Living both inland, and the nearest surf to me being Scotlands’ fairly inconsistent North Sea, time in the Surf is a precious commodity.

It is a time to make the most of the conditions, to rejoice in my favorite place to be, tapping into the natural forces that have traveled thousands of miles for you to experience. With the ability to surf a fickle and finite resource it pays to be physically and mentally ready to make the most of it when it comes. Here are a few tips and drills that you can do on the flat water to keep you in surf shape.

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  Move your feet - The surf is a dynamic environment and the confident moving of your feet around is a key surfing component, especially on comparatively larger SUPs. Spend time moving up and down your boards and also stepping into your surf stance. Not only will you feel the benefit when you are in the surf, flat water wise you will be able to react quicker, warm your feet up and never get the pain of overtensing your leg muscles.
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  Paddle in a surf stance - Bend those knees, open up the shoulders and you will find that paddling in a surf stance will give you a great flat water paddle workout. You will feel a lot more connected to your board, your ability to change the board's direction and speed with small body movements and then feel much more comfortable when on the wave.
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  Practice your step back pivot turns - Not only will you get the benefits of the two flatwater drills above, you will also be practicing the movements of a top turn when you are on a wave. Engaging the fins, leading with the head, then shoulders, then the rest of the body, driving the paddle around the back of the board to lift the nose….these are all the same vital cogs of a top turn as they are your step back pivot turn.
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  Look to get 5 or 6 quick strokes, on one side - To paddle onto a wave on a SUP you need to match the speed of the wave, so the ability to quickly gain speed is the key. The faster the wave, the more power and speed you need to generate. If you are changing hands during this process, the time lost in transition between sides will slow you down. With this in mind, look at short, sharp drills trying to keep the board in a straight line.
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  Paddle while looking over one shoulder - |Paddling while looking over your shoulder at an imaginary wave behind you, is a great drill to undertake. It will open your body up to use different upper body muscle groups. It will help to heighten your sensory awareness too, so that when you are in the line up and that dream wave comes along, you can make sure you are in the right place to drop in.
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  Have a go at Surf Skating - Surf Skates are skateboards with  a swiveling front truck. This swiveling action means that the board will turn almost identically to a surfboard. The movements by which you would pump, carve and turn on a surfboard you can then replicate on concrete. It is a great workout and helps to fine tune your technique as you can practice the same maneuvers over and over again.