Hey there,
If you are new to this space, I use to be known to my family as Queen of the whitewash. But this has changed a lot in the past few years. Not only could I not ride green waves or turn, but I was always crippled with the anxiety of anything that wasn't whitewash. Scared I was going to be wiped out and not resurface. So how did I change that? Below are things that have helped me upgrade my confidence and surfing skills.
1. Hiring a surf coach for a private lesson .
This is something that I have been doing on and off since I was a teenager, however in more of a group environment. Group beginner lessons are awesome to teach the basics of surfing and the white wash. However, if you want to improve to hard tops and green waves, invest the money of a private lesson.
Your coach will stay with you the whole time and can coach you through every step you make. They will also make any corrections if needed. I had moments where I completely panicked at waves but my coaches made me breathe, give it a go and realise what I was fearing, was simply a thought. I did this for 2 months every Friday and every time I travelled to Indonesia. The difference was HUGE.
If you are on the Sunshine Coast, we highly recommend the team at North Caloundra Surf School.
2. Surf Fitness-Specific Movement
So, one thing you will learn is how sore you become from your paddle, or how much flexibility you need to turn. You will also discover how important balance, cardio fitness, mobility, core, gluteus and arms strength is when doing big surf sessions. Being a Personal Trainer, I like to study movement. So I have been studying the movements of a surfer. With years of fitness styles such as Pilates, Strength, Yoga, Boxing, Dance, Rehabilition, I created a program specifically for my needs. The best thing was I noticed a difference in my surfing. This motivated me to continue this kind of training. If you need help in a certain area of your surfing, find a program to suit that need. Check out our Surf Sisters Fitness Program.
3. Surf Skate
2 years ago I was given an electric skateboard. This helped to improve my balance and confidence. However, recently my goal has been to turn in and out of waves. Someone suggested a surf skate. I have been doing the kale brock surf skate program and highly recommend it. It's hard, but he has a great way of teaching you. The difference this had made in my turn abilities is big.
4. Confidence
This isn't a black and white answer as I feel my confidence in the surf has changed because of a whole heap of things as mentioned above. One thing that I havent mentioned is that breathwork and meditation has helped to bring me back to a state of calmness when I feel panicked. I think the more I have pushed myself out of my confidence and been SHIT scared to do so. The more I realised if I did have a fall, it wasn't as bad as I thought it was. I would mentally challenge myself to keep going. Next minute I am catching large green waves in Lombok as a surfer girl with all this confidence.
5. Switching Netflix to watch Surfing on YouTube
I am a big believer in if you want to get good at something you have to study it. Our home most nights and weekends is surfing videos, surfing tutorials and surfing blogs. I feel this excites me to get out into the water more. You also learn how someone else surfs or what has helped them.
I would love to know if these help you or if you have something else that has helped your surfing. Comment below, Angie x
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