The World Record for Holding Your Breath
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The world record for holding one’s breath is an incredible 18 minutes and 35 seconds, a feat that has been accomplished by the world’s deepest male breath-hold diver, Stig Severinsen. Stig has used his immense lung capacity to set and break speed records during many of his underwater dives, in addition to holding the world record for longest breath-hold. This incredible feat is one of many of Stig’s accomplishments – he also holds records for the deepest weightless freedive, greatest distance freedive without fins, and longest neutral buoyancy freedive.

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Feats like Stig’s incredible breath-hold require extreme discipline and mental control, as the human body is not designed to handle long-term lack of oxygen. Many prepare for the breath-hold in various ways, including yoga, dietary changes, and physical exercise to try and improve their lung capacity and breathing control in both the short and long term. Stig believes that it takes a combination of both physical and mental strategies to control apnea, which requires immense control and strength.

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In addition to these strategies, which need to be employed long before an attempt at breaking a breath-hold record, there are also various techniques one can employ while actually attempting a long breath-hold. Tailoring one’s breathing to the specific environment and personal condition is key, and learning the optimum rate for each individual is paramount. Techniques such as pacing your breath, freeing the lungs of carbon dioxide, and shunting oxygen to vital organs to improve tolerance can make all the difference between success and failure.

Stig’s will and determination have pushed the limits of human physiology and made him the top apneury in the world. His 18 minute, 35 second breath-hold is a record that may never be broken, but that doesn’t mean that other people can’t improve their air capacity and achieve something remarkable in their own right. With the right combination of dedication, practice, and mental preparation, anyone can begin to discover their own hidden strengths and improve their capacity.