Yoga complements surfing like no other sport. There’s almost a kind of love affair between the two activities. So, get into the Yoga mood, it’s not just a girl’s sport!

Yoga and surfing go hand in hand. It’s not just the physical attributes of the sports that are similar, but Yogis and surfers often share similar values, too. Focus, breathing, (core) strength and flexibility are fundamental ingredients of any yoga practice and all have their benefit when riding a surfboard. Yoga isn’t about the perfect pose, but about experiencing the pose, being fully aware of the present.

Better Focus while Surfing

Yoga teaches us patience and fucus. Transforming this focus into surfing and daily life will be a great advantage. You’ll find yourself having a more focused awareness of what’s going on in the lineup and you’ll experience a greater sense of stoke. Being able to find your focus and clear your mind will make learning easier, even if you’ve already been surfing for years.

Choosing the right type of Yoga

There are many types of yoga and some of them will be more beneficial to you and your surfing before getting in the water, whereas others have more effects post-surf. Statically holding postures, breathing oxygen into the muscles to help them recover will suit better after your surf session. More stimulating yoga is more appropriate before getting in the water. Controlled breathing exercises, a big part yoga, can be very helpful to calm down nervous energy and prepare lungs, body and mind for the hold downs during a surf.

Flexibility comes within a while – everyone can get it

Yoga isn’t only suited for flexible people, but it will improve your flexibility which can be an advantage in surfing. The ranges of motion in surfing are quite extreme, so in order to perform well an optimal level of flexibility is needed in certain muscle groups and tendons. Also keep in mind that evidence suggests that increasing range of motion beyond function – through stretching – is not beneficial and can actually cause injury and decrease performance. So stretching in order to benefit surfing should be functional or in other words, similar to the surf specific movements.

Increase muscle strength

A very obvious advantage of yoga when it comes to surf performance has to do with muscle strength. A lot of poses in yoga are held for a long time which improves muscle endurance. On top of that it engages a lot of core muscles which is great for posture, balance and injury prevention in general. This can obviously only benefit your surfing.”

Why not book some additional Yoga classes in our Moliets or Carcans Surfcamp? In Carcans it is even for free and in Moliets it can be added for a small price. So why not trying it and see how it goes?