Angelo Pardinas wrote:

> The second problem was my air consumption - I was going in with about
> 200 bar and coming out with only 40-60 bar while the others still had 150
> bar left !! Well I have some ideas on why this is happening to me (shallow
> and rapid breathing, kept on adjusting my buoyancy using the BCD). Anyway,
> can you guys comment on this suggestion from Rodale's Scuba Diving :

You probably identified most of the problem in the paragraph above.  Add to
your shallow breathing, the excitement of a lot of firsts and the problems
with your mask and the formula for rapid gas use is complete.

Most new divers use more gas than they will when they've been diving for a
while and most experienced divers that have low consumption got there
without knowing how they did it.  Fortunately for you, the internet has
given us a way and a reason to talk about such things and we've come up with
a few things than can help plus at least one that should be avoided:

1. The most important factor leading to low gas consumption is being
relaxed.  When you're comfortable with your skills your equipment and the
dive, you will be more relaxed and naturally breathe deeper and more slowly.
Relaxed is an easy word to use, but not always an easy one to do.

2. Weighting and trim are possibly the most significant equipment elements
that help you relax and save gas.   Your statement that you had to adjust
your buoyancy a lot may be an indication that more work needs to be done.
Most newer divers carry more weight than they really need.  Your goal is to
have the minimum weight necessary to meet the needs of the diving you do.
Generally speaking, the point where you need the most weight is during the
ascent from a safety stop in the last few minutes of your dive.  Others will
no doubt provide instructions on how to get your weight right, so I'll leave
the longer description to them.  If you use a wet suit or dry suit, you'll
have more to learn than those of us fortunate enough to dive in warm water
all the time.

Trim is the distribution of weight around your center of buoyancy.  The best
trim leaves the diver balanced in as many directions as possible.  You goal
here is to minimize the amount of energy required to maintain a desired
attitude, i.e. horizontal, vertical or something in between the two.  Trim
usually requires you to move weight from your belt to somewhere else.  Just
where your weight needs to be depends on the buoyancy characteristics of
your body and your equipment.  Keep in mind that different configurations
and different diving skills demand different amounts of ditchable weight,
weight you will let go at the surface or, in the most extreme emergencies,
below the surface when you have to.  Don't let your desire for trim
overshadow your need for safety.  Get help on this one.  For what it's
worth, my stainless steel backplate and wing is pretty much perfect weight
and trim for my warm water diving.

 3. Slow down.  Most new divers expend a lot of energy moving from one point
to another.  Slow down your kick and you're likely to find that you move
almost as quickly with a lot less energy.  A lot of research went into the
design of your fins.  Let them do the work.

4. Breathe slowly and deeply.  Do not hold your breath at either end of your
breathing cycle.  Called skip breathing, this tends to build up CO2 in your
tissues.  It is not as efficient as slow, deep breathing and has been
identified as a possible contributing factor to after dive headaches, higher
vulnerability to oxygen toxicity and DCS.

5. The final way to improve your consumption is to dive as often as you can.
The more you dive, the better and more relaxed you become.

Lee