Why Freediving is the new Mindfulness

Mindfulness has been around for thousands of years, originating from the religion of Buddhism. However, mindfulness is practiced by even non-Buddhists and those of other religions, and has caught on as one of today’s modern trends. Mindfulness has often been considered inherently eastern but this is not true, just as cars are not considered only of western culture. What is mindfulness? The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines mindfulness as such, “the practice of maintaining a nonjudgmental state of heightened or complete awareness of one’s thoughts, emotions, or experiences on a moment-to-moment basis”. Exercises in mindfulness can be as simple as focusing on breath. One exercise I practice regularly is to say “I breathe in” when you breathe in air, then when you exhale say “I breathe out”. And as you do so, you focus solely on your breathing, and allow yourself to become aware of your breathing and what it is like. Any thoughts that you may have, wandering thoughts, you can simply acknowledge and allow to pass by instead of fighting against them. Benefits of mindfulness (Provided by the American Psychological Association) include reduced rumination, reduced stress, better focus and cognition, as well as improved personal insight and ability to handle stress.

With this in mind, you may ask, what do mindfulness and freediving have to do with each other? What is freediving even? Freediving is a sport in which a diver holds his or her breath for as long as possible while underwater. The professional term is called apnea, but for the sake of simplicity, we will refer to it by its common name, freediving. Freediving practices range from going down to depths beyond 200 meters, to holding your breath while floating in a pool. Equipment ranges from fins, weights, and wetsuits, to nothing at all except for a thin rash guard.

Freediving and mindfulness have two key elements in common, and that is awareness and control of thoughts. As a freediver myself, I must be constantly aware and in connection with my body and its signals. I cannot allow thoughts to distract or overcome my mind while underwater. An example of this is sensing my oxygen levels. I know my body, and I know when I am running low on oxygen in my body, I get what are called contractions which feel similar to the abdominal flexing caused by coughing. My lungs also begin to feel different, they may start to burn, like how a runner’s legs begin to burn during the last stretch of his or her marathon. So, in this respect, I am constantly listening to my body. At the same time, I must be aware of my surroundings. From sharks, to tangled lines, there are many hazards in the ocean and waters around me.

Daniel Omura / Odyssey

Image Credit / Eusebio + Christina Saenz De Santamaria