But here’s what surprises most people: Relaxation will improve your freediving far more than fitness ever will. I’ve seen incredibly athletic people struggle to reach ten meters, while someone who had never considered themselves an athlete comfortably dives beyond twenty. The difference isn’t physical ability. It’s what happens inside the mind.

From My Experience: Some of my deepest dives happened on days when I didn’t feel physically exceptional. I simply felt calm, focused and patient.

The Great Paradox of Freediving

Almost every sport asks you to do more. Run faster. Kick harder. Push longer. Lift heavier.

Freediving asks you to do less. Less tension. Less movement. Less effort. Less unnecessary thinking. That’s one of the reasons I fell in love with this sport. Freediving teaches lessons that extend far beyond the ocean. Sometimes the best way forward isn’t pushing harder. Sometimes it’s letting go.

The Ocean Doesn’t Reward Force

One of the biggest mistakes beginners make is believing they need to fight their way underwater. They kick harder than necessary. They tense their shoulders. They pull aggressively on the line. They rush every movement. Ironically, all of those things consume oxygen and creates carbon dioxide therefore, urge to breathe. The harder you fight the water, the sooner your dive ends. The ocean doesn’t reward effort. It rewards efficiency and relaxation.

Coach’s Tip: If you’re trying harder during a dive, ask yourself whether you actually need more effort—or whether you simply need less tension.

Every Muscle Costs Oxygen

This is something I often demonstrate during courses. Hold your fist tightly for thirty seconds. Now completely relax your hand. Feel the difference? Every muscle contraction requires energy and leads to carbon dioxide creation. Carbon dioxide is responsible for your urge to breathe. That means every unnecessary movement makes your dives less comfortable. Now imagine carrying unnecessary tension not just in your hand, but in your:

• jaw 
• shoulders 
• neck 
• abdomen 
• legs 
• face 

One of the easiest ways to improve your breath hold is simply to stop wasting energy through tension.

Relaxation Starts Before You Enter the Water

Many people think relaxation begins during the dive. It actually starts much earlier. It begins while preparing your equipment. Walking to the platform. Listening to the waves. Taking your first slow breaths. The best dives are rarely accidents. They’re prepared. By the time I start my descent, I don’t want to feel too excited. I don’t want to feel tense. I want to feel present.

Calm Is Contagious

One thing I’ve noticed after coaching hundreds of students is that emotions spread incredibly quickly. If an instructor is rushed, students become rushed. If the buddy is anxious, the diver often becomes anxious. If the atmosphere is calm, everyone relaxes. That’s one reason I pay so much attention to creating a peaceful environment during training. Freediving isn’t only about teaching techniques. It’s about creating the conditions where those techniques can emerge naturally.

Relaxation Makes Equalization Easier

Many divers separate equalization from relaxation. In reality, they’re deeply connected. When your jaw is tight… Your throat tense… Your shoulders elevated… Equalization becomes harder.

I’ve watched students spend weeks trying to fix their Frenzel technique when the real problem was simply that they were carrying unnecessary tension. Relaxation doesn’t just save oxygen. It improves mechanics.

How to Equalize Your Ears for Freediving

The Dive Begins in Your Mind

Before every dive, there is a conversation happening inside your head. Sometimes it’s encouraging. Sometimes it’s not. “What if I can’t equalize?” “What if I don’t reach my target?” “What if I blackout?” “What if today isn’t my day?” Every one of those thoughts creates tension. And tension consumes energy. One of the greatest skills a freediver can develop is learning to observe those thoughts without following them. You don’t have to fight your mind. You simply don’t have to believe everything it says.

Why Beginners Often Outperform Athletes

This is something I’ve witnessed many times. A highly trained endurance athlete arrives expecting to dominate their first freediving course. Instead, someone with no sporting background quietly outperforms them. Why?

Because the athlete tries harder. The beginner simply listens. The athlete wants to prove something. The beginner wants to learn. Freediving has a remarkable way of humbling us. And that’s one of its greatest gifts.

Relaxation Is a Skill

Some people naturally appear calm. Others don’t. Fortunately, relaxation can be trained. Just like technique. Just like flexibility. Just like fitness. Every dive is an opportunity to become a little calmer. A little smoother. A little more efficient. Progress doesn’t happen overnight. It happens one relaxed breath at a time.

Slow Is Fast

I often remind students: Champions resist the urge to rush under pressure. When something goes wrong underwater, our instinct is usually to hurry. Kick harder. Move faster. Fix everything immediately. Most of the time, that’s exactly the wrong response. The best freedivers appear almost slow. Not because they’re lazy. Because they’re efficient. Nothing is rushed. Nothing is wasted. Everything has a purpose.

How to Improve Your Breath Hold

My Biggest Performances Came From Relaxation

People often ask me what changed as I started diving beyond 100 meters. They expect me to talk about bigger lungs. Stronger legs. More training. Of course all of those helped. But if I had to identify the biggest change, it would be this:

I became calmer. I stopped trying to force great dives. I trusted my preparation. I accepted that some days would be exceptional. Others wouldn’t. Ironically, the less desperate I became for performance, the more consistently it arrived. That lesson didn’t only change my freediving. It changed many other aspects of my life as well.

Fitness Still Matters

After everything I’ve said, don’t misunderstand me. Fitness absolutely matters. I train regularly. I run. I lift weights. I work on mobility. I stretch. I take recovery seriously. Being fitter makes your body more efficient. It improves recovery. It reduces fatigue. It supports performance. But fitness is only valuable if you know how to use it. A Ferrari stuck in first gear is still slow.

Breathing Is Not About Taking More Air

This surprises almost everyone. Beginners often think they need to breathe more before a dive. In reality, good preparation usually means breathing less. Not less oxygen. Less unnecessary ventilation. The goal isn’t to feel full. It’s to feel calm. There is a huge difference.

What Relaxation Really Feels Like

People often ask me what relaxation should feel like. It’s difficult to describe. So instead of focusing on being relaxed,  put some indicators that you can observe. Relaxed means the head in a neutral position, the shoulders down, the belly soft etc… all things you can actually check. 

How You Can Start Improving Today

You don’t need to wait until your next dive. Start paying attention during everyday life. How often are your shoulders raised? How often are you clenching your jaw? How quickly do you walk? How quickly do you eat? How quickly do you react? Relaxation isn’t something you switch on underwater. It’s something you practice every day. The calmer you become on land, the easier it becomes to remain calm underwater.

How Often Should You Train Freediving

The Lesson Freediving Keeps Teaching Me

After more than a decade in this sport, I still think freediving has one lesson that stands above all the others. We achieve our best performances not when we’re trying our hardest… …but when we’re performing with the least amount of unnecessary effort. That’s true at ten meters. It’s true at one hundred meters.

And I’ve found it’s surprisingly true in life as well. 

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to be very fit to start freediving?

No. A reasonable level of general health is enough to begin. Good instruction, proper technique, and relaxation are far more important during your first course.

Does relaxation really improve breath-hold?

Absolutely. Relaxation reduces oxygen consumption, lowers heart rate, improves equalization, and allows you to move more efficiently underwater.

Can relaxation be trained?

Yes. Like any other skill, it improves with consistent practice. Breathing exercises, mindfulness, visualization, and simply becoming more aware of unnecessary tension can all make a significant difference.

Why do some athletic people struggle with freediving?

Because many sports reward effort, while freediving rewards efficiency. Learning to relax is often more challenging for highly competitive athletes than developing physical fitness.

Is freediving a mental sport?

Very much so. Physical preparation is important, but your mindset, emotional control, focus, and ability to remain calm often determine the quality of your dives.

Final Thoughts

If there is one message I’d like every new freediver to remember, it’s this: Your greatest performance gains probably won’t come from becoming stronger. They’ll come from becoming calmer. Learn to trust your preparation. Move with intention instead of urgency. Accept rather than fight. Relax rather than force. The beautiful thing about freediving is that these lessons don’t stay underwater. They follow you into everyday life.

And perhaps that’s why so many of us continue diving long after we’ve stopped chasing numbers. Because at its best, freediving isn’t simply about holding your breath. It’s about learning how to let go.

Further Reading: 

The Mental Side of Freediving
Why Relaxation Is the Real Secret to Better Freediving
Relaxation Is the Greatest Performance Enhancer in Freediving