Surfing by itself is a water exercise that provides superior health benefits, but considering working out before riding the waves improves skills and ensures safety.

Surfing is a physically demanding sport, and if you love surfing, you know it takes an effort to surf to your full capabilities and move inside the curl of a breaking, impressive wave. By mentioning ‘effort,’ we mean it comes with workouts that improve your surfing and maximize health benefits. There’s nothing terrible a surfing workout can do, so all the effort exerted will pay off. Making improvements in your strength can go a long way in developing your posture stability.

Surf workout is even more vital if you happen to be a beginner. You are at more risk of injury if you don’t prepare your body to take the ride. So to avoid any undesirable event from happening, you are encouraged to perform a few simple surfing strengthening exercises on dry-land to keep you at your best. I know we tend to associate workouts with discipline or heavy physical work, but you can always make them simple, and we are all for anything simple and beneficial. If you don’t have ample time to go surf every single day, you can replace your surf session with a quick training workout at home.

Surfing is meant to be fun and by itself offers excellent health benefits, but it is also essential to take up complementing workouts that help improve your balance and muscle power. As a surfer, you know you must use your entire body as a single unit. The upper and lower body muscles must complement each other with total power and fluidity.

There are no strict instructions for stretching; you can do it in your own way.

What is a workout without stretching? You should not overlook what stretching can do in preparing you for any athletic outing, such as surfing. It allows for a flexible body and decreases potential injuries. Surfing requires some degree of flexibility. The more relaxed you are, the easier it will be to catch that first wave.

For best results, you are encouraged to stretch not only before your surfing sessions but regularly, which is reasonable with all the muscles and joints strain occurring when surfing. Some of the vital areas to stretch before surfing are the shoulders, neck, back, and legs.

Surfing performance can excel by first knowing that it encompasses the whole body’s use, followed by exercising your muscles to develop balance and ensure flexibility. You can do stretching in your method. Make sure to get the adequate flexibility you need to prevent muscle injury from abrupt and rapid movements.

Doing yoga in a serene place - such as the sea on a sunrise or sunset - increases its benefits to your body.

Yoga and surfing may seem like completely different activities, but they make the perfect combination to improve your surfing. You just have to dive deeper into both disciplines and learn that they have more in common than you’d think. Yoga and surfing both require flexibility, balance, strength, and focus.

Yoga connects the body with the mind through breath and movement. In effect, it downregulates stress, relaxes the body, and allows you to be more present. By doing yoga, you will transfer everything you get from it to the ocean waves. Thus, having the mindset that permits relaxation while surfing and focus on the activity.

Whether you take up yoga and surfing, use one to fuel the other, or even just go on a short-term yoga and surfing retreat. There’s more to gain from the combination of surfing and yoga than just riding waves and fancy stretching. Give it a try, and your body and mind will thank you.

Push-ups are challenging but practice will get you there.

Push-ups make your surf workout routine complete in improving your surfing. Actually, not just surfing. Push-ups can take any physical activity to the next level. The typical push-up never goes out of style. For surfing, it targets strengthening the muscle groups involved in paddling on a surfboard, specifically the body’s upper part. These include your triceps, deltoids, and pectorals.

Push-up is one of the most popular workouts being done. Everyone has to do them at some point in their lives. Though there is no complicated instruction in doing it, the form of the push-up makes the difference, hence, utterly important. Either it would strengthen your muscles more or make you hurt yourself.

To have better stability and comfort in doing it, make sure that the body is balanced with the feet. It’s alright if some will require a wider stance. You just have to find your perfect width. Also, ensure that your arms are at correct angles from your armpit line. If push-ups are correctly done, you will benefit from greater power and lesser potential for injury.

Squats strengthen the body parts that are essential in riding your board.

Squats also contribute to the success of better surfing. Crouching is usually necessary while riding the waves. It is naturally the best way to increase maneuverability and control. In doing so, you need a strong lower body and healthy joints to make it harder for you to fall and absorb some enormous forces.

An appropriate squat pattern is crucial for quickly getting up on your surfboard and staying there. Squats do wonders for your endurance and posture and can also improve your surfing technique. You are encouraged to start with your body weight and perform three sets with high reps.

Remember, feet should be shoulder-width apart, abs should be tight, the seat should be back, shoulders should be away from ears, and your knees should not track over your toes. Do it correctly to help you get the most effective workout.

Running not only strengthens the lower body but also improves cardio which is needed for long surf rides.

I know you would probably say that nobody likes running unless you’re a marathon runner. The fact is that when working out for surfing, you are not obliged to train for a marathon. You can do it for half an hour three times a week. It will strengthen your heart and optimize your cardiovascular system, which is all you need in surfing.

Running is also an excellent workout that simultaneously improves your balance and builds up your legs’ strength. It will improve your lung capacity, help you lose extra weight, and boost the ‘afterburn’ effect, all of these being crucial if you want to spend long hours catching the waves.

It is ideal to set a running routine. If your time and schedule don't allow for three times a week, you can do it in short bursts of speed instead of long runs, and you will still attain the benefits. Just ten minutes of intense speed bursts with short periods of rest intervals will improve your endurance.

If you’re new to surfing, all this surf workout information can be overwhelming, but it’s essential to know that you’ll quickly take your surfing skills to the next level if you are eager to follow these. For a healthy lifestyle, a good level of overall fitness is desirable. You might as well use surfing as an excuse to live more healthily and start getting into shape. Do these workouts before grabbing your board and running into the waves.

Here at Wave Tribe, we got you covered for the sturdy pieces of equipment that you will need in surfing. But to enjoy more of our oceans’ waves in the future, we need to look after them and do our part as humans and consumers as well. It is not just the advantage of surfing because a healthy marine environment supports our cultural and social well-being, and the ocean's resources contribute to our economy.

Surfing wouldn’t be a thing without our oceans, so we want to encourage you to be a part of our Heal The Oceans campaign and put your heart into its mission. As an organization, we started with our eco-surfing made with every surfer’s safety and the environment in mind. With your help, we can all make this work together while staying healthy, safe, and fit.