WAVE 1 COURSE
Molchanovs Wave 1 course is an important and gentle introduction to the silent world of free diving.
Requirements: Everyone is welcome to participate, you just need to be healthy and be able to swim 200m without assistance. It is a perfect opportunity to build a connection with the water and start to enjoy being in it.
Before you go into the water you will get a lot of interesting, useful and necessary information to understand what happens to your body during free diving.
During the course, you will learn about physics acting on your body, pressure, Boyle's Law, Archimedes' principle and its applications in water. You will also learn how to check if you are properly weighted both in the pool and in open water, how the equalization of your ears works, and what technique to use.
With tips, tricks, and exercises, you will learn everything there is to know about equalization for beginners. Basic physiology is one of the most important topics to fully understand in order to dive safely and reach your full potential. It will be a constant learning of how the body adapts to this challenging environment.
Safety is a must, and a large part of the course focuses on this topic. You will learn how to perform rescue procedures and prevent possible accidents. With the right knowledge and training, free diving is a very safe activity. To make it even safer and more comfortable, you will learn about specific free diving equipment, how to use it properly, and how to train and progress.
During this course, we are not looking for the deepest depths, i.e. we are not looking for numbers. Our main focus is on technique, comfort, and fun. The training is always tailored to the needs, interests, and abilities of each student. By the end of the course, you should be able to safely and comfortably dive between 12 and 20 meters - which is the depth limit for this course - experimenting with both wearing fins and pulling the guideline to descend.
All the skills and knowledge you will gain during this course will give you a new way of interacting with the ocean, and you will be able to safely dive and explore the underwater world with friends!
After finishing the Wave 1 course and with additional training, you can continue your studies and training in the Wave 2 course.
DURATION
3 days
WHAT IS INCLUDED
Theoretical class
2 practical sessions in the pool
2 practical sessions in open water
Study material
International Certification
PREREQUISITES
Minimum age: 16 (with parental consent)
Swim 200m unassisted in a pool or similar environment
CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS
1min30s static apnea
30m dynamic apnea
Free immersion diving and constant weight 12-20m
Provide safety to buddy 6-10m
Rescue 6-10m
MOLCHANOVS EDUCATION
Molchanovs Education System is the most modern and comprehensive free diving system to learn. Molchanovs education can take you from the basic level to becoming an elite free diving competitor. There are four levels of open water courses, each known as Wave. All levels are also available as Lap courses. Lap courses cover the same theory and pool requirements as the corresponding Wave course, but do not include open water sessions. Therefore, a Lap certification only certifies you for pool free diving. You can easily convert a Lap certification to the corresponding Wave certification at a later date by adding the open water sessions.
Your learning for each Wave/Lap course starts online on your Freediver Dashboard, which features content from some of the best free divers in the world, including world champion Alexey Molchanov. Molchanovs' qualified instructors will lead you through this learning and help you develop understanding and practical skills. After completing a Wave/Lap course, you can continue your training and monitor your progress by joining the Molchanovs Movement. This is a global free diving community founded on the philosophy and strategies of the legendary Natalia Molchanova and is a place to share knowledge, skills and experiences with other free divers. Training programs of all levels are published weekly, to help you progress in your learning and develop your free diving skills.
WHAT IS FREEDIVING?
Simply put, free diving is the practice of diving while holding your breath, that is, diving without any equipment that provides you with air to breathe underwater. The free diving method has been practised by different cultures around the world for thousands of years since we first started exploring underwater for food. Today, free diving is a modern recreational and competitive sport, with a much deeper understanding of its nature than before.
Modern free diving began to be further developed and understood in the 1950s when two famous freedivers, Jacques Mayol and Enzo Maiorca, proved to the entire scientific community how the human body could adapt to such a different environment. In those years, because they did not have a deep understanding of how physical and physiological changes would affect our bodies, doctors and scientists believed that diving to such great depths was impossible. These divers were taking their bodies, minds, and limits to another level of human study. By now, educational systems have improved safety and clarified the effects of diving on the human body. Besides being a still little-known sport, free diving is growing rapidly as a chance for people to discover more about their potential, understand the limits of the body, and get closer to nature in the most natural way.
BENEFITS OF FREEDIVING
- PHYSICAL HEALTH
Free diving is a great way to get in shape. Cardio-vascular exercises, flexibility, strength training, and good attention to nutrition are all part of the training programs for those who want to train seriously to perform dives successfully and safely. By being aware of your body, you can learn a lot about your physical health. Different foods will make you feel different during dives, and your body's energy levels can affect your performance and reduce/improve breath holding.
- MENTAL WELLNESS
Similar to Yoga in many ways, free diving itself is a form of meditation. Since the mental state is as important as the physical condition, free diving requires extreme focus on one thing at a time. Relaxation is a must, conserving oxygen, prolonging breath-hold, and allowing the body to adapt to different conditions. Free diving practices build awareness of your own body and mind and the tools to adapt.
- SELF CONFIDENCE
According to a comparative study on the psychological characteristics of free-diving athletes, people engaged in the sport have higher self-confidence strategies. The same people believed more in their internal locus of control, meaning they believed they had more mental control over the events and situations in their own lives. Free diving as a sport has been practised by many water sports athletes as a way to increase their confidence and potential, to cope more safely in extreme situations.
