Freediving Without Training?

[beanojones]

I was told that if I ever got good enough to fight off the urge to breath well enough that it was only a minor annoyance then that's when you have to watch it. Shallow water blackout is very real.

Yeah this is probably the strangest thing about free-diving: The better we get, and the more comfortable we get, the more likely we are to face THE danger of free diving: shallow water blackout. Unlike scuba where the more we do it the less likely we are to face difficulty.

Beginners are driven to breathe, by habit, not breath reflex. Once we break the habit of breathing 4-12 times a minute(takes a lot of time, self taught), then is it really easy to work towards shallow water blackout.

I wish free-diving was embraced by PADI as a separate entity, not because they would necessarily do it well, but because then we could separate it from diving in the general water going public's mind, and PADI would stop pretending that becoming a scuba instructor makes us scuba instructors qualified to teach free-diving.

I free-dive myself, but that's more to do with being in the Pacific, than knowing the first thing about it. PADI say I am qualified to teach free-diving because I am an Open Water Scuba Instructor. I, on the other hand, know full well I am not at all qualified to teach it.

 

[agilis]

How is freediving defined, in the context of this discussion? I think of it as pushing the limits of breath holddiving, reaching scuba depths and staying there for several minutes. I'm not a free diver. I'm a snorkeler. When I was 8 years old I had 2 years of experience surface snorkeling. It was a natural progression to begin holding my breath and swimming to the bottom in 3 to 6 feet of water. I'd do this for hours when I was a very small boy, collecting seashells, fishing lures, and fish watching around docks and ocean inlet rock piles. By the time I was about 14 I was pretty good at what I thought of as just snorkeling, able to breath hold for more than two minutes while swimming vigorously (no weights but I was as skinny as a stick), and to reach the bottom in about 30 feet of SW and stay there for a bit.

I'd never heard the term 'free diving'. It seemed to me that snorkeling without continual breath hold dives was like riding a tricycle, or a two wheeler with training wheels: baby stuff. I still feel that way. I'm 70 now, and I like nothing better than to float around some tropical lagoon for 3 or 4 hours with a mask, snorkel, fins, a lycra body suit and 5 lbs. of lead to achieve close to neutral bouyancy, maybe very slightly negative. I can't hold my breath quite as long these days, and I stay within a quarter mile of shore. About twenty feet is my depth limit, so in my own mind I 'm not a freediver, just a snorkeler. More than 60 years of just snorkeling did reward me with some excellent skills, and made becoming a safe and competent scuba diver a snap. I also feel as much at home in the sea as I do on land. It's my element.

I've never thought of this kind of snorkeling as especially risky, certainly no more risky than manuvering my motor bike through rush hour traffic after my late afternoon class, the road filled with huge ugly SUVs and morons chatting on cell phones or texting. I'm basically a solo diver and motorcyclist and snorkler. Life is filled with risks, and there are worse ways to go than those associated with my favorite activities. The party has to end at some point. To hell with worrying about shallow water blackouts.

 

[cmburch]

Freediving would not have any time limits or a specified depth. It is just diving on one breath hold. Whether it be for spearfishing, exploration, work, exercise, photography, fun, etc. Swimming vigorously for over 2 minutes on a breath hold is not only a great physical feat, but also dangerous. I cannot swim 50m at 85% top speed without a breath. At 60% I may be able to (No fins, surface swimming). Swimming pools are about 8' deep, so a normal freediving depth for children with pools is 8'-10'. Ocean snorkelers may be 8-20' depending on tide and reef structure.

 

[agilis]

When I was in my teens I could do almost 3 minutes uw while moving slowly. Lots of people who do this sort of thing regularly can. When I was at my youthful peak physically that vigorous swimming was only to reach depth, then a kind of altered state, almost a high, moving with a slow eel like whole body motion ending with a snap of the fins, arms tight against the ribs. That's how I did my usual 2 minutes. I can still breathold dive that way, just not nearly as long, and a weightbelt makes drifting down easy. A peaceful 50 to 60 seconds gliding, then the urge to breath becomes a sharp demand: a quick kick or two, outstretched hand breaks the surface, sweet air to breath. A way of life for me now. Always alone. I'd never want to put anyone else at risk should I conk out. I feel very safe, all things considered. We are all sojourners, always at the brink, whatever illusions we may entertain.

Two years ago I was chasing a fish I wanted to capture for my aquarium. Steep dropoff starting about 12 feet deep at the base of a cliff, at dusk, which is when the Spotted Drums become most active. I pushed myself too far, and felt for a moment that I was not going to get back up. I caught the young Drum, which I still have. I'm not going to try anything that difficult again. I do feel a loss, though. Once it was nothing, effortless. It was upsetting to feel fear.

At the gym I always do a full lap, back and forth, underwater, one hand forward lightly touching the bottom, feeling the slope and then the wall (chlorine too much for continuously open eyes). Then the sauna. The end of workout sauna has come close to making me black out, but never uw swimming. Sorry for the quote at the end instear of the beginning.

Freediving would not have any time limits or a specified depth. It is just diving on one breath hold. Whether it be for spearfishing, exploration, work, exercise, photography, fun, etc. Swimming vigorously for over 2 minutes on a breath hold is not only a great physical feat, but also dangerous. I cannot swim 50m at 85% top speed without a breath. At 60% I may be able to (No fins, surface swimming). Swimming pools are about 8' deep, so a normal freediving depth for children with pools is 8'-10'. Ocean snorkelers may be 8-20' depending on tide and reef structure.

 

[cmburch]

For California, Dan Silveira offers an excellent and affordable course for beginning freedivers. He also offers a spearfishing course.

Spearfishing is Not a Crime

 

[Arubandi07]

How is freediving defined, in the context of this discussion? I think of it as pushing the limits of breath holddiving, reaching scuba depths and staying there for several minutes. I'm not a free diver. I'm a snorkeler. When I was 8 years old I had 2 years of experience surface snorkeling. It was a natural progression to begin holding my breath and swimming to the bottom in 3 to 6 feet of water. I'd do this for hours when I was a very small boy, collecting seashells, fishing lures, and fish watching around docks and ocean inlet rock piles. By the time I was about 14 I was pretty good at what I thought of as just snorkeling, able to breath hold for more than two minutes while swimming vigorously (no weights but I was as skinny as a stick), and to reach the bottom in about 30 feet of SW and stay there for a bit.

I'd never heard the term 'free diving'. It seemed to me that snorkeling without continual breath hold dives was like riding a tricycle, or a two wheeler with training wheels: baby stuff. I still feel that way. I'm 70 now, and I like nothing better than to float around some tropical lagoon for 3 or 4 hours with a mask, snorkel, fins, a lycra body suit and 5 lbs. of lead to achieve close to neutral bouyancy, maybe very slightly negative. I can't hold my breath quite as long these days, and I stay within a quarter mile of shore. About twenty feet is my depth limit, so in my own mind I 'm not a freediver, just a snorkeler. More than 60 years of just snorkeling did reward me with some excellent skills, and made becoming a safe and competent scuba diver a snap. I also feel as much at home in the sea as I do on land. It's my element.

I've never thought of this kind of snorkeling as especially risky, certainly no more risky than manuvering my motor bike through rush hour traffic after my late afternoon class, the road filled with huge ugly SUVs and morons chatting on cell phones or texting. I'm basically a solo diver and motorcyclist and snorkler. Life is filled with risks, and there are worse ways to go than those associated with my favorite activities. The party has to end at some point. To hell with worrying about shallow water blackouts.

Snorkel-diving, pure and simple ... Nicely written, I can see and 'feel' much of my own philosophy in what you said ...

 

[SPEARBIGFISH]

just dive safe, practice with a dive buddy and enjoy freediving Spearbigfish - coming soon

 

[lynch]

I'm not sure but in my opinion free diving without training is really dangerous.

 

[cmburch]

California Abalone divers may only dive 15-25' for less than 45s. They could be classified as snorkelers since they have a snorkel, but they are freedivers and use the snorkel for swimming as well as breathing up. Some of us may go deeper for longer periods. I would guess that over 98% do not have any freediving training. Not really that dangerous. Many deaths are heart attacks - old age. Some may be due to lack of general ocean cold water kelp diving skills.