Paddle Board Training

Stand Up Paddle Boarding Training and Conditioning on the JumpSport Fitness Trampoline

Have you taken a trip to the beach lately? Waterways, fresh and salty, are increasingly becoming dotted with vertical figures holding long paddles that peel the water out and away from a long board.  Across the nation and around the world, stand up paddle boarding is becoming the newest phenomenon in aquatic fitness and adventure.

Stand up paddle boarding or “S.U.P.” offers a perfect day activity, hobby or even has a place in competition.  It offers a complete body workout while being out on the water, navigating the surf, watching birds or checking out the fish swimming below you. The JumpSport Fitness Trampoline offers excellent training for stand-up paddle boarding.  The unstable environment, the mat, mimics the wobbly conditions on an S.U.P. board.

Balance is the key to doing any board sport well.  Training for balance or for proprioceptive training on the JumpSport Fitness Trampoline mat is a perfect foundation for strengthening your ability to balance. Stand on the mat, suck in the abdominal muscles (navel to spine) and slowly rise and squat at your own pace until you want to change.  Then you can add more spring to your squat, add a heel lift, or wiggle back and forth.  You are engaging all of your muscles to keep you from falling off of the trampoline which will translate onto the board.

Paddling:

To add on, engage the arms.  If you have a toning bar to use as a paddle, great otherwise a broom, a lacrosse stick or an actual paddle will get your body moving systemically.  Alternatively, you can use a kettle bell, medicine ball or dumbbell. There are several ways that you can “paddle”.  To begin, a front paddle is a simple way to begin.  With both hands on your “paddle” (broom, lax stick, medicine ball) and sweep the “paddle” forward to back staying on one side.  Work one minute then switch to the other side.  Next you can imitate a kayak paddle going side to side.  To add variation to this move, you can work in intervals moving swiftly and then more slowly focusing on range of motion and a deep squat.  You are paddling side to side.  Take a breather and when you’re ready to move on, try a figure eight paddle.  Begin standing then squatting into the eight and then standing up.  To get your brain going, alternate the direction of your figure eight for another minute.

Split Jumps:

With or without your paddle, split jumps on the JumpSport Fitness™ Trampoline are excellent for strengthening your core, your legs and your agility in general.

Start without any props.  Begin the move in a shallow lunge then jump to land on the other leg. Do this for as long as you can be mindful all the while of your form.  Don’t get sloppy on split jumps! Stay careful of your knee and ankle placement. Next, you can work on adducting and abducting the legs.  Place your left foot on your JFT.  Touch the right foot down to the floor and then tap the right foot next to the left foot; repeat.  Morph the move into a squat.  After lowering your right foot to the ground, bend into your knees, hold, and then snap the right foot back to the left before squatting again. Repeat other side.

For upper body and more core work, you can use the JFT to do planks, tricep dips and a variety of plank, push up exercises that will help you gain the muscle, agility, range of motion and strength required for stand-up paddling.

Push-ups:

• Do ten, then break then do ten 2-count push-ups.
• Hold a plank for 30 seconds.
• With your forearms on the mat of the JFT, holding your plank position, twist your waist.  Keep focus on your waist working deeply into the oblique’s.
•  Take a breather. Back to a plank position, bring the right knee in and out, and repeat on the other leg.
• Extend the right leg out to the side and then cross it under your body, extend to the side and cross it across your back.
• Some basic stretching like folding forward, spinal rotation, hip, shoulder, neck and head circles benefit S.U.P. training.

Suzie Cooney, of Suzie Trains Maui is a certified personal trainer and S.U.P. pro based out of Maui. Suzie offers classes on the beach for getting in shape S.U.P. style.  You don’t have to live in Maui to benefit from this incredible coach, her website is a dynamic  resource full of video, audio and pictures for learning more about the sport, the equipment, and getting the most out of the SUP experience.  Once again the JumpSport Fitness Trampoline is at the cutting edge for conditioning.  After you have completed your S.U.P. work out, go ahead and knock out a cardio session.  There are so many exercises and workouts that you can do on a JFT, no doubt you have discovered some on your own.  Do you currently enjoy S.U.P.? Have you been training? Do you use your JFT for sports specific training? If so, which sport and how do you use it?

Until next week, enjoy a fresh workout S.U.P. style. Check out Suzie’s website and then look around your area for shops that rent S.U.P. boards for the day or for a few hours.  They are perfect to use on a calm day, especially if you are new to the sport.  Be sure to lather up in sunscreen and dress accordingly before hitting the water.  Then get out there and do some stand up paddling!

Hang 10!

Heidi Aspen Lauckhardt-Rhoades

Writer and Social Media Correspondent

Fitness Professional

thewritefit.us

Twitter: @ATweetFit