People that love water sports are not short of options. This is because many activities allow you to have a great time in the waters. Learn About Paddle Boarding-
Some of them include surfing, kayaking, canoeing, sailing, waterskiing, swimming, and paddle boarding. If you are interested in knowing these water sports you can visit: http://www.waterencyclopedia.com/
People who love water sports usually have their preferences. Paddleboarding happens to be the preferred water sport for some and there are various reasons for this.
Variety is one of the reasons for many of such people. For instance, you can engage in stand-up, knee, or sit-down – paddle boarding. This is aside from the various techniques that can be engaged when performing this activity.
Especially for those that have no idea of how to partake in this water activity, it is not a hard nut to crack. This is as long as you take note of certain tips.
We would shed light on some of these tips here and advise that you keep reading to become better at this exciting activity. This is especially if you are new to the sport.
Table of Contents
Ensure that You Can Swim- About Paddle Boarding
Swimming should be basic knowledge for anyone that wants to partake in this sport. This is important for their safety as well as learning techniques. So, you should start by learning how to swim.
As an aside, this is something that also applies to other water sports. So, you should make sure you learn how to swim.
Some people play down the importance of learning how to swim because of the possibility of using a life jacket. This should not be considered an alternative to swimming.
Practice in Solid Territory
This is a water activity that allows for variety as explained above. To this end, you should know that every other tip that would be shared here is focused on the stand-up kind of paddleboarding.
Having established this, it is advised that you start learning the techniques on land. Some people start right away in the waters but there are many odds facing such people.
People that learn this way are thrown into an unfamiliar and inconvenient territory from the onset. For this reason, it is likely to be a very difficult experience. Instead, we strongly recommend that you learn the movements and basic techniques on land.
Then you can apply what you have learned on water. While it is true that you will still face some challenges, your chances of learning faster and better are increased this way. So, you should take note of this.
Start in a Good Spot
The place where you launch matters a lot. If you launch in a spot where you are at a disadvantage, you might have issues controlling your board every step of the way. This is a rule that is especially important for amateurs.
Speaking of launching in the right spot, you should consider somewhere shallow and sandy. This will make sure you find a good footing from where you can launch. Especially as a newbie to this activity, you might also consider launching on calm waters. This is likely to help as well.
Make Good Use of Your Knees when you Start
One of your goals should be achieving a center of balance that is low. This is because the board feels more comfortable and easier to maneuver this way.
To ensure that this is the case, your knees can play a major role. This is by keeping still with your knee after the initial push-out. This will help you gain your balance before you get to do other moves. We cannot stress enough how this rule is very important, especially for people new to this water sport.
Move from Your Knee to Your Feet
After gaining balance while you are on your knees, it is now time to stand up. However, you have to do this with a fluid move even as you pick up the paddle in the process. You need to do this so that your balance on the board will not be compromised.
This is the time to put to good use the things you have learned while practicing on land as advised above. You should also not allow the unfamiliar surroundings to get to you.
Just be focused and you will see things play out as they should. After the fluid movement from your knee to your feet, you need to plant the paddle that you took with you while moving from your knees to your feet.
Maintaining the Right Standing Posture
Because you are right on top of the board which is right over the water surface, you need to maintain the right posture. This is important for balance and ease while paddling. The proper standing posture is your feet aligning with your shoulders in terms of width.
Stand in the Right Part of the Board
This is usually the center of the board or the part designated for this purpose. While you are standing in the right spot, the handle should be straddled.
Hold Your Paddle the Right Way
Your two hands have to be actively involved in holding your paddle. One should be below around (the shaft area). The other one should be stationed on the paddle grip as every ideal paddle should have this.
Conclusion
We have shared some tips here to help you engage properly in standup paddleboarding. However, there is more that you still need to know. You can learn more about this by checking the Paddle Board Athlete Website which focuses on this subject.
Paddleboarding is a good water activity but it has to be performed the right way. This is why you are advised to take note of the tips shared here.
