Secrets of learning to surf: the adaptation of homo-sapiens to the ocean environment
This article advocates a fine-tuned approach to learning to surf, as this sport requires bodies to evolve in an unusual environment – the ocean.
Starting from this simple observation: the human being is a monkey of the plains, a creature of dry land. Placed in an aquatic environment, his body language will sometimes express tension and discomfort.
Removed from his preferred environment, land, and precariously balanced on a board surrounded by water, defense mechanisms and unconscious reflexes impose themselves on him, disrupting his learning to surf. Only an outside observer can make him aware of these atavistic reactions. A salutary step, since all these automatisms will prove unproductive and produce the exact opposite of the desired effect.
Indeed, the survival reflexes of holding on, taking refuge at the back of the board or looking for support on the ground lead to a cascade of postural errors that will prevent the novice from getting up on the board. Identifying the origin of these problems and working on relaxation, a form of letting go, will enable you to correct the whole chain of beginner’s technical errors.
So we’re going to have to fight against the homo-sapiens that exists in all of us, to a greater or lesser degree. The latter induces maladaptive reactions, guided by the fear of falling into the water, of planting the nose of the board, of the movement of water and waves on contact with the board.
An experienced surf instructor will be able to identify these irrational tensions in the body and replace bad reflexes with technical gestures adapted to the surfing discipline. Progress will then be much faster than with a purely mechanical approach to technique.
To find out more, you’ll have to take the plunge and take a surf lesson with Ki Surf School, for a hedonistic, anti-stress approach tailored to each individual.
