[jome]

Hi, in my opinnion and experience aerobic or muscle fitness does not really help breath hold ability. However it can help in the "moving disciplines" that you are generally fit, but not much for static. The more movement and power needed, the more emphasis. Ie static doesn't need good muscle fitness, dynamic may benefit and in constant there can be a very clear benefit. Even so, training invested in technique will reap bigger benefits than pure strength training for example.

The best training for breath holding is breath holding. However, aerobic or muscle training doesn't hurt as much as people usually think either (again my opinnion and experience).

One thing aerobic training is really good for is developing the condition of your heart and blood vessels. Apnea really pushes your cardiovascular system, the blood pressures you reach in max apnea attempts are off the charts. So even if it doesn't directly improve performance, I definitely recommend aerobic training to supplement apnea training, especially for people who don't have much background other in sports.

For elite freedivers who already have a strong background in sports playing with ideas like total aerobic ban may be worthwhile to experiment with. Their heart and blood vessels "can take it", and there may (or may not) be performance benefits.