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Main Forums => The Roundtable => Topic started by: Ben on May 01, 2008, 06:07:08 AM

Title: New World Breath-holding Record Set
Post by: Ben on May 01, 2008, 06:07:08 AM
I start turning blue after a minute.....

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http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080430/ap_en_tv/people_david_blaine

 David Blaine breaks world record for holding one's breath

By TARA BURGHART, Associated Press WriterWed Apr 30, 6:09 PM ET

David Blaine took on a Zen-like appearance in the water tank as the minutes ticked by during his attempt to set a new breath-holding record. Oprah Winfrey, however, was anything but calm.

She fidgeted in her chair, pursed her lips, placed her head in her hands, and kept seeking reassurance from the doctor at her side about the 35-year-old magician's persistently high heart rate.

"I'll be glad when it's over. I don't like suspense," she told the audience during a commercial break.

Soon enough, Winfrey  and Blaine  could breathe a lot easier.

Submerged in a water-filled sphere on the stage of "The Oprah Winfrey Show" during a live broadcast, Blaine held his breath for 17 minutes and 4 seconds. That bested the previous record of 16 minutes and 32 seconds, set Feb. 10 by Switzerland's Peter Colat, according to Guinness World Records.

Blaine had a smile on his face soon after his head rose above the water and he took several deep gulps of air. Within about a minute, he was able to hold a microphone and tell Winfrey, "I feel great," later adding that breaking the record was a fulfillment of "a lifelong dream."

Before his attempt, Blaine was allowed to inhale pure oxygen for up to 30 minutes, although he inhaled for only 23 minutes. A Guinness World Records judge was on hand to certify the feat.

In May 2006 as a finale to a week spent in an aquarium with an air mask at New York's Lincoln Center, Blaine tried to set another type of breath-holding record. Without breathing pure oxygen beforehand, he tried to break the existing record of 8 minutes, 58 seconds for an attempt of that type.

But he had to be rescued shortly after 7 minutes when he was unconscious and having convulsions.

Blaine was in much better shape after Wednesday's attempt. He walked unassisted down a set of stairs to join Winfrey for an interview. He told her he had doubted while in the water whether he'd be able to break the record because of his high heart rate.

The lower the heart rate, the less oxygen is consumed.

Blaine had expected his heart rate to drop perhaps as low as under 20 beats per minute while he was in the water. But for most of the attempt, it was over 100 beats per minute, then started dropping and fluctuating rapidly during the last 2 1/2 minutes.

While training, Blaine said he would meditate to lower his heart rate. But amid the hubbub of a live studio audience, and with a record at stake, Blaine admitted he had trouble forgetting his surroundings.

Earlier in the show, Winfrey noted that her boyfriend, Stedman Graham, was making a rare appearance in the audience because he's such a fan of Blaine's work.

For Winfrey, however, the endurance feat was "nerve-racking to witness," she told Blaine.

Blaine joked about coming back on her show again and again to get used to the surroundings, lower his heart rate and set new breath-holding records.

But first, Blaine said he plans to try to break the world record for staying awake. The current record is 11 1/2 days, he said. However, Guinness said it no longer acknowledges such attempts because of health concerns.

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Title: Re: New World Breath-holding Record Set
Post by: wmenorr67 on May 01, 2008, 09:34:55 AM
Too bad we can't get here to have Obama try this on her show.
Title: Re: New World Breath-holding Record Set
Post by: 280plus on May 01, 2008, 09:40:54 AM
Oprah,,,shark bait...anyone else making the connection?  grin
Title: Re: New World Breath-holding Record Set
Post by: cordex on May 01, 2008, 11:09:35 AM
Quote
But first, Blaine said he plans to try to break the world record for staying awake. The current record is 11 1/2 days, he said. However, Guinness said it no longer acknowledges such attempts because of health concerns.
But they've got no problem with people holding their breath for 17 minutes ...
Title: Re: New World Breath-holding Record Set
Post by: GigaBuist on May 01, 2008, 12:13:19 PM
But they've got no problem with people holding their breath for 17 minutes ...

Well, apparently it's not that bad for you.

I managed 4:36 once in my youth.  I didn't know they were sucking on pure oxygen when they went for those 16 minute records.  Good to know!
Title: Re: New World Breath-holding Record Set
Post by: Ben on May 01, 2008, 12:21:21 PM
Quote
I didn't know they were sucking on pure oxygen when they went for those 16 minute records.  Good to know!

I've got my CPR / O2 administration refresher next Monday. Think I'll grab some O2 and give it a try while there's a CPR instructor in the room.  laugh
Title: Re: New World Breath-holding Record Set
Post by: Iain on May 01, 2008, 12:44:49 PM
The pure oxygen thing is new to me. Static apnea is one impressive, but dynamic apnea is incredible.
Title: Re: New World Breath-holding Record Set
Post by: Gewehr98 on May 02, 2008, 02:06:01 PM
Darn.  He survived.

Looks like Blaine will have to find another way to off himself now.
Title: Re: New World Breath-holding Record Set
Post by: Devonai on May 07, 2008, 09:27:24 AM
I taught myself how to get up to five minutes, but for some reason I could only accomplish it at the bottom of a swimming pool.  I think it was a combination of the quiet, calm environment and the relatively warm water (it was an indoor pool).

I would rest at the side of the deep end, take slow, deep breaths for a few minutes, and descend to the bottom.  I used the ladder to keep myself there, relaxed, and remained calm.  It was a genuinely odd experience, and for the first three minutes I felt like a superhero.