How Stand Up Paddle Boarding Can Benefit You

Stand Up Paddle Boarding offers you a fantastic all over workout, as you use both strength and balance to stay upright and move yourself through the water. The intensity of your workout will vary, depending on where you use your paddle board. Paddling upstream in a river or out in the ocean with the current and the waves will mean a more intense work out. If you spend more time drifting with the tide then you will have a more gentle training session.

Fitness benefits

The obvious benefits of Stand Up Paddle Boarding is the increase in your level of fitness. It is a great sport for cross-training as you will find that you use muscles in your legs, arms, back, stomach and even your feet. As well as the paddling you will use a lot of different muscles simply balancing on the board, which gives you more of a workout than you realise. If you are interested in both an aerobic and a strength work out then this is the perfect sport.

Health benefits

As a sport it has a lot of benefits over other activities. Unlike running you won’t experience any jarring to joints or muscles, and it is also a non-contact sport, so unless you have a run in with a large wave, you can avoid the bumps, bruises and heavy knocks involved with sports like football and rugby. It is also a great sport to help you de-stress. Whether you decide to take a gentle paddle up a river or get out amongst the waves, Stand Up Paddle Boarding can be enjoyed wherever there is a body of water, and what better place to relax and appreciate the scenery. Any activity that gets us outdoors has enormous health benefits, so enjoy the fresh air, the sun and the exercise.

Balance

Learning to Stand Up Paddle Board does take a bit of practice as you need to balance on the board while paddling. Expect to fall over a few times to start with. For improving your general co-ordination the paddle board is perfect and you will really need to work the muscles in your legs to keep upright.

Can’t surf, not a problem

Stand Up Paddle Boarding is a great alternative to surfing, particularly if you have trouble surfing, or if you have friends that are surfers and you feel a bit left out. This way you can get out on the water too and you will have a fantastic vantage point. You can still catch waves, just like you would on a surf board, and as well as the bigger waves you can also ride the smaller or ‘messier’ waves that a surfer would not be able to. Stand Up Paddle Boarding is more versatile too, so you can head into quieter waters, paddle up river or even use it on a lake. It is also great if you suffer from back problems, because while surfing, you are lying on the board and arching your back.

Sense of achievement

Importantly you will experience a great sense of achievement when you learn to use your paddle board. Don’t expect to be able to ride the monster waves to begin with. Remember, practice makes perfect.