Paddling Tips: Mastering Foot Movement on Your SUP Board
Welcome back to my paddling tips monthly blog!
Today, we’ll explore techniques to help you become more agile and effective on the water. I’m excited to share some useful information about moving your feet on your board.
The Importance of Moving Your Feet
Ever felt like “My feet are glued to my board?” You’re not alone. Many paddlers experience this feeling, often tied to a fear of falling in. However being able to moving your feet is vital for several reasons:
- Blood Flow: Standing still for long periods and “gripping” the board with your feet can cause numbness and/or cramping in your feet. Moving them promotes circulation and keeps you relaxed.
- Weight Distribution: Adjusting your foot position helps shift your body weight forward and backward on the board. This is vital for optimizing performance, whether working to get more weight forward and on to the blade, or during surfing, paddling upwind/downwind, or making turns.
- Board Glide: Moving your feet allows for better trim adjustment of the board, which affects how your board is balanced in the water, helping you maximize your board glide and paddling efficiency.
Start Small
- Lift and Wiggle Toes: Start by lifting and wiggling your toes to feel and relax your feet.
- Rock Back and Forth: Shift your weight between your heels and toes to loosen up.
- Try a Staggered Stance: Paddle with one foot slightly forward of the other. Change feet every time you change sides with the paddle. This can be a small hop or tiny step – step. Always have the paddling side foot back.
- Get down and get back up on your board whenever your feet feel tired or cramped. This is a way to “reset” and start again with foot placement.
- Encourage your Feet and your legs to relax. Keep a soft bend in the knees and ankles. Learn to trust putting body weight on to your paddle.
- Remember to Breathe.
On-Land Drills
Incorporate some land drills into your practice routine. Do these in your warm ups before you paddle and before and after strength training workouts.
Walk the Plank: Use long piece of wood such as a 2 x4 to practice shifting your weight and moving your feet on the board. Walking the plank requires you to step back in a straight line, which is essential for being able to move your feet.
Practise the feeling of turning your feet to the side and moving up and down the centerline of your board by being able to walk up and down the plank.
While practicing this drill you can hold your paddle, mimicking the bracing position you would use on the water.
Grab 2 balance cushions to place your plank in top of and make it feel less stable and more challenging.
See Larry Cain’s “Walk the Plank” drill HERE
Practice the land based techniques described in this blog and in this video here until you’ve mastered the foot movement before trying to move your feet on your board.
Practical Steps for Movement
Here are some straightforward steps to help you unstick your feet and move more freely on your board:
On The Water
Finally, practice moving your feet on the board. To do this effectively:
- Keep your paddle in the water, knees bent, to maintain low center of gravity. Use a Bracing technique as needed to stabilize.
- Turn your feet sideways on the board. When walking up and down the board, your feet will be turned sideways. The balance is felt from heel to toe. Ankle mobility is very helpful here as well. Make sure you are well warmed up.
- Find the centerline of the board. After doing the land-based ‘walk the plank” your body should be able to feel what it feels like to move your feet up and down the centerline of the board.
Finding Your Board’s Center Line
Finding the centerline of your board will help ensure stability when moving your feet. Here’s what to do:
- Turn the front foot inwards into a sideways position. Step your toes right on top of or just behind the handle of your board. Weight into your toes on that foot ensuring that your weight is aligning over with the centerline of the board.
- Step the back foot to the center line of the board behind the handle. Note: Bigger steps are better.
The number one mistake I see paddlers make when trying to move their feet is not finding the centerline of the board. If one foot is even slightly over to one side of the board, it will feel impossible to move the other foot.
Maintaining Stability While Moving
As you practice, keep your knees bent and your body low, keeping a lower center of gravity. A low position will help you feel more balanced and stable. Maintaining a wider stance will help with this. Repeat the mantra “Wide and Low” when moving the feet and stepping back on the board.
A wide stance allows you to shift weight back on the board, into your back foot to get the nose up, and forward on the board, into your front foot to restabilize.
Learn to Brace
Bracing is crucial for balance while moving your feet. Keep your body and center of gravity low. Bend your knees a lot. Keep your paddle low to the water, then practice – Quickly turn the paddle upside down and push it against the water for support.
For more tips on moving your feet see my Skill Video Series on the Seychelle SUP app HERE.
Understanding Your Footing: Goofy vs. Regular
Identifying whether you’re goofy or a regular footer is helpful as well. A regular footer prefers stepping back with the right leg, while a goofy footer prefers the left leg. Knowing this will help you determine your stronger side when moving on your board.
Whatever foot you are stepping back with, start with your paddle on that side. This ensures better control and stability.
I encourage you to keep practicing both dominant and non-dominant side movements on your board in order to become a better all-around paddler.
Final Thoughts
Take the plunge—literally! Choose a day where you feel comfortable going in the water. Dress appropriately for the weather and plan on getting wet!
Jump into the water before you even begin to practice your footwork to “get it over with” and take away the fear of falling in. You are going to fall! When falling, commit to the water and not to the board. It’s a much softer landing. 😉
Embrace the learning process, and remember that regular practice is key to mastering your footwork on a paddle board.
Make it FUN! Children and adults alike learn really well through play!
If you have questions or want to share your progress, connect with me on Facebook and Instagram @seychelle.sup. I’d love to see your photos or videos as you practice moving your feet. Enjoy your paddling journey and have a fantastic day!
Be sure to check out my Skills Video Series and SUP Stroke School on the Seychelle SUP app.