How old were you when you start with freediving

[Mlaen]

I'am now 16 and training for a few weeks. I'm training alone and all I know I found it on the internet...

 

[DSV]

All I can say is if you want to become serious about freediving and you want to see your 17th B-day don't train alone.

I'm one of the worst to tell people to not train alone because most of my pool workouts are alone, BUT I never push my limits by doing statics or long dynamics alone. When I do push it, it's usually with my trusty spotter Bill.

I do though encourage you to continue with freediving we need more young guys and girls in the sport.


DSV

 

[Mlaen]

whem i'm training i open sea i don't train alone but everything else i do (ie pushing static on dry...)

 

[jvoets]

I discovered freediving much too late
In the beginning of 2000, famliy in NZ told me one of their friends would dive down to 30 meters on a single breath.
Couldn't believe it back then, now I certainly do.

Maybe it's better to start freediving on an older age, when the competitive drive is a bit gone.

 

[Pekka]

.........with 9 month static.. still my Pb..

 

[caymandiver]

I started Scuba when I was 8 and freedive around 10. But the first time I actually mesured how deep I went was around 50ft when I was 16. (It was stupid, I did it after two scuba dives in that day.. I didn't know..):waterwork

I always liked the feeling of running out of air and knowing I will be breathing in less than 15 long seconds.:t

Christian

 

[Mlaen]

Originally posted by caymandiver
I always liked the feeling of running out of air and knowing I will be breathing in less than 15 long seconds.:t

well I like it to get back to surface withouth that feeling

 

[zipy]

Hi

I started freediving about 3 years ago (19 years old) -- that is when i first noticed the sport :duh

Jure

 

[scrounger]

first started diving when i was 11, 9 years ago. still dive the same spots and no worse for the wear
lance

 

[SpearSlinger1]

I asked my mom a similar question awhile back, about how young I was when I started swimming underwater. She tells me I was learning to swim underwater at the same time I was learning to walk and that I was still in diapers. I was 1 at the time.

 

[sanso]

Hard to say.

My dad took me snorkelling when I was a kid (I could dive down to maybe 3 m at that time.) It obviously never occured to me as a sport at the time, which is 25 Years ago now, btw.

Ever since, though, the snorkelling was the highlight of every vacation to a larger body of water and was the only thing I would do in the water. But still no training or thinking of equipment.

Then around 1996, I noticed that snorkelling (the diving part of it) was something I could do better than anyone I knew and I started thinking of getting better and such. ( At the time I could hold my breath for 1:50 ) But I still only dove (is this the correct tense?) on vacation, where I would go below 10m in 2001.
In 2002 I got a CMAS brevet and went to the maldives - at last having a job to pay for all that ;-) . I found that SCUBA is an excellent pasttime, but I couldn't lose the feeling that I was cheating. So now I am 32 and finally want get real with this freediving thing.

So when did I start freediving? I'd say this year; but I spent the last 25 Years on verge of starting ;-)

I never thought about this.
Thank You for asking, Mlaen.

 

[BlueKarma]

i took swimming lessons when i was mabye 1.5-2 yrs old. been around water sience then. Grandparents pools and the beach kept me comfy with the water. I first really took a interest in FreeDiving over the past summer when i read a article in Men's Journel while waiting 4 a haircut. Told about a guy that could hold his breath about 7-8 mins. incredible. I told my dad about it and together we started spearfishing/monofinning/scuba/pool and dry land apena. we ordered the Manuel of FreeDiving and i use the internet for all kind of dive related research.

 

[Stavros]

I started spearfishing when I was 4 with my father. I have been spearfishing ever since (with a 5 year break when I was in the UK) I am now 30. I have been spearfishing to a good depth (>30m) for the past 5 years and I started competitive freediving last year....
Funny thing is that in all these years in the water the first time I equalized was when I was 25yrs old...I did it by accident during spearfishing. I now equalise hands free.

Cheers Stavros

 

[sanso]

Equalizing hands-free.

[...] I now equalise hands free.

How does this work? Could You point me to some source of information on this?

cheers, sanso

 

[shoutatthesky]

I used to often kayak out to an island close to home to go fishing. A great place to hang out, think, watch the seals and the occasional dolphin or whale swim past. I loved to watch the water below the kayak and catch the odd glimpse of a school of fish or a stingray.
It hadn't occurrred to me to get in the water except from the beach to cool off. Then one day I went out with a guy who had a mask and snorkel and he encouraged me in from the rocks (about 5 metres going down slowly to who knows how deep) I was blown away and had to ask myself what the hell was I wasting my time for trying to kill all these creatures rather than enjoying their beauty.
After that I did some research and came across the film "The Big Blue" - after that I was hooked. I got a cheap mask and snorkel and was given some fins. I went to that bay as often as I could for the rest of the summer and started the dangerous practice of unsupervised statics in the bath. I made friends with the fish and stopped killing or eating them. Breathing exercises, stopped smoking.
I found I could easily do 2 min + statics then 2:30 and now one year on I am over three mins. I am also much more aware of the dangers so have sought like minded ppl to train with. The problem I am finding is that most ppl here want to go kill fish. Hey thats fine with me but I want to focus on the competition aspect.

 

[BlueKarma]

agreed.
i love to simplly go watch the fish and be a part of the underwater world, spearfishign was fun and is still fun but i am really hooked on underwater photography now. Equalizing hands free has several methods, the one i use is where i place my mask tightly over my nose before i dive. The skirt of my mask provides the hand that you would usually use. *note* not all masks allow for this.

 

[Sergiu]

i started freediving for "real" just recently, already on the wrong side of my 30s! But as long as i remember i snorkelled around, in the shallows or down to 3-5m

 

[sanso]

This seems to be common practice
Although I'm not so sure about the 'wrong' side of the 30s I certainly feel much wiser that any of those nitwit-late-twens! :t

enter the flamewar

Heheh,

sanso