Ab Exercises for Surfers

Surfing requires total body strength. You use your lower body and upper body when riding waves and paddling, and you engage your abs and core in all phases of the process. When training your core for surfing, you need to focus on all three areas: upper and lower abs and obliques. By strengthening these muscles, you will be equipped with critical stability and balance that help you get up on the board, maintain your posture and react quickly to the waves.

  1. Upper Abs

    • When training your upper abs for surfing, use equipment such as stability balls and gym machines or do equipment-free moves using your own body weight. Stability ball crunches provide the advantage of recruiting more core muscles in the workout, while body weight exercises can be done anywhere at any time. Choose from floor crunches or stability ball crunches or use your gym’s weight bench for incline crunches to target your upper abs for surfing.

    Lower Abs

    • Your lower ab muscles stabilize your back and help support healthy function of your lower body. Because they are a key part of your body’s core, you can prevent injuries and add power to surfing movements by strengthening your lower abs. Without any equipment, you can target the area with reverse crunches, lying leg lifts and lying hip raises. Use a stability ball for knee tucks and perform hanging leg raises and incline crunches at your gym.

    Obliques

    • Strong obliques help you make powerful twists and turns, maintain good posture and prevent injuries while you are surfing. To target your obliques, perform body weight exercises such as side planks and oblique crunches. Use a medicine ball for oblique twists and standing torso twists or dumbbells for standing side bends. If you have access to a cable machine, target your obliques with cable side crunches.

    Combination Moves

    • Combination moves work more than one area of your abs at once, providing a more efficient workout and training your core muscles to work together. These include planks, bicycle crunches, Russian twists and double crunches. Other exercises to help you strengthen your abs for surfing work muscles from your upper and lower body with the abs and increase your stability and coordination. Perform standing wood choppers, stability ball pikes, inchworms and walking lunges with medicine ball twists.