Other than it being addictive and fun, surfing is a great way to energize your life. Surfing is a great cardiovascular exercise, using mostly upper body muscles to do the paddling work, and leg muscles to guide the board. Since surfing involves more time paddling, it provides an intense upper body and core workout.
Health Benefits of Surfing :
- Cardiovascular and heart health
- Muscle tone
- Endurance
- Increased energy
- Back, core and shoulder strength
- Balance and agility
Surfing for Exercise
The best part about surfing for exercise is that it’s so darn fun that by the time you check your watch you’ve already been surfing for two hours, and you don’t want to quit (although, you are super thirsty)! Usually when I go running for exercise I want to be done before I’ve even been going for two minutes!
Any exercise instructor will tell you that it’s not so much about the intensity of your workout, but rather the time spent exercising. When you’re surfing, you’re constantly moving for your entire session, resulting in an excellent extended workout. Surfing can also make athletes out of the most rooted couch potatoes. Those who catch the surfing bug will be eager to wake up at dawn every morning, often continuing to their regular job afterwards.
The Fountain of Youth?
There’s an old saying that Ponce De Leon totally missed the point when he was looking for the fountain of youth. All he really had to do was jump over the side of the boat to find it. The ocean is a source of revitalizing energy. Surfers thrive on riding the energy of the ocean- waves of pure energy that have traveled miles to reach them. People who surf regularly can surf well into their 60’s, 70’s, 80’s, and most of them won’t even look their age. The health benefits of surfing don’t only apply to your physical health. There are also many mental health benefits. Surfing is said to reduce stress, giving your psyche a more of a ‘laid back’ approach about life. The high stress of today’s world is detrimental to our mental health. Physical exercise, especially something as fun as surfing, can help to offset the negative effects of stress. Think about it: surfers are always playing in the ocean! It helps you stay young.
Proper Nutrition
Of course, surfing IS a workout, and you’ve got to treat your body right by eating well and taking some days off here and there to allow your body to regenerate and repair itself. Diets high in protein and low in fats are beneficial, as well as making sure you’re eating plenty of wholegrains, fruits, vegetables and drinking loads of water (that’s H2O and not beer!). A general rule to follow would be: Drink a liter of water for each hour you spend in the water.
If you’re going for a dawn patrol, make sure you eat the breakfast of champions and try to drink plenty of fluids before you hit the surf. A high protein meal after a surf session is also important so that your muscles repair themselves.
Things to watch out for :
Surfing is not a symmetrical form of exercise. It works one side of the body more than the other and it also enables your upper body more than your legs. It is highly important to supplement your surfing with stretching, yoga, pilates or some other form of cross-training so that your muscles don’t become unbalanced. For example, you can’t just work out your quads without working your hamstrings, otherwise you run the risk of injury. At the very least, try to implement a stretching regiment so that your muscles don’t become too short. I know you’re excited to jump in the ocean now but make sure you stretch your large muscle groups for at least 10 minutes before you get on that board! Ok. Go on now…have fun!
