How to Learn Freediving

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How to Learn Freediving

If you are reading this article now, then you are probably interested in how to learn freediving.

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How to Begin with Freediving?

Everyone approaches freediving in different ways. Probably, you have already tried scuba diving. You may be even an experienced scuba diver, but you always wanted to dive without equipment to feel more freedom. Or you saw freedivers on the same depth and wanted to test yourself if you could do the same or better. Some people like snorkelling. And maybe you are one of them and can dive down to a few meters, but liked the idea to improve your diving skills, go deeper and stay longer under the water. Many of us saw freediving videos on YouTube with amazing athletes doing incredible things – swimming under the ice, into the deep caves, walking on the sea bottom, and only on one breath. Maybe you are inspired by them. Or you’ve watched one of the films about freediving and famous champions dedicated to it. You want to try it, to get closer, to understand what they were feeling. Perhaps the depth of the underwater world enchants you. Or maybe water scares you, and you want to overcome this fear like it was with the heroine of the freediving movie “One breath” based on the biography of the famous Natalia Molchanova.

No matter how people get to know about freediving, everyone can master it. Of course, like in every sport, your initial physical condition and abilities affect the time you spend and the efforts you make to reach a particular level. But it takes only a few days to make the first steps and learn the basics. Of course, if you want to set new world records, it will surely take longer. For instance, it took Sara Campbell about four years of hard training, dedication, and commitment to set the new women’s freediving world record by diving to 96 m in constant weight in 2009. It all depends on your desires, goals, your interest, possibilities to study and train. But in general, learning and practising freediving helps to improve health and well-being. Doing physical training, spending time outdoors, swimming, being emotionally involved – all of these things positively impact your body and mind. If you are practising yoga, freediving can enrich your experience because it’s closely connected with pranayama and Yoga-Nidra practices. Freediving develops a fuller sense of a person’s body, helps to achieve harmony with oneself. It also creates a special healthy lifestyle, connects you with like-minded purposeful people. And freediving can open the underwater world to you in all its beauty.

History of Freediving Natalia Molchanova
Swimming Panglao Sardines
Manta Ray

Want to Learn More About Freediving or Start Yourself?

Send us a message via the following form, and our team will reply within a few hours.

At the same time, we’ll subscribe you to the Freedive Academy iMagazine, and every two weeks, we’ll send you an email with news and schedules for courses and online (free) events that everyone can join.

Freediving is an incredible sport, and it’s amazing what the human body can do. Message us today and submerge yourself in a beautiful world in one breath!

Freediving SSI Level 1 Course
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Freediving SSI Level 2 Course
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So how can You Start with Freediving?

First of all, decide where exactly you want to start your training. Nowadays, it’s even possible to learn freediving online with theory courses which give access to the free dry training programs. Although we teach the theory courses regularly, of course, freediving you learn in the pool or ocean. In any big city, you can most likely find an instructor and courses held in the pool. The beginner freediving course will give you the basics and is a great start. The course can also be conducted in the pool and in the open water of the real sea, where you don’t have the depth limits of confined water. And the best place for taking an open water course is somewhere in a tropical country with warm sea waters. So if you have the opportunity to start your learning in such a place, go for it. If you are hesitant about which place to go and need advice, we are happy to invite you to one of the best places for freediving in the world – Panglao Island, Bohol, Philippines. This is where we, with our Freediving Academy, are located.

Introductory training at clubs, schools, and freediving centers is called the “Basic Freediving Course”. This is usually the SSI Basic Course or the AIDA 1* and only takes one day. You will learn the basics of freediving and discover your natural freediving ability. You will also train the techniques which will allow you to hold your breath for more than a minute and a half and to do breath-hold dives with and especially long freediving fins. The course also includes the theory about the physics and the physiology of freediving, an introduction to freediving equalization, relaxation and breathing techniques, and rescue and safety procedures. This course will be a great introduction to freediving and opens you up to a great world of possibilities.

If you are confident about your skills and like challenges, you might want to skip the Basic course and immediately start with an SSI Level 1, Molchanovs Wave 1 or AIDA 2* freediving course. This level 1 course is not limited to -5meter in the ocean, but it’s the first real freediving course. With the level 1 course with most agencies, you will learn how to dive to depths up to about -20 meters safely. And unlike the Basic course, with this level 1 course, you can continue your practical training, improve your results, or follow with the next courses for intermediate and advanced levels, up to the level of a freediving instructor and a competitive athlete.

Learn Freediving Online - Webinar
Learn Freediving Online - Edwin Teaching
Learn How To Knot

Want to Learn More About Freediving or Start Yourself?

Send us a message via the following form, and our team will reply within a few hours.

At the same time, we’ll subscribe you to the Freedive Academy iMagazine, and every two weeks, we’ll send you an email with news and schedules for courses and online (free) events that everyone can join.

Freediving is an incredible sport, and it’s amazing what the human body can do. Message us today and submerge yourself in a beautiful world in one breath!

Freediving SSI Level 1 Course
Molchanovs Wave 1 Certification
Freediving SSI Level 2 Course
Monofin Speciality Course

Fill in the form now – no strings. We have a great team of people who are all more than happy to answer any questions you might have.

Name*

What about the Gear you need to Start Freediving?

Unlike scuba diving, freediving does not require many things to have. The lack of gear is always an advantage when deciding to travel and freedive in different places worldwide. In fact, the equipment freedivers use is, at the elementary level, you need just a freediving mask. Still, there’s a lot of additional things that will make your experience much more comfortable. For initial pool or open water activities, you’d better have a mask, a pair of long freediving fins, and a freediving wetsuit that will protect your skin from the elements. Of course, those who have been freediving for some time prefer to have their own gear. The right gear can help a freediver to go deeper, faster, and feel more comfortable during freediving sessions. A special freediving mask with a low profile, soft silicone skirt, and clear lenses will protect your eyes and help you to save the air for equalizing. Many different kinds of fins meet individual needs and purposes so that each freediver can choose the best for them. But to start learning, you do not have to buy all these in advance. Each freediving center allows you to rent everything you need. The cost of renting equipment can be either included in the course or charged separately.

 

The Freediving Agencies Takes Care of the Study Materials and Student Certification.

Freediving courses are being certified by different freediving agencies. Some of them are SSI, Molchanovs, AIDA, PADI, Apnea Academy, etc. In essence, it doesn’t really matter which agency you start with; all the agencies are quite similar in their basics – there are big differences in master and instructor levels. All the mentioned agencies teach freediving in a progressive, safe and efficient manner. Besides the differences in the higher levels, there are also differences is in their history and ideology. AIDA (International Association for the Development of Apnea) was founded in 1992 to keep international records after the CMAS (English name: World Underwater Federation), which was doing this in the 1960s, stopped judging further freediving competitions in 1970, and refused to consider freediving as a sport and supervise it, explaining it with prohibitions of doctors and violation of safety rules. And until now, most of the records are fixed and recognized according to the AIDA grading system. PADI (Professional Association of Diving Instructors) and SSI (Scuba Schools International) both offer freediving courses in addition to their main scuba diving courses. Molchanovs Movement is a global community of passionate, active freedivers with access to the latest freediving education and freediving training. Molchanovs community and educational system are founded on the philosophy, strategies, and approaches of the legendary Natalia Molchanova, one of the greatest and most decorated freedivers in freediving history. But any system you choose can help you to learn freediving. You can read the description of different agencies in more detail and compare the compliance of the levels in our freediving agency comparison chart.

At our dive center in Panglao, we chose to teach the freediving courses of both SSI and Molchanovs since we sincerely believe these two agencies offer the most possibilities to our freedivers. We used to teach AIDA regularity too, but we found more value in the SSI and Molchanovs Trainings Systems. Now we proudly offer both agencies programs to go from beginner to freediving instructor in 3-months, and we even offer freediving internships that are very popular too.

And in conclusion, time to make the first step. Open a browser and google freediving clubs near you. Or contact us, and we will answer any of your questions and give you all the details you are interested in. We can help you to make a plan for your vacation – come freediving in the Philippines! Take your first freediving course in warm tropical waters, and live an unforgettable experience on the beautiful tropical island of Panglao in the Philippines. We hope to see you in Panglao soon!

Classroom Training
Breathing Workshop
monofin training in the pool

Do you want to learn how to freedive or have questions, please contact us anytime? Also, do contact us if you want to join any of our courses. We teach freediving courses in the Philippines, but we also teach freediving online via nice and entertaining Zoom classes almost every week. The same goes for our freedive instructor courses that we teach every few weeks online – we offer different options, but they are fun and entertaining.