Your words, your scene.
It’s pretty obvious.
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The fitter you are, the better you surf.
The better you surf, the more fun you have.

Fact.

But there seems to be a lot of confusion out there when it comes to finding out how to get ‘surf-fit’.
My ambition is to push my surfing as far as it can go (above the lip one day preferably). So I picked up on the fact that the fastest way to improve was to develop my fitness as well as getting in the water whenever I could, pretty quickly.
If this is not your ambition, fair enough. But you could probably still benefit in terms of survival, from the following info.
Obviously the best fitness session you can do for surfing is to actually go surfing.
But surf is inconsistent.
If you have a two week flatspell, even just one week wave starved, all the physiological gains you developed in the previous week of surfed-out pumping awesomeness begin to fade away surprisingly quickly.
Within a week, quickly.
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(Scary) Fact.
Surf fitness
And if you don’t make a conceited effort to work harder every time you surf you’ll just flounder around the same strength and fitness levels. Preliminary studies made by Matt Barlow of Plymouth university suggest that surfing is self-regulating which, in layman's terms, means that you only work as hard you want to whatever the size on the day.

So in order to carry on excelling and getting better you need to keep up your ‘surf-fitness’ in the interim between swells. And PUSH YOURSELF.
This is particularly important through the summer when September eventually comes around to kick the shit out of you and remind you, acutely, that you are a land-born-air-breathing mammal.
This reminder will lose its sting if you keep up your fitness.
Of course general fitness will help, but it is a proven fact that training programmes relevant to the intended activity are far more effective.

Makes sense right?
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So running will improve your cardio-respiratory fitness (heart and lungs), but how much running do you do in the water?
The muscle groups you are focussing your efforts on are not used in that fashion in a surf session.
There are a lot of local adaptations to the trained muscle groups that actually offset the cardio-respiratory benefits gained when transferring between activities. Things like capillarisation (the growth of more capillaries in the muscle to increase oxygen transport) and the development of slow-twitch muscle fibres will generally go to waste in your legs.

Unless you live at one of the longest pointbreaks in the world.

But we’re talking about intermediate surfers and British waves, punchy beach breaks that require paddle power, agility and a lot of holding your breath.
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I’m not saying ‘don’t go running’, though.
Running has been proven to be the best exercise for cardio-respiratory fitness, and to reduce fat levels in the body to healthier levels.
So running should definitely be a part of your training regime.

Sorry, but it’s an undeniable fact. Learn to love it. You’ll fall behind if you don’t.
A study by Lowdon and Pateman in 1980 investigated the physiological parameters of international surfers. They found that the elite have extremely high fitness ratings (no surprise there), efficient lung function and rapid reaction/movement times.
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The most important finding from the study was the correlation between movement time, in the reaction tests, and contest placing.
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They concluded that speed of adjustment to a stimulus is a determinant of surfing skill.
So how do we improve our reactions?
Something like an Indo board could help. Or skateboarding.
As long as the movements practiced are reminiscent of surfing manoeuvres. But DO NOT attempt strength conditioning on a balance board.
The effects are largely negated because you are sacrificing better contractions by working against yourself to balance. This sounds good, but in reality you are just spreading the load when you should be focussing on the muscle/muscle group trained, while conditioning.
Slack lining or any other sort of kinaesthetic (body awareness) balance exercise would also improve your reactions.
But these things cost money.
You can easily replicate surfing manoeuvres through dynamic plyometric exercises, without expensive equipment. If you don’t know what plyometrics are, you need to find out.
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There are some tips for safe training in the link and a few examples.
The article focuses on legs, which is an obvious plus when it comes to developing more powerful and controlled manoeuvres. But you can also train your arms plyometrically by incorporating powerful, repeated pop-ups into your training regimen. Clap press-ups can also develop upper-body power, and certain power exercises not specific to surfing manoeuvres.
But GOOD TECHNIQUE IS ESSENTIAL AND MAKE SURE YOU ARE SUITABLEY WARMED UP.

Your elbows are very valuable and as mentioned in the above article, it is easy to injure yourself through plyometrics if you don’t do it right.
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This kind of upper-body plyometric training links in with the second, more recent study, conducted on elite surfers.
Oliver Fairly built a physiological profile of elite surfers to find any determinants of performance in 2011. He tested the surfers’ physical outputs, workloads, activity patterns during competition (through video analysis) and upper-body anaerobic power output (quick powerful movements like interval training) and peak oxygen uptake during a prolonged paddle test.
He found a significant relationship between season ranking and anaerobic power output.
The main energy system trained by plyometrics.
Seeing the connection?
Now, nothing will replicate the activity of surfing better than getting in the water and paddling.
Unfortunately this isn’t really an option through the winter, as you will quickly lose motivation to get in for a difficult fitness session when it is bitterly cold and there are no waves.
Swimming replicates the movement. But do it right.

Swim a length, sprint a length, swim as far as you can under water, swim the rest if you don’t make the whole length.

Rest.
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I would advise seeking some instruction in your swimming technique to make your training more efficient, but also because you never know when your leash will snap in the water.
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Better technique COULD SAVE YOUR LIFE.
That’s a simple and effective approach to your surf-specific lane swimming. Build it up as you get fitter by doubling it, tripling it etc.
In the summer you can do the same but on your surfboard, with intermittent duckdives. The trick is to set a target approach (2-3 sets of activities in a row) and STICK TO IT.

Do not compromise because you are only cheating yourself.
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I have to mention that whole body strength conditioning is also essential to reduce risk of injury and keep your body in balance while focusing your training on the specific activity of surfing. The core strength of your body is a huge factor in any dynamic sport.

There is only one man to trust when your aim is to develop dynamic and functional strength, and that mans name is EZ.
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I have taken his advice for years throughout my own training, from when I began Freerunning, to developing my strength for martial arts and eventually surfing.
Above: Click on the banner to get linked up to SurfStronger
Below: FXDM TV - Click on the pic to get linked up to the essential no BS conditioning accompaniment
On the right is a link to EZ’s Core Killer workout, but any other inquiries you have in regards to conditioning training FXDM TV is where you will find the answer.

Breath holding is also an important aspect to develop, as any serious surfer will tell you. But my background is in personal training, so you are better off making your own choice on how you train for this, as it can also be quite dangerous if not applied correctly.

My approach is to swim lengths under water in a lifeguarded pool.
Other approaches, like the development of diaphragmatic breathing, or Pranayama in Yoga, increases the elasticity and strength of the diaphragm enabling you to circulate and store more oxygen in your lungs for longer periods of time.
All of this can help you to become a better surfer. In terms of survival and technique. In truth, this just scratches the surface of all the information out there. The most effective way to train right is to get educated. Build your own regime and adapt it accordingly as your fitness improves.
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Be intelligent, work hard and be sure to REST. It’s as important as exercise if not more.
Do not doubt the relationship between surfing performance and physical fitness.
After all, the fitter you are the better you surf.
The better you surf, the more fun you will have.

Fact.
Laird Hamilton (right): Big wave surfer and diligent athlete
Above: Great guide to conditioning from Lee Stansbury​
A GSUK guide to gettting educated.
Words by Josef Williams
Editor:
​GSUK
