Libsyn Directory

007: A Relaxation Breathing Technique for Freediving or for Life in General

Release Date: 01/27/2021

018: The Safety Mindset in Freediving - Going Beyond Safe Into the Alive

The Freediving Podcast

In this episode, we dive deep into the concept of safety in freediving, exploring how it’s not just about avoiding danger, but about fostering awareness, planning, and mindful presence. I share insights from my training session, where I attempt a maximum distance dive in dynamic apnea. Freediving, as I’ve come to understand, requires a unique blend of technical precision, mental focus, and a safety mindset developed over time. The episode delves into the three essential phases of safety in freediving: mental preparation, handling challenges during the dive, and, if needed, rescue by a...

017: Freediving, the Art of Becoming & Purposeful Living

The Freediving Podcast

In this episode, we explore the deep connection between freediving and personal growth, reflecting on what it means to follow an instinctual passion without needing a rational reason. Renee Blundon shares personal insights from returning to freediving after a break and the profound sense of peace it brings. By focusing on the art of doing one thing at a time - whether in the water or in life - the episode reveals how practicing mindfulness can enhance your relationships and overall well-being. Renee discusses the mental toughness and physical awareness required in freediving, especially during...

016: Why do I Freedive? In a Nutshell

The Freediving Podcast

Freediving allows me that escape to another world, and has me challenge and question what it is that I think I know. It humbles and broadens my perspective, with every dive a new experience filled with surprises, opening my mind to a new level of awareness. You can join the open source information network for this podcast at: To subscribe to my Friday 5 newsletter visit: My contact information: [email protected] SOCIAL MEDIA Instagram: Website: Twitter: Facebook Page: Facebook Group:

015: How to Be Happy

The Freediving Podcast

We are really lucky in that we can choose to build relationships, friendships and the community around us, as we persue our goals and passions in life, which I think is a key step in choosing to be happy :) You can join the open source information network for this podcast at: To subscribe to my Friday 5 newsletter visit: My contact information: [email protected] SOCIAL MEDIA Instagram: Website: Twitter: Facebook Page: Facebook Group:

014: Apnea Squats Challenge - A Dry Training for Freediving

The Freediving Podcast

This episode is about the Apnea Squats Challenge, an AWESOME dry training for freediving to prepare the legs for CWT freediving and dynamic apnea in the pool. To do this training, you start with a 1+ min. static apnea breath-hold sitting on a chair and then do as many squats as you can. REPEAT TWICE. 5X per week. The breathe-up is tidal breathing + 2 purge breaths, and then one full breath. For more info about this training, check-out the show notes at: https://www.reneeblundon.com/apnea-squats-challenge

013: Training Journal: Swimming Base Training Sesh

The Freediving Podcast

Today is day 1 of my 2022 freediving season. It's been almost 2 weeks since the Freediving World Cup competition, which marked the end of my 2021 season, and now I'm excited to apply all the new insights I've learned throughout this year. Today I begin my base training with a swimming session, designed by my coach Florian Dagoury. This training is aimed to stretch the ribcage, train the muscles to use O2 slower with less lactic, providing a mild CO2 workout. I like it because it also gets you super fit!

012: Low Oxalate Eating for Freediving Performance

The Freediving Podcast

A discussion with Sally Norton and Renee Blundon about oxalates and how they impact freediving, athletic performance and overall health.

011: Freediving Visualization - Visualize Your Dive!

The Freediving Podcast

Today's episode is a guided freedive visualization, that you can listen to anytime before your freedive. Renee will guide you in creating an inspiring & vivid mental picture of a deep freedive from start to finish. Many freediving athletes use visualization techniques as part of their training for freediving. It helps to cultivate a heightened state of mental awareness, which can boost your self confidence and your overall well-being, therefore enhancing your freediving performance.

010: Rethink Your Breathing - Part 2 Mouth Breathing vs Nose Breathing

The Freediving Podcast

Breathing through the nose is the secret to better health, wellbeing and performance. Yet, most of us breathe through our mouths so our health and performance suffers.

009: Rethink Your Breathing - Part 1 Mouth Breathing vs Nose Breathing

The Freediving Podcast

"The Nose Is For Breathing, The Mouth is for Eating" How do you breathe? It might be something you've never given much thought about. But on this episode, freediver, Renee Blundon, will try to convince you that you should.

More Episodes

Relaxation breathing is a powerful tool for freediving and for life in general in order to decrease your heart rate and help calm the body and mind.

In this podcast episode, I'll go over a relaxation breathing technique, also known as the 'Branko Petrovic Technique', which is used in freediving to help you relax deeply before your freedives and breath-holds. It slows down your breathing and intake of oxygen, therefore relaxing your nervous system and bringing your body back to its natural restful state.

Because your heart-rate is lowered quite quickly and less oxygen is consumed, this means you'll be able to hold your breath much longer. And even if you are not planning to do any freediving or breath-holding, the breathing technique can help anyone who wants to relax more and help to quite the mind.

Some Tips!

While practicing this technique it's important to breathe as relaxed as possible without tensing any part of your body and without straining your intercostal muscles or diaphragm in order to keep the heart rate low. This will help your mind and your muscles to actively prepare you for a period of non-breathing, and be chill about it.

The pause after each inhale and exhale helps to decrease your breathing rate even more, and this relaxation effect is enhanced even more when you do this breathing exercise in the water while breathing through a snorkel face-down on the surface. If there are waves, you can allow the waves to relax you even more (!) by keeping the body loose and de-contracting while allowing the water to move you in whichever which way, imagining you're like a rag-doll or just a piece of seaweed just floating along on the surface of the water.

Lowers Stress and Anxiety

This relaxation breathing technique helps lower stress and anxiety by quickly slowing down the heart rate and helping the body settle in the present moment. A study in 2013 proved that freedivers had a significantly lower level of stress, anxiety and negative affectivity compared to non-freedivers. And I believe this is mostly due to relaxation breathing / training and lifestyle elements.

Feel Better

The relaxation breathing can also help you feel better overall. Not only can it help lower your stress, but it can also boost your mood, because during the breath-work, feel-good neurotransmitters like dopamine and noradrenaline, are enhanced during the breathing exercise and also afterwards.

The relaxation breathing technique also helps increase your energy and focus your mind. So you'll be able to focus better on your goals and have more energy to do the things you like.

Also because you'll be using oxygen much more efficiently after doing this breathing, this also leads to better respiration, lower heart rate, increased blood flow to the vital organs and better overall health.

So even though you may have never thought about changing your relaxation breathing for freediving or to practice relaxation breathing in general, it's time to give it a thought. Because the many benefits of this relaxation breathing exercise are super beneficial for your relaxation for freediving as well as for your physical and mental health in your everyday life.

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