improve your take-off and unlock the next surf level

Surfing – it looks so easy and almost feels like flying… and if there wouldn’t be the take-off, it would safe many surf beginners one or two moments of frustration. Because what looks so easy for the others, becomes quite the challenge in reality: how on earth are you supposed to get from lying flat on your belly to standing relaxed on your surf board? Here we will show you, how you can improve your take-off and take your surfing to the next level!

Table of Contents

Take off verbessern - gelungener Take-Off

The take-off in surfing – the key step on the board

The take-off or pop-up in surfing describes the exact moment when you stand up on the board while surfing. There are different techniques for this: 2 or 3 step variations, the jump onto the board or the take-off over the knee.

For step-by-step take-offs, first place your arms next to the ribs on the board (don’t grab the rail!). Then pull your back foot to roughly where your knee was before. And when you bring your front foot under your shoulders, you push off with your hands at the same time so that your upper body comes up.

This gradual take-off can be accelerated, for example, by pulling your back foot forwards while pushing yourself upwards.

With a pop-up jump, on the other hand, you push yourself up and jump directly into the surfing position with your feet. This type of pop-up is particularly helpful in fast, steep waves, as it allows you to get into the wave faster.

Some beginner surfers also learn the take-off with an intermediate step over the knee. This is particularly helpful for surfing novices who find it difficult to stand up at the beginning, as the step over the knee provides a little more stability. Unfortunately, it is difficult to perform this take-off in faster, larger waves. That’s why you have to get used to this take-off again later. As this is a very tedious process, we would always advise practising the other take-off variants first and only resorting to the knee variant in an ‘emergency’.

take off verbessern - trockenübungen am strand

Train movement sequence & Muscle memory – Improve your take-off

The best way to improve your take-off is, of course, to practise, practise, practise! Whether in a surf course on the beach before going into the water or at home: practising and mastering the take-off in the dry is the basic prerequisite for getting onto the wobbly surfboard in the water.

There are now many videos on the internet that demonstrate the take-off step by step. This way, you can refresh your knowledge from the surf course, practise the sequence of movements at home and improve your take-off.

It is important to practise the movements slowly (in slow motion, so to speak) until you have them down pat. This is the only way to ensure that you don’t practise anything incorrectly. The more often you practise the take-off, the more confident you will become in the movement. In the end, you will hardly have to think about the take-off in the water and your arms and legs will do the take-off almost automatically. So why not just do 10 take-offs every day straight after getting up? You hardly need any equipment and can start the day with a little morning exercise. 

take off verbessern - liegestütze zum surftraining

Improve your take-off & strengthen your muscles

The first day of surfing lessons or even the first time surfing after a long time is accompanied by nasty sore muscles for almost all of us. After surfing, you sometimes notice muscle groups that you didn’t even realise you had before.

In general, HIIT workouts are a great way to prepare for your surf trip or to maintain your surfing fitness. This is because the take-off requires a quick reaction and this is exactly what HIIT workouts strengthen: they boost your basic speed and explosive strength. They also train your core muscles and strengthen your endurance (good for paddling strength and endurance).

With the right workouts, you can train your core and arm muscles as well as your flexibility. Not only will you avoid sore after-surf muscles, but you’ll also become much safer and stronger in your take-off.

How to improve your take-off – tips & tricks

Sometimes it’s just the little things in surfing that decide whether you can successfully put your feet on the board and ride the wave of the day, or whether you fall back into the water more or less stylishly. So here are three tips on how you can improve your take-off:

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Keep your feet together when paddling. This will give you more stability, your board will wobble a little less and it will be easier to get onto your board.

Open your hips when you place your back foot on the board. During the take-off, your knee points outwards, it is not under your body as in the sprint start position.

Use the right moment! If you want to take off too early, the wave won’t have enough power and won’t carry you. Especially as a beginner, if you are surfing soft shallow waves, you can let your board glide first and then start the take-off. This way, your board will be a little more stable in the water and you can stand up in peace.

take off verbessern - welle gut surfen

How to improve your take-off and take your surfing to the next level

A successful take-off is the key moment in surfing. As soon as you can stand up safely, a new world opens up. Because then you can start to actually ride waves, start to steer left or right and slowly but surely venture into green and bigger waves. The take-off is a complex movement and practising it requires patience and a certain amount of frustration tolerance.

Improving your take-off should be your priority, especially at the beginning, and it also makes sense to keep working on your take-off throughout your surfing career.

 

“you can’t stop the waves, but you can learn to surf!”