There is a lot to learn in order to perform highly in freediving while staying safe. Training and practice matter fundamentally and there are no shortcuts to becoming a competent or world-class freediver. At the same time, this knowledge is very much worth the effort of learning and can open up a whole world of unique underwater experience for you to enjoy.
Before you attempt freediving you should be in good health, able to swim underwater, and able to hold your breath for 30-60 seconds. You will need to learn several techniques including apnea (breath-holding) and how to equalize your ears under increasing water pressure. You must also learn key safety rules (e.g. never freedive alone) to minimize the risk of accident and injury in the water.
The True Story Book of Freediving Champion Audrey Mestre and the Story of Her Death
View on Amazon: The Last Attempt (Opens new tab)
Top rated read
If you’re thinking of taking up freediving there is some important training and practice that you should focus on first. We tell you about the most important information you should learn and the techniques you should master. We also explain the things you should never do before freediving.
What should I know before freediving?
While you don’t need to be an elite athlete order to freedive, you do need to be physically and mentally healthy and well-trained in order to keep yourself safe and reach a good level of performance.
Before taking the decision to try freediving you must be sure that you have no heart, lung or other relevant medical problems. Even colds and sinus infections mean that you should not freedive until recovered as these conditions could leave you unable to equalize your ears, causing pain and/or hearing damage as a result.
You must also be able to swim comfortably underwater and able to hold your breath for an average period (e.g. 30-60 seconds). If you meet these initial criteria you’re in the right place to search for a freediving instructor, book yourself onto a beginner freediving course, or start working your way independently through online training and practice exercises.
However you choose to learn, there are fundamental areas that you must cover comprehensively. These include:
Apnea training
Dry static apnea: Freedivers can start breath-hold training on land by regularly working through dry static apnea exercises. This involves lying down somewhere safe (e.g. on a bed, sofa or carpeted floor) and holding their breath for intervals set out in training tables. For a lot more information on dry static apnea, you should check out our full article on the topic here (opens new tab).
Dry dynamic apnea: Some dynamic apnea exercises can also be practiced on land. Apnea walking, apnea weight training etc.. can train the body to move more easily under apnea conditions. Static and dynamic apnea build tolerance of high blood carbon dioxide and low oxygen levels. Dry dynamic apnea also confers psychological familiarity with the sensations of muscles working anaerobically, something that will be experienced as a freedive progresses.
Wet apnea, static and dynamic: Static and dynamic apnea exercises must also be practiced in the water, as this is where the Mammalian Dive Reflex will be triggered. Dry apnea training alone is not sufficient training for anyone wants to freedive out in open water.
Equalizing airspaces – ears and mask
In line with Boyle’s Law, as a diver descends and water pressure on their body underwater rises, the gas volume in their airspaces (ears, sinuses, lungs) will decrease in inverse proportion to the pressure increase. (e.g. At 10 meters below the surface, lung volume is compressed to 50% less than normal size and continues to fall with increasing depth.)
To prevent barotraumas (pressure injuries) to our ears and to our eyes inside our masks, we must equalize airspace pressure with environmental pressure. Ear equalization techniques (e.g. the Frenzel maneuver) should be understood and practiced, along with the process of exhaling very small amounts of air through the nose and into the mask to equalize pressure around the eyes.
If you don’t, or can’t, equalize pressure on descent you will damage ear and eye tissues and blood vessels and potentially cause serious injury (ear squeeze, mask squeeze). Don’t continue descent if you find yourself unable to equalize ear pressure.
Safety rules
Some of the most important safety rules include:
- Always freedive with a diving buddy. If you experience shallow water blackout or other forms of hypoxia during a dive, your diving buddy can quickly bring you to the surface and go through the rescue process. If alone, you will probably drown.
- Ascend and descend at a moderate pace that allows your body to adjust to changes in pressure. Moving too fast, or resting at the wrong places during a dive, could raise the risk of baratrauma injuries (e.g. lung squeeze), hypoxia and other serious medical conditions.
- Don’t hold a snorkel breathing tube in the mouth while submerged. If you black out in the water, your tongue will relax and water will flood directly into your lungs through the snorkel.
- if you experience unusual physical or psychological phenomena, stop diving, alert your diving buddy and return to the surface. While less common in freediving than scuba diving it it possible for freedivers to experience both decompression sickness (DCS, or ‘the bends’) and nitrogen narcosis, especially during longer or deeper dives. Make sure you are familiar with the symptoms of these conditions.
What should I do to prepare for freediving?
There is a range of preparation you can undertake which will enhance your freediving performance and experience in the water. If you are physically strong, mentally calm, comfortable with breath-holding and have the right equipment to keep you warm and safe in the diving environment, you will enjoy freediving much more. With practice, you should be able to dive deeper for longer.
Breath-hold practice
Apnea training and practice is vital for building up lung function and capacity, allowing you to gradually and safely extend the depth and length of your dives.
Physical training
Freediving is a a highly demanding sport, using both aerobic and anaerobic metabolism, and requiring mental and physical fitness. To support safety and performance a broad program of training is advised, including static and dynamic apnea exercises along with strength, flexibility, cardio and mental resilience practices.
Freedivers can choose whatever cardio activity they most enjoy in their regular training (e.g. running, hiking, HIIT etc..). Cardio training can also be carried out while breath-holding in order to better train your muscles for anaerobic respiration. (NB Dynamic breath-hold exercises should always be done with a buddy in case of blackouts.)
Strength training is another valuable preparation for for freedivers, with strong arms and legs essential for ease of movement through deep water under high pressures. Strength and breath-hold training can also be combined, again with the company of a buddy.
Physical flexibility can be another advantage for freedivers, especially around the diaphragm and chest. Yoga and similar disciplines can boost flexibility while also contributing to mental training.
Mental training
Panicking in the water is very dangerous and freedivers must learn to stay calm and not to struggle against the sensations of apnea as this will waste oxygen and lead to a poor diving experience.
Exercises and activities which promote calm and relaxation can therefore be highly beneficial for freedivers. They may choose to include yoga, pilates, meditation or similar practices in their routines to stretch and strengthen the body while calmly focusing the mind.
Clothing and accessories
Deciding what to wear for freediving is another important element of preparation. You should consult water and weather conditions so that you know what temperatures to expect, whether there are likely to be jellyfish in the water etc.. and choose your kit accordingly.
In cold water, or longer diving sessions, you will probably need a warm wetsuit, ideally a two-piece freediving suit with a hood, made from flexible material which does not restrict your range of diving movement. For shorter dives in warmer water you may not want to wear any wetsuit at all. For recreational freediving or spearfishing around a reef, you may want a comfortable snorkel and a very clear mask.
You may choose to use a diving computer to better judge your depth and advise you on recovery time at the surface. You may also want to wear flippers / bifins for recreational freediving, or a monofin if you’re a competitive freediver wanting to practice moving deeply and powerfully in a straight line.
Develop good breath-up technique
The last minutes of breathing before a freedive (the breath-up) are essential to the dive’s success and safety. Freedivers can use a range of techniques and practices to fill the lungs as much as possible right before descent. The more oxygen in the lungs, the longer a dive can be.
These include learning segmented breathing which uses the lower chest and diaphragm, as well as the upper chest, to maximize the size of a normal inhale. Experienced freedivers practice something called “lung packing” or glossopharyngeal insufflation (GI) which adds extra air on top of a full inhale of breath.
What should you not do before freediving?
There are some activities and actions which should never be mixed with freediving because they will increase your risk of experiencing accident or injury.
For example, you should avoid alcohol, cannabis, and other intoxicants before freediving. If taking prescription medications with side-effects potentially impacting cognitive ability, reaction time, or state of consciousness, you should consult your doctor before the freediving session.
You should make sure that you are not tired, stressed, or overly cold before freediving. These conditions can raise the risk of dangerous misjudgments, panic or hypothermia in the water. The chance of experiencing nitrogen narcosis during a dive can also be increased by intoxicants, tiredness, stress or cold.
Avoid both hunger or over-eating before diving. The former can raise the risk of hypoxia and blackouts, while the latter can leave you feeling uncomfortable and unfocused. Directly before freediving when completing your breath-up, you should avoid over-breathing. Hyperventilation can also raise the risk of shallow water blackout.