Proper Training??

[SpearoPimp]

I spearfish and have practiced freediving some over the summer. And now i want to start a rigourous training schedule and become a really good freediver. MY goals are to be able to spear deeper for longer periods of time. When i triained in the past I would rest on the surface for 45 sec and dive down and swim around slowly for 60. I would repeat this cycle for 30 min+. I\

I want to know how the "real" freedivers train. Can some one explain to me how I should train or direct me to a resource or website that will show me how.

[kingohyes]

Lol let me direct you to a good site where you can find all the information you need

Just follow this link: http://www.deeperblue.net

[quasimoto]

I think as a general rule you should always spend at least twice as long on the surface as you did underwater on your last dive. i.e. if you did a 60 second dive, then spend two minutes on the surface before you dive again. There are other ways to train without compromising your safety
good luck!

[Panos Lianos]

It all depends on what you want to train for.

A person who trains for freediving only (no spearfishing training) would do different things than a person who only does spearfishing. This does not mean that if you train for freediving you can’t spearfish. But in order to reach your max potential, you should follow a special training program designed to prepare you exactly for what you want to do. This time of year I focus more on strength (weight training) and less on aerobic work. Aerobic conditioning was earlier in the year.

This doesn’t mean that I don’t do ANY aerobic work or statics. It just means that at this point I pay MORE attention to strength.

So I guess my answer is: Your training should depend on what you want to do AND when you want to do it (when you want to be in top form).

[SpearoPimp]

i ordered the book manual of freediving the other day. so i guess that will tell me what i need to know

[subaquaticus]

Originally Posted by quasimoto

I think as a general rule you should always spend at least twice as long on the surface as you did underwater on your last dive. i.e. if you did a 60 second dive, then spend two minutes on the surface before you dive again. There are other ways to train without compromising your safety
good luck!

Where does this rule come from ? I am afraid you are wrong in some cases....

If you do hypercapnic training (towards 16 X 50 m) your surface time is about half the diving time...

[quasimoto]

subaquaticus-

I did not mean in a pool, i meant constant ballast diving, or any depth diving for that matter. I was lead to believe that doing hypercapnic training involvong depth is a lot more dangerous, and when doing any depth dives you want to become fully oxygenated before you dive again. In a pool it is fine to do hypercapnic training with a partner
please correct me if i'm wrong

[subaquaticus]

Originally Posted by quasimoto

subaquaticus-

I did not mean in a pool, i meant constant ballast diving, or any depth diving for that matter. I was lead to believe that doing hypercapnic training involvong depth is a lot more dangerous, and when doing any depth dives you want to become fully oxygenated before you dive again. In a pool it is fine to do hypercapnic training with a partner
please correct me if i'm wrong

since I am a Parisian, 90% of my training is in a swimming pool and we are very much influenced by hypercapnic methods... in swimming pools of course...

[lungfish]

Hi Quasi...

My understanding regarding proper diving intervals is to spend twice as long on the surface as you spent below on your previous dive PLUS a proper breathup. The point to all this really is to make certain you are oxygen saturated, that you have correctly purged CO2 and are perfectly loaded and packed for your dive.

This rule of thumb seems to have come about for speargunners who are known to die by diving deep and long, fighting a fish late in the dive and having to dive immediately after surfacing to continue the fight. The result is that a lung full of air is not enough to offset the oxygen debt in the muscles and blood.

I often practice deep diving while touring reefs though I am not a spearo- I spend a lot of time in Port Douglas Austalia and Kona, Hawaii. So I am often dealing with currents and other stresses that create an O2 debt and I have to gauge an accurate dive duration.... I don't even try deep or long dives unless the water is calm and I am completely rested and prepared to dive.

[lungfish]

Also Quasi,

If you intend to train to freedive, a thorough understanding of dive physiology is very important. I don't know if you have attended a freediving class or not. I went to a class offered by www.performancefreediving.com that was quite thorough. The discussion included physiology of freediving as well as general training techniques and a training program. I am glad that I took the class before I spent any time trying to deep swim. I never could have been as effective without the advanced instruction from Martin Stepanek and Kirk Krack.....

The basics included flexibility training and breathing exercises with a focus on ribcage flexing. Also there are static apnea tables that are very easy to understand as well as physical training in techniques like packing, proper dive form and many other important topics. There were also recommendations regarding dynamic apnea practice like breathing up, holding one's breath and walking as far as possible (preferably in a grassy park)...

I think the most important info was in respect to initiating the mammalian diving reflex through a sequential series of exercises begining with stretching and ending with negative pressure submersions just prior to breathups for deep dives.... there are a series of physical cues that tell your body to prepare for prolonged submersion and learning how to stimulate these cues in the proper order is probably one of the most important aspects of learning to freedive. I can certainly tell when I have prepared correctly prior to diving.

One other important aspect beyond a proper and effective breathup is the simple practice of relaxing, minimizing the use of large muscle groups(dolphin vs flutter kick), taking one's time on descents, engaging the sinkphase effectively, etc... I like to do a dive, make the majority of my ascent and if I am comfortable, I will slow down my ascent and let my positive bouyancy take over.... I am relaxed, low on 02 but not completely drained, and I can simply relax and make it go a little longer.

I often dive in small bays like Kealekakua or H'nau Nau. I will spend two or three hours, sometimes much longer, simply diving and breathing up. Start with shallow dives after a correct warm up and then work out from shore to deeper water. I might do 50 dives in a session, even more if I am motivated. I just concentrate on relaxing, getting into negative bouyancy with minimal effort, and the rest is simply a matter of really thinking about what I am doing while I am doing it.... I try to do this every other day as it can take that long to heal up diaphragm, intercostal and subclavials...

[roy_nexus_6]

There is no substitute to training by the professionals.
I trained with Aharon and Maria Teresa Solomons at Baja Mexico.
Saved my self alot of time of trying to figure out things on my own, and very possibly saved my life. You can find more details at:

http://www.freedivers.net/

[quasimoto]

lungfish-
I must have given the impression that i dont know much about freedive physiology. Sorry about that. I have attended an advance freedive clinic by performancefreediving, and i as well found it helpful.

Sounds like fun diving in Hawaii and Australia

[subaquaticus]

Originally Posted by SpearoPimp

i ordered the book manual of freediving the other day. so i guess that will tell me what i need to know

And so did I....

[subaquaticus]

Originally Posted by lungfish

with a focus on ribcage flexing

very interesting point.... Stephane MIFSUD, French champion, wrote last September an article in the French diving magazine Subaqua on this subject...

At that time I was forbidden of swimming pool because of an otitis and I focused on "dry" training...

I bought the famous encyclopedia of bodybuilding and found interesting routines dedicated to rib cage expansion...

squat + pullover + flye...

an excellent exercise for rib cage expansion under water is subaquatic breaststroke...

[lungfish]

Hi All,

Quasi, I didn't know if you had any formal training or not. Just trying to help.I really enjoyed the PFD course, I will probably take another one this spring. I am certainly glad I did it and very early in my own freedive experience, I couldn't imagine postponing the chance to learn correct technique.

Hawaii and Australia are nice.... I will be in Port Douglas again in the first weeks of March, Hawaii the first week in April - would love to hook up with anyone that wanted to...got some nice pics of various critters. Had a neat run in with a striped Marlin in KealeKakua Bay in about 60ft of water in October and got some pics. Got close to a pretty large shark in Port Douglas on the same day the spearo was killed by a shark on Opal reef (10Dec04??), I was less than a mile from him on St Crispins.

With respect to training in general, there are so many facets that make a better diver. The ribcage flexing along with developing your ability to pack is probably a very direct way to increase your downtime. And a flexible ribcage comes in handy beyond 4atmospheres or so.....

Along with that it is a good idea to have good cardio/pulmonary health in general. I try to run a few times per week and I do swimming workouts with hypoxic training (breathing alternate sides on alternate strokes while doing intervals...). Of course, I would like to dive deeper but I am not diving competitively.

Probably the most important factor is to spend a lot of time in the water getting so familiar with your body, your gear, the water and the act of diving that it becomes a fundemental part of who you are. If you fell in the water while sleeping, you would swim before you woke up.....I have found that doing repeated dives to get used to being near your peak depth are also very helpful when the breakthrough finally comes.

I recall my class with Martin Stepanek and watching him in the water. He is very comfortable and relaxed.... One of my classmates dropped her weight belt in about 220ft of water.... Martin is so relaxed in the water, doing only the minimum to stay on the surface and keeping his oxygen saturation up... So when I saw her drop her belt all I heard was Martin taking one mighty gulp of air and he rolled over and, at a little beyond 100ft, dove out of sight. He returned over two minutes later with a weight belt in his hands. Apparently he spent a little time touring while he was down there. No puffing, no struggle. Just a relaxed, wide amplitude dolphin kick leading to a very comfortable finish to his ascent.