One of the great things about running a small business is they usually grow out of a passion, or an avid interest in a topic. In my case, the business was borne out of two. Gold Coast Surfboards was borne out of a passion for surfing and a passion for travel. With the idea that others share these passions, I built a business with the intent of providing them with everything they need, to make their surfing holiday the best they’ve ever had.

I really love the contact this business gives me with the people who share my passions. So I make sure that in 99% of cases, I deliver the surfboards to my clients myself. This also makes good business sense. In making sure I speak to my customers, I give them the opportunity to tell me what services would make their holiday better. This then gives me the opportunity to offer such services when they come back next year.

During these chats, the number 1 thing my clients desire is that little bit of additional surfing fitness. This makes sense. Nothing can really prepare you for the rigors of a surfing holiday, other than lots and lots of surfing. No matter how much you surf at home, the chances are you’ll surf more on your holiday for no reason other than the fact that you’ll have more time to play with.

So how can we condition ourselves for a surfing holiday. (Ie. When on holiday, you will spend much more time in the water paddling than you will at home, your fitness needs to be much higher) In this article we will look at a 3 point plan. The first 2 points should be part of your commitment to general fitness, the last will be to give your fitness a quick boost before your holiday.

General endurance is critical. You have to have a base level of aerobic fitness to surf. Otherwise you won’t be able to paddle out past the breakers, paddle into a wave or breath through a hold down. Further, with this fitness comes a level of confidence, this is critical for surfing.

This requirement needs to be specific to the water though. You need to be water fit. Endurance in the water is so different to endurance on land. Moving through the water is almost a feeling, an art. The worse your feel for the water is, the more energy you’ll burn up when you take to it.

So to cover off this requirement, you should be swimming or surfing at least twice a week, every week of the year. Do not leave it till a month before your holidays, it is impossible to develop water fitness in such a small span of time. If you love surfing, you will love the water. Make it a part of your life. Then, in the month leading up to your holiday, increase you workload by 1 or 2 sessions a week and make your sessions much more intensive. This will give you a little fitness boost pre-arrival.

The second key to surfing fitness is flexibility, balance and core strength. Once again, this is not something you want to leave till the last minute, rather something you want to develop over time as part of your commitment to surfing, health and fitness.

For me, yoga is the answer here. I have a yoga program specifically designed for surfing which I do as often as I can. Whenever I get bored with what I am doing, I get into my yoga routines. This helps me with my post surf recoveries, flexibility, core strength and balance. Not a bad bundle from one set of exercises.

Keep in mind also that surfing constantly distorts your body away from its natural position of balance and health. The act of paddling for example hyperextends your back. And think about all the contortions you put it through in any wipeout. Thats the other thing that Yoga does really well. It helps restore your body back to its natural and healthy posture, despite the rough and tumble of the waves.

If you take care of the two items above (Ie water fitness and flexibility/core strength) you can give your surfing fitness a real booster by doing a functional training program specific to surfing. The point of functional training is it focuses in on the specific muscle and fitness requirements of a sport (in this case surfing) and trains those muscles in accordance with the needs of the sport.

You’ve got your base level of fitness sorted out already by ensuring point 1 and 2 above are part of your lifestyle. This training program recognises though, that there will be a short period of time where you will need a higher level of fitness (Ie. For those long sessions while on holiday) and prepares you specifically with those higher needs in mind.

I hope this helps you prepare for your next surfing trip where ever it may be. We all know training can sometimes be a bit of a drag, just remember how much more fun those surfing days are when the waves, your skill and your body all come together at the same time, so you can catch that elusive perfect wave.

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