership, or superhuman lungs. It requires:
Learning to breathe properly (diaphragmatic breathing)
Staying relaxed (body scan, mental techniques)
Consistent, progressive training (CO2 and O2 tables)
Patience and respect for safety
Start today with just 5 minutes of diaphragmatic breathing. Tomorrow, try your first CO2 table. Within a few weeks, you'll be holding your breath for times that would have seemed impossible when you started.
Train smart, train safe, and enjoy the journey. If you have questions about breath-hold training or want to share your experience, check out our community page or browse more training articles for further reading.
Remember: Never practise breath-holds alone in water. All of the dry training techniques in this guide can be safely done solo, but any in-water breath-hold training requires a trained buddy. For more, see our safety resources.