How Can I Practice Surfing When There Are No Waves?
It’s the question that’s plagued landlocked and wave-less surfers for an eternity.
How do you practice surfing at home when you can’t get to the ocean?
If you’re like our past guests, you’ve probably made plenty of surf progress on a recent surf trip. Now that you’re back home and far away from the ocean, the thought of losing those newly acquired surfing skills can be daunting.
Naturally, it’s almost impossible to simulate the movements, sensations and challenges of surfing without an actual wave. But there’s no need to throw the baby out with the bathwater.
Just because you don’t have access to the ocean or a wave pool doesn’t mean you can’t practice and improve your surfing skills. In fact, there are a variety of ways that you can continue building your surf technique and staying in shape.
Below are some suggestions for how you can practice surfing when there are no waves.
Watch (aka study) surf videos and clips
Watch surf videos. Like, reeeally study them.
You can learn so much by watching how professional surfers move, position themselves on the board and navigate through different types of waves.
Pay attention to their body positioning, weight distribution and timing. You can even pause and rewind certain parts to really analyse their technique.
Better yet, watch clips and videos of your own surfing.
At Rise Up, we do video analysis with our surf coaching program and it’s a game changer.
You can see where you’re going right (and wrong) and make adjustments for the next time you hit the waves.
Don’t have footage of yourself cross-stepping or ripping a wave? No worries!
Movies like The Physics of Noseriding, Lost Track Atlantic Series and Castles In The Sky (for some travel motivation) will at least feed the fire until you get back into the waves.
Implement a surf-specific workout routine
Surfing is all about muscle memory and body awareness, and building both of these things takes time.
The flip side here is that they’re both also things you can train for… even when there are no waves.
Surf-specific workouts focus on core strength, mobility and rotation in the upper body and lower body. They not only help improve your surfing, but also prevent potential injuries.
Yoga, pilates and balance exercises are great additions to a surf-specific workout routine. However, there’s no reason why you can’t combine these disciplines into one session.
For example, a surf-specific workout routine for beginner surfers could focus on the following:
Paddle training:
- Front and side plank variations for core strength
- Push ups for arm, chest and back strength
- Yoga poses like Downward Facing Dog and Chaturanga for shoulder stability and mobility
Pop-up training:
- Squats for leg strength and stability
- Lunges with rotation for balance and coordination
- Pilates “swimming” exercise to engage the lower back muscles used in pop-ups
Stability training:
- Wall squats to improve balance and stability on the board
- Single leg balance exercises for core and lower body strength
The best part with these surf-specific workouts is that they can be done anywhere, whether it’s in your living room or at the beach.
You also don’t need much more than a mat and some basic equipment like resistance bands or weights.
Get yourself a balance board
Balance boards or indo boards are popular among surfers for good reason.
They help improve balance, coordination and lower body strength which are all essential for surfing.
Using a balance board mimics the movements and sensations of being on a surfboard, making it an ideal way to practice when there are no waves.
We’d go as far as saying that balance boards are essential for surfers who want to maintain their skills and improve their overall performance.
Check out the Indo Board Original, StrongTek Rocker Board and Yes4All Wooden Balance Board.
You can also build your own using a skateboard deck and a high-density foam roller. Either way, grab one for yourself and start practicing in your living room.
Bonus points if you’re watching surf videos while balancing on your board. Bonus bonus points if you can balance on the board while holding a medicine ball in your arms!
Become better at reading surf forecasts
There’s a rampant misconception that the art of reading surf forecasts is dead; killed by wave cams and live feed surf reports.
In reality though, the art of reading surf forecasts has never been more important. And by knowing how to interpret surf reports, you’ll be able to score waves while others are sitting on the couch waiting for a swell to show up.
We wrote a detailed article on how to read surf forecasts and understand wave conditions. In it, we explain the different swell factors and how they affect surf conditions.
Surfing abilities and athletic ability are important in surfing, but knowing how to read surf forecasts can be the difference between scoring uncrowded waves with your friends and being stuck in a crowded lineup.
Do yourself a favour and check out that article. At the very least you’ll impress your friends with your newfound knowledge.
Hone your pop-up using a yoga mat or towel
Is there a more crucial, fundamental and often overlooked aspect of surfing than the pop-up?
We don’t think so.
And yet, it’s something that many surfers struggle with even after years of surfing. Even more experienced surfers have bad habits when it comes to the pop-up. And chances are that as a beginner or intermediate, your pop-up can still use improvement.
Enter the yoga mat or towel pop-up exercise.
This is a simple yet effective way to train your muscle memory and improve your pop-up technique.
The soft surface of a yoga mat or towel requires more effort from your muscles, making it a more challenging exercise compared to doing pop-ups on a hard surface.
The more reps you do, the better you’ll get. The goal is to make the pop-up movement second nature.
Here’s how to perform the perfect at-home pop-up:
1. Set up your surf stance
- Place a yoga mat or towel on the ground to simulate your board
- Position yourself face down, as if you’re paddling in the water
- Keep your feet together and hands placed under your chest like a push-up position
2. Simulate paddling
- Move your arms in a paddling motion a few times to build the habit of transitioning from paddling to the pop-up
- This step is optional but helpful for muscle memory
3. Hands on the board (push-up position)
- Place your hands flat on the “board,” just below your chest, like a cobra pose in yoga
- Keep your elbows tucked close to your ribs
4. The explosive pop-up
- Push up with your arms while simultaneously bringing your front foot forward
- Your back foot follows naturally, landing in your surf stance
- Aim to land in a low squat, with knees slightly bent for stability
5. Perfect your stance
- Your feet should be shoulder-width apart
- Your toes should be facing sideways, not straight forward
- Keep your knees bent and center of gravity low
6. Repeat and speed it up
- Start slow, then gradually increase speed
- Try 10-20 pop-ups in a row to build muscle memory
Hit the swimming pool and do laps
Want to kill two birds with one stone? You can train for fitness and practice breath control by swimming laps in the pool.
This is especially beneficial for surfers who live far from the coast and don’t have regular access to the ocean.
Swimming works your cardiovascular system, strengthens your muscles and improves breath control and endurance – all important factors for surfing (and living longer, no less).
Additionally, swimming is a low-impact exercise that puts less strain on joints compared to other forms of cardio like running or cycling.
To make it more surf-specific, try adding some duck dives or turtle rolls into your lap routine. This will simulate the physical demands of paddling out and catching waves.
Of course, it might look weird bringing your surfboard to the local pool, but if you have access to a backyard pool or a private pool, go for it!
Whatever you decide, just get in the pool. There’s perhaps no better cross-training activity for surfing.
Take up surf skating to emulate surf movements
Surf skating might look kinda kooky, but there’s a method to its madness.
It’s the closest thing to surfing on solid ground. By mimicking surf movements, you’ll be able to sharpen your skills and hone your muscle memory even when the waves are flat.
Surf skating involves riding a skateboard with special trucks that allow for more fluid turning and carving, similar to how a surfboard moves on water.
It’s also a great way to improve your balance and foot placement while simulating wave conditions.
One tip from our coaches: don’t rely solely on surf skating as a form of cross-training. It’s a great supplement to surfing, but surf skating courses tend to mold you into a specific style that might not translate well to your surfing.
Use it as a refresher but combine it with other forms of cross-training for a well-rounded approach.
The Rise Up wrap up
Worried that you’ll lose your progress and surf fitness when you’re not in the water? Don’t be.
With these cross-training tips, you can continue to improve your skills and maintain your surfing abilities even when you can’t catch waves.
Remember, consistency is key. Whether it’s doing pop-up exercises on a yoga mat or swimming laps in the pool, make sure to incorporate these at-home activities into your routine regularly for best results.
You might not return to the ocean as a pro surfer, but you’ll definitely cut down the time it takes to reacquaint yourself with the waves and get back into the groove.
