Hippos spend most of their lives in, and under, the water. But how long can a hippo actually hold its breath underwater? Hippos can hold their breath underwater for as long as five minutes. Adult hippos can remain submerged for up to five minutes, while juveniles need to surface more often. Hippos can do all this terrifying prancing because they've evolved with just the right combination of buoyancy and bone density to allow it. The way you can protect your self from hippo ? You can't outrun a h