How to Engage Your Core When Paddle Boarding - SUP technique

SUP technique

When a beginner first get on a stand up paddle board and doesn’t have any instruction, they tend to use their arms only for taking a stroke.

It's a common mistake for those who just start to learn how to paddleboard.

And when you only use your arm to paddle, you are wasting a lot of your energy moving the water instead of your board.

It will make your strokes very inefficient and your board go very slow.

But if you know how to use your core for paddling, then you will be able to make your strokes more efficient and powerful and no energy will be wasted.

All your energy will be properly transferred to the board and you will notice that you are moving much faster than before.

So, if you want better performance in stand up paddle boarding, it’s important to know how to make good use of your core.

In this post, we will go over SUP technique on how to correctly engage your core when you are paddle boarding.

SUP technique

Other than learning the necessary  SUP technique, you will also need a suitable paddleboard if you want to have good performance in stand up paddle boarding. Goosehill Sailor All-Around is a wonderful inflatable SUP board for all sorts of SUP activites.

  1. How to engage your core in the three most basic strokes in SUP

If you are able to use your core correctly in every part of your stroke, you will be able to go much faster with every stroke and your performance will be improved. In stand up paddle boarding there are a few types of basic strokes and every kind of stroke can benefit from better utilization of your core. Here’s how to engage your core in some basic strokes.

 core muscles

1.1. Engage your core in the reverse sweep.

The reverse sweep is the most basic stopping stroke. To really engage your core, you need to get down, bend your knees a little more and start rotating back towards the tail. And at the same time, plant the blade completely in the water, unwind from the core, turn your feet towards your paddle and when the paddle is out of the water, you've taken a reverse sweep successfully with your core.

 

1.2. Use your core in the forward sweep

The second stroke is forward sweep which is used when you need to take a turn. To use your core for the forward sweep, you need to bend your knees a little more and start rotating your body. This is the part where you engage your core for the stroke. Plant your paddle completely in the water, and unwind for the purpose of turning your feet away from your paddle.

 

1.3. Use your core in the forward stroke

The third stroke is the forward stroke. It’s a basic stroke to propel your paddleboard forward. If you are able to engage your core properly in forward strokes, you can make your paddle boarding experience much more enjoyable. Be sure to plant the whole blade in the water and start pushing down with your top hand.

When paddling forward, you can think of it as moving your feet forward. It’s like pulling your feet and your body forward and towards the paddle.

The key to a powerful stroke is engaging your core. Always use your core to move your board. 

A good SUP board plays an essential role in your standup paddleboarding experience. If you don’t know which SUP board to pick, go check out Goosehill Rainbow R inflatable SUP board. It’s one of the best all-around inflatable paddle board on the market under $600. It’s a great board to invest your money in for a wonderful stand up paddleboarding experience.


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