This popular watersport has been around for decades. It is usually associated with the big swells of Hawaii and California, but you can find lovers of this activity anywhere in the nation. It’s surfing! Surfing uses a board to ride the forward part of a wave. The bigger the wave, the bigger the surf.
Surfing is a full-body workout that is proven to burn fat, promote weight loss, and strengthen muscles. It provides both an aerobic and anaerobic workout, helping boost metabolism and burn between 250 to 450 calories in a single hour. Additional benefits of surfing include improved balance, low impact on muscles and joints, and positive effects on mental health.
In this article, we will take a deeper look at how “shredding the gnar” can be a great workout. Read along to find out why you should hang ten!
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Is Surfing a Good Way to Lose Weight?
Surfing is a great way to lose weight as well as build muscle. Surfing provides both an aerobic and anaerobic workout. The combination of these two provides the magic potion to boost metabolism. Once your metabolism is moving quickly, you’ll easily burn the fuel you put into your body and turn it into energy.
If you have ever seen an avid surfer, you’ll probably notice their athletic physique.
Surfing is a fabulous calorie burner. The number of calories burned will depend on factors such as the intensity of waves, age, gender, and body type. On average, 250 calories are burned in an hour riding small waves. While 450 calories can be burned in an hour of riding more vigorous waves.
Take a look at the chart below to see a comparison of calories burned between surfing and other activities:
| Activity | Duration | Calories Burned |
|---|---|---|
| Surfing | 1 hour | 410 |
| Running | 1 hour | 606 |
| Walking | 1 hour | 305 |
Of course, each individual is different when it comes to weight loss. In addition to staying active, you will also need to incorporate a healthy diet. Weight loss can be simplified as increasing the number of calories burned and decreasing the number of calories consumed. It takes 3,500 calories burned to shed one pound of weight. Additionally, it is important to note that weight loss does not happen overnight. To see results, stay consistent with a healthy routine!
Does Surfing Burn Belly Fat?
As mentioned previously, surfing is a full-body workout that burns a ton of calories and fat. This means that while surfing, your body will be burning fat not only in the belly region, but throughout your entire body!
In addition to burning belly fat, surfing also works your core. A strong core has many benefits. Strengthening these muscles combined with burning stomach fat is the best recipe for that much-desired 6-pack.
Is Surfing Good Cardio?
Surfing is both an aerobic and anaerobic workout and makes for a great cardio activity. “Cardio,” short for cardiovascular, consists of an aerobic workout that gets your heart and lungs pumping. This action gets oxygen moving through your body more quickly, which is beneficial to our muscles. Supplying more oxygen to your body makes it function better overall.
Surfing requires endurance and strength. Through a combination of paddling and standing up on your board, surfing provides an excellent cardio workout. Cardio is shown to improve heart health and reduce the risks of heart-centric diseases. These include heart disease, heart attacks, etc.
What Muscles Does Surfing Work?
In addition to a cardiovascular workout, surfing is a full-body strength workout. Take a look at this list below to see the muscle groups worked while surfing.
Upper Body
As you paddle through the water and push yourself to a standing position on your board, you’ll be working almost all the muscles in your upper body. This includes the biceps, triceps, pectoral muscles, deltoids, trapezius, and rhomboid muscles.
Core
Your core provides stability, control, and strength. This will be used while your balance yourself to stand, ride the waves, and perform tricks as your skill increases. Your core muscles that will be worked during surfing are the abdominals, obliques, and latissimus dorsi (lower back).
Lower Body
While you might think just your upper body is used to surf, you would be wrong. Your lower body actually provides much of the power behind successfully surfing. Your hamstrings and quads will be hard at work to provide stability and grip as you glide through those waves.
Is Surfing Better Than the Gym?
Through this article, we have learned the many benefits of surfing. It provides a full-body workout. While surfing, you will strengthen all muscle groups, burn calories, and promote cardiovascular health. A one-hour session of surfing can be just as, if not more beneficial, than a session at your local gym.
Whether or not you find this activity better than the gym is all up to personal preference. Surfing requires watching the weather, living close to a beach, and getting completely wet. While it is just as good as the gym, it might not be as convenient. If you complete a combination of gym sessions and surf days, you’re sure to have a killer workout routine!
Top 10 Health Benefits of Surfing
On top of the physical health benefits, surfing has additional benefits related to mental health and overall well-being. Take a look at the list below:
1. Mental Health
Physical activity is proven to have positive effects when it comes to mental health. Exercising releases a chemical in our brains called “endorphins.” This chemical creates feelings of joy, happiness, and euphoria.
2. Lowers Stress Levels
Surfing requires not only physical strength but brain power as well. For example, thinking about which wave to ride, and then focusing on your body movements in order to successfully ride the wave. All of this mental energy spent surfing takes away the stresses of our everyday lives.
3. Cold Water Submergence
Regularly swimming or submerging ourselves in cold water creates the feeling of invigoration. This is due to the release of stress hormones. Additionally, cold water is anti-inflammatory which can help with tension or pain in muscles. (This is why you see athletes taking ice baths for an injury!)
4. Better Sleep
Those who participate in physical activity each day have been proven to have a more restful sleep. Getting the proper amount of sleep each night is crucial for our overall health and daily function.
5. Connect with Nature
Since surfing is an outdoor watersport, it is a great way to connect with nature. Those who have started surfing have said they feel more in tune with the earth. Feeling the sand beneath your toes and the cool waters brush over your face is a great way to start the day!
6. Helps Coordination and Balance
As we know, surfing requires balance to properly stand up. As you continue to increase your skills in surfing, you will strengthen your core. A strong core plays a large role in coordination and balance.
7. Better Flexibility
Different positions used in surfing create better flexibility. For example, when sitting straddling the board, you are opening up your hips. These movements produce better flexibility, which aids in the prevention of injuries both on and off the surfboard.
8. Social Community
There are a ton of groups and communities surrounding surfing. You are sure to make new friends to hang ten with! Additionally, surfing in a group is much safer than surfing alone.
9. Overcome Fears
For some, submerging yourself in the ocean on a board can be a scary thought. Overcoming fears is healthy for our minds and spirits!
10. Increased Self-Confidence
Surfing promotes self-confidence in many different ways. From learning new tricks, to even learning how to stand on the board. Each move you master is another boost of self-confidence.
Surfing Disadvantages
Surfing, although very beneficial, can have its cons. With any watersport, we have to worry about the elements we are practicing in. Ocean water can have risks associated with it such as strong riptides, dangerous marine life, and the concrete seabed that waits for you if you fall.
Additionally, surfing requires quite a bit of preparation. Watching the weather to make sure there are good waves, the water is not too cold and there are no impending storms. Combine this with proper care of your surfboard and driving to the beach (which could be far for some). These factors make surfing a sport you have to plan ahead for.
Finally, surfing is hard to master. It will take time to be able to stand on the board and properly surf a wave without falling. Even professional surfers “wipe out” every now and again. This sport takes strength and patience.
Surfing Tips
As a beginner, surfing can be very intimidating. Here are a few tips to help you get started:
- Surf in “Beginner” Areas of The Beach: this ensures the safety of you and others. Beginners have less control over the board, making them a risk to other advanced surfers.
- Watch the Waves Before Surfing: watching the waves gives you an idea of the surf. If the waves are too difficult, don’t ride.
- Observe the “One Surfer Per Wave” Rule: this is another safety rule. Crowding a wave can be very dangerous. Generally, the person closest to the wave has the right of way.
- Ride with the Right Board for You: although short boards look cool, longboards are easier to control and balance. There’s no shame riding with the right board for your abilities.
- Be Respectful: on top of following safety rules, it’s important to respect the rules of the locals. Be respectful to other surfers, the beach, and the ocean.
- Enjoy Yourself: a good surf should be fun and invigorating. Don’t let your fears or failures get in the way of having a great time.