Women hear a lot about the importance of fitness and movement, but with so much misleading and contradicting information out there it can be confusing. Surfing can help to cut through all this by connecting your mind, body and soul.
‘Do this, don’t do that, eat this, definitely don’t eat that, this will get you a flat belly or remove cellulite' on and on it goes. As a result of this information overload, it can be easy to loose focus on what wellness is really about.
Movement has long-term health benefits for everyone, with the power to improve every part of your body and your mind. Movement should be about how you like to move – it must have an element of joy. When there’s no joy, the excuses start to creep in and from there it creates a ripple effect that can impact your everyday life.
How surfing cuts through
This is where surfing can help. Surfing makes women dig a little deeper, past the physical body, to see what really works for them. It helps people connect to how they truly feel about their wellbeing and what they wish to improve, rather than preaching about the latest fitness fads which claim to help.
Sarah Pawley is the Senior Surf Coach for Surf Getaways – a surf travel and learn to surf company founded and run by women, for women. She said,
Surfing not only connects you to the outside elements, it also provides you with a feeling that is so internal and personal, only you know exactly how it makes you feel. Riding a wave makes you connect with your body and start to give it credit for the way it moves instead of being overly focused on how it looks.
"Movement is a way to show respect and a loving connection to our physical bodies. It helps my surfing which helps with my mental state, because when I surf it brings me a sense of gratitude. It keeps me mindful of how I talk to myself when I need that extra push and most importantly I feel an overwhelming amount of joy." Surf Getaways Senior Surf Coach, Sarah Pawley
Building physical understanding
Surfing is a physical activity that demands a lot from the body. Understanding how your body moves and feels creates confidence in your ability, and removes any nerves you may be feeling. Those feelings of fear can be just a lack of experience – when we have experience, fear stops creeping in and we feel in control.
Because we live in a world where we are always thinking about the next thing, we never truly allow ourselves to be living in the present. With surfing you have to leave everything behind and just be in the moment. If your mind starts wandering, thinking about any stress or issues in your personal or work life, the ocean will immediately put you back in your place.
This is the joy of surfing – you can literally jump into the water and drop all your frustrations and anxieties into the ocean.
