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 Hello
divers! Today I want to share with you a simple but very
important part of my dive ritual: my pre-dive stretch routine.
I see lots of divers dedicating a lot of time to maximizing
their breathing and apnea capacity before diving, they do
a lot of dry statics, yoga, concentration, meditation, etc,
etc, but I don't see them stretching or warming up their
muscles. Humm, do they forget that freediving is a sport
too, and that it is the legs and arms that take us down and
back up in the end? Having said that, I think it's very important
to condition ourselves for apnea, and I myself take about
20-30 minutes for my breathing warm up before every dive.
I also do a lot of yoga and feel that it is extremely important
to keep a harmonious balance between body and mind, and this
has helped a lot during my martial arts career, so nothing
against yoga either. To clarify though, I'm talking about
the active kind of yoga, what is called "asanas", or postures
that stimulate blood irrigation to organs and muscles, not
the passive, meditation style yoga. But my point was that,
besides getting mind and lungs ready, the muscles need even
more attention. Why? Well, let's see.
First of all, it is through the use of our muscle power
that we're going to move those heavy fins or monofins down
there, and believe me, the deeper you go the heavier they
get. It doesn't matter if they're made out of carbon or any
other light material, at depth, they will feel heavy ? So
the thing is, what kind of warm up is best for the muscles?
I don't suggest doing any serious physical activity because
it is very important to keep the muscles as fresh as possible
at the same time. So I don't recommend running, jumping,
sprinting or even lifting weights as I know some divers do.
All we need is to get some blood to the muscles, and for
that, a good stretch will do the job while keeping you fresh.
Another benefit of it is that as the muscle stretches, it
will then contract more when you use it, which means you
will have more power available to you when you need it. Remember,
the more you can elongate (stretch) the muscles, the more
they can recoil, which translates into more efficient strokes
underwater. I have tested this, and for example, when I do
unassisted dives without pre-dive stretch (lazy David) I
usually need 1 or even 2 strokes more for every 20 meters
that when I stretch. Do I need a better reason that that?
Well, actually there is one.
Remember something, the muscles are attached to each other
and to the bones by tendons and ligaments. It is EXTREMELY
important that they are warmed up too, since this will make
a big difference in how easy and how fast the muscles can
stretch and recoil, which translates into power production.
The best, and basically only, way to warm up tendons and
ligaments is by stretching them well. Another thing is that,
specially in long deep dives, there comes a point when your
muscles are not burning oxygen anymore, they are just killing
all the sugar and protein reserves inside themselves, and
this is what will give you that terrible feeling of heaviness,
cramps, pain and even failure. At this point, it is even
more important that the tendons (which hold the muscles together)
are very flexible, since they will need to exert more strength
to move these muscles loaded with lactic acid. Even when
the muscles stop working, you will still get a few more kicks
or strokes out of just the reflexive action of tendons and
ligaments, and this can be the difference between making
the dive (even if at the edge) or not making it at all. So,
to make the long story short, take the time to stretch well
before every dive and if you never did before, you will notice
big differences soon. Hey, it is not an oxygen pill, but
those I only keep for myself :)
Here is a simple routine that I follow most of the time,
to which I add some other things depending on whether I am
tired, loaded with training or the dive ahead of me is a
"big one". As a general rule, the more tired or stressed
I am, the more time I dedicate to my pre-dive stretch. Also,
I would like to point out that for this to work, you need
to hold the stretch for a good period of time, ideally at
least 1 minute for each. The longer you can hold it the better
it is, but in general, 2 minutes is a good maximum time,
and you should never do it for less that 30 seconds. So,
the ideal range is between 1 and 2 minutes, but anything
over 30 seconds will do the job. Also, please, concentrate
on your form and don't cheat, because if you don't do the
stretches right, you might even get injured. The red lines
on the photos show you the muscles and areas being stretched,
and I have provided some simple instructions for those that
are a bit difficult to guess how they start.
So, make it a point to stretch well before every dive, and
you'll be glad you did!
Regards,
David Lee
www.ApneaBlue.com
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