Just watching David Blaine on TED.com talking about holding his breath for 17 mins.

Got me wondering how long I can hold my breath for.

I used to mess around at school and stuff and could hold my breath for 60-90 seconds.

I thought I might be better now with my training and stuff and managed 2 and a half minutes

Pointless I know but I like to know my limits

I don't generally mess around holding my breath at home or other similar places, because I think that there is an element of cheating if you so much as take a single additional sniff of air- while not letting any out (in that case, you would be breathing of course)

However, I frequently hold my breath in the swimming pool and I try to do so as long as possible without moving a muscle- just floating. I can manage about two and a half minutes.

Diving in to the pool at one end, I can swim a length (25m) underwater, but only about one time in three do I manage it.

I first learnt to swim under water.

In fact I couldn't swim with my head above the water as I'd struggle and be afraid of not being able to breathe LOL!

I can manage 1.5 to 2 lengths of a pool from starting in the water. I always find I can hold my breath longer if I take the breath whilst in the water rather than taking the breath and then jumping in.

david blaine 17 mins? that is pathetic I held my beath for over 30 mins at at party once

Yeah - and I managed a whole day!!!!!1!!ONE!!11

Sounds more like a funeral than a party!

I could manage two days if I really wanted, all you do is blow up a baloon with your breath in it and hold the baloon for the required period of time, simple

CO2 anyone .

When I do this, I do it after exhaling, not inhaling which I believe to be rather easier. Managed to hold my breath for 90s after exhaling with practise.

Try it.

About 60 seconds, though I don't really like doing it.

That's not really holding your breath, that's not breathing! I can't do that for more than a few seconds. Of course you will understand, but for those who don't-

The principal drive to breath comes from elevated levels of CO2 in the blood and not lowered oxygen so if you can withstand the increased levels of CO2 while having enough O2 to survive the period, you can hold your breath.

How the heck can you not breathe with no 02 in your lungs???

The drive to breathe only comes in once your arterial pO2 drops below 8kPa at which point your body switches to hypoxic drive - breathing to maintain oxygenation rather than get rid of carbon dioxide. The drive to breathe at this point is immense, but you learn to delay the drive. By 60 seconds, I'm fighting to resist my body's need to breathe. Or at least I was. I can just about last 30 seconds now.

When I was younger (and very bored) I practised to see how long I could do it for. I cant remember now how long it was but I remember being impressed at the time. Nowadays I've got no idea.

About 50 seconds underwater.

Is that from when you do the HUET?