# Kate Winslet and Tome cruise hold breath for ~7 minutes - Hollywood BS? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 17, 2020, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kate-winslet-and-tome-cruise-hold-breath-for-7-minutes-hollywood-bs/925823 "2020-11-17T21:03:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Retzbu\_Tox](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/retzbu_tox/32/11829_2.png) [@Retzbu\_Tox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Retzbu_Tox)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2020, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kate-winslet-and-tome-cruise-hold-breath-for-7-minutes-hollywood-bs/925823/21 "2020-11-18T17:00:18Z")
From reading the article linked above, Kate Winslet states she trained intensely for four weeks in a tank, which helps account for better-than-average breath-holding ability. The statement that she doesn’t think she could match her personal record again makes me think she may have also had one particularly good dive that was a fluke where everything lined up perfectly for her to achieve her personal best result. ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2020, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kate-winslet-and-tome-cruise-hold-breath-for-7-minutes-hollywood-bs/925823/22 "2020-11-18T17:04:37Z")
And as Folly suggested above, if Cruise was breathing pure oxygen before his dive, that would extend the time he could remain conscious. With the combination of hyperventilating and pure oxygen, I find the claim of seven minutes credible, but not proved. It should go without saying that holding one’s breath a long time under water in order to break some kind of record or impress people is something that should only be attempted under the strict training and supervision of a qualified expert. Doing it in your swimming pool to impress your friends is not a good idea. But, hey, all the people attending your funeral will be suitably impressed by how stupid you were. ---
**Author:** ![CoconutPete](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/coconutpete/32/5294_2.png) [@CoconutPete](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CoconutPete)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2020, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kate-winslet-and-tome-cruise-hold-breath-for-7-minutes-hollywood-bs/925823/23 "2020-11-18T18:40:24Z")
David Blaine claimed on the Joe Rogan podcast that he got so good at holding his breath by literally holding his breath underwater until losing consciousness and having someone pull him out. I don’t know if that’s true but you can count me out. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/GjB0Dqoqbb8/maxresdefault.jpg "Why David Blaine Learned to Hold His Breath for 17 Minutes") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GjB0Dqoqbb8) ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2020, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kate-winslet-and-tome-cruise-hold-breath-for-7-minutes-hollywood-bs/925823/24 "2020-11-18T19:22:22Z")
I’ll admit I’m a skeptic. Tom Cruise and Kate Winslet are actors; they live in a world of make believe. Here’s what I imagine happening: Actor films a scene involving holding their breath. Director: “…and cut!” Actor: whoooosh “Wow, I really had to hold my breath a long time in that scene! Did everyone see me!” Director: “Yes, we all watched you. We were all really impressed by what a good job you did. Right, everyone?” Random crew members: “Yeah…sure…whatever” Actor: “I held my breath for a really long time. What’s the record for holding your breath?” Director: “I don’t know. Six minutes maybe?” Actor: “Then I bet I held my breath for seven minutes. Right?” Director: “Sure, why not, you held you breath for seven minutes.” Actor: “Wow, everyone, I just set a new world record for holding your breath!” Random crew members: “Yeah…sure…whatever” ---
**Author:** ![I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/i_love_me_vol.i/32/521_2.png) [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_Love_Me_Vol.I)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2020, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kate-winslet-and-tome-cruise-hold-breath-for-7-minutes-hollywood-bs/925823/25 "2020-11-18T19:39:57Z")
> [@spifflog](#): > > Per stories released this week about her in _Avatar 2_ she broke Tome Cruise’s ‘Hollywood’ record by holding her breath for over 7 minutes underwater. While I’ll concede that Winslet and Cruise are both in great shape, it’s hard to believe. Is this really in the art of the probable, or is this just Hollywood PR Can you link to the reporting of this? Because I don’t understand why Hollywood stars would need to risk holding their breath for so long. Certainly they wouldn’t need to do that as part of making a movie. Did they do this on a dare unrelated to the film production or something? Why would any movie star do this? ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2020, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kate-winslet-and-tome-cruise-hold-breath-for-7-minutes-hollywood-bs/925823/26 "2020-11-18T19:52:41Z")
> [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](#): > > Can you link to the reporting of this? Link is in post #17. Also, James Cameron (the director) has a long history of pushing his actors to stupid limits (see various comments from the cast of _[The Abyss](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Abyss#Principal_photography)_). ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2020, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kate-winslet-and-tome-cruise-hold-breath-for-7-minutes-hollywood-bs/925823/27 "2020-11-18T20:28:24Z")
> [@eschrodinger](#): > > ETA: Not having practiced in 39 years or so, but using the techniques I remember, I’m at about a minute on my 2nd try. I bet I could get back to two minutes pretty quickly. It’s mostly about how to fight that urge to gasp in some air. Exhaling some, and working the diaphragm muscle without inhaling is what I do. Was anybody else tempted to try, reading this thread? I used to be able to hold my breath for a pretty long time in my 20s when I snorkeled. I could swim two laps underwater in a good-sized pool without coming up for air. I just tried it now as a 56 yo, not in very great shape man, and managed to make it 2 minutes. I prepped by hyperventilating first, then as I was holding my breath I read the subsequent posts that you shouldn’t prep by hyperventilating…oops. I got light-headed but didn’t pass out. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2020, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kate-winslet-and-tome-cruise-hold-breath-for-7-minutes-hollywood-bs/925823/28 "2020-11-18T21:00:31Z")
My niece plays underwater hockey (the SILLIEST activity I’ve heard of - yet she is on the national team!) She puts CONSIDERABLE effort into holding her breath underwater - training intensely basically for this very thing, yet she says she could not get CLOSE to 7 minutes. So I’m calling BS. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2020, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kate-winslet-and-tome-cruise-hold-breath-for-7-minutes-hollywood-bs/925823/29 "2020-11-18T21:02:25Z")
I’d be curious to see an unedited take of Tom Cruise in that scene of Mission Impossible. It is clear he held his breath for a really long time, but if he did 7 minutes, I’d love to see it on a DVD somewhere. It’s a great scene, too. ---
**Author:** ![I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/i_love_me_vol.i/32/521_2.png) [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_Love_Me_Vol.I)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2020, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kate-winslet-and-tome-cruise-hold-breath-for-7-minutes-hollywood-bs/925823/30 "2020-11-18T21:12:07Z")
Thanks. Sorry I didn’t see that, I supposed that the link would be in the OP. I still think it’s a bit odd that megabucks movie stars are being subjected to such risks. Seems the production insurance would be pretty steep. ---
**Author:** ![Mollie\_Magill](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mollie_magill/32/20882_2.png) [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2020, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kate-winslet-and-tome-cruise-hold-breath-for-7-minutes-hollywood-bs/925823/31 "2020-11-18T21:23:43Z")
I can almost believe it. With practice, you can hold your breath for a long time. When I was younger, I used to practice holding my breath. I was up to three minutes - and this was when I was smoking a pack a day. Seven minutes is a pretty long time, though. ---
**Author:** ![Gray\_Ghost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c0e974/32.png) [@Gray\_Ghost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gray_Ghost)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2020, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kate-winslet-and-tome-cruise-hold-breath-for-7-minutes-hollywood-bs/925823/32 "2020-11-19T00:06:23Z")
Whether true or not, the story is first, decent publicity for the movie, and second, helps give the impression that Ms. Winslet is in very athletic (and therefore, attractive) condition, and not overweight as tabloids gleefully claimed she was in the years after _Titanic._ Seven minutes is a really long time to do that sort of thing. I am pressing X for doubt on both of them. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2020, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kate-winslet-and-tome-cruise-hold-breath-for-7-minutes-hollywood-bs/925823/33 "2020-11-19T01:06:34Z")
I think you might use up oxygen faster playing hockey underwater, although I am assuming a lot because I have no idea how play underwater hockey. Was it invented on a hot day in Canada? Apparently [Underwater Hockey i](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Underwater_hockey)s a real thing, or at least an elaborate hoax involving a rather detailed fake wikipedia page. Underwater Hockey should not be confused with [Underwater Ice Hockey](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Underwater_ice_hockey) though. It is also real, or perhaps a slightly less elaborate hoax. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kate-winslet-and-tome-cruise-hold-breath-for-7-minutes-hollywood-bs/925823.md?page=1)