Surfing has to be one of the most difficult sports to master. First off, you have to contend with ever changing conditions, a horde of other surfers and your own natural abilities. Most beginners think popping up and standing on a board is the hardest part of surfing, but thatʻs not necessarily the case.
Paddling out is the hardest part of surfing for beginners and experts alike. It takes immense physical stamina, a solid knowledge of the ocean, and guts to paddle out in the first place. Having good paddling strength makes the difference between catching a lot of waves or only a few.
Iʻve been surfing for a long time. When I surfed multiple times a day as a kid I could paddle for miles. Now that Iʻm older, with responsibilities (ugh), it may be a few weeks before I can get in a surf session. I can usually pop right to my feet and go down the line, but the first thing to go is my paddling endurance. It has always been the hardest part to keep up with.
Why Paddling Is The Hardest Part For Most Surfers
There is so much more to the sport of surfing than taking off on a wave and going down the line. In fact, studies have shown that 8% of an average 2hr surf session is actually spent riding waves, whereas 44% of that session is spent paddling.
Getting past breaking waves is no easy feat. It takes a lot of work. Granted, it is easier for a more seasoned surfer who knows how to time their duck dives and has established paddling skills, but it can be exhausting. You see the pros getting jetski assists in Surf Competitions these days, itʻs that hard.
As a beginner, itʻs going to be even harder. Not only have you not developed your paddling muscles, but you donʻt know how to handle your board all that well yet, you are still learning how to duck dive, and you arenʻt quite knowledgable in your ocean awareness.
It is important not to get discouraged if the ocean wins the day, which it may very well do on occasion. Below I’ve listed out 3 introductory tips to improve your paddling, but if you really want to take your paddling to the next level, you should read this guide to paddling that I put together.
3 Ways To Improve Paddling Skills When You’re Not Surfing
- Increase Your Fitness Level
This goes without saying. Surfing is a sport, but unlike other sports, youʻre dealing with mother nature as your playing field and she can be wicked. Be prepared.
Swimming. Yoga. Bicycling. Kayaking, Running. Anything you can do to increase your strength, stamina, and flexibilty will help with your ability to paddle longer.
Now of course there are more targeted approaches to increase your paddling stamina. Bodyweight exercises such as pushups, pullups, and working with a battle rope can do wonders for your paddling.
Or you can take your surf fitness up a whole other level by signing up for the 12 week program with Surf Fitness Coach. It has helped my surfing immensly. - Practice, Practice, Practice
When the waves are small, take your board out and go for a paddle. Nothing beats training on the real thing.
When I was younger groing up in LA, there were two piers, the Santa Monica Pier and the Venice Pier 4 miles apart. When there were no waves, sometimes I would just paddle between the two.
I used to surf all day and not get tired. Pretty sure itʻs because I did stuff like that. - Positioning is Key
Having your body positioned on your surfboard properly is another key part to being a good paddler. And practicing on flat days can really help you in this area.
I have seem some of the most in shape people exhaust themselves paddling out because they donʻt know where to lay on the board.
Ensure that the nose of your board is just above the surface of the water, not too high, which would indicate you are too far back on your board. Too low would have the nose of your board sinking under the water surface from time to time. You want to be just above that.
Understanding The Ocean Is Almost As Hard As Paddling
While paddling is hard, understanding the ocean can be just as hard for the inexperienced surfer.
To the untrained eye, itʻs just a bunch of water and waves.
To an experienced surfer itʻs a combination of things. The wind, where the waves are coming from, where the gaps are in the waves, currents, spots where you can sneak a few waves without having to compete too much with other surfers and so on.
This can make the difference between catching waves and not catching waves as much as your paddling endurance can. In fact, with ocean awareness, you can help aid your paddling endurance by knowing how to take the path of least resistance while paddling back out.
Tips To Enhance Your Ocean Awareness
- Watch The Surf Before Paddling Out
You should watch the waves for at least 3-5 minutes per foot of wave. Watch where the sets come in. Where other surfers are paddling out from. Where the currents are. There is more to a surf check than just seeing if the waves are good.
In fact, sometimes itʻs best just NOT to paddle out. Read why in this post highlighting 12 reasons why you might want to think twice. - Check The Tides
Knowing what the tides are doing well help you know more about what the waves are going to be doing. Different surf spots do different things when the tides change. For some spots a rising tide brings bigger waves, for others, it shuts a place down.
Youʻll want to know how your local break works so you donʻt find yourself in a situation you canʻt get out of. I was surfing a spot in Hawaii when the tide was coming in which also brought a least 3-4ʻ of extra wave size with it. Not a good place to be. - Speak With Others
Other surfers and oldtimers can be a valuable source of information that can impart nuggets of wisdom passed on in a few minutes that could take lifetimes to gather through personal experience. Do not be afraid to tap into this resource.
Oldtimers at your local break especially love to talk. Theyʻre not doing much surfing anymore, but they love to regal you with stories of what it was like. If you ask, they would also be likely to share tips about the spot that theyʻve learned throughout the years.
You never know, you might be making a new friend.
And For All You Salty Dogs Out There
As I get older, itʻs not the loss of my paddling endurance that gets me. Itʻs not because of a lack of ocean awareness.
The hardest part about surfing for an old guy like me is driving by perfect waves, knowing that you canʻt paddle out because you have to get to work, or take the kids to soccer, or some other reason to miss out on waves that didnʻt exist when you were younger.
I just wish I could surf more than I do these days, but unfortunately itʻs not as easy as it used to be for me when I was younger. For those of you that still get to surf whenever the waves are up, good for you, wanna trade places?
