Taichung Face Mirror ReviewFreediving Tips for Easy Dives, Even if You're Not a Strong Swimmer

BY Twosevenths· 2022.05· UPDATED 2026.06

Learning freediving in Taichung has become much easier since the city opened a sports center with a deep pool, making it a popular leisure activity. This time, Twosevenths introduces TanningFace, a freediving school with courses in Taipei, Taichung, and Kenting. Curious about Taichung Mianjinglian's reviews? Join our mystery shopper as they experience the AIDA2 course to see if TanningFace's pricing, course content, and group practice system are right for you.

Taichung Face Mirror Review｜Freediving Tips for Easy Dives, Even if You're Not a Strong Swimmer

Taichung Mianjinglian Experience Review

TanningFace Freediving has teaching locations in Taipei, Taichung, and Kenting. The head coach in Taichung is Aaron, a post-90s instructor who previously worked in an accounting firm. His natural affinity for water and connections with other TanningFace Freediving coaches led him to discover and fall in love with freediving. The classroom is about a 5-10 minute scooter ride from Divecube. It's also accessible from the train station or bus terminal via the Taiwan Boulevard BRT line or the HSR shuttle bus to Tunghai University. However, the Taichung Mianjinglian location does not offer accommodation, so out-of-town students are advised to book hotels in advance.

✦Classroom Course

This time, Lucy Hou experienced the Taichung Mianjinglian AIDA 2 freediving course, completing all content and assessments over three consecutive days, plus two pre-course video sessions. The first day of the freediving course was a solid academic class. Before class, the instructor played "The Sea is Home," a film about Taiwan's first hearing-impaired freediving instructor, Ding-dang. Beyond gaining a deeper understanding of Taichung Mianjinglian Freediving's core philosophy, Lucy was most struck by Ding-dang's personal journey and her words: "If you have a dream, chase it, and it will come true sooner."

The course began with respiratory physiology, as Coach Aaron explained how oxygen exchanges gases in our alveoli, then introduced the circulatory system — essentially a condensed version of junior high biology. After understanding the principles of respiration, we started practicing breath-holding. Coach Aaron particularly emphasized the concept of two-stage breath-holding: the comfortable phase before the diaphragm starts to twitch, and the endurance phase after it begins. This training approach effectively improved our ability in the first phase, with the second phase trained as needed, making it ideal for most beginners.

Next, the instructor guides us through diaphragmatic breathing, applying the two-stage breath-hold concept to practice. The goal is to relax and extend the first stage of the breath-hold, then endure the involuntary diaphragm contractions in the second stage. In freediving, you descend on a single breath, making that breath incredibly important. As long as your heart is beating, your lungs are constantly exchanging gases. The instructor specifically warns against exhaling underwater and notes that diaphragm contractions during descent signal it's time to return to the surface.

After the breath-holding practice, it's time for equalization! Coach Aaron used a whiteboard to explain the air cavities in our bodies and how pressure changes underwater, helping students understand why equalization is necessary. For freedivers, the Frenzel equalization technique is generally gentler, less strenuous, and allows for deeper dives. The Taichung Mianjinglian freediving instructor first had students practice lifting their throats and closing their glottis, then pinching their noses and making a "g" sound.

The instructor also provided an EQ Tool, a small teaching aid for practicing equalization. This visual tool allowed us to understand the data behind our equalization attempts and recognize the differences in our technique each time. The graphical representation also helped the instructor more effectively pinpoint and address each student's specific challenges.

After the equalization practice, Coach Aaron began explaining the steps for entering the water and the safety mechanisms. This Taichung freediving course covered many details with exceptional clarity, prompting Lucy Hou to nod in agreement repeatedly, especially regarding the crucial buddy system. The Taichung Mianjinglian coach also shared various stories of diving blackouts they had encountered, using these experiences to deeply impress upon the students the dangers of freediving alone.

As the Taichung Mianjinglian coach explained, the safest places in freediving are often where people neglect the buddy system, leading to danger. Conversely, deep-water competitions, despite their intimidating depths, are safer because of strict adherence to the buddy system. Your first line of defense in diving is yourself; your second is your buddy! After a full day of classroom instruction, a written test assesses students' understanding, and the coach reviews any misconceptions based on the results.

✦Pool Practice Course

The second and third days of pool training took place at the Taichung North District Sports Center and Taichung Divecube, where we completed the AIDA 2 assessment items, including static apnea, dynamic apnea (40 meters), deep rescue, and constant weight freediving (12 meters). Upon entering the pool, the instructor first demonstrated how to properly kick with the power of the hips and thighs, then taught us how to tread water, learning to keep our heads above the surface without holding onto a buoy or the edge of the pool.

Lucy Hou was nervous when she first got into the pool, but the Taichung Mianjinglian freediving instructor patiently guided the students, observing everyone's reactions and condition. Typically, during the 2-minute static breath-hold assessment, students might not perform as well as on land due to nervousness, so the instructor gives several chances. There's no need to pressure yourself to pass on the first try! Before each exercise, instructor Aaron demonstrates, then has students practice one by one. He also brings a GoPro to film everyone underwater, using the videos to help students consciously correct their movements.

On the third day, we headed to Divecube for the final Taichung Mianjinglian freediving course! The initial rope descent tested our equalization skills. Lucy Hou, for example, hadn't quite mastered equalization yet, only reaching an average depth of 7 meters during the inverted rope descent. But Coach Aaron encouraged everyone, reminding us that a certification is just a system's proof; what truly matters is improving our comfort and performance with each dive. After the rope practice, the Taichung Mianjinglian coach demonstrated a full duck dive. A proper duck dive improves descent efficiency, which in turn extends breath-hold time. This also includes the nuances of arm strokes and fin kicks. After each return to the surface, the coach provided feedback on areas for improvement.

Overall, Taichung Mianjinglian's teaching style is academically focused, with two online video courses before the official lessons to quickly get you up to speed. They also offer twelve free group practice and retest sessions each month at Taichung Mianjinglian locations in Taipei, Taichung, and Hengchun. This allows you to practice and retest across different regions, ensuring you can continue to refine your freediving skills even in the city, so you never have to worry about skills getting rusty from lack of use.

Taichung Mianjinglian not only promotes freediving but also emphasizes environmental issues. While Taiwan is surrounded by the sea, most people are only familiar with seafood culture and lack a deep understanding of ocean culture. Aaron hopes that by promoting freediving, more people can safely enjoy the ocean and also take personal action to reduce single-use plastics, working together to protect the marine environment. Furthermore, Coach Aaron traveled all the way to Israel to learn the essence and techniques of freediving from the esteemed Aharon Solomons, bringing firsthand, correct freediving concepts back to the students at Taichung Mianjinglian.

Coach Aaron also takes students to Hengchun, outlying islands, and other destinations for make-up exams or dive trips, and he regularly organizes domestic and international dive trips that are open to all Taichung Mianjinglian students, regardless of skill level. Just like the buddy system taught in the academic portion of the course, learning freediving at Taichung Mianjinglian means more than just mastering diving techniques; through dive trips and group practice, Taichung Mianjinglian freediving students will never be "dive orphans" and will find it easier to connect with dive buddies.

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Taichung Diving Diving Freediving Lucy Hou

Twosevenths has trained over 500 mystery shoppers experienced across diverse fields, accumulating five years of on-site visits to more than 5,000 venues across Taiwan. We are dedicated to delivering the most impartial third-party reviews — like a group of savvy friends guiding you to the best experiences. Learn more about Twosevenths →

Contributing mystery shoppers

Lucy Hou, a diver from all over Taiwan

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