Look at those pretentious hipster twits doing yoga on the beach. Just look at them. Hang on… Being able to swallow your own toe, backwards… well, that’s kinda impressive. Ok. Ok. I get it now. I can see how that’ll help the body cope with the rigours of their mundane desk jobs, but I think it’d be of far more benefit to me, as a surfer.
And you’d be right, surfer with meandering thoughts, says Trident.
“Bondi Beach Yoga” by tarotastic is licensed with CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/
If you’ve never had some kind of muscle, tendon or ligament injury or strain while surfing you’re either extremely lucky – or one of the X Men. When it comes to stretching pre-surf, there are only two camps of surfers. Those who find it tedious, boring and a waste of time but do it anyway to avoid injury – and those who find it tedious, boring and a waste of time and don’t do it at all. In our teens and twenties, stretching rates up there with queueing for a lice checkup at school in terms of fun. After you turn thirty it’s the same fun-wise, but you start to consider stretching important.
Many surfers go to gym, for strength and fitness, but very few of them really enjoy it I’d wager. Sure, there are those that get their kicks by bellowing like a buffalo on the toilet while lifting weights roughly the size and shape of Mini Coopers, but common knowledge dictates you don’t need bulk to surf well. Sweating your sanity away on a stationary bike makes more sense, even while the dodgy guy next to you stares at you as a great white would a stack of prime seal ribs. However, as Trident has mentioned several times before – the best practice for surfing is surfing. Alas, no matter where you find yourself in the country, this is not possible every day. And this is where stretching comes into play.
“Getting a Sunday workout in. #workingout #lifting #weights” by jaredpolin is licensed with CC BY-NC-SA 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/
Work those hammies. Touch them toes. S-t-r-e-t-c-h that back. The mocking laughter of the groms will only hurt for a minute, but a slipped vertebrae will hurt for a lifetime. Or if you find the glares and half smiles of strangers at the beach uncomfortable, do your yoga and stretching at home. You can really push yourself in the privacy of your own home, and if you soil yourself by pushing too hard – there’s very little harm done. And there’s no creepy strangers watching you bend over while hiding in the bushes. Usually.
We can’t all be pro’s , but we can all extend the length and enjoyment of our surfing by extending our bodies. Heh Heh. See what we did there?! Trident has spoken to surfer and physiotherapist Callie Hugo, and although he risks his stellar reputation by appearing on this unhinged website; his advice has proven invaluable over the years. In fact, if you’re in the Eastern Cape and have a surf related (or any kind of) ailment, get hold of him here and maybe he can sort it out. But one thing he’ll tell you for sure. Make sure you stretch.
