Caeleb Dressel Can Hold His Breath for Five Minutes, Six Seconds (In Bed)

A rare Caeleb Dressel sighting produced a couple fun soundbites in a video released Thursday on Graham Bensinger’s YouTube channel. 

Nearly seven minutes of behind-the-scenes footage features Dressel hanging out with his cows and playing musical instruments before the conversation moves into the pool. There, Bensinger asked the seven-time Olympic gold medalist about the unwritten rules around peeing in the pool. 

“I’m learning from Lochte’s mistakes,” Dressel said. “He said one time he peed in the pool and he got lit up. I’ll put it this way without throwing myself under the bus: I would waste so much time if every time I had to pee, I got out.”

Dressel, 26, was also asked about his impressive lung capacity. 

“It’s usually in my bed, before falling asleep I’ve done it,” he said of his record for holding his breath. “My record in bed: five minutes, six seconds.”

It took Dressel a moment to realize how his quote might sound out of context. 

“Leave it at that,” he joked. “I don’t want any other context besides that.”

Dressel withdrew from the World Championships in June for unspecified reasons after winning two gold medals early in the meet. Following a two-month silence, he posted on Instagram in September saying that he’s taking a break from swimming but will be back. 

“I haven’t swam since worlds and I can honestly say I have been happy without swimming,” Dressel wrote. “I really miss it though.

“A few things I’ve done… I finally went on a honeymoon to Iceland, I bought a tractor, hiked another section of the Appalachian Trail, swam with some manatees. I know I can have swimming and happiness. I had them both at one point in my life and I’m working on it. If you need a break, take one.

“I’ll be back.”