Surfing is more than a sport; it's an activity that benefits the mind, body, and soul. There's a lot to love, and once you start, you'll see that there are numerous benefits, whether you're surfing for fitness, fun, or your overall wellbeing. Here are just a few of the key benefits of surfing.
| Benefit | Why It Matters |
|---|---|
| Improves Cardiovascular Health | Strengthens the heart, boosts circulation, and builds stamina |
| Builds Full-Body Strength and Muscle Tone | Activates arms, legs, back, and core in one dynamic workout |
| Boosts Mental Health and Reduces Stress | Lowers cortisol, improves mood, and offers natural mental clarity |
| Enhances Balance, Coordination, and Flexibility | Improves posture, body control, and joint mobility |
| Burns Calories and Supports Weight Management | Can burn 250–500+ calories per hour in a fun, non-repetitive way |
| Increases Core Strength and Stability | Strengthens deep stabilising muscles and reduces risk of injury |
| Encourages Mindfulness and Presence | Builds focus, calm, and a break from digital distractions |
| Connects You With Nature and the Ocean | Boosts mood, lowers stress, and fosters environmental appreciation |
| Builds Confidence and Emotional Resilience | Teaches persistence, courage, and the joy of doing hard things |
| Creates Community and Meaningful Social Connection | Builds friendships, support networks, and a shared love of the sea |
Cardiovascular Health
One of the most obvious and immediate health benefits of the sport of surfing is its improvement of the cardiovascular system. Just go surfing once, and as you paddle out, you'll start to feel the cardio. Beyond that, when you duck dive, catch a wave, and even ride that wave, you're doing a low-impact, high-reward cardio exercise that will keep your heart strong and your lungs working efficiently.
Surfing is beneficial because it combines bursts of intense cardio effort (paddling into a set) with recovery periods as you wait for waves, which makes it similar to interval training. This type of training is known to improve cardiovascular health, lower blood pressure, and enhance overall stamina over time.
Surfing mimics interval training. Bursts of paddling followed by recovery. It's great for heart health, stamina, and endurance.
A short surf session will leave you energised, out of breath, and exhausted. The longer you surf, the better your fitness will become, which in turn will allow you to stay out for longer and enjoy more waves.
Full-Body Strength and Muscle Tone
Seasoned surfers can pop up with ease, utilising their full body strength. Surfing engages nearly every major muscle group in your body, making it one of the most well-rounded workouts you can do.
Your arms, shoulders, and back are working from the second you start paddling in the water. As you balance on the board, your legs and core are hard at work, shifting your weight and helping you to ride the wave. Your ankles and feet will help you stabilise on the surfboard.
Unlike a session at the gym that may focus on a select group of muscles, surfing engages many of them. It builds functional strength, which is beneficial for improved movement, better posture, and reduced risk of injury.
Surfing isn't an exercise for bulking up; it'll get you strong, lean, and mobile. You'll achieve more definition in your muscles, all while having fun.
Mental Health and Stress
Surfing isn't just for your body, it's for your mind. Being in the ocean, away from all the stresses of everyday life, will already come with benefits. Then there's the rhythm of the waves, the sound of the water, and the presence of mind involved, making surfing almost meditative.
When surfing, you have to be in the moment, and it's in this very moment where your stress will start to dissolve. As you focus on reading the wave, feeling the board under your feet, and catching your breath, your brain will shift gears.
Surfing is also challenging, which is excellent for emotional resilience. It's a sport where you're supposed to regularly fail, wipe out, and get back on your board and try again. Seasoned surfers don't sweat it when they fall off. It's how they learn.
Balance, Coordination, and Flexibility
Surfing is a masterclass in balance, coordination, and flexibility. Every second you're on the surfboard, you're adapting, stabilising, and adjusting to shifting forces. The more you surf, the more balanced you'll be both in and out of the water.
Your legs, ankles, and core will all work in unison to keep you upright, while your arms and eyes will keep you coordinated and oriented. You'll develop and improve your motor skills the more you do it.
You'll also become more flexible through paddling, twisting, and squatting. Your range of motion will increase as you surf, and you'll feel less stiff as you improve your posture. Surfing actually offers many of the same benefits as yoga.
Surfing builds flexibility, strength, and mental presence, all while connecting you with your body in motion.
Weight Management
Every surfing subtype is good exercise. When you finish a surf exercise, you'll feel tired. This is because surfing is physically demanding and requires a lot of energy, resulting in a significant calorie burn. Your body's constantly moving, so surfing isn't just fun, it's an effective way to support weight management and overall fitness. The number of calories you burn will depend on your weight, the intensity of the exercise, the conditions, and the length of the session. Typically, surfing can burn between 250 and 500 calories per hour.
for every hour of surfing.
Surfing is also dynamic and unpredictable, so you'll burn these calories in a more entertaining way than repetitive and straightforward cardio. Surfing is tiring, but it doesn't feel like a workout where you're counting reps or watching a timer.
Core Strength and Stability
Instead of doing crunches, ride waves. One of the primary physical benefits of surfing is that it develops a strong, stable core. From paddling out to popping up and riding the face of a wave, your core muscles will be working hard to keep you balanced and in control.
Surfing strengthens the deep stabilising muscles around your spine, hips, and abdomen, which are the ones behind posture, balance, and safe, efficient movement. You'll be developing functional strength without realising.
As your core strengthens, the benefits won't be just felt on the board. Whether you're sitting, standing, or walking, your risk of lower back pain will be reduced. A beginner surfer will feel their core when they learn to pop up. Over time, you'll become more stable both in the water and back on dry land away from the beach.
Mindfulness and Presence
Surfing allows you to be present in the moment. You won't be glued to a screen, worried about deadlines, or distracted by the everyday world. In the ocean, you can watch the waves, time your takeoff, and feel the board beneath you.
Surfing is a moving meditation as you feel the rhythm of the sea. Despite being on the water, surfing can ground you, bringing you back to your body and mind. For many surfers, surfing is a form of mindfulness.
It doesn't have to be spiritual, like surfing was initially; you can step into the water and leave your worries behind on land. Combining this mindful activity with regular exercise can lead to numerous benefits for your mental health.
Nature and the Ocean
Surfing can put you more in touch with nature and throughout surfing's storied history, this connection has been a key part of the appeal. Reading waves, listening to the wind, and feeling the pull of the tide puts you in direct contact with Mother Nature. There are numerous benefits to spending time in nature, including an improved mood and a more positive perspective.
The more time you spend in the sea, the more you'll appreciate nature, especially if you're surfing in certain parts of the country where you have to be respectful of the local flora and fauna.
Confidence and Emotional Resilience
We've already mentioned how constantly failing hits differently when surfing, and it's all part of the experience. Falling off your board repeatedly doesn't just make you emotionally tougher; it also boosts your confidence when you get it right.
The process of surfing teaches you to keep going, to stay calm under pressure, and to believe in yourself. These are life skills that will accompany you even when you head back to shore.
Surfing will also teach you to trust your body, your instincts, and your judgement. While the exercise will improve your posture, it's your confidence that will make you stand taller, because you know that most other things pale in comparison to how brutal surfing can be sometimes.
Community and Social Connection
Surfing might feel like a solo sport when you're riding the wave, but everything around that is really social, including the rules and etiquette of surfing. Chatting at the beach carpark and the connections you build with each session, surfing is about community.
Whether you choose to surf with a surf school, paddle out at your local break, or hang out with fellow surfers, you'll see that surfing draws you into a community. People help each other spot sets, celebrate good rides, and look out for one another in the lineup as part of the broader surfing etiquette.
Surfers know what it's like to go through the same challenges, such as missed waves, wipeouts, and triumphs, and it brings them closer together. Beginners, in particular, will love this. Surfing offers a supportive environment for growth, which is why it has become such a diverse and global community.
As you can see, surfing is more than a way to stay active. With so many benefits, you might be feeling keen about getting started. If so, search for a surf tutor on the Superprof website and enjoy the benefits of surfing and private tutoring all in one!
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