Stand-Up Paddle Boarding for Core Strength, Balance and Total Body Fitness!

 

Stand-up Paddle Boarding (SUP) is a fun activity that almost anyone can learn, and it is one of the best workouts available!   Stand-up Paddle Boarding is low impact and provides a combination of balance, core, strength, and endurance.     Since you are standing you have to use everything from your feet (wow do you use your feet!) all the way up through your entire shoulder girdle.    

Because you are standing your arms never have to go above shoulder height which means that there is much less stress on the rotator cuff muscles than kayaking.    You use your shoulders heavily but your shoulders are stressed in the position where they are naturally most stable and strong so much better than kayaking for those with shoulder and neck issues!

Just standing on a Paddle Board forces you to stabilize your entire body and core, and it is one of the best activities available to develop balance.   Best of all if you do fall you land in the water and getting back on the board is very easy!  

SUP Technique Breakdown

Learning to SUP is easy but mastering the stroke and maximizing your speed takes lot of practice.   The first thing to focus on is NOT pulling the water!     Instead you want to plant the blade in the water and pull yourself and the board up to the paddle blade.   Imagine that you are stabbing the paddle firmly into soft sand then pulling yourself and the board up to the paddle.     If you can clearly visualize the difference here it will go a long way to getting your stroke where it needs to be for optimum speed.   Think about grabbing the water NOT pulling the water by you!

Reach

Once you get a little feel for it start looking at how far you are reaching forward to put your paddle in the water.   You want to reach as far as possible each time you stroke, BUT there is a limit based on your particular anatomy, shoulder strength and balance.    If you reach too far you can overstress your low back, shoulder or just be off balance which is counter-productive.

Catch

This is where the blade of the paddle enters the water.    Make sure the entire blade enters the water before you begin to pull.   The catch should be as smooth and clean as possible with no splashing.

Pull

Now you are ready to apply power to the paddle.   Use your entire body for this part of the stroke.   It is NOT about using your arms.   Rather your arms merely connect you to the paddle through your hands and you use the rotation of your torso, hips, and shoulders to drive your paddle!  Try to relax your arms as much as possible to perfect this technique. Do not pull too far back as this will actually slow you down.   Once the paddle passes your hips if you keep pull you are actually pulling the paddle up meaning you are pulling the paddle board down and this only slows you down.

Release

After the pull you need to release the paddle from the water.    Like the catch you want this movement to be quick, smooth, and with zero splashing.   Feathering the blade of the paddle creates a smooth release and set-up for the next catch.   You feather by dropping your top shoulder, “breaking your wrist inward”, or a combination of both.  

Recovery

Once you release the paddle you are ready to set-up for the next catch and pull.   Try to relax during this phase – the key to optimum paddle technique is learning to set a rhythm between tension and relaxation and ultimately getting your breathing into a rhythm with the stroke.  The first time you feel this come together it is amazing – really zen!  So stay relaxed and let go of the tension you produced in the catch and pull and smoothly swing the paddle forward to prepare to drive the blade fully into the water for the next pull!

How many calories can you burn Paddle Boarding?

Obviously your actual calorie burn will depend on the intensity of effort you are putting into to paddling along with your height, weight, and the wind and water conditions you are paddling in.     However here are some estimates based on people weighing between 165 and 200lbs :

         Casual Paddle Boarding – 300 – 430 calories per hour

Yoga on Paddle Board – 416 – 540 calories per hour

Touring on a Paddle Board – 615 – 708 calories per hour

Surfing on a Paddle Board – 623 – 735 calories per hour

Racing a Paddle Board – 715 – 1,125 calories per hour

So if you have not taken the plunge yet – google “Stand-up Paddle Board Rental” and find a rental location and give it a whirl.   Rentals including paddle, board, and lifejacket are generally $25 - $35 per hour so get out there and give it a go!   

Group Exercise Boosts the Brain Benefits of Exercise

New research from Japan shows that combining exercise with socializing significantly boosts the cognitive benefits of exercise.

The researchers weren’t surprised when they saw cognitive benefits in individual exercisers compared to their sedentary peers. No news there. However, they were intrigued that the group exercisers fared far better.

"Exercise is manageable for many older people, and we saw cognitive benefits from it compared with those who don't exercise," explained study senior author Tomohiro Okura, a professor at the University of Tsukuba in Japan

People who exercised alone two or more times each week decreased their risk of developing impaired thinking or learning skills by more than 15 percent. But those who exercised in a group doubled those benefits!

Group Exercise Doubles Cognitive Benefits

"… it's even more noteworthy that we found exercise's benefits rise -- 14.1 percentage points in our study -- when performed with others and at least twice a week," Prof. Okura added.   Those who exercised with others twice or more weekly exhibited a 29 percent decrease in cognitive decline. That’s double the brain benefits!

"A majority of the older adults in our study took part in exercise by themselves, and we can see the cognitive benefits when they do so at least twice a week," Prof. Okura explained. "Adding in the social element, however, may make regular exercise all the more preventive. Adopting this habit could be extremely valuable."

Indeed, research supports that socializing is right up there with exercise, diet, and sleep when it comes to healthy aging.

How Company Improves Brain Function

This study adds to a body of research showing the significance of strong social ties to brain health. When you socialize and interact with others while exercising, you are also focusing your attention and strengthening neural networks.

A recent Johns Hopkins Study found that socially isolated older adults have a 27 percent higher risk of developing dementia than older adults who are socially engaged.

“Social connections matter for our cognitive health and the risk of social isolation is potentially modifiable for older adults,” notes Dr. Thomas Cudjoe, senior author of the study.

Whether it’s a fitness class or a walking group that meets regularly, you’ll experience a bounty of benefits. Those start with motivation…

Group Exercisers are more consistent Exercisers

A study found that older adults are more likely to stick with an exercise program if they do it with peers their age.

"All of this together points to the power of social connections," said Dr. Mark Beauchamp, the study’s lead author. "If you set the environment up so participants feel a sense of connection or belonging with these other people, then they're more likely to stick with it."

Other research shows that having an accountability exercise partner helps with accountability and frequency. When someone is counting on you to meet them - it’s a lot harder to skip. 

Staying active with others at the gym is an easy, fun way to enjoy companionship, keep your body fit and boost your memory, too.

Pros and Cons of Training on Unstable Surfaces

 

Training on unstable surfaces owes most of its development to rehabilitation, where it originated.  There are many unstable training surfaces including physioballs, foam pads, inflated rubber disks, and Bosu’s.  These surfaces are used on the training floors of most gyms. 

The idea behind unstable training is that inconsistent motion stimulates sensory apparatus in the muscles and joints leading to increased sensory input and increased muscle activation.  In addition, these movements cause muscles on both sides of the joint to co-contract.  Co-contraction occurs to some extent during virtually all movement.   When we significantly increase co-contraction, the result is increased joint stability.

Increased co-contractions from unstable surface training can be very useful in the treatment of ankle instability and lumbar spine injury.  [MV1] However, when we use a concept originally developed for rehabilitation, we need to carefully evaluate how and when to use this approach in healthy or athletic populations.

For example, many trainers have clients perform shoulder presses while sitting on a physioball or standing on Bosu to increase core muscle activation.  However, this does not produce the desired result.  Studies show that doing shoulder presses on an unstable surface do NOT increase core muscle activation versus the same exercise done on a stable bench.

The reason for this result is that balanced vertical forces in alignment with the spine do not increase core muscle activity – regardless of instability of the surface the exercise is performed on!  The use of asymmetrical loading, such as doing a one-sided shoulder press, does increase core activation.  However, this is not increased further by being on an unstable surface.

Horizontal limb movements also increase core activation, but there is not a lot of evidence that adding an unstable surface increases this benefit.

When it comes to low back stabilization, research shows that exercises done on balls in a horizontal position (face up or face down) does increase core muscle activity.  Exercises like crunches, bridges, and push-ups on an unstable surface will result in increased core activation. 

Unstable Surface Training does NOT work well for absolute strength and power!

When it comes to absolute force production performing exercises such as bench press or squats on an unstable surface is counterproductive as force production significantly decreases when training on unstable surfaces.   When training for increased strength and power, performing exercises on stable surfaces is a much better choice. 

This is also true for sprint training because training on an unstable surface increases ground contact time and decreases force production, inhibiting acceleration.   

The other consideration when using unstable surfaces like a Bosu Ball is that lifting mechanics are significantly altered.  Researchers have suggested that training on highly unstable surfaces can actually increase the risk of knee injuries in certain populations!  Not to mention the risk of injuries also increases from hopping, jumping, and leaping on and off of unstable surfaces!

Training with Unstable Devices vs Training on Unstable Surfaces

Training using unstable loads like a sandbag has very different effects from training on an unstable surface.    In fact, unstable load training has direct positive transfer to many activities of daily living and sports because we are frequently called upon to move unstable loads including:

Carrying shopping bags

Carrying children

Contact sports where you are pushing, pulling and twisting against other people.

Unstable load training with sandbags also results in increased stabilizer firing and muscle activation that directly positively transfers to functional movement.

What role should unstable training play in developing programming for apparently healthy and athletic populations who are not injured? 

Research suggests that a combination of unstable and stable training will provide the best results.  This brings up two more questions:

 

           Which should come first: stable or unstable?

 

           What level of instability should be used with each particular person?

 

The answer to the first question is dictated by the rules of proper progression.  The three primary phases of stabilization training include: 

·       “Static” Stabilization (foundational) – meaning ability to stabilize in static postures such as the plank.

·        “Dynamic” Stabilization (strength/endurance) – ability to stabilize during dynamic exercises

·        “Ultra-Dynamic” Stabilization (power) – ability to stabilize during explosive movements

Within each phase:

·       Start with bilateral (both arms or legs) strength development in stable environments because it is safer and will increase strength more.  

·       Next progress to stable single limb challenges

·       Then progress towards hopping and jumping skills in a stable environment

·       Then apply that new strength and power to tasks involving postural control on unstable surfaces such as push-ups, planks, and other stability ball exercises done with the body parallel to the floor.  

When it comes to how much instability to use with each person, the answer will depend on the goal of the exercise and the ability of the individual.  Ideally you will use different levels of instability according to the goal of the exercise and your ability level.   Working with a qualified trainer is highly recommended to get the benefits of unstable training!

To learn a systematic approach to incorporating unstable load training check out DVRT – Dynamic Variable Resistance Training here:  dvrtfitness.com