Hey Surfers! You’re new to surfing or want to learn how to surf, correct? Here you’ll find a great list of surfing tips for beginners.
We spoke with professional surfers. They provide us with important surfing guides for beginners. No matter how good a surfer you are or how new to the sport you are, these beginner surfer tips will help you.
The first step in these cases is to know oneself. It is essential to keep in mind that when you start something for the first time, the results may not be as expected. For that reason, new surfers must constantly motivate themselves and work decisively to achieve their desired goals.
Once that idea is finalized, there are some things you should do before getting into the water, so check out these beginner surfing tips:
Surfing Tips For Beginners
Before you get in the water
1. Pick a surfing type
First of all, choose the type of surf you want to learn. There are as many types of the surf as people who want to do it, and they vary according to the size of the waves and even the dimensions of the surfboard. It is not advisable to overload yourself with lots of information trying to learn all types at once since it is much better to master area by area before becoming an expert.
2. Find a surf school or teacher
Do not try to learn everything by your own means. Ideally, you must attend a surf school or have a professional surfer that teaches you before start practice. As easy as you think it may seem, don’t risk having an accident. Choose a good teacher or surf school. Once you have decided to start and you are clear about what you really want to do, you should look for someone to teach you. It is important to have a lot of experience and good reviews of that person who is going to not only teach you but also motivate you to surface yourself and meet the objectives.
3. Choose a surfboard
Select the perfect surfboard. A large one will offer a much larger surface to learn on since you can perform maneuvers with more space, and it turns out to be a better flotation device. It is also recommended to use soft-surface boards, especially during the first practices. This is one of the best basic surfing tips for beginners, and you are so lucky to find it!
4. Warm-up
Make a rapid warm-up routine. Surfing is a sporting activity that requires the body to be in the best conditions, so you should perform light exercises that prepare the muscles for the physical work they will perform.
5. Clothes
Put on appropriate clothes for surfing and use safety tools. People usually wear a full swimsuit and, in turn, it is important to wear a safety leash, especially if you are not used to practicing that activity. Doing so could prevent accidents and even save your life.
6. Find a beginner-friendly surf spot
Go to a surfing place for beginners and pay attention to the water. You should always go to a beach for surfing beginners, especially if you are a beginner. It is essential to choose a beach whose waves are good and well-known in order to learn more easily and without taking risks. Similarly, every surfer must watch the waves and study them, analyzing how and where they break.
In the water
When you have all the arrangements in order and you feel ready to start, once you have entered the water, you should consider the following points:
7. Start slow
Keep up. Go calmly and do not succumb to emotion because losing control can put you in danger. It is advisable to start surfing small waves, you must have common sense and follow the instructions of the specialist, big waves can be maneuvered when you have more knowledge and you can handle regular surfing.
8. Learn the basic position
Learn the basic positions. It is mandatory to know how to sit on the surfboard while being in the water and, although it goes against what many people think, sitting is far from being the easiest position to achieve quite the opposite. In addition to this, it must be known how to place your body in its prone position, that is to say, face down; since this is our impulse to start surfing. That is why we usually practice how to master this position in the sand before starting to swim.
9. Exercise paddling
Learn to exercise your paddling and keep your feet moving. You must remember that you will drive the surfboard so you must learn how to paddle and, at the same time, keep your feet moving. This involves using your entire body, especially your arms and legs, so you must be in a good shape because it can be exhausting.
10. Practice your pop-up
Practice how to emerge or pop-up which is the action that is performed to get up from the prone position, this movement must be fast and without interruptions. It is also recommended to practice on land and in water before starting surfing.
11. Learn how to wipeout
Get used to wipeouts and understand how to do them. Wipeout is a fall maneuver in surfing. It should be noted that falls are inevitable, for that reason, instead of fighting against them, people must learn to work with them. If it is known the way a wave can break and how it can hit you, then it will be easier to do a wipeout.
12. Stay perpendicular to the whitewater
Stay perpendicular to white water. It is known as white water the kind of water that forms a wave when it breaks, which usually looks like foam and turns a white color. When facing a wave, then, you should always stay perpendicular to the white water it generates, so it will avoid being dragged by it or taken to the shore. This is one of the most helpful surfing tips you can find!
For more knowledge, watch the video:
Final Words
One final piece of advice is to not be afraid. Every learning process is tedious at the beginning and can cause some fear due to a lack of knowledge about the subject, but it is something that can be easily fixed. All of your problems can be solved by practicing often and getting help from an expert. Obviously, if you are in your initial stage, following these surfing tips for beginners will also be a great help. And, remember, despite requiring seriousness and dedication, surfing is a very fun activity. Do not forget to enjoy it!