strength and conditioning?

Yoga. Slackline. Swim. Meditate.
Noble effort, dream of surf.

 

yeah, go to the gym and work out. I lift for an hour and half usually every day after work, chest/arms/legs/kettle bell/push ups. Also, I commute to work on my road bike 9 miles each way in 30 minutes and the cycling can help with conditioning as well as leg strength (you could spin on stationary bike at the gym). Ever since this routine started for me about three years ago I definitely can paddle faster to get in position for waves and stay out longer. You can build muscle at the gym for a while to get them to a functioning strength for surfing, then reduce weight and increase reps to tone and maintain the muscle growth. I am at the point now where I don't necessarily want to continue increasing weight because It will probably decrease agility for the sport I work out for.

 

Any workout/activity will help...

but make sure whatever you do, there's at least some focus on flexibility, core stability, and shoulder stability. Incorporate some yoga/pilates (I would recommend gradually over time - don't start bikram yoga five days a week if you've never touched your toes before) for the core and flex. For shoulders, also focus on internal stability rather than building bowling balls for delts... plenty out there on the internet. Do those exercises light with restricted reps at first to allow your shoulders to acclimate. Shoulders are touchy (360 degree rotation) and if you surf long enough you'll likely incur some minor issue with them over time. Take care of them now.

There are other exercises that are more specific to surfing of course, but I consider these points to be very important and basic if you want to surf.

Surfing is rough on the body of a beginner. Taking a little time to get your physical act together pays exponentially and you'll flat out have more fun.

 

Ps - I like hinmo's approach. As long as he's stretching. If you mixed his and wetfeet's and surfed consistently you'd be superman.

 

I haven't been surfing that long to give you expert advice, but I do share a similar situation. I'm stuck about 4 hrs from the coast, but I take my board and go down to the river behind my house and paddle up against the current for an hour or two ever chance I get. Every time I can get to the shore I feel stronger and more prepared. Oh yeah and I fall asleep watching surfing videos every night... dreaming about surfing helps me feel better, if nothing else...

 

I do a lot of push-ups, and running. I'm in the same boat as you... Although I'm only 20 mins away from the shore, the surf in va beach isn't all that. My best advice is don't do a workout before hitting the water (Surfing). You obviously want to be well rested before paddling out. Don't even waste you're time if you just got done working out, you'll be worn out in 5 minutes.

Stretching is always good on the body, lots of stretching. Like someone mentioned above, surfing takes a toll on the body. Last thing is, anytime there is surfable waves coming in, get out there ! That in itself is a workout

 

This is what I was gonna say, I try to swim alot.

 

I've been doing P90X for 3 years. I'm a physical education teacher and have grown up playing sports and surfing. I used to go to gyms and workout with weights since I was in high school... never again. I'm 41 and I'm in the best shape of my life by far. P90X will whip your ass into shape in no time...it uses alot of pullups and push ups. You need a pull up bar that you can get for $20 from any store and a few dumbells. P90 X covers it all, building strength, stretching, yoga, cardio. All it takes is about an hour a day...the yoga is about 1 1/2 hours but you don't have to do the full routine. Don't spend $200 or $300 on it either...find a friend who has it and copy it. Of course there is nothing like just good old fashion paddling and swimming when its flat.

 

crossfit & swimming & of course stretching and/or yoga.

 

Swim, bike, don't run--it's bad for your knees. If lifting weights, go lower weight and high reps. Stretch a lot. The point is to build strength without overly bulking up. The more you bulk up, the less flexible you become

 

I read somewhere that the guys at pipe had a workout that was like a spec ops workout bc you do each workout back to back no break in between. 100 jump jacks, 100 jump rope, 30 pushups 30 situps, 15 step ups 10 burpees, and a 1/4 mile run. That was one set and you're supposed to do like 4. I almost passed out after one first time. Way harder than it sounds.

 

surf workout video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5U0RWUqEZ-w

Quick Surf workout ^

 

that is like a crossfit workout

 

At home workout system for me. Save yourself the BS of following a video (P90x) or the hassle of going to a gym filled with meat heads and "professional" body builders. You can incorporate much of what P90x has to offer without buying or stealing a copy. I'm in the best shape i've been in a loooooong time (possibly ever) by doing these things:

1. Start with a healthy diet, include lots of fruits / veggies, low / non-fat yogurt, only wheat / whole grains, and lean meats like chicken / fish (i rarely eat red meat, but i haven't sworn it off 100%), also keep the drinking to a minimum (was my biggest challenge but i've got it dialed in), focus on drinking lots of water

2. Stretch regularly, yoga i hear is good, but i just do mine at home in front of the TV each night

3. Get a bike (if you don't have one), go on nice long bike rides 2-3 times per week

4. Jogging (pronounced with a soft J), it's not great on the knees but it's not terrible either if you buy some good running shoes with good inserts (I wear Brooks, very comfortable and great on the knees / back). I do this almost every day after work now, only 30-45 minutes 5 times per week is good, unless you are inspired to do more

5. Get an "extreme pull-up" bar (approx. $20), you can use it for more than just pull ups, i do my push ups on it, you can use it to change your grip up so you can isolate different muscles, wide grip, close grip, etc., I always end each jogging session with 3 sets of 20-25 push ups and sit ups, and then I do as many pull ups as I can until i can't pull myself up anymore

6. Swim laps, lots of them, and change up your strokes, there are tons of different techniques, utilize many of them to work different muscle groups. Depending on your situation this will be easier / harder for you. I personally have a community pool that is usually pretty empty after sundown. I go down and swim laps for about an hour after dinner has settled and the pool is clear. If you don't have a pool, i recommend finding a public pool, or if you live closer to the beach, just swim out there (ocean swimming is way harder than pool swimming, so it's a good option if you are close enough)

7. Dumbells work outs, i have a pair of 25lb dumbells that i use to do low weight / high rep workouts, you may want to get a pair of 10-15 pounders to start, I use them for sitting military press, curls (for the girls), tricep throw backs, kneel on one knee and one hand on a chair and do pull backs, then go real light weight like 5lbs and do some isolated shoulder exercises for shoulder stability (something i need to do more of with my shoulder issues)

8. SUP, if you to live in an area that has lots of flat spells then picking up an SUP will give you something to do when the waves aren't pumping. You can SUP to develop great leg, CORE, upperbody strength, pretty much a full body work out and it's more beneficial than you would think. I fell out of shape for a while and when I picked up my SUP i got snapped right back into shape and it motivated me to take it to the next level, which was incorprating everything I have listed above. Now i'm back to catching waves on my 6' 10" Fish and i'm looking at going smaller sometime this fall / winter. Best gift I ever received was this SUP, don't let the haters tell you otherwise, it's a great investment for anybody who truly loves the water and wants to be in or on it on days other than big wave days. Plus it's fun in surf under head high, just don't go near the crowded lineups

Other than that, just stay focused on your goal, read surfer mags, watch videos, eat breathe and sleep surfing and you'll find yourself in great shape and catching waves with regularity. Good luck!

 

P90x?

Hey imperial... I don't know a ton about p90x, but it looks brutal and awesome at the same time. That being said, is it sustainable a)while surfing consistently - 2 or 3 days a week, and b) over a longer timeline i.e. does it wave or stair and taper, or is it all out kick your ass and get in shape quick? Been curious about it for a while.

 

I have a 5' section of a wooden piling on the slab under my carport. I jump up on it and try to cross step whenever I walk by to improve ballence. Those indo boards would do the same thing.

 

Don't worry Okie, as a woman lifting weights WON'T bulk you up. Rule of thumb is it takes at least 3 weeks to feel it (clothing fit) and 6 to see it. I'm speaking in generalities here. For some reason some women have this misconception that using weights heavier than the 10lb dumbbells will turn them into She-Hulks within a month. Not true! Squats, Deadlifts, Bench & Overhead Presses are the key to building overall strength and muslce tone if you're a beginner. These are all generalities here of course.

Mine is a 3 day Push/Pull/Leg split routine with a break from lifting every-other day. After lifting on MWF I swim for roughly 15mins doing at least 350meters. On the weekends I do yoga and stretch.