Learning to use a SUP is quite easy and in a short time, one acquires the ability to fall less often. That’s why in this article we will teach you How to Get Back on a Paddle Board After Falling. This way you will be better prepared for your next river or lake outings.
How To Stand Up On A Stand Up Paddle Board?
The best way to get on the paddle board after falling is through the center of the board, thus creating a good balance.
Standing up in the Paddle Board in the correct way is fundamental to avoid damaging the back while we are strengthening it. The correct posture is with feet facing forward and legs slightly bent to help maintain balance.
Once in the water, the first step to get on the board is to do it on your knees. Then stabilized, with the help of your hands and balancing your arms, you will be able to stand up. Finally, you can start paddling.
Remember that for safety it is necessary to position the leash on your foot.
You should not try to keep your balance only with your legs. On the paddle board, we must position ourselves with our feet slightly apart, in a straight line with our shoulders.
Once we are positioned we will use our legs to keep us standing and to help in the overall movement of the paddle, but the balance must be maintained with the body. If we start to move our feet, the board becomes unbalanced and it will be easier to fall.
It is common at the beginning of this sport, there is a tendency to look at your feet all the time, instead of look ahead trying to balance the body. The ideal is to avoid looking down, as it will make it more difficult to maintain balance.
To better maintain stability on the board, you should keep your back straight and your head up, look towards the horizon!
How To Paddle On The Stand Up Paddle Board In The Right Way?
Before learning to paddle, you must adapt the paddle to the right size.
To calculate the right size and position of the paddle, think that the paddle should be 6″ (15 cm) above eye level. Then, you hold the paddle firmly by its handle.
This has a curved shape, the correct position to hold it will be the one in which the fingers of the hand are in the front part of the curve and thus achieve a firm grip so that the oar does not escape.
The paddle has two sides (an oar), to row properly you should propel/push yourself by placing the oar with the concave side always backward. The paddle should go straight into the water.
A common mistake is to paddle using only the arms, which can cause discomfort and even pain in the shoulders and elbows.
Stand Up Paddle is a very complete exercise in which the whole body is used, and when paddling, we must be accompanied by a movement of the torso in which the muscles of the chest, abdomen, and legs work in the same direction as the arms.
If you decide to paddle in light to medium wind, always do it starting upwind. It will cost you more, but it is safer since once you are tired you can simply turn around and take advantage of the breeze to return calmly.
Keep in mind that if you row downwind at the beginning and get tired, the return can be really hard and complicated.
What to do if Something Goes Wrong?
The body position named prono, which is lying face down, with the head on its side and the neck in neutral position, is considered a safety position. Either to start to stand up or if needed a rest, the prono position is the preferred position when something goes wrong.
If we start to feel bad on the board, the prono position is the position we should adopt in case something goes wrong.
How to Do It
We place the paddle on our board putting the paddle at the height of the handle of the board and we will lie face down on it. Keep the paddle at the height of your chest or head. This will allow you to continue paddling, without standing on the board or balancing.
How to Get Back on a Paddle Board After Falling: Learn to Fall
As in any sport in which balance is involved, the safest thing is that you are going to fall, if you fall too close to the board you can hit it. Falls are inevitable, so learn to control them.
Try not to let go of the paddle in your falls, it may be hard to be a beginner but any piece of material loose in the water will be a danger. To do this, always hold the paddle tightly by the handle side, never by the blade side. Always keep the area downstream clean in case you fall and the paddle surf paddle comes loose.
We must know our limits, do not get into the water if you are a beginner and the conditions are very hard. Ask before you go surfing if you don’t know the area, and if you are not sure, wait another day.
If you are in trouble and you have surfers around, be sure! Stay on your knees on top of the board, you will have more stability and control, never leave the board loose, even if it is secured by the leash you can have a surfer behind you!
If you are a beginner remember to choose a day with favorable conditions to start SUPing:
In Stand Up Paddle the weather conditions are a major conditioning factor, and factors such as the strength of the wind and the state of the water surface are important. Practicing SUP is usually easy if you choose a day when the sea is calm and the wind is not blowing, however, having the weather against you can make your experience very frustrating, as the wind and choppy sea will make you lose your balance, making you fall off the board and hinder your progress.
Where to Paddle
You can paddle in any aquatic environment, it doesn’t matter if it is not too deep, as long as the keels don’t touch the bottom, it’s all perfect.
Lakes; For lakes, we recommend a wide and stable board, since you will not reach very high speeds, it depends on how fast you paddle.
Rivers; Usually in rivers there is flow, this allows.
We hope that this article about how to get back on a paddle board after falling be of great use to all our readers.