Geezer Freediving?

Please register or login

Welcome to ScubaBoard, the world's largest scuba diving community. Registration is not required to read the forums, but we encourage you to join. Joining has its benefits and enables you to participate in the discussions.

Benefits of registering include

  • Ability to post and comment on topics and discussions.
  • A Free photo gallery to share your dive photos with the world.
  • You can make this box go away

Joining is quick and easy. Log in or Register now!

@dcvf2, you took that footage freediving? So beautiful, thanks for sharing
 
Geezer Freediving. I resemble that remark. At least the geezer part. I'm trying to start recreational, shallow Freediving. I guess most would call that snorkeling. But Freediving sounds so much more exciting and sophisticated. As I. tend to do, I read up on freediving, and even with a scuba background, I feel like I need to take a course before going beyond the shallow end of the pool. I'm 70.
 
Russell,

Although I've gone outside of the shallow end already, I'm completely in agreement with the rest!
 
Geezer Freediving. ...even with a scuba background, I feel like I need to take a course before going beyond the shallow end of the pool. I'm 70.
Good idea :)…the principal points for me are if I resume :
- relaxation
- abdominal ventilation
- don’t bend the legs
- don’t hold the snorkel in your mouth under the water
- and of course don’t hyperventilate and stay behind your limits if you dive alone… with a buddy (good in free diving) it’s always highly recommended

Last year at 76, in red sea, I went down to 21m ( 69 feet) , in free diving with my video camera on a big wing.

It was just « to see »…I’am not attracted by performance.

Then no problem for you at 70 :wink:
 
Turning 65 on Monday and have done lots of shallow dives while snorkeling. I've been interested in going deeper for years but never have "pushed the envelope." Do you know if there are specific contraindications for freediving after a certain age? I swim a mile in the pool 2-3x/wk and regularly do a 25 yd underwater swim. To my knowledge, I'm fairly healthy. I've got books on freediving but have never been able to attend a class.
Thx
You need to check this out:
 
Don’t ever let anyone tell you what you can not do solely based on your age!
I’m 60 and in good but not great shape. I am overweight and out of shape but I’m hoping that freediving and the aspects connected to it such as breathing exercises, relaxation, yoga, eating healthier, and regular physical activity will help me get back into a better fitness regimen. Just recently, I got my freediver certification through SSI. It was never physically taxing; although, the hours spent diving and working on the requirements got me sleeping well each night. I would say if anyone near our age might have an immediate physical issue, it would probably be equalization trouble before anything else.
Yes, get a complete physical exam and asking for a cardiac stress test might be a good idea too (I am NOT a doctor- your mileage might vary!) But if I can get through it, while not being a really strong swimmer, I would bet it’s entirely possible for someone like you.
 
I did the PFI Intermediate when I was 55. 64 now. The course was worthwhile. I had been free dive spearing for about 10 years previous, but the techniques we learned really improved my bottom times.
We did extended breath holds on the surface and were told to black out if we wanted. I made it to 5 minutes on the third or fourth try and almost blacked out. My 21 year ild son and partner had to beat the old man. 5 min 8 seconds. Popped up, took one breath and out went the lights for about 5 seconds. It was an eye opener for sure.
But I had a sub dural hematoma while body surfing on my birthday, 2017. Have backed off on free diving.
 

Back
Top Bottom