Stay fit. It’s Fergalicious. Photo: Shutterstock/Valeriy Lebedev
Editor’s Note: This guide was created in collaboration with the Surf Strength Training Program, a mobile app and online program designed to improve your surfing through fitness, nutrition, movement, and recovery methods. Enter code THEINERTIA to save $30 for a limited time.
I’ve said this before, and I will say it again to reiterate: The human body is designed to move. Run, swing your arms, spin, jump, bend….move. These actions require the interaction of muscles throughout your body, muscle chains, or fascial lines-which is what we call them in the health world. Chains of coordinated muscle action is what allows you to move in the surf. You will be able to react to turns, turn your head, spin your shoulders, and swing your lower body around to smash the lip and throw some gnar-spray, brah.
CABLE MACHINE CIRCUIT TRAINING: Pulls, Pushes, & Chops
Surfing is all about flow, movement with ease, and reactive timing of muscle chains. You can train your body to do that. A cable machine is one of the few “machines” I use with myself and my clients. With proper use, you can train groups of muscles that will have you moving with more strength and efficiency. Chops, Dynamic Pulls and Pushes-Rotational Training…so good!
MOVEMENT TRAINING: One-arm band pushes and pulls-dynamic core training
I’ll travel with one of these bands and wrap it around a tree or post for an easy workout.
FULL BODY FLEXIBILITY STRETCHES: How you should be stretching
Something else you’ll dig are these stretches. Just like the cable training above, these stretches are working on flexibility throughout your muscle chains. Integrated flexibility is what you need to move in the surf.
“The key to fluid style…is flexibility within the muscle slings or myofascial slings of the body to promote full body flexibility. Get into some Surfing Stretches. Muscle Slings/Myofascial slings=interconnected muscles and fascia that work together as a cohesive unit to provide large movement patterns.”
For more information on quality movement, exercise, and surf specific health and fitness, check out surfstrengthcoach.com andsurftrainingsuccess.com.
