I have the pleasure to work with a few students who are avid surfers. Surfing is a full-body workout. If you’re brand new to surfing, you’ll surely feel the work your body does. As you progress in your surfing, you’ll likely need to incorporate some out-of-the-water training, as well as some stretches for surfing and mobility exercises for surfing. Here are a few of my favorite exercises for surfers.

These don’t need to be the only exercises you do. I recommend incorporating some foundational compound movements as well, such as squats and deadlifts. These exercises are in addition to whatever workout routine you have.

The Goal of Surf Training

Keep in mind that the goal of these workouts is not to build muscle and look bigger. In surfing, oversized muscles often create a disadvantage. Instead, we will work on building strength and endurance in the water. Stronger muscles don’t tire as quickly and allow you to enjoy surfing for more time and with less injury risk.

With this weight training for surfing routine you’ll work on things like paddle strength, improving posture, strengthening the core and hips for your paddling and pop-up, and strengthen the legs and core for that time on the wave. If you have a weak spot in your surfing, you may consider targeting the correct muscle group to improve. I also offer online personal training to surfers all over if you want personalized recommendations and routines!

Exercises for Surfers

I’ve separated these exercises out by the part of the body. I included why you want to do each exercise, and how it will benefit your surfing.

Upper Body

TRX Combined Fly

There are many variations of back flys you can do with a TRX system. This movement combines three of them into one. I like this exercise in general, and for surfers specifically, because it targets the muscles in the upper body in different ways.

First, we have the TRX Y Fly. This exercise works your upper back, rear shoulder, and of course your core. You’ll then move into a T Fly, or Deltoid Fly. This movement will work the rear deltoids more, as well as the rhomboids, traps, and lateral deltoids. Finally, you’ll move into an overhead L Fly, which will work your upper and mid traps as well as your rhomboids.

When I do this exercise with my students, I find that the last one (the L Fly) is the most difficult. So you might position yourself in a way that the L Fly is difficult but doable. Start with a Y Fly, lifting your arms upward in a Y while keeping your body straight and core engaged. Return the arms down slowly to in front of you, then outwiard to do the T Fly. Again, move slowly back to start before moving the arms straight up in an L Fly.

Lat Pull-Downs

If you have access to a gym, lat pull-downs are one of the best lat exercises to really target this muscle. Your lats help you pull downward, and are essential in the motion of paddling your surfboard. The lat pull-down isn’t the most functional exercise. That is, we don’t often pull things down in daily life or in surfing in that exact motion, but it will help you strengthen and grow your lat muscles.

For surfers, I recommend doing a lat pull-down with a weight that allows you to do at least 20 reps. If you lift heavier weights that allow you to do 6-12 reps, you will grow the muscle size. However, what you need as a surfer is to grow strength and endurance with your lats. So go slightly lighter on the weight and shoot for more reps to actually mimic the act of paddling your surfboard.

Pull-Ups

Another classic lat exercise, the pull-up is a great way to work your lats in a more free, instable fashion than the lat pull-down. Make sure to grab the bar with the palms facing away from you to engage the lats. The palms facing toward you make it a chin-up, and will engage the biceps more. This isn’t bad, but not exactly what we’re trying to target for surfers.

If you’re unable to do a pull-up, don’t worry. You can stand on a chair or something else you have and rest as little weight as possible on the chair. You might also try a TRX pullup, starting from a seated position. This allows you to use your leg muscles a little bit if you need the support in getting to the full pullup.

Overhead Presses

Another staple of most exercise routines, the overhead press works the front deltoid, triceps, and upper chest. You also activate your trapezius, core, and lateral deltoid. This compound hip mobility movement is a great way to build overall strength in your shoulders and upper back, and should be included in most exercise routines for surfers.

To do an overhead press, you can remain standing or sit down. Seated presses are generally more difficult, but standing ones require you to use your core which is a plus. Don’t put your arms straight out; allow your elbows to be slightly forward. This exercise should be done with a slow movement down, really engaging the stabilizing muscles to help you build strength all around your shoulder. Again, as it is for paddling, aim for at least 10 reps here.

Pushups and Variations

Pushups are simply one of the best chest exercises, espeically as far as functional fitness goes. If you’re new to strength training, you can start from your knees. As you advance, you can move onto traditional pushups. And as you advance further, you can incorporate different variations of the pushup to target the muscles in different ways. Wide pushups will target the outer chest, diamond pushups the inner chest and triceps, etc.

This is specifically a perfect exercise for surfers because the popup is partially a pushup. You need the strength in the chest and core to lift your body up off the board and get your legs underneath you. The other piece of the popup you’ll need is some hip mobility.

Scarecrows

If you’re weight training for surfing, you need to include scarecrows in your routine. The rotator cuff is essential in the movement of the shoulders, and is often neglected when it comes to strengthening. The scarecrow is one of the few exercises that really targets the small muscles that make up the rotator cuff. Your rotator cuff stabilizes your entire shoulder joint and allows the arm to move strongly through its range of motion.

When you do scarecrows, you’ll want to grab a relatively light weight. It doesn’t matter how much you can bench or military press. The rotator cuff is a whole different animal. Don’t overdo it and cause injury! Move slowly, deliberately, and only move from the shoulder.

Rows and Variations

Rows are another exercise that a lot of people do as theyre a great compound movement. Rows work your lats, traps, rhomboids, erector spinae, posterior deltoids, teres minor, and biceps. With such a wide range of muscles worked, it’s a must-do for any surfer wishing to strengthen their bodies. In addition, there are quite a few variations to target different parts of your muscles.

You can do inverted rows with a TRX to use your bodyweigh, upright cable rows to target the traps more, wide rows to target your rear deltoids, and there are even more variations. As you may expect, I recommend starting with a regular neutral row either with a barbell or dumbbells. Get a hang of the narrow grip row before moving onto variations to strengthen different muscle groups.

Core

Supermans and Swimmers

If you’re paddling correctly on your surfboard, your chest should be raised up in the air. This activates your lower back, or your erector spinae muscles. These are your lower back muscles which run along either side of your spine. These aren’t the easiest muscles to work. Deadlifts will hit these muscles a bit, but it’s good to dedicate some energy to really developing this muscle to prevent lower back fatigue or soreness while surfing.

Supermans and swimmers are two forms of exercise you can utilize to strengthen this part of your back. I recommend doing as many reps as you can, building endurance to be pragmatic about your time on the board in the water. Especially if you’re getting long rides or surfing in rips, you’ll be paddling a lot and this is a must-do. I recommend these exercises for every surfer, as working these muscles of your back will help stabilize and prevent injuries.

Rollouts

Ab rollouts are a functional exercise for your abdominal muscles, obliques, and lower back. You can use an ab wheel, exercise ball, or do the TRX variation. One reason I love rollouts is you get a long range of motion on your abs, which is hard to get with things like crunches. Your abs are crucial for nearly every aspect of surfing. You need them to paddle effectively, pop up correctly, and of course move your torso to turn the board. Strong abs and obliques are an absolute necessity for performance surfing, and will help you stay healthy in the water.

Dumbbell Twists

Dumbbell twists are not a super popular exercise, but are an amazing weight training for surfing exercise. You’ll see a lot of surfers on social media doing these, sometimes even on balance boards to really mimic the movements of surfing. The reason these are so effective is you are moving in a very similar way to turning or snapping the board. Working your obliques super hard, these will help you get the sharp movements and stability with turning.

TRX Pikes

This is one of my go-to trx exercises with my surfer students. Focusing on core strength, it also target sthe shoulders a bit. Using the TRX, you’ll also use a bunch of smaller muscles to stabilize and strengthen, making it a super practical movement. Although not quite the motion of popping up on a shortboard, it engages the lower abs in a very similar way and will help you gain strength through the movement of the pop-up.

Lower Body

Single Leg Balances

Sometimes called a single-leg deadlift, balances are a foundational functional fitness movement. You’ll engage your glute, hamstring, lower back, and core. When compared with traditional deadlifts, these are a good option because the added element of stability is relevant to surfing. You’ll get some strengthening in your ankles, up through your calves. You’ll also use your obliques from front to back to help keep you stabilized through the movement.

Box Jumps

Box jumps are a solid exercise for your quads especially. If you’re looking to build that explosive power you need for sharp turns and snaps, box jumps should be included in your workout routine. My advice is to not put the box too high; the move is more about the jump up than it is the come-down. A higher box will test your hip mobility, which is also important for surfing.

Hip Thrusts

Glutes are an often-neglected part of the body, especially in men. If you’re surfing regularly, you’re using your glutes quite a bit. And, having strong glutes will help protect your back and legs in general. The hip thrust is my favorite way to build these muscles with just a dumbbell. Go for a difficult amount of weight and aim for 12+ reps at least 3 times through.

Lateral Lunges

Lateral lunges work the glutes, hamstrings, quadriceps, adductors, and gluteus medius. You’ll also of course use your core to maintain stability. The reason this is a great weight training exercise for surfing is the strengthening of the adductors. These muscles on your inner thigh are engaged while standing on the board, especially if you’re dropping that back knee. Strengthening your adductor will help protect your knee from damage.

Bulgarian Split Squats

Finally, we have the split squat. Bulgarians are one of my favorite lower body exercises in general, which is why they make this list. You can target your quads, glutes, and hammies, as well as your calves. The added benefit is that you are balancing a bit, so there are a bunch of smaller muscles being used to help stabilize. Also, as you’re working one leg at a time, you can work on strengthening each leg individually. It also helps build coordination and fix muscle imbalances!

Swimming

Finally, I have to mention swimming. This isn’t really a strength training or weight training exercise, but it is perhaps one of the best ways to keep your body healthy for surfing. When there are no waves, you can go out on the water with or without your board and paddle/swim around. Nothing mimics the paddling motion like actually paddling! Especially if you’re in the offseason or a lull between swells, swimming will help your body stay in shape for surfing.