Surf Training Workouts Guide
- Oct 18, 2018
- 7 min read
Dry Land Surf Training Workouts Guide

Surfing is one of the best extreme sport out there, it is so much fun and enjoyable. However, surfing demands a surfer to be in shape. It requires a variety physical activity just to paddle out to the lineup, catch a wave, stand up on a surfboard without falling and of course getting some big turns down. That is why surf training workouts will give a surfer the best of both worlds in and out of the water, always benefiting them.
Great surf training workouts will give you to ability to perform better when surfing, surf longer, catch more waves, and all around have a lot more fun while in the water. It is also hard for most individuals that work, go to school, and have a social life to get out to the ocean every day. That is when surf training workouts come in handy. Take 30 minutes away wherever you are at any time of the day and do a quick surf training workout that will help you stay in surfing shape. Surf training workouts will also help you stay injury-free more often and longer.
To get you started and your body prepared for an awesome surf session, start integrating a full body warm-up before paddling out. Too many times surfers will not warm up and just go out in the water, which leads to an injury. It’s understandable to be excited to get out there but warming up will allow you to surf more than before.
Remember that surfing is a whole-body sport, it requires your entire body to be in shape and ready to go. Not half or just a leg. Surfing requires balance, stability, mobility, flexibility, constant muscle movements, and some swimming skills. So, take away 5 minutes before paddling out and get your muscles and body warm for your surf session.
Surf Training Workouts: Warm Up
Your warm should include some movements, mobility, and flexibility drills that we do when surfing. The key to getting a quality warm up to by increasing your heart rate, lubricate the joints, release tight tissues, and excite the nervous system. Long, slow and hold stretched are shutting down the muscles and decrease the contraction time.

Some of the benefits a warm could do for you before surfing are:
Reducing muscle stiffness
Increasing mobility and flexibility of the body and joints
Stimulation of the respiratory system
Nervous system activation and excitation of stabilizing muscles
Increasing speed of muscle contraction for faster short burst movements
Increasing heart rate, improving blood circulation, and oxygen delivery to muscles
Surf Training Workouts Warm-Up Movements
Jumping Squats:perform a squat movement, as you are exhaling- go down. Inhale when coming back up and perform a quick jump with hands up in the air.
T-Rotation Pushups: being in a pushup position, bring one arm towards the sky, while at the same time rotation your body to that same side. Now balancing on one hand, with the free hand extended towards the sky. Hold that position for 10 seconds. Reset to the pushup position, then repeat to the other side.
Rotating Lunge:being in a standing position, shoulder width apart. Lunge forward into a lunge position. One there rotate your body to the side your front foot is, while keeping your arms up in front of you. Reset to the standing position and do the other side.
Bridges: lay down on your back with your knees up facing the sky. Keep your hands palms facing down along your body. Bridge up, bringing your butt up to the sky, keeping your knees bent. Hold the bridge for at least 5 seconds and then drop again andrepeat the process.
Bent Shoulder Circles:stand shoulder width apart, keeping your back straight and knees slightly bent. Bend your torso forward. Stop at an angle where you start feeling a slight stretch in your hamstring. Bring your arms out to the side into a T-position. Do small arm circles 30 times in each direction.
Standing Knee Hugs: Stand tall with your spine straight and head facing forward. Bring one knee towards your chest. Place your hands around your knee and pull it in towards your stomach. Bring your knee as high as possible without arching or rounding your back.
Now that you did your surf training workouts warm up movements, your joints are now mobile and ready to paddle out or start your awesome surf training workouts.
Surf Training Workouts
Nothing can really replicate what we do exactly when surfing in the water. But we can strengthen our muscles to do the basic surf movements and physical demands of surfing.
Even if you only do your surf training workouts a couple of times a month, the quality of the exercises can have a huge amount of benefits. Those benefits would include your strength, speed, and endurance when actually surfing. It will also help you be injury free.
Surf Training Workouts: Full Body Movements
Surfing is a sport that is very dynamic which means it requires your body movements to be using three-dimensional space. You need to be doing surf training workouts that will make you strong and proficient in motion, not in remoteness.

Exercises such as dumbbell curl or even calf raises will not benefit your body when surfing. For some great quality surf training workouts, you want to be using full body movements that uses the integration of your muscles and will help you develop full body strength.
Surf training workouts would include:
Kettlebell swings
Explosive dead lifts
Sprints
Pull ups
Rotating squats/ regular squats
Plyometrics hops
Medicine ball chops
Chin ups
Single leg deadlifts
Cable chops
Lunges/ multi-directional lunges
Overhead press/ single arm overhead press
Pushups/ pushup variations
Balance and single leg surf training workouts
Balance and stability are exceptionally important for anyone to surf or looking to improve their surfing in and out of the water. Quality surf training workouts will challenge your balance and stability so that you can have quicker reaction times and being able to stabilize your joints while being dynamic.
Another part of surf training workoutsthat will not only improve your balance and stability but also keep your lower body without any injuries is single leg movements.
Surf Training Workouts: Balance Drills
Sing legged balance and stability drills are very important for surfing. Here are some examples of what you could practice for surf training workouts for balance drills:
Single leg exercises
Single leg box squats
Balancing on a pillow with eye closed
Single leg balance with medicine ball tosses
Bulgarian split squats
Skiers squats
Single leg cable push/pull
Lunges/ split lunges
Single legged deadlifts
Hoping
Upper body rotations
Balance on a balance board
Core Surf Training Workouts
Surfing is popular for boys having abs and red shorts. Well it is kind of true, mostly for professional surfers (except for the red shorts). Having a strong core for surfing can not only help you stay pain-free, but also let you be able to surf with more speed and power.
It is very important to understand that the core is a lot more than just abs. The core is all about your trunk. It helps you stabilize yourself and transmits movements and power throughout your entire body.

It is necessary to incorporate core training in your surf training workouts. But you do not want to do isolated core workouts such as a crunch, which has zero similarity to surfing. We need to incorporate rotation of the core to be able to resemble surfing. Equipment’s such as stability balls, exercise bands, cables, and medicine balls are great tools to use when doing surf training workouts.
Surf Training Workouts: Core
Listed below are some ideas for you to incorporate those movements to you surf training workouts.
Medicine ball chops
Supine lateral back rolls
Stability ball rollouts
Stability ball jack-knife
Cable chops
Leg raises
Shoulders and Upper Back Surf Training Workouts
Paddling a surfboard can be the most tiring aspect of surfing. It requires you to have strong shoulders, back, and core muscles to be able to be efficient at it. Strengthening al of these muscles as a whole can help you build a more durable, stronger, and upper body pain-free.
Surf Training Workouts: Shoulders and Back
Try these great exercises to get better at paddling:
Body blade exercises
Cable face pulls
Dumbbell bent rows
Straight arm cable pulls downs
Rotator cuff external rotations
Shoulder A, T, Y’s
Suspending training triceps pushes
Shoulder scarecrows
Surf Endurance
Surfing for a long time is the best feeling in the world, especially when its good. Point breaks, heavy breaks, and long paddles requires a fully body endurance. When doing your surf training workouts, it is necessary to include endurance exercises that will prepare your body for extended period of times session and energy momentum.
One of the best methods to incorporate endurance in your surf training workouts is interval training, also known as HIIT workouts. Because surfing is a very explosive sport, with long duration paddling times, it is very important to work out both.

Interval workouts are fast paced, with slow rest and high explosive rounds.
Surf Training Workouts: Endurance
An interval running workout for example would look something like this: warm up, 5 minutes job, 30 secs sprints, 5 minutes jog, sprints. And so on, the whole workout would be repeated in tat cycle at least 3 times.
Try these endurance exercises to do in interval training or incorporated in your surf training workouts routine.
Circuit workouts
Jump rope
High knees
Jumping jacks
Burpees
Mountain climber
Jogging intervals
Swimming
With all of what has been talked about in this article, your surf training workouts will prepare your whole body for exact movements done for surfing.
Quality surf training workouts will make you ready for the next big swell coming to you and you will be able to get out there without being too sore after. You will also be injury-free and fit for surfing. This will not only get you ready to surf better,but it will also keep you fit and active.






















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