Hold breath or breathe out?

There's probably no wrong way unless you're passing out :) I do it both ways... in races typically i breathe every 4th stroke and hold my breath til the end of the next 3rd stroke, then exhale quickly. All of my 100 races are done this way. For anything longer than a 100 and just about any swimming done in practice, I exhale about 30% just as i finish the first stroke and during the 2nd stroke, pause the exhale as the 2nd stroke ends, and then resume exhaling towards the end of the 3rd stroke. Trying to do one long exhale over the 4 stroke time period bothers me cause it feels like there's no rhythm to it. I would do races like this, but there's no idle brain processing power left to moderate breathing. Everything I have goes to thinking about the rest of the race so the breathing defaults to whatever feels comfortable. 50 races I breathe either once or not at all.

If you empty the lung completely before breathing in air (as often suggested), you are assuming you will be able to breathe in air the next moment when you have to breathe in; i.e., you would rely on the (hopeful) fact that you will be able to get your mouth out of water the next moment. What if something not in your control happens and you can't get your mouth out of water soon enough (e.g. for some newbie who can't act soon enough, or whatever...) You will be "breathing" in water, no? Because of this concern, I always keep a little "reserve" of air in my lung before breathing in. Is this a justified concern?

Perhaps the coach meant exhale earlier than at the last sec. I set up a rythem to exhale thruout the face in the water phase.

I breathe as naturally as I can. I breathe out the whole time my face is in the water. I never really thought about it, but I this is probably what I do too.

Controversial for sure. Old school hold breath and employ explosive breathing. Old school Breathe out slowly. Which is right. I think there are uses for both.

In a 50, hold your breath; you'll be more buoyant. Anything longer and it's more important to relax and breathe naturally.

I exhale in short bursts, kind of like counting.

If you empty the lung completely before breathing in air (as often suggested), you are assuming you will be able to breathe in air the next moment when you have to breathe in; i.e., you would rely on the (hopeful) fact that you will be able to get your mouth out of water the next moment. What if something not in your control happens and you can't get your mouth out of water soon enough (e.g. for some newbie who can't act soon enough, or whatever...) You will be "breathing" in water, no? Because of this concern, I always keep a little "reserve" of air in my lung before breathing in. Is this a justified concern? You really have to push hard to get all of the air out (as anyone who uses an inhaler knows). I don't think that most people who breathe out while their face is in the water do that. I certainly don't. But it is true, as you say, that you can't always rely on getting a breath when you want one, depending on how wavy the water is.

Thanks! :D I was curious why no one else seemed to consider this possible. For example, suppose just as you have exhaled the last air from your lung, a little shark (God forbid) caught your leg, preventing your head from getting out of water in time... :drown: Well, you still should be able to hold your breath for a little bit longer, but if a shark's got you, you have worse problems...

You really have to push hard to get all of the air out (as anyone who uses an inhaler knows). I don't think that most people who breathe out while their face is in the water do that. I certainly don't. But it is true, as you say, that you can't always rely on getting a breath when you want one, depending on how wavy the water is. Thanks! :D I was curious why no one else seemed to consider this possible. For example, suppose just as you have exhaled the last air from your lung, a little shark (God forbid) caught your leg, preventing your head from getting out of water in time... :drown: