I don't hyperventilate before diving because of the danger of pushing myself too far without realizing it. Hyperventilating lowers your CO2 but it does NOT raise your O2. So, your natural urge to breath is delayed beyond the point of blacking out. I know that pro freedivers hyperventilate for national competitions, but I'm not competing with anyone here, I just like to freedive for recreation and enjoy the underwater world.
Chris Neal Doing 1 forced exhale is not the same as hyperventilating. Hyperventilating is rapid breathing for a certain period of time, which lowers the CO2 in your blood. 1 full exhale is not going to do that. Anyway, this technique has helped me so I thought I would share the advice.
hyperventilation is categorised by any breathing above a tidal volume which is a usual breath at rest. i can also tell you for a fact competitive freedivers dont hyperventilate before diving because it does not improve performance.
You free dive Florida Springs, me too. Mostly Troy, Peacock and the Blue Hole at Itchetuknee.Been doing it three years now. Looking for new places and free diving buddies. I free dive to about 90' and know i can do better. Great relaxed attitude you have. Every tip I learn gets me closer to my goals. Thanks. I hope to catch you out there sometime.
thanks for the tips fellow freediver. my tip in freediving is to dive swirling going down learned it from a Filipino pearl diver (Badjao) the whistleman that goes down 100 meters
This Video is simply great !! you have said everything from A to Z ,,, from the recommended equipment till how to know your limits . IT's a simple course for free diving thanks a lot
I found that diving diagonally really helps with pressure on my ears, give me time to swallow and relieve that said pressure. I used to dive in a cave on the Weeki Wachee river here in Florida.
Im not a freediver yet, Im easily panicking in a deepwater sea, can't hold my breath long enough to even dive into 5 meters deep, and Im still looking for references for the beginner, and your video is quite brainstorming for me. thanks.
+Gusnita Melati Putri : I feel the same. How these freedivers a non-chalant about easy warm-up dives to 4 meters, whereas going for 12 feet at 30 seconds leaves me light-headed and gasping upon surfacing. I wonder why you never got a reply?
Hello there, my name is Joseph I've been a certified scuba diver since 2013, I've always loved free diving but I've never really tried. 2 months ago I started free diving at blue springs here in Florida & I gotta say I've been improving, I'm diving about 40ft but not for long only like 15-20 seconds.. Hope your video helps me out next time thank you.
Nice tips. Empty stomach is a must for me...had a terrible reflux once when I was starting to learn diving because I ate half an hour before going into the water...LOL.
Hey man awesome video I'm 12 and I'm diving 20 ft sometimes when I go spearfishing I can only sometimes hit 20 once I hit like 15 ft I I stop there but after watching this I saw what I was doing wrong and next time I go out I will follow these steps thanks man
Hey and thanks for the video, you have gathered all the basic and important knowledge in one place making it a nice and handy reminder that I revisit often. I have a problem when freediving and it might sound stupid but I almost always have water in my mask. I have bought several models, and each time I do the classic test at the shop where I place the mask in my face and suck in some air to see if I can feel any air coming in or if the mask falls off, and even though neither of the two happens, when I take it to the sea some water always gets in... I have bought already 4 different masks, and with that money I could have had my carbon fins, but it seems that my face is weirdly shaped, or I am doing something wrong. I tight up my mask as much as possible (without feeling pain on the surface) and still water gets in. I do have very short beard, which might be causing the problem, but I have seen people with beard having no issues, and I have even tried to use vaseline to make the mask stick better, without any success. Do you have any tips on how to judge better before buying my next and hopefully last mask? Thanks you in advance!
"I tight up my mask as much as possible..." I think that's your main problem. Loosen it up a little - tighten it as little as possible. As for the beard - I also have a beard, but I tend to shave just about a millimeter under my nose, and that seems to help. Good luck =]
Nice tips and smooth diving style. I noticed you fin in bicycle motion, bending knees while having knees straight and using more hip motion to fin is considered to be more efficient. I also use razors and love them, really powerful fins. Keep up the good work with vids, please! :-) Best regards!
Ive seen the exacts same mask branded Tigullio (european brand). Since its a lesser brand over here, I don't know anyone who has one, but it actually looks like a decent mask.
These tips will u lip me lots, thank you, being a rookie diver at the age of 15 I can use all the help I can get, I have a set of flippers, they are not short but they are not quite as long as yours, but they help me lots, I have a wetsuit, weight belt, and snorkle and mask, I normally have a divers blade on my weight belt and another strapped to my arm, I use this when I dive for Abolone, I am going to get my scuba qualifications also, my Max time is about 30-40 seconds, at about 20-30 feet, have not done much recently, better keep practicing, any other tips you got for me?
Will you explain why I don't have to equalize on the way up. I'm going to Bluesprings this weekend and I've only been able to make it just below the logs because I didn't know how to equalize. I've been studying videos like yours so that I can reach a new depth this weekend. I'm very excited and I bought a waterproof camera so i wanna get some cool shots.
+Paul Thompson IV The short answer: the pressure in your ears automatically dissipates on the way up (air travels back into your nasal cavity as long as your Eustachian tubes aren't clogged). The long answer: When you dive down, the water pressure builds up compressing the air in your inner ear, thus pulling your delicate eardrum inwards (which hurts). The Eustachian tubes from your nasal cavity to your inner ears are normally closed, so the air compresses in the closed system of your inner ear creating negative pressure. You equalize this pressure by blowing/pushing air through your Eustachian tubes into your inner ears so that the air pressure equals the water pressure. When you ascend, the water pressure decreases allowing the air in your inner ear to expand. This expanding air automatically escapes through your Eustachian tubes back into your nasal cavity. That is why you don't have to equalize on the way up. This is also why you shouldn't dive with nasal congestion; your Eustachian tubes could be clogged (as well as the passages to your sinuses). This same process also happens with the air in your mask - you blow air into it on the way down to equalize the pressure and air escapes on the way up.
Fantastic video - very useful as I'm just starting out. I don't have a dive computer yet, so are there any tips on roughly estimating depth, or is it just a judgement call? Cheers!
I'd recommend borrowing a dive computer/watch from a friend (or asking a scuba diver) so that you can do some dives with it and see your depth. During your dives, make visual landmarks for certain depths. If you're diving in an area with scuba divers, you could always ask them for depth landmarks too. I've noticed that the "average joe" overestimates depth, so borrow a dive watch first and then you'll be much better at estimating depth.
Thank you for this great video. What a great first exposure into the world of freediving! I have a question on how to equalize when freediving. I am a scuba diver and can properly equalize my ears but when I try diving without my tank, I can't equalize no matter how hard I try (without rupturing my eardrums) are there any equalization techniques that are exclusive/golden for for the freediving world but not the scuba diving world? (hence, I am not aware of them) I appreciate your input.
Joseph Trak Good question. Don't feel bad that you're having trouble equalizing because it is harder to equalize while freediving. It takes some force to push air through your Eustachian tubes into your inner ear, and it's easier to push air into your ears when your lungs are full, like on SCUBA. While freediving, your lung volume decreases rapidly, making it harder for your diaphragm to push air from your lungs into your ears. The Valsalva method (pinching your nose and blowing) of equalizing works this way and it's only effective up to 100 feet. Some people are good at the VTO equalizing method, which involves voluntarily opening the Eustachian tubes (like a yawn). This is a better method and works deeper than 100 ft. There's also the Frenzel method, but I don't recommend that one for beginners. Since you're having trouble, I have 3 tips for you: First, make sure your not congested because of sickness. If you can't equalize out of water, then take a decongestant pill with Phenylephrine. Second, practice equalizing at shallower depths and then work your way down. So, try 3 feet, 6 feet, 9 feet, etc. Third, equalizing takes training and patience. The more you do it, the easier it will become. So don't give up, there's a fabulous world of freediving for you to discover.
when you freedive arent you supposed to take your snorkel out? i took a freediving course and my instructor told me that if you keep your snorkel in your mouth and you black out, you can breath water in very easily
Joey Alvey That was Jackson Blue Spring at the head of Merritts Mill Pond in the Panhandle of FL. There are many springs called "Blue Springs" in FL, so this is the one in Jackson county. If you go there, 100 yards downstream from Jackson Blue Springs on the right is Shangri-La Springs, which is very pretty and small. I made a video about it too.
This looks amazing man I want to dive in these caves, are there many of these types of caves in Florida? Are there any gators or anything that you need to worry about, I'm guessing you dive caves also to avoid sharks.
There are many underwater caves in Florida to explore. I've never seen a gator in the same spring where I've been diving, but it is possible. Most likely, the gator will just swim away when they see you. I don't dive caves to avoid sharks, but because I enjoy exploring the caves. It's much more interesting for me to dive caves instead of a reef or wreck. Plus, I like the water clarity, fresh water and accessibility too.
Thanks so much for these tips! I'm a rookie and go to the sea every summer. I don't own fins, wetsuit, snorkel or weights, though I do have a pair of basic goggles without the nose cover thingy. So far I can go 20ish feet (no fins, open water), and I can go 1 minute 10 seconds staying still at the bottom of my pool (holding on to some bricks so I don't float away). The reason why I chose freediving is because I'm not allowed to scuba dive because of my epilepsy. I am aware that diving deep is dangerous, especially if I have a seizure, but it calms me down and has been so great in keeping me fit. Do you have any extra tips for me and my epilepsy? I'm hoping to go to Bonaire with my friends and family and freedive with them while they scuba.
You probably don't want to hear my advice if you have epilepsy and want to freedive. Even though I don't know how frequent or how long your seizures are, I cannot recommend freediving for you because having a seizure underwater can kill you. A seizure would burn your remaining oxygen very quickly, probably fill your lungs with water and then you would sink to the bottom. If no one is there to immediately rescue you, you'll be gone. Even if your seizures are rare, you must understand that you are risking your life when freediving. I once had to make a tough decision similar to this. I was getting over a sickness, but still had an uncontrollable cough every 5 minutes or so. I thought I could still freedive safely even though I still had a cough; so I planned a trip, loaded my gear and started driving to the dive site. I stopped halfway to visit my parent's and they advised me not to go. But I'm stubborn and decided to just think it over some more. I ultimately decided to cancel my freediving plans and just drive back home. Looking back, I'm glad that I made that decision, because I could have had a coughing episode underwater and drowned. Freediving is great and very enjoyable, but living a long, happy life is better. There are many other recreational activities you could enjoy in this world, but with much less risk than freediving. Nevertheless, if you choose to ignore my advice and freedive anyway, then at least freedive with someone who is trained in rescuing a freediver from blackout.
Thanks for the advice. I'm on medication controlling 95% of my seizures, so I'll have to see what happens! If the opportunity to freedive arises, I'll definitely think it through and remember this advice. My doctor was chill with it when I spoke to her about it, but I'll definitely try not to go too deep.
Sry but after the last great informative q and a I'm back and I will subscribe : how long do thing I should be able to breath hold to actually be classed as a free diver how long can you hold for or could hold for when u started??? How did u train or could u just do it naturally also how long did it take u between discovering free diving and actually diving did u train a lot first? Thank u
I've observed that the average guy, with no freedive training, can hold his breath up to 20 seconds and go down up to 20 feet deep. So, I consider someone to be a freediver if they can do better than that. I didn't start freediving until I was 28 yrs old because I never knew how to equalize my ears. When I first started, my best dives where 45 feet deep and 45 seconds long. I then started practicing breath holds at home and was surprised to see that I could hold my breath for 2:30 (lying on a bed). After a few months, I was able to go down 60 feet with dives around 1:15 and my breath holds at home were up to 3:00. Since I freedive just for fun, I haven't trained that hard, but I've still improved over the years by going diving every month. Right now, I max out at 100 feet deep and 2:30 dive time, and my breath holds at home are up to 4 min.
You should always take your snorkel out of your mouth in case of a blackout because your jaw can clamp shut and the snorkel won't be able to be pulled out of your mouth.
So newbie to freedive i have a bit difficulties in normal air breathing wonder how can i do it under water and how to make out body stay in the water thanks
Hey :) thanks very much for the video. Helped me a lot. But i have a few questions: i practiced the inhaling technique (stomach-chest-throat etc.) At home and i was able to hold my breath for 57 seconds in a bowl of water. But as soon as i try to dive in the "real" water, I can only go 10 meters or maximum 20 seconds before bumping back to the surface. I use a lot of oxygen underwater and after 15secs or so i "hyperventilate" because of twiches in my stomach that want me to go back up and exhale.... how can I avoid/ignore that and improve my diving time. Also if i start to freedive should i go further than 10 feet or maybe just 6 to 9 ft and than diving horizontally on the ground for the first times? Thanks very much!! Keep it goin!!
And btw with "10 meters" i meant horizontally. Vertically i dont dare to go farther than 6-9 ft by now fearing problems with my ears/body or fearing not to make it back to the surface in time. I only dove down to like 2 or maximum 3 meters and than back up. I also practice horizontal diving in my local Swimmingpool ;)
+Greg Hammack That would be a long list, but a very interesting list I think. I like your idea so much that I think I'll make a video of things that have gone wrong on my dives. Hopefully it will help people more than scare them. So, if you can't wait, I'll make a video to explain them all.
Josue Garcia Yeah, Alexander and Silver Glen aren't very deep, but they have cool caves. For depth, go to Blue Springs in Orange City, or Troy Springs, or Morrison Springs in the Panhandle, or Wakulla Spring south of Tallahassee, or the Green Sink at Manatee Springs, or Buford Spring in the winter. I always recommend Ginnie Springs park because they have many cool springs with varying depths.
I live in Gainesville Fl and I am looking to get into serious freediving. I grew up in FL and I am comfortable "snrkeling" or recreational freediving diving down to 30-35ft or so. I am planning on taking a freediving course to get my certification. I am looking into buying gear online. Cressi and Seac seems to have some excellent choices. Can you tell me what Mil thickness suit you use for the springs in this area? Thanks.
+gvaud73 Great question. I've experimented with various gear in our Florida springs and this is what I've discovered: a 3mm full (long) wetsuit will work in the springs for about an hour or so and then I start shivering; a 5mm wetsuit will keep me warm for 2 hours or more, but the 5mm wetsuit is a little harder to move in. Now this was done without a hood. If you wear a 3mm hood with a 3mm wetsuit, you should be fine for 2 hours because you lose a lot of heat through your head, but I don't like wearing a hood because it traps water in your ears even after you surface. Cutting holes in the hood around your ears should help drain water and let you hear properly though. Wearing a hood is best for staying warm but I also like my head feeling free to move. So, you can either wear a hood or wear a thicker wetsuit. Keep in mind that Florida springs get colder by 5 degrees as you go north into the panhandle.
Hey, i have usual fins, which are a bit lonher than these ones u showed, are the freediving fins very important?? I own the rest of the stuff cause im scuba diving and want to try out something new. Im also wondering how much kg weight i would need with an 2,5 mm wetsuit. Any tips?
Splash If you're just starting to freedive, then your fins should be fine. But if you really like the sport and want to improve your performance, then you should get some freediving fins in the future. As for weight, it depends on the buoyancy of the person, the thickness of your wetsuit and where you're diving. In fresh water with a 3mm wetsuit, I wear about 6 lbs. In the ocean, I would add another pound of weight. My friends freedive with anywhere from 5 lbs to 9 lbs of weight. I hope this helps.
There are a variety of dive lights that are good and suitable for caves. I would recommend a wide angle light which will illuminate most of the cave and not just a spot on the wall. But a light that has both a wide flood and a hot spot works great because you can see down tunnels while lighting up the room. The MagicShine scuba light is pretty good for caves.
what are some of the nice deep springs in Florida, that you have been to, i have dived the blue hole at Ichetucknee, and troy springs and i am interested in some more.
My most recent video is a review of Volusia Blue Springs, which goes down to 120 feet. Buford Spring (2 other videos) is a gigantic cavern that goes down to 120 feet in the back (and keeps on going). But you only want to visit Buford in the winter because of the bugs. Wakulla Spring has a cliff that goes 100 feet straight down and then the cave begins. But Wakulla has lower visibility. Morrison Spring has a cave between 60 and 80 feet, plus Morrison is crystal clear. Warm Mineral Spring is technically very, very deep, but I don't recommend going there, ever.
Good question, I recently had trouble with this. My advice is to keep your ears level underwater, which means not tilting your head left or right making one ear higher than the other. Whenever I tilt my head left or right underwater, my ears fill with water. It's very annoying.
Great tips. I would have liked some better information on safety techniques, and the essential importance of having a close by safety, especially when training and exploring personal limits. About believing in yourself, I think that is important, however I belief ;) that it needs to be based on previous experience. For instance having a good static ability and equalisation, then Free Immersion (linepulling ) to increasing depths should be attainable. Are you on the Deeperblue forum?
Is that blue springs? i just got back there and its beautiful, it was my first time free diving but i got down to like 50 feet. i hear its like 100 feet deep there. so cool =D
While you’re freediving is decompression sickness a real problem? I mean can it cause any symptoms or it is only a danger when you are diving with a diving cylinder? After what level of deepness can it occur?
Decompression sickness is not a problem in freediving because there's not enough nitrogen in 1 breath to cause problems. When you resurface, the very small amount of nitrogen that was absorbed is expelled, so don't worry about it.
I'm curious what happens if a newbie pushes it too far.. Do you end up gasping in water, or do you just pass out and come back when someone pulls you from the water?
I would think that a newbie would gasp in water because they don't have the ability to hold back their urge to breathe. Usually what happens, though, is a newbie will turn back before they get close to their limit. But when I was a newbie, I pushed myself a little too hard and got close to blacking out. So, I guess it could go either way.
The best way to avoid blacking out is always diving within a safe limit for yourself. The tricky thing is knowing what your limit is. Pay attention to how you feel when you get back to the surface: are you light headed? are you gasping for air? air you seeing stars? do you feel dizzy? These are all signs that you were near your limit on that dive, so make sure your next dives are all less than what you just did. Meaning, less time or less distance. It always helps to stay calm and relaxed during the dive AND when you reach the surface. If something goes wrong during the dive, go back but still remain calm. Most people that experience a blackout pushed themselves to far or something went wrong during the dive (like losing a fin). If you stay within your safe limit, then if something does go wrong you can still make it back.
vince ald It is normal to breath out just below the surface, but there isn't any vacuum effect on your veins and lungs. Blood does not compress under water pressure. The air in your lungs expands when ascending, returning your lungs to the same size as when you took your breath at the surface.
Hi. I'm a newb in this sport. I want to ask about something. Before I knew about freediving, I was playing basketball and other cardio sport. I start to learn freediving about 3 or 4 months ago. Since that, I notice that my stamina endurance when I do cardio sport is getting worse. I cant play straight 3 quarters anymore without exhausted. And my question, is this freediving thing has any bad effect to the cardio sport? As we know that this two sports has a big different thing about how we breath when we do it. Sorry for confusing you, I just have a bad English. Hope you can understand what I'm trying to ask. Cheers. ✌
I understand your question. I haven't heard of freediving negatively affecting your ability to do cardio activities. But since you're having a problem, perhaps it could be explained this way...freediving trains your body to operate on lower than normal amounts of oxygen (slowing down metabolic activity, I believe, including your heart rate). Cardio activities require high metabolic activity and heart rate so that your body can quickly provide your muscles with oxygen, sugars, etc. Since these 2 sports are opposite in terms of metabolic activity, it can make sense that one hurts the other, but I know that being in a good cardiovascular condition will help you freedive due to a low resting heart rate.
Hello CaveFreeDive, im new to freediving. what im doing now is practicing to hold my breathe in house or office. so far i can do 2 minutes holding. just wanna ask if it is okay pushing through my limits? or is it actually bad?
It's OK to push yourself a little; the better you can relax, the longer you can hold your breath. You know you're getting near your limit holding your breath at home when your extremities start to tingle and flexing your muscles makes them feel better. On a dive, you can get the same feeling in your legs when you're near your limit.
1: is it dangerous do not keep your neck straight if you go down to about 10-15 meters? 2: I sometimes get light headed just right after i take my breath i havent expirienced it when i dive in water but when i hold my breath on dry land i sometimes get it, is that a bad sign?
Emil Schjerven Brenden Keeping your neck straight matters more the deeper you go. I've felt uncomfortable pressure on my throat when bending my neck to look up from 20 meters. It shouldn't be a problem at 10-15 meters though. As for feeling light headed, I would recommend taking your breath in a little slower, perhaps over 5 seconds.
So my first spear fishing trip I was the same way man. I came down super hard on myself. All it was was you being uncomfortable and unsure of your limits. Since that trip, I downloaded a free drive breathing app called iHoldBreath. I tested my personal max and only got to about a minute. After a week and 2x daily training, my personal record is 3:45... seriously. Now, that's not taking into account body movement which in turn burns more O2 so that time will greatly diminish. So, to take something away from this. I was only able to reach the time of 3:45 after two O2 and Co2 training sessions on the app after my lungs were well stretched and my blood was super saturated with O2. Practice using the app so you can mentally push past the diaphragm contractions which are painful at first. But they get easier to push past. Once you get that, and you realize where your true limit is, you'll be MUCH better off in the water. Good luck.
Has anyone messed around with the Wim Hof breathing technique? I'm a rookie freediver, so my breath holds are pathetic... but my 2nd try on a static hold with the Wim Hof I did over 4 min!! I could have held longer too, but it was freaking me out a little.
You simply blow a little air through your nose into your mask to equalize the pressure. If you don't, your face will be sucked into the mask, pulling on your eyes which causes a burning sensation.
Splash I like this mask which I believe is fine for scuba diving; plus this mask is sold by many different brands: www.amazon.com/500890-Titanium-Promate-snorkel-Snorkeling/dp/B00G2ND588/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1428689188&sr=8-3&keywords=low+volume+mask www.amazon.com/Aqualung-Sport-Scuba-Snorkeling-Frameless/dp/B007USKAKA/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1428689188&sr=8-7&keywords=low+volume+mask www.amazon.com/Tilos-Framless-Single-Excel-Silicone/dp/B003JP9ZSG/ref=sr_1_25?ie=UTF8&qid=1428689212&sr=8-25&keywords=low+volume+mask
CaveFreediving I felt in love with the Aqualung Mask, but i cant take it on my German Wishlist -.- and cant find it on German amazon, I`ll see if i can order it from US Amazon XD Thank you anyways :3
Simple breathing techniques to slow your heart rate down for freediving Multiply the breath out time than you did breathe in for example Breath in 3 seconds exhale 6 seconds ( passively meaning you don't push every single bit of air out of your lungs)
In the video there are bubles that goes from your mask. Is it eqalizing your mask, isn't it? How many air you spent on eqalizing mask? How you estimate your point of return?
You're right, the air coming from my mask is the extra air that spilled out from equalizing - I could be more careful, but I usually just try to make sure that equalizing works - but I do lose some air. As for determining my point of return, it's an estimate between the distance I have dove before, combined with my dive time and how I'm feeling. Many times I turn around when I'm still feeling just fine because I know it takes some time to get back to the surface.
+FSociety If you have a body builder type physique, then freediving may be harder for you because bigger muscles require more oxygen (thus making it harder to hold your breath very long). Being lean is good because you'll sink easier, but the name of the game is holding your breath. So if you can do that well, then you should be able to freedive well. I've never seen a good freediver that was really buff though.
Yes, children can freedive as long as they can equalize their ears (and mask). I once saw a 10yr old boy freedive down to 45 feet. Equalizing means that you are equaling the water pressure on your ears drums with air pressure from your own lungs. Your lungs will shrink when diving because the air in them is compressing. Also, to answer your question, you don't exhale when diving, you just hold your breath. You do exhale when you get near the surface though.
You need to equalize your ears so they don't hurt. You do this by pushing air through your Eustachian tubes into your inner ear, which balances the water pressure with air pressure. The easiest equalization technique is the Valsalva method where you pinch your nose, close your mouth and try to blow some air out. You should feel and hear a little pop. You can practice out of the water to see what this is like.
I don't hyperventilate before diving because of the danger of pushing myself too far without realizing it. Hyperventilating lowers your CO2 but it does NOT raise your O2. So, your natural urge to breath is delayed beyond the point of blacking out. I know that pro freedivers hyperventilate for national competitions, but I'm not competing with anyone here, I just like to freedive for recreation and enjoy the underwater world.
CaveFreediving To clarify; Hyper-ventilation is NOT allowed in free diving competitions. It is waaaaaay too dangerous
Chris Neal Doing 1 forced exhale is not the same as hyperventilating. Hyperventilating is rapid breathing for a certain period of time, which lowers the CO2 in your blood. 1 full exhale is not going to do that. Anyway, this technique has helped me so I thought I would share the advice.
+Sigurd Møller and hyperventilating will not improve our mammalian reflex underwater
hyperventilation is categorised by any breathing above a tidal volume which is a usual breath at rest. i can also tell you for a fact competitive freedivers dont hyperventilate before diving because it does not improve performance.
Hyperventilating is not used anymore at free-diving competitions.
The shot at 5:00 is absolutely beautiful, great video, you gained a sub!
Well done friends!!! SIMPLE, USEFUL and OBLIGATORY for every beginners in free-diving and spearfishing! I.F. from Bulgaria
Being a yoga teacher I've always been fascinated by
free diving, so I'll be investigating your videos more. Thanks for
sharing your insight with us.
You free dive Florida Springs, me too. Mostly Troy, Peacock and the Blue Hole at Itchetuknee.Been doing it three years now. Looking for new places and free diving buddies. I free dive to about 90' and know i can do better. Great relaxed attitude you have. Every tip I learn gets me closer to my goals. Thanks. I hope to catch you out there sometime.
thanks for the tips fellow freediver. my tip in freediving is to dive swirling going down learned it from a Filipino pearl diver (Badjao) the whistleman that goes down 100 meters
This is interesting. Any more info on why?
This Video is simply great !! you have said everything from A to Z ,,, from the recommended equipment till how to know your limits . IT's a simple course for free diving
thanks a lot
Totally new in the sport, you talk about all the aspects of the sport, your video learn me a lot !
Now it's up to me !
I found that diving diagonally really helps with pressure on my ears, give me time to swallow and relieve that said pressure. I used to dive in a cave on the Weeki Wachee river here in Florida.
Thanks for the tips. I've just started free diving the last couple months and have made sure to do research to be safer and improve my dives.
Im free diving out to the sea today for the first time. Thanks for the tips! Will remember them all! :D :)
Thank you very much for the tutorial. I am gathering all my free diving gears and this is very helpful. I have learned a lot. Thanks for sharing.
Excellent video & Thank you for sharing!
Im not a freediver yet, Im easily panicking in a deepwater sea, can't hold my breath long enough to even dive into 5 meters deep, and Im still looking for references for the beginner, and your video is quite brainstorming for me. thanks.
+Gusnita Melati Putri : I feel the same. How these freedivers a non-chalant about easy warm-up dives to 4 meters, whereas going for 12 feet at 30 seconds leaves me light-headed and gasping upon surfacing. I wonder why you never got a reply?
Amazing tips, tip# 24 is my favorite, Thank you so much.
Thank you! This is great. I've learnt a lot.
Hello there, my name is Joseph I've been a certified scuba diver since 2013, I've always loved free diving but I've never really tried. 2 months ago I started free diving at blue springs here in Florida & I gotta say I've been improving, I'm diving about 40ft but not for long only like 15-20 seconds.. Hope your video helps me out next time thank you.
Nice tips. Empty stomach is a must for me...had a terrible reflux once when I was starting to learn diving because I ate half an hour before going into the water...LOL.
diving stuff are awsome. Cool.
Good video bru! Thanks for the advices and keep it up ;)
Amazing thank you very much
Great video, thank you so much!!!
Awsome helped alot, thank you so much.
thanks. this video is a big help. 😊👌
Awesome vid!
Hey man awesome video I'm 12 and I'm diving 20 ft sometimes when I go spearfishing I can only sometimes hit 20 once I hit like 15 ft I I stop there but after watching this I saw what I was doing wrong and next time I go out I will follow these steps thanks man
Thanks a lot, great vid, really give me a good lesson.
fantastic video.
good video for beginners, good job
thanks.lots off information
Thanks.. It's really helpful
Hey and thanks for the video, you have gathered all the basic and important knowledge in one place making it a nice and handy reminder that I revisit often.
I have a problem when freediving and it might sound stupid but I almost always have water in my mask. I have bought several models, and each time I do the classic test at the shop where I place the mask in my face and suck in some air to see if I can feel any air coming in or if the mask falls off, and even though neither of the two happens, when I take it to the sea some water always gets in... I have bought already 4 different masks, and with that money I could have had my carbon fins, but it seems that my face is weirdly shaped, or I am doing something wrong. I tight up my mask as much as possible (without feeling pain on the surface) and still water gets in. I do have very short beard, which might be causing the problem, but I have seen people with beard having no issues, and I have even tried to use vaseline to make the mask stick better, without any success.
Do you have any tips on how to judge better before buying my next and hopefully last mask?
Thanks you in advance!
"I tight up my mask as much as possible..." I think that's your main problem. Loosen it up a little - tighten it as little as possible. As for the beard - I also have a beard, but I tend to shave just about a millimeter under my nose, and that seems to help. Good luck =]
Very helpful sir👌👍
Great video, ty.
Your vid was so helpful thanks
Nice tips and smooth diving style. I noticed you fin in bicycle motion, bending knees while having knees straight and using more hip motion to fin is considered to be more efficient. I also use razors and love them, really powerful fins. Keep up the good work with vids, please! :-)
Best regards!
Great video too btw. Thanks!
Thanks a lot
very nice Tips, Thanks you. :-)
nice tips but i would say the general rule for resting at the surface is 3 times your dive time and not just 2.
should get million views at least. helped me alot :D
great video cheers.
Great tips. What brand is the mask in this video?
Promate Frameless Mask - but I've seen this same mask under different brand names
Ive seen the exacts same mask branded Tigullio (european brand). Since its a lesser brand over here, I don't know anyone who has one, but it actually looks like a decent mask.
These tips will u lip me lots, thank you, being a rookie diver at the age of 15 I can use all the help I can get, I have a set of flippers, they are not short but they are not quite as long as yours, but they help me lots, I have a wetsuit, weight belt, and snorkle and mask, I normally have a divers blade on my weight belt and another strapped to my arm, I use this when I dive for Abolone, I am going to get my scuba qualifications also, my Max time is about 30-40 seconds, at about 20-30 feet, have not done much recently, better keep practicing, any other tips you got for me?
Will you explain why I don't have to equalize on the way up. I'm going to Bluesprings this weekend and I've only been able to make it just below the logs because I didn't know how to equalize. I've been studying videos like yours so that I can reach a new depth this weekend. I'm very excited and I bought a waterproof camera so i wanna get some cool shots.
+Paul Thompson IV
The short answer: the pressure in your ears automatically dissipates on the way up (air travels back into your nasal cavity as long as your Eustachian tubes aren't clogged).
The long answer: When you dive down, the water pressure builds up compressing the air in your inner ear, thus pulling your delicate eardrum inwards (which hurts). The Eustachian tubes from your nasal cavity to your inner ears are normally closed, so the air compresses in the closed system of your inner ear creating negative pressure. You equalize this pressure by blowing/pushing air through your Eustachian tubes into your inner ears so that the air pressure equals the water pressure. When you ascend, the water pressure decreases allowing the air in your inner ear to expand. This expanding air automatically escapes through your Eustachian tubes back into your nasal cavity. That is why you don't have to equalize on the way up. This is also why you shouldn't dive with nasal congestion; your Eustachian tubes could be clogged (as well as the passages to your sinuses).
This same process also happens with the air in your mask - you blow air into it on the way down to equalize the pressure and air escapes on the way up.
Great tips m8
Fantastic video - very useful as I'm just starting out. I don't have a dive computer yet, so are there any tips on roughly estimating depth, or is it just a judgement call? Cheers!
I'd recommend borrowing a dive computer/watch from a friend (or asking a scuba diver) so that you can do some dives with it and see your depth. During your dives, make visual landmarks for certain depths. If you're diving in an area with scuba divers, you could always ask them for depth landmarks too. I've noticed that the "average joe" overestimates depth, so borrow a dive watch first and then you'll be much better at estimating depth.
I thought that may be the case. Might just have to spring for one in that case! Thanks for the advice!
Thank you for this great video. What a great first exposure into the world of freediving!
I have a question on how to equalize when freediving. I am a scuba diver and can properly equalize my ears but when I try diving without my tank, I can't equalize no matter how hard I try (without rupturing my eardrums) are there any equalization techniques that are exclusive/golden for for the freediving world but not the scuba diving world? (hence, I am not aware of them)
I appreciate your input.
Joseph Trak Good question. Don't feel bad that you're having trouble equalizing because it is harder to equalize while freediving. It takes some force to push air through your Eustachian tubes into your inner ear, and it's easier to push air into your ears when your lungs are full, like on SCUBA. While freediving, your lung volume decreases rapidly, making it harder for your diaphragm to push air from your lungs into your ears. The Valsalva method (pinching your nose and blowing) of equalizing works this way and it's only effective up to 100 feet. Some people are good at the VTO equalizing method, which involves voluntarily opening the Eustachian tubes (like a yawn). This is a better method and works deeper than 100 ft. There's also the Frenzel method, but I don't recommend that one for beginners.
Since you're having trouble, I have 3 tips for you: First, make sure your not congested because of sickness. If you can't equalize out of water, then take a decongestant pill with Phenylephrine. Second, practice equalizing at shallower depths and then work your way down. So, try 3 feet, 6 feet, 9 feet, etc. Third, equalizing takes training and patience. The more you do it, the easier it will become. So don't give up, there's a fabulous world of freediving for you to discover.
CaveFreediving Thank you very much. I will do so!
when you freedive arent you supposed to take your snorkel out? i took a freediving course and my instructor told me that if you keep your snorkel in your mouth and you black out, you can breath water in very easily
Tip #15, take your snorkel out.
watch at 9:38, he leaves his snorkel inside of his mouth
oh dang sorry didnt realize that i am such a kreiky mate, ello meight and see ya later down unda!!!
Right off the batt I knew that first clip was blue springs because of the branches lol
What springs were you diving in at about 15:45? I was just at Blue Springs a few days ago and the cave there was beautiful.
Joey Alvey That was Jackson Blue Spring at the head of Merritts Mill Pond in the Panhandle of FL. There are many springs called "Blue Springs" in FL, so this is the one in Jackson county. If you go there, 100 yards downstream from Jackson Blue Springs on the right is Shangri-La Springs, which is very pretty and small. I made a video about it too.
Do you have any free-diving certifications? Have you received any formal training?
This looks amazing man I want to dive in these caves, are there many of these types of caves in Florida? Are there any gators or anything that you need to worry about, I'm guessing you dive caves also to avoid sharks.
There are many underwater caves in Florida to explore. I've never seen a gator in the same spring where I've been diving, but it is possible. Most likely, the gator will just swim away when they see you. I don't dive caves to avoid sharks, but because I enjoy exploring the caves. It's much more interesting for me to dive caves instead of a reef or wreck. Plus, I like the water clarity, fresh water and accessibility too.
thanks man, I wish I lived there or somewhere that offered such awesome diving. It's such an awesome way to spend your spare time!
Indeed
Thanks so much for these tips!
I'm a rookie and go to the sea every summer. I don't own fins, wetsuit, snorkel or weights, though I do have a pair of basic goggles without the nose cover thingy. So far I can go 20ish feet (no fins, open water), and I can go 1 minute 10 seconds staying still at the bottom of my pool (holding on to some bricks so I don't float away).
The reason why I chose freediving is because I'm not allowed to scuba dive because of my epilepsy. I am aware that diving deep is dangerous, especially if I have a seizure, but it calms me down and has been so great in keeping me fit.
Do you have any extra tips for me and my epilepsy? I'm hoping to go to Bonaire with my friends and family and freedive with them while they scuba.
You probably don't want to hear my advice if you have epilepsy and want to freedive. Even though I don't know how frequent or how long your seizures are, I cannot recommend freediving for you because having a seizure underwater can kill you. A seizure would burn your remaining oxygen very quickly, probably fill your lungs with water and then you would sink to the bottom. If no one is there to immediately rescue you, you'll be gone. Even if your seizures are rare, you must understand that you are risking your life when freediving.
I once had to make a tough decision similar to this. I was getting over a sickness, but still had an uncontrollable cough every 5 minutes or so. I thought I could still freedive safely even though I still had a cough; so I planned a trip, loaded my gear and started driving to the dive site. I stopped halfway to visit my parent's and they advised me not to go. But I'm stubborn and decided to just think it over some more. I ultimately decided to cancel my freediving plans and just drive back home. Looking back, I'm glad that I made that decision, because I could have had a coughing episode underwater and drowned.
Freediving is great and very enjoyable, but living a long, happy life is better. There are many other recreational activities you could enjoy in this world, but with much less risk than freediving. Nevertheless, if you choose to ignore my advice and freedive anyway, then at least freedive with someone who is trained in rescuing a freediver from blackout.
Thanks for the advice. I'm on medication controlling 95% of my seizures, so I'll have to see what happens! If the opportunity to freedive arises, I'll definitely think it through and remember this advice. My doctor was chill with it when I spoke to her about it, but I'll definitely try not to go too deep.
Sry but after the last great informative q and a I'm back and I will subscribe : how long do thing I should be able to breath hold to actually be classed as a free diver how long can you hold for or could hold for when u started??? How did u train or could u just do it naturally also how long did it take u between discovering free diving and actually diving did u train a lot first? Thank u
I've observed that the average guy, with no freedive training, can hold his breath up to 20 seconds and go down up to 20 feet deep. So, I consider someone to be a freediver if they can do better than that. I didn't start freediving until I was 28 yrs old because I never knew how to equalize my ears. When I first started, my best dives where 45 feet deep and 45 seconds long. I then started practicing breath holds at home and was surprised to see that I could hold my breath for 2:30 (lying on a bed). After a few months, I was able to go down 60 feet with dives around 1:15 and my breath holds at home were up to 3:00. Since I freedive just for fun, I haven't trained that hard, but I've still improved over the years by going diving every month. Right now, I max out at 100 feet deep and 2:30 dive time, and my breath holds at home are up to 4 min.
You should always take your snorkel out of your mouth in case of a blackout because your jaw can clamp shut and the snorkel won't be able to be pulled out of your mouth.
So newbie to freedive i have a bit difficulties in normal air breathing wonder how can i do it under water and how to make out body stay in the water thanks
Your body floats up because of the air inside your lungs.You can just buy some belt weights and there you go
Hey :) thanks very much for the video. Helped me a lot. But i have a few questions: i practiced the inhaling technique (stomach-chest-throat etc.) At home and i was able to hold my breath for 57 seconds in a bowl of water. But as soon as i try to dive in the "real" water, I can only go 10 meters or maximum 20 seconds before bumping back to the surface. I use a lot of oxygen underwater and after 15secs or so i "hyperventilate" because of twiches in my stomach that want me to go back up and exhale.... how can I avoid/ignore that and improve my diving time. Also if i start to freedive should i go further than 10 feet or maybe just 6 to 9 ft and than diving horizontally on the ground for the first times? Thanks very much!! Keep it goin!!
And btw with "10 meters" i meant horizontally. Vertically i dont dare to go farther than 6-9 ft by now fearing problems with my ears/body or fearing not to make it back to the surface in time. I only dove down to like 2 or maximum 3 meters and than back up. I also practice horizontal diving in my local Swimmingpool ;)
Would u recommend using scuba fins with these neopren boots or something like these blue fins u showed first?
Splash I'd recommend the first fins over scuba fins with boots because they are more agile. Scuba fins & boots aren't very graceful underwater.
Can you list all the things that have gone wrong on your free dives?
+Greg Hammack That would be a long list, but a very interesting list I think. I like your idea so much that I think I'll make a video of things that have gone wrong on my dives. Hopefully it will help people more than scare them. So, if you can't wait, I'll make a video to explain them all.
CaveFreediving Looking forward to it.
What springs do you dive in? I started free-diving a month ago and I go to Alexander Springs in FL it's not even deep 8-9m at most.
Josue Garcia Yeah, Alexander and Silver Glen aren't very deep, but they have cool caves. For depth, go to Blue Springs in Orange City, or Troy Springs, or Morrison Springs in the Panhandle, or Wakulla Spring south of Tallahassee, or the Green Sink at Manatee Springs, or Buford Spring in the winter. I always recommend Ginnie Springs park because they have many cool springs with varying depths.
CaveFreediving Ok thanks dude! I know i could go deeper and i want to train at different depths!
I live in Gainesville Fl and I am looking to get into serious freediving. I grew up in FL and I am comfortable "snrkeling" or recreational freediving diving down to 30-35ft or so. I am planning on taking a freediving course to get my certification. I am looking into buying gear online. Cressi and Seac seems to have some excellent choices. Can you tell me what Mil thickness suit you use for the springs in this area? Thanks.
+gvaud73 Great question. I've experimented with various gear in our Florida springs and this is what I've discovered: a 3mm full (long) wetsuit will work in the springs for about an hour or so and then I start shivering; a 5mm wetsuit will keep me warm for 2 hours or more, but the 5mm wetsuit is a little harder to move in. Now this was done without a hood. If you wear a 3mm hood with a 3mm wetsuit, you should be fine for 2 hours because you lose a lot of heat through your head, but I don't like wearing a hood because it traps water in your ears even after you surface. Cutting holes in the hood around your ears should help drain water and let you hear properly though. Wearing a hood is best for staying warm but I also like my head feeling free to move. So, you can either wear a hood or wear a thicker wetsuit. Keep in mind that Florida springs get colder by 5 degrees as you go north into the panhandle.
Hey, i have usual fins, which are a bit lonher than these ones u showed, are the freediving fins very important?? I own the rest of the stuff cause im scuba diving and want to try out something new. Im also wondering how much kg weight i would need with an 2,5 mm wetsuit. Any tips?
Splash If you're just starting to freedive, then your fins should be fine. But if you really like the sport and want to improve your performance, then you should get some freediving fins in the future. As for weight, it depends on the buoyancy of the person, the thickness of your wetsuit and where you're diving. In fresh water with a 3mm wetsuit, I wear about 6 lbs. In the ocean, I would add another pound of weight. My friends freedive with anywhere from 5 lbs to 9 lbs of weight. I hope this helps.
CaveFreediving so 2 - 4 kg?
Splash yes
I'm a beginner to this and I dive too but I was wondering what brand of light do you use when you go into the caves
There are a variety of dive lights that are good and suitable for caves. I would recommend a wide angle light which will illuminate most of the cave and not just a spot on the wall. But a light that has both a wide flood and a hot spot works great because you can see down tunnels while lighting up the room. The MagicShine scuba light is pretty good for caves.
what are some of the nice deep springs in Florida, that you have been to, i have dived the blue hole at Ichetucknee, and troy springs and i am interested in some more.
My most recent video is a review of Volusia Blue Springs, which goes down to 120 feet. Buford Spring (2 other videos) is a gigantic cavern that goes down to 120 feet in the back (and keeps on going). But you only want to visit Buford in the winter because of the bugs. Wakulla Spring has a cliff that goes 100 feet straight down and then the cave begins. But Wakulla has lower visibility. Morrison Spring has a cave between 60 and 80 feet, plus Morrison is crystal clear. Warm Mineral Spring is technically very, very deep, but I don't recommend going there, ever.
Any tips on keeping your ears from filling with water when going straight down?
Good question, I recently had trouble with this. My advice is to keep your ears level underwater, which means not tilting your head left or right making one ear higher than the other. Whenever I tilt my head left or right underwater, my ears fill with water. It's very annoying.
Great tips.
I would have liked some better information on safety techniques, and the essential importance of having a close by safety, especially when training and exploring personal limits.
About believing in yourself, I think that is important, however I belief ;) that it needs to be based on previous experience. For instance having a good static ability and equalisation, then Free Immersion (linepulling ) to increasing depths should be attainable.
Are you on the Deeperblue forum?
I'll make another video later with nothing but safety tips
Is that blue springs? i just got back there and its beautiful, it was my first time free diving but i got down to like 50 feet. i hear its like 100 feet deep there. so cool =D
+matt k The clips in this video are from a variety of springs, but Blue Springs in Orange City is one of the main springs I go to.
***** I use a Promate Raven frameless mask. I do like it and recommend it.
What other springs are shown here in the video besides blue springs? FL local looking for some spots..
Buford sink is awesome thats located in the chassahowitzka wildlife management. Very nice & deep
While you’re freediving is decompression sickness a real problem? I mean can it cause any symptoms or it is only a danger when you are diving with a diving cylinder? After what level of deepness can it occur?
Decompression sickness is not a problem in freediving because there's not enough nitrogen in 1 breath to cause problems. When you resurface, the very small amount of nitrogen that was absorbed is expelled, so don't worry about it.
CaveFreediving Thanks a lot for this useful answer. I barely found anything about it on the internet.
I'm curious what happens if a newbie pushes it too far.. Do you end up gasping in water, or do you just pass out and come back when someone pulls you from the water?
I would think that a newbie would gasp in water because they don't have the ability to hold back their urge to breathe. Usually what happens, though, is a newbie will turn back before they get close to their limit. But when I was a newbie, I pushed myself a little too hard and got close to blacking out. So, I guess it could go either way.
how do you prevent a shallow water blackout?
The best way to avoid blacking out is always diving within a safe limit for yourself. The tricky thing is knowing what your limit is. Pay attention to how you feel when you get back to the surface: are you light headed? are you gasping for air? air you seeing stars? do you feel dizzy? These are all signs that you were near your limit on that dive, so make sure your next dives are all less than what you just did. Meaning, less time or less distance.
It always helps to stay calm and relaxed during the dive AND when you reach the surface. If something goes wrong during the dive, go back but still remain calm. Most people that experience a blackout pushed themselves to far or something went wrong during the dive (like losing a fin). If you stay within your safe limit, then if something does go wrong you can still make it back.
When ascending blow the air out slowly 15 feet below the surface to avoid the vacuum effect on your veins and lungs.
vince ald It is normal to breath out just below the surface, but there isn't any vacuum effect on your veins and lungs. Blood does not compress under water pressure. The air in your lungs expands when ascending, returning your lungs to the same size as when you took your breath at the surface.
Hi. I'm a newb in this sport. I want to ask about something. Before I knew about freediving, I was playing basketball and other cardio sport. I start to learn freediving about 3 or 4 months ago. Since that, I notice that my stamina endurance when I do cardio sport is getting worse. I cant play straight 3 quarters anymore without exhausted. And my question, is this freediving thing has any bad effect to the cardio sport? As we know that this two sports has a big different thing about how we breath when we do it. Sorry for confusing you, I just have a bad English. Hope you can understand what I'm trying to ask.
Cheers. ✌
I understand your question. I haven't heard of freediving negatively affecting your ability to do cardio activities. But since you're having a problem, perhaps it could be explained this way...freediving trains your body to operate on lower than normal amounts of oxygen (slowing down metabolic activity, I believe, including your heart rate). Cardio activities require high metabolic activity and heart rate so that your body can quickly provide your muscles with oxygen, sugars, etc. Since these 2 sports are opposite in terms of metabolic activity, it can make sense that one hurts the other, but I know that being in a good cardiovascular condition will help you freedive due to a low resting heart rate.
I see. Thanks for the answer, sir.
What did that sign at 7:12 say? Besides "Stop" obviously
Also do u exhale as you descend
Hello CaveFreeDive, im new to freediving. what im doing now is practicing to hold my breathe in house or office. so far i can do 2 minutes holding. just wanna ask if it is okay pushing through my limits? or is it actually bad?
It's OK to push yourself a little; the better you can relax, the longer
you can hold your breath. You know you're getting near your limit
holding your breath at home when your extremities start to tingle and
flexing your muscles makes them feel better. On a dive, you can get the
same feeling in your legs when you're near your limit.
Thank you CaveFreeDive.. :)
for a cold spring what type of wetsuit should i get
Looks like Morrison Springs NW Florida?
1: is it dangerous do not keep your neck straight if you go down to about 10-15 meters?
2: I sometimes get light headed just right after i take my breath i havent expirienced it when i dive in water but when i hold my breath on dry land i sometimes get it, is that a bad sign?
Emil Schjerven Brenden Keeping your neck straight matters more the deeper you go. I've felt uncomfortable pressure on my throat when bending my neck to look up from 20 meters. It shouldn't be a problem at 10-15 meters though. As for feeling light headed, I would recommend taking your breath in a little slower, perhaps over 5 seconds.
Hello PLEASE Help
i dived about 4 meters and my tooth started aching very bad i dont know why what should i do?
Air bubble in tooth
It can be because you have a filling in your tooth and some air got into the space. Go see your dentist about it
Just go see a dentist my friend
Do you have to equalize on the way up? Or is it just down?
just on the way down
I went to a cold spring for the 1st time last week and I could only hold by breath for 15 or 20 seconds.
So my first spear fishing trip I was the same way man. I came down super hard on myself. All it was was you being uncomfortable and unsure of your limits. Since that trip, I downloaded a free drive breathing app called iHoldBreath. I tested my personal max and only got to about a minute. After a week and 2x daily training, my personal record is 3:45... seriously. Now, that's not taking into account body movement which in turn burns more O2 so that time will greatly diminish. So, to take something away from this. I was only able to reach the time of 3:45 after two O2 and Co2 training sessions on the app after my lungs were well stretched and my blood was super saturated with O2. Practice using the app so you can mentally push past the diaphragm contractions which are painful at first. But they get easier to push past. Once you get that, and you realize where your true limit is, you'll be MUCH better off in the water. Good luck.
What about a full face snorkel mask?
Has anyone messed around with the Wim Hof breathing technique? I'm a rookie freediver, so my breath holds are pathetic... but my 2nd try on a static hold with the Wim Hof I did over 4 min!! I could have held longer too, but it was freaking me out a little.
Did you say you have to equalize your mask? i didn't know that i thought you justy equalize your ear pressure, how do you do it to your mask?
You simply blow a little air through your nose into your mask to equalize the pressure. If you don't, your face will be sucked into the mask, pulling on your eyes which causes a burning sensation.
can u recommend a mask for me? I want a black one, which i can use for free and for scuba diving :3
Splash I like this mask which I believe is fine for scuba diving; plus this mask is sold by many different brands:
www.amazon.com/500890-Titanium-Promate-snorkel-Snorkeling/dp/B00G2ND588/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1428689188&sr=8-3&keywords=low+volume+mask
www.amazon.com/Aqualung-Sport-Scuba-Snorkeling-Frameless/dp/B007USKAKA/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1428689188&sr=8-7&keywords=low+volume+mask
www.amazon.com/Tilos-Framless-Single-Excel-Silicone/dp/B003JP9ZSG/ref=sr_1_25?ie=UTF8&qid=1428689212&sr=8-25&keywords=low+volume+mask
CaveFreediving I felt in love with the Aqualung Mask, but i cant take it on my German Wishlist -.- and cant find it on German amazon, I`ll see if i can order it from US Amazon XD Thank you anyways :3
CaveFreediving just bought it, thx for ur recommondation :D
What about free diving without a diving mask? And your eyes open? Is that dangerous and bad for the eyes?
It won't hurt you diving without a mask, but your vision will be very blurry.
Simple breathing techniques to slow your heart rate down for freediving
Multiply the breath out time than you did breathe in for example
Breath in 3 seconds exhale 6 seconds ( passively meaning you don't push every single bit of air out of your lungs)
Chlorox Bleach Thanks Chlorox Bleach!
even more simple - breath the same way how do you breath before to fall a sleep ;-)
What's so fun diving in a cave?! No fish to play with, and the darkness gives me creeps........
I think that its dangerous too, i mean if u panicking u have to find ur way out first XD and if u have a lamp with u it isnt dark XD
In the video there are bubles that goes from your mask. Is it eqalizing your mask, isn't it?
How many air you spent on eqalizing mask? How you estimate your point of return?
You're right, the air coming from my mask is the extra air that spilled out from equalizing - I could be more careful, but I usually just try to make sure that equalizing works - but I do lose some air.
As for determining my point of return, it's an estimate between the distance I have dove before, combined with my dive time and how I'm feeling. Many times I turn around when I'm still feeling just fine because I know it takes some time to get back to the surface.
+CaveFreediving
Thank you, and Good luck for you!
is there any limit how far i can go without a diving mask? it is much more comfortable for me..
there's no limit as long as you can equalize your ears and sinuses
thats what i thought, as the eyes should have pretty mauch the density of water. Good to hear, i much prefer diving without a mask!
When u dived did you equalise because you didn't in the video
I can usually equalize using the "voluntary tubal opening" technique which does not require pinching my nose.
are you okay dude? 6 years no uploads
What watch do u use
I currently don't have a dive watch, but I've heard good things about the Aeris F-10 and I've used the Oceanic Geo a couple times.
What if I am in good shape but have lots of muscle mass?
+FSociety If you have a body builder type physique, then freediving may be harder for you because bigger muscles require more oxygen (thus making it harder to hold your breath very long). Being lean is good because you'll sink easier, but the name of the game is holding your breath. So if you can do that well, then you should be able to freedive well. I've never seen a good freediver that was really buff though.
Can a child free dive? Also do I have to equalise my lungs (sorry for unknowing)
Yes, children can freedive as long as they can equalize their ears (and mask). I once saw a 10yr old boy freedive down to 45 feet. Equalizing means that you are equaling the water pressure on your ears drums with air pressure from your own lungs. Your lungs will shrink when diving because the air in them is compressing. Also, to answer your question, you don't exhale when diving, you just hold your breath. You do exhale when you get near the surface though.
Great Video! But you look a Little bit sick, from too much freediving/Holding breath?
It's just the lighting in the video
How to Do you not get hurt in your ear (im a noob)
You need to equalize your ears so they don't hurt. You do this by pushing air through your Eustachian tubes into your inner ear, which balances the water pressure with air pressure. The easiest equalization technique is the Valsalva method where you pinch your nose, close your mouth and try to blow some air out. You should feel and hear a little pop. You can practice out of the water to see what this is like.
I'm a kid and I'm a freediver an I can dive 17,5 m under water
That's funny I learned how to freedive in the same dam place with the same dam cave and the same dam log covering the entryway lol wtf
Dude wtf if you stop at 16:45 I am pretty sure the grim reaper if flipping you the bird