Surfing and the Pilates Advantage
By Alisa Wyatt
As a Pilates teacher, when I work with an athlete (or any client for that matter), my goal is to apply the method to that person’s particular needs. So when I took up surfing, I started thinking about ways I could get more out of my own workout. I already had control, strength and flexibility from regular Pilates sessions, but I knew I could do more to prepare for the unique demands surfing put on my body.
While teaching a Pilates & Surfing retreat in Mexico (check out ViaYoga: www.viayoga.com for the very best immersion trips), I watched my students learning how to surf to help me figure out what surfers need. Surfing is a stop and go sport where you wait, wait, wait and then suddenly—go!—you’re paddling hard to catch a wave (or be crushed by it), popping up and balancing while turning. The body has to be able to react quickly, gracefully and with power. This observation reminded me of my apprenticeship with Romana Kryzanowska, and how she would often finish a mat class with an exhilarating round of standing jumps, urging us to ‘touch the sky!’ as we jumped higher. Those jumps were fun and they quickly built lots of power and control to lift the body—I decided strength moves like these were key to helping me feel more stable and quick on my board.
Using myself as a guinea pig to test my theory, I knew I would need to build up to my goal of explosive power Jumps. To prepare, I added Squats against the Wall and One-Leg Squats against the Wall to the end of my 3x/week workouts. These are static exercises that create strength and help to correct imbalances with little risk of injury. When I could hold a Squat against the Wall for at least a minute, I added movement. Switching to the Cadillac, I worked on Standing Squats at the Cadillac and One-Leg Squats at the Cadillac—these really made me aware of how my powerhouse and legs were integrated. Forget your powerhouse and you end up on your butt! Once I mastered squats with the help of springs and could do them slow or fast with good form, I added a new challenge to my balance, Lunges with 2 lb. Hand Weights. I noticed my chronically weak side for the first two weeks but after 4 weeks, both legs felt steady and strong. I was ready for the final frontier: Jumps. These were hard work (I did 10 each workout, bending deeply in the knees before explosively taking off and landing like a cat) and made me ridiculously sore, but there was a change in my surfing. My feet were suddenly right underneath me when I popped up instead of dragging behind and I felt planted on my board and aware of what I wanted to do next, yeah!
This success encouraged me to try the same process for the Pilates Push Ups, with a goal of mastering the Push-Up with a Clap—a power move sure to make my wimpy paddling stronger. As before, I started by holding a Plank position for 30 seconds. Next were Push-Ups, and finally, Push-Ups with a Clap. I have to admit, I can still only manage the clap from a Knee Plank but ‘Rome wasn’t built in a day’ as Joe would say and I am able to paddle longer without becoming winded so I know it’s working. If you decide to try power moves, please keep in mind that these exercises are only for those who are injury free, fully warmed up and working out regularly. If I take even a week off, I’ll go back to regular versions before I return to liftoff. Please don’t risk injuring yourself or your clients by taking on too much too soon.
Adding more power to my workouts was helpful for me, but I also know I started off surfing with a Pilates advantage. My first time out, the surf instructor was convinced I’d surfed before and I know I was lucky to have the physical conditioning that made it easier to learn. Whether you’re just getting started at Pilates or surfing, you can still reap the benefits. If you’re a beginning surfer, launch yourself head on into a regular Pilates mat and make it part of your warm up before you surf—you’ll activate the developing muscles of your Powerhouse and your coordination and agility will benefit. Better yet, go on a Pilates & Surfing retreat with daily surf instruction and Pilates classes, there’s nothing like a group cheering you on to make learning fun.
If you’ve been surfing for years and you’re getting aches that don’t go away like they used to, find an experienced instructor to help identify what’s going on. Repetitive movements in surfing can create enormous wear and tear on muscles and joints and can lead to muscle imbalance in areas like the shoulders and low back. For instance, the paddling position makes the low back work constantly to hold the chest up while the abs are stretched out and underused, resulting in overwork and stiffness in the low back. Correction involves exercises that lengthen the overused muscles and strengthen the weaker ones—exactly what Pilates does, and often just a few sessions will eliminate pain.
But don’t let it stop there, practiced regularly, Pilates can give you the advantage that Joseph Pilates promised, in the ocean and everywhere else: ‘You will develop muscular power with corresponding endurance, ability to perform arduous duties, to play strenuous games, to walk, run or travel for long distances without undue body fatigue or mental strain. And this is by no means the end.’*
Alisa Wyatt (www.alisawyatt.com)
PMA Gold-Certified Pilates Instructor, Alisa Wyatt, is creator of the DVD, Pilates for Men. As a Pilates expert, she’s featured in national publications like Pilates Style (May/June 08) and TheStreet.com. In addition to teaching at retreats and conferences internationally, Alisa trains privately at her Los Angeles studio.
ViaYoga (www.viayoga.com)
A world leader in providing deluxe yoga, Pilates, and surfing vacations, and was recently listed as 1 of 9 “amazing vacation destinations” by Yoga Journal, June 08
*Return to Life Through Contrology by Joseph H. Pilates, 1945
Tags: alisa wyatt, pilates for surfing, via yoga