3 Astounding Tips On Improving Your Paddle Board Technique

 Learning the basics of Improving Your Paddle Board Technique is crucial to both novice and experienced paddlers 

Usually, very few people take Stand Up Paddling SUP lessons before getting on a paddleboard for the first time! It is essential to understand that bad habits can affect your efficiency, control, stability, and cause muscle fatigue. A good paddle board technique will ensure you go faster, longer, and avoid muscle injuries. In a nutshell, your paddleboarding experience is going to be as good as your SUP paddle technique. As of now, SUP is one of the fastest-growing outdoor recreation activities because it is a full-body workout that is not only fun but also reduces stress.

Follow these steps to improve your paddleboard technique:

 3 Simple Steps To Improve Your Paddle Board Technique 

 Step 1: Enhance Stance on Your SUP 

Proper foot placement and posture ensures you get balance and control on your paddleboard. To enhance your SUP stance, a good SUP posture and proper foot placement are crucial.

 FOOT PLACEMENT ON YOUR SUP 

Proper posture and foot placement ensure you balance and control your paddleboard with ease. If you stand far backward or forward on your paddleboard, it will be harder to gain momentum and stay balanced while paddling. So, where should you stand? The best spot is at the middle point, although you can stand further back if you have another passenger on your paddleboard to distribute the weight evenly. If you want to determine the center of your board, look for a carry handle because it is always located at the center of your board.

It would help if you placed your feet width apart on either side of the carry handle, angle your feet slightly from a parallel position, and avoid gripping your toes to the deck pack to avoid losing balance. Remember to distribute your weight evenly when paddling to maintain balance and control your paddleboard easily.

 POSTURE IS IMPORTANT 

Bad paddling habits result from a bad SUP posture. Therefore, it is essential to correct your posture early to improve your paddling experience, avoid straining your body, or getting injuries.
Follow these tips for a good SUP posture:

• Keep your knees slightly bent in such a way you can see your toes.
• Your knees should be angled over your feet. Avoid caving your knees inwards or outwards as you paddle.
• Keep your back straight always to avoid straining or back pains
• Always look ahead/at the horizon and never at the board. Remember, you will lose your balance if you keep looking around or down at your feet.
• Engage your core for efficiency, to create stability, and distribute your weight evenly. Engaging your muscles will also help if you have tired back muscles, arms, or shoulders.

 Step 2: Holding your SUP paddle correctly 

One of the common mistakes paddle boarders make is holding and misusing the SUP paddle. Doing it wrong causes back pains and unnecessary fatigue in your shoulders and arms. To correctly hold your SUP paddle, the blade’s slope should face away from you. To easily remember, the logo should be facing away from you towards the front of the paddleboard. One of your hands should be placed on top of the paddle grip while the other hand should grip the shaft halfway down.

 Step 3: Improving your paddling stroke 

After knowing the correct paddle height and grip, the right posture and foot placement, consider improving your paddling stroke. With the right paddling stroke, you will cover more ground with ease. Remember, you need to practice to improve your paddling stroke. However, to master your paddling stroke, follow these tips:

 STAGE 1 – THE DIP 

Reach forward while keeping your back straight and push the blade into the water. Ensure the entire blade is submerged into the water to generate enough power. Keep the shaft perpendicular to the surface of the water. Remember, you will generate less power if the blade is angled.

 STAGE 2 – THE POWER PHASE 

Ensure you have held the SUP paddle correctly and then engage your core muscles to pull the paddle through the water. Relying on your back and core muscles ease the paddling process and reduce the possibility of developing back pain. Always keep both of your arms straight when paddling to generate more power and avoid getting injuries.

 Your Paddle Board Technique will improve without doubt using some of these tactics. 

To become a pro, you need to keep practicing to improve your SUP paddling skills! It is essential to strengthen your core muscles or sign up for paddleboard technique classes while at it. Finally, you can tilt the side of the board slightly whenever the paddle enters the water.