Freediving class?

[thomasj1107]

Quick background…early life, lots of ear problems, mostly resolved, can now equalize fine scuba diving I have to go a little slower than some maybe but I think that may just be paranoia. Finally got certified this year. Freediving, I’ve always had trouble equalizing and assumed it was because of the initial head down fins up position that just made it seem impossible for me. With that being said I WANT to be able to freedive and equalize as well as I do while on scuba. Do these freediving classes that PADI does and stuff like that help with this situation? Is it normal for someone to have trouble equalizing while freediving but not really have a problem on scuba?

 

[dcvf2]

Hi Thomas

In apnea you must not miss a compensation because then it is ruined because you descend much faster than in SCUBA


Prevention :
- Blow your nose then put on your mask
- precompensate the mask before the duck dive
- go down to 4 or 5 m the first time
- rise to the surface and blow your nose again…precompensate…duck dive

It should be OK to go deeper
- compensate every 2 s max

 

[Jersey1971]

Hi Thomas. I'm in exactly the same situation as you. For whatever reason, my right ear is always slower to equalize than my left. I took my first freediving course a few months ago and had the same concerns you did, to the extent that I limited my investment in equipment based on the fear that I'm just not anatomically capable of freediving. On the first day, as expected, I had problems. But I realized that equalization is a real skill that improves with practice. I also realized that I wasn't being proactive enough in equalizing. The biggest breakthrough for me was to take ample time properly pre-equalizing before doing the duck dive. You lose a couple of seconds of breath hold on the surface, but it's well worth it.

I've watched a lot of youtube videos and experimented with different techniques and exercises. Now I can get down to 20 meters with no problem. Interestingly, the barrier now is not having enough residual air at depth to generate pressure to equalize. It's a whole different kind of problem, but at least it's one of technique and not an intractable one based on my weird anatomy, as I'd feared.

 

[hotdive global]

Hi Thomas, as a freediving & scuba instructor I can tell you that freediving and scuba diving equalization are 2 different things, we teach Valsalva equalization for scuba diving and we teach Frenzel equalization for freediving. Compare to scuba equalization, freediving equalization is harder to learn and takes more time to do it. But just like a lot of things in your life, it's all about practice and it could be trained on land. Also, a healthy lifestyle helps your eq too. Here are some exercises you can try to follow

Here is the tool you can use to follow those training.

HOTDIVE Frenzel Equalization Trainer Tool HDF-01 for freediving - Hotdive.org

HOTDIVE EQ Trainer can train your equalization wherever you want. Suitable for all level free divers. It can help you train Frenzel, mouthfill, and even more.

hotdive.org

Hope you sort it out soon