Stand up paddle boarding is one of the fastest-growing water sports ever — and that’s all thanks to the fact that SUPing is fun, exciting, and extremely versatile.
You may get into paddle boarding for a particular reason, like SUP surfing, SUP fishing, or SUP yoga, and then discover the many other things you can do with your stand up paddle board. Stand up paddle boarding never gets boring.
Whether you ever stop to think about it or not, the enjoyment you get from paddle boarding offers plenty of health benefits already, especially once you consider the fact that mental health is a key part of everyone’s overall wellbeing, too.
That’s to say, if stand up paddle boarding becomes a true hobby, that alone will improve your focus, your sleep, and your mood. If SUPing helps you relieve stress, that’ll lower your blood pressure, improve your digestion, and boost your immune system.
As a sport, though, stand up paddle boarding also offers plenty of more specific health benefits — all of which are great reasons to get into SUPing!
Contents
Stand Up Paddle Boarding Can Offer a Full Body Workout
Most people sit down much longer, and much more often, than they should, and stand up paddle boarding is the opposite of a sedentary activity by definition. When you paddle board, just about every muscle group in your body has to be engaged.
Your work your legs as you stabilize your position on your SUP, and engage your torso and back as you propel yourself forward. Your core will inevitably get a hard workout as you keep your balance, while every part of your arms, shoulders, and neck have to move, too.
Try it once, and you’ll instantly gain proof that stand up paddle boarding is a full body workout — every part of you, including your toes and fingers, may feel that burn.
Stand Up Paddle Boarding Is Low Impact
Despite the fact that all your muscle groups get a full workout if you approach stand up paddle boarding with everything you’ve got, SUPing is actually a low impact sport. Like swimming.
It may not feel like it while you’re on the water, but stand up paddle boarding goes easy on your joints and ligaments and is generally suitable even for folks who have recently sustained a sports injury like a torn ligament.
Of course, that doesn’t mean that you don’t need to ask your doctor for the green light before you go stand up paddle boarding if you’ve been injured or you have a health condition like arthritis. It does mean that your doctor may well tell you it’s totally cool to go paddle boarding.
Stand Up Paddle Boarding Improves Balance
Improved balance is wonderful on its own, but it gets better once you hear that better balance translates to lowered injury rates, less pain, and a reduced risk of sustaining falls well into old age — which, indeed, ultimately means a longer and healthier life. Mentally, improved balanced means better focus, which is always welcome, too.
SUPing Helps You Build Better Cardiovascular Health
We don’t have to remind you that your heart is a vital organ, but what do you get when you take active steps to work on your cardiovascular health? Heart disease is a leading cause of death in the United States, as well as in many other developed countries, and while that’s got a lot to do with unfortunate dietary habits, a lack of physical activity also plays a key role in the development of heart disease.
Paddle boarding regularly will help to protect you against heart attack and stroke, and help you maintain a great quality of life for a very long time.
Stand Up Paddle Boarding Is a Great Form of Strength Training
Enjoy your SUP regularly, at least twice a week, and you can look forward to increased strength that you can feel throughout your body. Because stand up paddle boarding works nearly every muscle in your body, including your heart, you’ll be stronger and buffer if you enjoy paddle boarding often.
Stand Up Paddle Boarding Is a Great Way to Lose Weight
Paddle boarding is a fun way to burn plenty of calories and help you get to your goal weight. Contrary to popular belief, dietary choices make up a far higher percentage of your weight loss success than exercise does — around 75 percent, in fact.
You still need to exercise to burn excess calories and become fitter, however, and that portion of a weight loss journey often fails precisely because people perceive working out as a drag. Stand up paddle boarding doesn’t have anything in common with going to the gym; it’s fun and motivating. For that reason, SUPing is a great way to lose weight, and it’ll also help you stick to your diet.
Stand Up Paddle Boarding Helps You Connect with Nature
You don’t have to be spiritual to appreciate the benefits that connecting with nature offers — a better mood and less stress have a very real impact on your overall quality of life, and therewith your health. In this vitamin D starved world, the fact that you’ll spend more time outside if you get into stand up paddle boarding is good news all on its own, too.
SUPing Is for Everyone
Whether you like paddle boarding, or you fancy exploring SUP fishing, SUP yoga (which has exploded in popularity in recent years), or SUP touring, SUPing isn’t only safe, it’s also incredibly versatile. No matter what kind of workout you want, stand up paddle boarding can help you get it. Even kids can paddle board, making it a great activity for the whole family!
A Final Word
Once you get started with stand up paddle boarding, you’ll likely be hooked. You won’t need to force yourself to go SUPing because it’s good for you, because you’ll want to get out onto the water because it’s fun.
If you need to justify buying that new inflatable SUP, though, your other half or your parents may just welcome the expense once they realize how healthy paddle boarding is. Even better, they may join you!
