Freediving requires thorough training and preparation, as well as a good general level of physical and mental fitness. There are no short-cuts to becoming a safe and competent freediver, and certainly not to reaching competitive freediving levels. Freediving can be hard work, but also highly rewarding.
Freediving is a physically and mentally challenging sport that requires thorough training and practice, mastery of key techniques (e.g. breath-holding, equalizing of ear pressure), and good general health. With the right instruction, beginners can be in the water and making dives of 10-15 meters depth within days or week. Becoming an elite competitive freediver could take years.
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If you’re a beginner freediver or just thinking about trying freediving, you may have many questions about the best way to prepare yourself. Our article takes you through the knowledge, training and practice you will need to become a competent freediver and enjoy your freediving experience.
What should I know before freediving?
Deep water and apnea (breath-holding) both exert massive pressure and strain on the human body. In order to become a safe and competent freediver you should learn important physiology principles, practice apnea (breath-holding), and become mentally and physically accustomed to the dangers and sensations of the deep underwater environment. You may want to ask yourself some crucial questions before you start, for example:
Are you healthy?
Before you begin freediving you should make sure that you are in good health. Those with heart, lung or other relevant conditions should take medical advice before freediving. If you have a cold or other infection that affects your nose or sinuses, you should postpone any freediving attempt until you are recovered to avoid pain and potential ear damage.
Can you swim underwater?
Beginner freedivers should also be sure that they can swim comfortably underwater and hold their breath for an average period (e.g. 30-60 seconds).
Do you have an instructor or diving buddy?
Freediving alone is dangerous. If you’re learning with an instructor, they will be responsible for advising you on safety and taking quick action if you get into difficulties (e.g. shallow water blackout). If you’ve taught yourself key freediving principles from an online source or book, you’ll still need to find yourself a diving buddy before you can safely move to a practical stage.
Do you need training to freedive?
For complete beginners, a freediving training course with an expert instructor is ideal, but if this isn’t possible, freediving principles can be self-taught via online materials or books, or by diving with more experienced freedivers.
If you’re learning without an instructor, pay particular attention to techniques for protecting your ears and lungs at depth, and to wider safety guidance.
While there has only been one recorded death in competitive freediving, at least 51 recreational freedivers die each year according to analysis of figures for the Diver’s Alert Network (DAN) who collect media and voluntary reporting of accidents and deaths in freediving and other forms of diving.
Recreational freediving could be more hazardous because divers are likely to have less training and experience, may be diving in less controlled and predictable water, usually have no medical assistant on hand, and may potentially even be diving alone.
Is it hard to freedive?
While freediving can be hard work, and is certainly a demanding sport, it also offers a unique and highly rewarding experience for those who enjoy testing their bodies and minds against challenging conditions.
Some people might see freediving as ‘hard’ because it is not an activity which can be picked up or practiced casually. It’s also hard in the sense that muscles do have to work many times harder when underwater to produce even relatively small movements.
Pressure on the body in deep water is many times normal air pressure. These very high pressures significantly compress the lung, sinus and ear airspaces. They also mean that muscles in your limbs must work far harder than on land.
How do I get in shape for freediving?
You need a good base level of physical fitness for freediving, being able to swim comfortably underwater and hold your breath for perhaps 30-60 seconds. You don’t need to be super-fit or an elite athlete before you can freedive, but to stay safe and and achieve a high freediving performance level, you need to be physically and mentally healthy and well-trained.
Freediving is a demanding sporting discipline, drawing on both aerobic and anaerobic metabolism, and requiring both mental and physical fitness. For the greatest safety in the water, and highest performance, freedivers should give themselves a broad program of training which includes static and dynamic apnea exercises along with strength, cardio and mental resilience practice.
For much more detail, we’ve written a full article on how to get in shape for freediving (opens new tab) which has lots of tips and advice.
How do I train my breath to hold freediving?
A sensible and systematic program of apnea training is valuable in several respects.
Regular apnea exercises, in the water and on land, accustom the body to functioning under apnea conditions, making it more efficient in using of oxygen and more tolerant of high levels of carbon dioxide. Dynamic apnea also builds your body’s tolerance for anaerobic muscle work. Apnea training also increases psychological comfort during breath-holding, reducing the sense of struggle that breath-holding underwater can produce, especially in beginners.
- Dry static apnea: You can do dry static apnea exercises on a bed or couch in your own home, using carbon dioxide and oxygen breath-hold training tables as a guide.
- Wet static apnea: Similarly timed breath-holding exercises can be carried out in a pool or stretch of safe open water.
- Dynamic apnea (wet or dry): On land dynamic apnea might include breath-holding while walking or strength training. It could also include swimming or moving underwater while breath-holding.
How do you practice freediving in a pool?
To improve your freediving skills and extend diving depth and times, you must regularly practice in water, rather than just doing lots of dry apnea exercises on land. If you live by a safe stretch of open water you may be able to practice there but for many people a pool is a more realistic and convenient location for regular training.
Breath-holding underwater in a pool allows freedivers to experience their bodies movements and reactions under higher water pressures and when the mammalian dive reflex (MDR) is activated.
You can practice static apnea in a pool by diving down and remaining still underwater. You can also practice dynamic apnea by swimming underwater for set distances or periods of time and gradually lengthening them to increase endurance and apnea capacity.
Like dry apnea, wet apnea exercises accustom the body to working under apnea conditions. With regular practice, your body should become more efficient in use of oxygen and more tolerant of high carbon dioxide in the bloodstream.
Whether you’re in a pool or out at sea, you should always dive with a diving buddy in case of blackouts or other accidents in the water.
How long does it take to master freediving?
You may be undertaking shallower breath-hold dives within hours and could complete a course of diving to 10-15 meters depth within days or weeks. Reaching the level of a competitive freediver could easily take many months or years.
What should you not do before freediving
You should not drink alcohol, smoke cannabis, or take other intoxicants before freediving. If you are on prescription medications that could influence cognitive ability, reaction times, or consciousness, consult your doctor before freediving.
Ensure that you’re not tired, stressed, or overly cold in order to reduce the chances of misjudgments, panic or hypothermia. Intoxicants, tiredness, stress and cold can also increase the chances of experiencing nitrogen narcosis during a dive.
For comfort, you should avoid eating a heavy meal shortly before diving.
References
https://www.deeperblue.com/the-science-behind-the-freediving-breath-hold/
https://dan.org/research-reports/research-studies/surveillance-of-fatal-injuries-in-diving/