Quantcast

I guess im not very balanced...

Jun 24, 2008
15
0
So my friend decided to take me surfing for the first time the other day and it was such a blast.. Although im not very good yet.. he says i need to work on my balance.. Does anyone know of an exercise or some type of equipment that would help me work on my balance when im at home?? This way next time i can actually stand on the board for more then a second..
 

reflux

Turbo Monkey
Mar 18, 2002
4,617
2
G14 Classified
Yoga.

If you do any lame lifting on bosu balls or swiss balls, I will fight you. It's surfing, not freakin' cirque de soleil.

Close your eyes and bring one knee up so that your thigh is parallel to the ground. Ideally, you should be able to stand in that position for 30-45 seconds while 1) keeping your knee high and 2) not falling over. I view this as a test of balance and leg strength, one or both of which you might be lacking.
 

burninup99

Chimp
Jul 25, 2008
8
0
Yoga is soooo good for you balance. If you're really getting into surfing you might be into the indoboard. I haven't used one yet but I can across this video that looks pretty sick.
 

knittingfiend

Monkey
Jun 13, 2008
193
0
A tick north of Seattle
Yoga.

If you do any lame lifting on bosu balls or swiss balls, I will fight you. It's surfing, not freakin' cirque de soleil.

Close your eyes and bring one knee up so that your thigh is parallel to the ground. Ideally, you should be able to stand in that position for 30-45 seconds while 1) keeping your knee high and 2) not falling over. I view this as a test of balance and leg strength, one or both of which you might be lacking.
I guess I'd disagree with the "not cirque" part. Those balance balls are great for... balance! Try doing above described exercise on the floor. Then try it on a BOSU ball. Then try it on a Swiss ball. THEN try a surf board....
OK, maybe you can't do the one legged thing on the swiss ball, just try standing on that thing, and tell me that wouldn't help with surfing?
 

skatetokil

Turbo Monkey
Jan 2, 2005
2,383
-1
DC/Bluemont VA
Slack lining is what climbers do to work on balance. Basically get some 2 inch webbing, a couple of sturdy trees, and stretch it as tight as you can a couple feet off the ground.

Step on and try not to fall on your face.
 

ultraNoob

Yoshinoya Destroyer
Jan 20, 2007
4,504
1
Hills of Paradise
Slack lining is what climbers do to work on balance. Basically get some 2 inch webbing, a couple of sturdy trees, and stretch it as tight as you can a couple feet off the ground.

Step on and try not to fall on your face.
I thought the purpose of SLACK lining is to keep the rope slack not tight. If you pulled it tight wouldn't that be a TIGHT rope?
 

TN

Hey baby, want a hot dog?
Jul 9, 2002
14,301
1,353
Jimtown, CO
yoga helps a lot with all kinds of stuff. it helped me tons with my skate skiing this winter.

Also try some core work on a big ball.
 

shorty13

Chimp
Aug 21, 2008
34
0
yea balance balls are great. Also, you can buy a stirdy foam pad, and have some one throw a ball towards you (but not directly at you) and try to catch it without moving your feet. I dont know what they are called but they make pads especially for this use. Also you can do it old school way by putting down a large cylindrical object on its side, putting a plank over it, and trying to balance on it as long as you can without either side of the plank touching the ground (where the plank is centered on the cylindrical object).
 

Jeff P.

Monkey
Nov 13, 2006
176
0
East Bay, Ca
Also you can do it old school way by putting down a large cylindrical object on its side, putting a plank over it, and trying to balance on it as long as you can without either side of the plank touching the ground (where the plank is centered on the cylindrical object).
I used to do this in college, take a piece of plywood or other plank-type thing and screw a 2x4 on edge to the middle of it, stand on it, balance and have someone throw a medicine ball at you. Catch it and throw it back without losing your balance, increase distance as your balance improves.