Alchemy Podcast - Sex, Self Love & Freediving

Explicit content warning

07/08/22 • 21 min

Welcome to yet another episode of the Alchemy Podcast. My name is Luca Malaguti and I will be your host for today. We’re very lucky to have a special guest today, a crazy man, a genius, and my good friend Gus Kreivenas.

Gus is a deep freediver, accomplishing over 100 meters on one breath at the Vertical Blue competition in 2018, a well-respected coach in our community and runs his school Touch Down Space in Dahab, Egypt.

He has an immense amount of knowledge when it comes to training and performance, however, he is also very much fascinated by the emotional, mental, and psychological aspects of performance athletics, specifically freediving.

Today, we will discuss a topic most don’t talk about, “Sex, Self Love & Freediving”. This touches on subjects that many might consider " sensitive " based on cultural background, religion, and nationality. Regardless, they are very important in the world of an athlete’s mind and although our intention is not to offend, it kind of is. So, be advised dear listener, there might be some questionable language and topics in this interview, but please know it is a REAL conversation, it comes from the heart and soul and is meant to break down the common barriers we have placed upon ourselves.

Previous Episode

Alchemy Podcast - Fear Of Loss

In this episode, we sit down and chat with French freediver and record-holder Thibault Guignes. Thibault is a highly experienced competitive diver, instructor trainer, and business owner. Having dove up to -120 meters on one breath, and known for his impressive hangs at depth, he is one of the most experienced freedivers in the world. I have personally seen him do hangs up to 45 seconds at -90 meters to prepare both mind and body for going even deeper. He is known for doing even more impressive feats, all the while being one of the most safety-focused divers I’ve met. As an instructor trainer, he ran the famous Freedive HQ in Cebu, Philippines, and is now opening his new school, Camotes Freediving, just a short ferry ride from Cebu City.

I had the pleasure of being stuck on Siquijor Island, Philippines with Thibault for four months during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. We ran a training camp there at Siqujior Freedivers, and subsequently got stuck on the island. With no lockdown or quarantine, we dove every day in what will always be one of the most memorable experiences in my freediving career.

In this episode, I sit down and talk to Thibault about some tough things. With his experience and years in the game, he’s seen quite a few things: major accidents he suffered himself and seen friends suffer and overcome great difficulties. These are things we don’t always see on social media’s glass façade, but there are dark truths behind any performance-based sport at the elite level. Shit happens. How we deal with it, overcome it, and be strengthened by it are the lessons worth knowing and sharing. It’s my pleasure to sit down with my friend and coach Thibault, grab a beer, and chat about some real issues that the freediving community can benefit from listening to.

Next Episode

Alchemy Podcast - Relationships, Selfishness & Being A Mother

In this episode of Alchemy Podcast, we chat with Enchante Gallardo about balancing the freediving life of a professional athlete, being a mother, and relationships. We’ll talk about how sometimes in certain aspects of our lives we have to be “selfish” - selfish with our training, selfish with the core group of people in our lives amongst a very friendly community of freedivers, and selfish with our emotions and energy.

Freediving is an immensely emotional and psychological endeavor, so how does this affect other aspects of your life? How can you find the energy to balance multiple things such as family, friends, work, training, and competitions? One of the pillars of ancient Greek Stoic philosophy was to acknowledge that, “you have to direct your actions accordingly: your energy in this world is finite”. This includes our mental and emotional energy, and freediving is a sport that drains from that reservoir.
So, today we will hear about Enchante’s experience being a national and (now) continental record holder, one of the deepest women in the world, a wonderful mother, friend, community member, and adventurous traveler. How does she do it all? How does she balance this incredible life?