How To Boost Your Surfing Confidence In The Water?
Are you one of those surfers who seem to get waves all the time? You know, the ones who paddle out and within minutes are up on their feet and shredding?
If so, you may have more confidence in the water than some other surfers. And that’s a good thing – confidence is key to catching waves.
But what if you don’t have that much confidence yet? What if every time you paddle out, you feel anxious and scared, worrying that you won’t be able to catch even a single wave? Or generally, feeling uncomfortable in the water?
Pushing yourself is one of the best ways to gain confidence in any activity, and for surfers, that means spending time in the water.
Every small or flat day should be seen as an opportunity to paddle, work on basic skills, and build up your strength in less intimidating conditions whenever possible.
Worry no more – in this post, we will explore a few ways to boost your surfing confidence. Buckle up!
How to Get More Waves Surfing Confidence
First, it’s important to note that confidence comes from being in control, and being in control in surfing is related to the surfer’s movements and the board.
When you are able to paddle out and catch waves with ease, you will start to feel more confident in your surfing ability.
Also, when taking into account your breathing and emotional state, you will notice the bigger picture of increasing your confidence.
We outlined 5 tips for you in order to increase your confidence in the water. Let’s go!
Square Breathing
Promoting deep breathing for its mental and physical health benefits is nothing new, but it’s a simple tool that can be very effective in developing better habits.
Thankfully, our subconscious mind automates our breathing so we don’t have to think about it constantly – freeing up our attention for doing work or thinking about what should you eat for lunch.
With square breathing, also known as “box breathing”, you can take control of the body’s automatic responses and maximize oxygen intake.
This technique uses a four-count rhythm for both inhaling and exhaling, allowing you to focus on your breath and achieve maximum relaxation.
An anxious mind will often have thoughts of future scenarios that can seem dreadful. If you have experienced anxiety, then you know how this goes.
One way to help an anxious thought pattern is by redirecting your thoughts back to your breath.
We can greatly improve our emotional state by simply focusing on our breath. When we are afraid, anxious, or stressed, our breaths tend to be shallow, short, and quick.
On the other hand, when we feel relaxed, calm, and confident, our breathing is usually deeper and slower.
It shows us that breathing has a lot of control over what we feel in the moment, even when we’re not thinking about it.
And with deeper breathing, you become more relaxed and chill. How amazing is that?
Square breathing can help to deeply and evenly calm the nervous system, promoting a more confident emotional state.
This, in turn, has a positive effect on body language, energy levels, vocabulary use, and overall perspective.
Rather than living in a state of anxiety or doubt (“what if?”), you step into a place of confidence and possibility (“I can!”). It’s a huge shift in mindset that can have profound effects on your life.
Love Your Comfort Zone
Does it really help to perpetually push yourself? I strongly encourage pushing your comfort zones and breaking out of restrictive thinking.
In fact, Having personal goals surrounding scenarios or events which are difficult for you so that you can show yourself anything is achievable if you set your mind to it, is extremely remarkable to me
However, when speaking about gaining confidence in surfing, I believe we should act differently.
You need to first become an absolute expert in your comfort zone before progressing to the next level.
This is widely underestimated but critical to how quickly you learn. by doing this, you’re creating a solid foundation that will help boost your confidence.
You should only move on to new surfing techniques once you’re confident and comfortable with the previous ones.
It means that if you’re trying to duck dive, then learn how to master it and only then move to transitioning or turning.
Basic Technique
One of the most important aspects of gaining surfing confidence is having a proper paddling technique.
A great paddling technique is important for surfing and if you paddle the right way, you increase your control over the ocean.
Paddling is the base of surfing since this is most probably the first action you do when you enter the water.
With a good paddling technique, you’ll be able to catch more waves, and this result in boosted confidence in the water.
Get The Right Board
Having the right board for your skill level is essential for increasing your surfing confidence. If you have a board that’s too small or too big, it can cause you to feel overwhelmed and insecure.
But when you have a board that is the right size for your skill level, it can make you feel more confident in the water.
Each session will bring different sets and every day will be different than the other. And just like you dress yourself up differently for various occasions, the same goes for surfing.
A rule of thumb for picking a surfboard would be the longer and wider the board, the safer you will feel. But this doesn’t mean that you should forget to practice with a smaller board.
Also important to mention is that smaller boards are great for more advanced surfers and they will help you become better if you practice on them.
Stay Positive
Surfing can be unpredictable; waves might come in too quickly or they may not come at all! But don’t let that discourage you. Staying positive will help you to overcome any fear or insecurity.
No matter what, stay optimistic and remind yourself of why you enjoy surfing in the first place.
Also, make sure that your attitude is always positive. Before each session think about how much fun it’s going to be and don’t compare yourself to other surfers.
Remember that we all started somewhere and even if you’re not a beginner – everyone has different capabilities.
Conclusion
The human mind is very complex, and this only scratches the surface of all the ways to help improve confidence.
If someone you know seems always confident, it’s because they’ve likely put in a lot of time and effort honing their abilities through personal development and practice.
True inner confidence comes from taking action and constantly striving to learn and grow more.
There is nothing better than making the most out of our lives by reaching our full potential.