10 reasons why you should surf
The drivethru guide
There are many articles and blogs that explain to us why surfing is the best sport in the world. And what can we say? They are all right!
Sure, surfing always has an individual meaning for each of us. Some of us tend to focus on a different area when surfing than the rest of the surfers who sit in the line-up with us and wait for the next wave. Individual moments are perceived as more intense and important than others. The reasons why I go into the water with my board today can be different tomorrow. Do I want to be close to nature, do I need some distance from my everyday life, do I need to let off steam or do I simply want to do something good for myself? Something about it, however, seems to unite us all. So what is it that makes us throw ourselves into the waves every year, or – for the lucky ones among us who have the privilege of going surfing every day – every day anew?
Surfing is just like all the other things in life: the best way to get to the bottom of it is to try it! But if you’re landlocked at home and the next surf trip is still a long way off – or you’re wondering if you should even try this „surfing“ thing – the following top 10 reasons will surely help you clear the last doubts and immediately pack your bag for your next surf adventure:
Reason 1 – Surfing makes you fit!
Those who have already had their first surf lesson know what is meant! Because the soreness that greets you with arms stretched wide the day after is – to put it mildly – hellish! You feel your muscles in all the places where, according to yourself, you always thought you had none. Surfing is the complete full body workout. No matter if you carry your surfboard through the water at the beginning, paddle into the line-up, paddle into a wave, practice the take-off or finally surf the green wave. All of this takes a toll on your muscles and stamina! The good thing? You don’t even notice it during the session, because you are distracted by all the new experiences and fun in the water.
Reason 2 – Surfing makes you beautiful!
Besides the mentioned fitness, which will change your body positively with regular exercise in the water, surfing also makes you beautiful from the inside out in its very own way. You will soon notice that the fun and small successes in the water, which await you anew with every session, will bring an ever wider smile to your face. It may sound a bit trite, but it’s really true that smiling and happy people radiate a very special beauty! A happy surfer coming out of the water after surfing simply looks and feels good. Period.
Reason 3 – Surfing makes you confident!
Throughout your career as a surfer, you will experience moments when you think, „I can’t do this.“ But in many of these moments you will also learn to overcome this fear. And of course that’s great for your self-confidence! Every time you don’t let your fear defeat you, but instead face it, a penny moves from one pocket (fear and paralysis) to the other pocket (self-confidence and action). You can always remind yourself of this feeling of rising above yourself even when you’re out of the water. The self-confidence you gain will help you face situations that scare you or where you doubt yourself more confidently. And in the end, the wave or the problem wasn’t as terribly big as you initially thought, or you just didn’t trust yourself enough and ended up surfing all the way to the beach in a relaxed manner.
Reason 4 – Surfing makes you patient!
Oh yes, surfing makes you patient. Because contrary to the assumption that as a surfer you spend most of your time on the board, in one session you surf maybe just 5% of the total time you spend in the water. Sounds frustrating at first. But there’s also no point in paddling every wave on and frantically across the ocean. You have to observe the sea and the waves and learn to read them. This requires a lot of time and patience. But soon you will also realize that waiting for the next set and for the next wave are an essential part of surfing and that these quiet moments in the line-up are something very special. Or as Axl Rose already said: All we need is just a little patience….
Reason 5 – Surfing makes you mindful!
Mindfulness is almost a catchphrase these days. Everyone wants to be mindful, but very few people manage it. Because it is often not so easy to be in the moment and to collect your thoughts fully in the here and now. Surfing is different! Because here it is exactly the here and now that counts. You experience the surrounding nature, the element water very directly and become a part of it with your surfboard. Waiting for the next wave, your thoughts are completely with you and you need exactly this concentration to move safely in the middle of the water and to be in the right place when the next wave breaks. Thoughts of everyday life on land or upcoming burdens and problems do not help you and become unimportant. The view over the vastness of the water helps you.
Reason 6 – Surfing makes you flexible!
In surfing, no session is like the other. Every sea is different, every spot and ultimately every day are different and always bring new conditions and different waves. That makes you flexible! Because you always have to adjust to the new conditions and adapt your behavior to them. Restricted thought patterns and ingrained routines will not help you here. By accepting the constant change in surfing, you can also react much more agile in other situations in your life and face them flexibly.
Reason 7 – Surfing takes you to new places!
Another great side effect of surfing is the fact that through this passion you get to many great and interesting places around the world. Many surfers have discovered and traveled to some of their favorite places only because they heard or read somewhere that there are good surf spots there. We ourselves have traveled as far as the Indian Ocean to the beautiful surf and travel destination of Sri Lanka and to the Danish North Sea coast. Two places that could not be more different and have impressed us incredibly by their breathtaking nature. And who knows where it will take us all next.
Reason 8 – Surfing brings you to new people!
Besides the scenic discoveries, you will get to know many new cultures and people at the respective destinations. Be it the local people you meet after your arrival, or the other people in the surf camp and in the line-up, with whom you spend your vacation. The meeting with the most different people is after own experiences simply an unbelievable enrichment. All new acquaintances usually have something interesting or funny to tell or even a special or new way of seeing and doing things. You may already know this feeling from other trips. Exactly these people make the time abroad really exciting! Nice side effect of surfing: Especially in the surf community, it miraculously washes again and again very relaxed and cosmopolitan people in the surf camps, who often move on the same wavelength despite different origins. This is how friendships are formed at the end of the world that often last a lifetime – even if you only meet again once a year at the surf camp or in one of the line-ups of this world.
Reason 9 – Surfing simply makes you happy!
See above 😉
Reason 10 – A cold beer…
…or an ice-cold coconut simply taste much better when you enjoy them together with many other happy surfers after the surf session. Why this is so, we simply can not really explain.