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PFI Intermediate Freediver Course

Learn to freedive down to a maximum depth of 40m/132 feet!

This program teaches freediving techniques for comfortable enjoyment in the aquatic world to depths of 40m/132ft. You will also practice Static Apnea to help develop your breath-holding abilities and in-water comfort.

Your PFI Intermediate Freediver course will cover topics such as:

  • Intermediate safety and buddy procedures
  • Proper ventilation for gas saturation and volume
  • Equipment for freediving
  • Psychological aspects of freediving
  • Detailed physics and physiology of freediving
  • Confined-water static apnea development
  • Open water constant ballast development
  • Techniques for intermediate freediving

Is this course for you?

  • You have basic experience in scuba, freediving, and/or spearfishing
  • You’re interested in freediving in the 25-40m/80-132 feet range
  • You’d like to learn to hold your breath between 3-5 minutes
  • You’re not sure of extended freediving physiology or the physics that affect you during your freedives and want to know the details

Format/Duration

This course is taught by highly trained PFI Instructors at locations all over the world. The PFI Intermediate Freediver course includes, at a minimum:

  • Classroom Sessions
  • Confined Water sessions
  • Open Water sessions
  • The schedule and layout/order of these sessions vary slightly by location. The program is typically run over 4 days. Click the link on any particular course to find the exact schedule for that program.

What can you expect to learn?

Some of the skills a student will be able to perform at the end of the PFI Intermediate Freediver course are:

  • Adequate safe buddy skills, showing how to perform a rescue to PFI standards
  • Prepare gear without the instructor’s help
  • Perform a 3:00 static in the pool with opportunity to increase to maximum capacity
  • Dive with proper technique to 25 meters constant weight and free immersion using the PFI method of entrance and exit with proper recovery breathing

Prerequisites

  • Freediver course or equivalent experience with freediving, spearfishing, or scuba diving (general comfort in the water)
  • You have basic freediving experience and can achieve depths anywhere from 6–30m/20–99 feet with relative comfort
  • You have a breath-hold time of around one minute or longer
  • Good health and fitness—check the PFI Medical Form
  • 12 years of age with guardian permission
  • Constant Ballast of 6 meters/20 feet

Course Components

Classroom

  • Attend all classroom teaching sessions
  • Stretching and equalizing workshops
  • CO2 and O2 training workshops
  • Complete all quizzes in manual
  • Complete pre learning quiz before class
  • Pass final with 80 percent or more

Watermanship and Stamina

  • Swim test
  • Survival float
  • Snorkel skills

Confined Water

  • Minimum of four consecutive static breath-holds without any hypoxic symptoms minimum 3:00
  • Recovery breathing and coaching
  • Optional: Minimum of three dynamic performances
  • Optional: Complete a minimum 50m dynamic apnea
  • Negative pressure dives

Open Water

  • Recovery breathing and coaching for buddy
  • Eight constant ballast dives reaching minimum 25m/82ft using proper entrance and exit
  • Emergency rescue and problem management, surface and underwater
  • Including LMC, blackout at surface and underwater
  • Full mask flood and ascent from 10m/33 feet
  • Eight free immersion dives to 25m/82 feet
  • Weight belt removal and ascent from 10m/33 feet

Equipment Used:

  • Mask, snorkel, fins
  • Appropriate exposure protection
  • Weight system
  • Timing device or freedive computer

How to take this course!

  • Available as an Online Course: Start eLearning today!
  • To find a local Dive Center: Click here!
  • Find your local PFI Instructor: Click here!
  • Course Cost: $123.55 USD for eLearning only.  Pool and open water training not included.  Contact your local dive center for full course cost.

Review the course Standards & Procedures.

eLearning courses are available in many languages.
Check course translation availability Here.

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