There are many ways surfers train for their time in the water. I’ve seen some crazy videos of people doing all kinds of exercises on balance boards, many people work with a personal trainer, and a lot of people like the courses offered by the Surf Strength Coach. However, training for surfing isn’t just about building strength. Yoga, in my opinion, is a solid addition to every surfer’s training routine.

Why Should Surfers Do Yoga?

I’ll admit I’m not an expert on yoga. I’ve been to my share of yoga classes over the years, and even a few yoga and surf retreats. Although not an expert, I am a fan. Surfing works many muscles across the entire body. Whether you’re new to surfing or an experienced surfer, you know nearly anywhere on the body can suffer injury from surfing.

Yoga does many things for us as surfers. It builds balance, improves both flexibility and mobility, strengthens many muscles we neglect, and even can help prevent common surf injuries. I know these seem like big claims, but at this point the benefits of yoga are well documented. All of these things are essential to surfers, and I personally find some yoga poses can help me stretch parts of my body that I struggle to target otherwise.

Finally, yoga can be a form of moving meditation. It can calm the mind/body, reduce stress, and increase focus. Research suggests it significantly reduces stress and promotes overall well-being. With all of these benefits, I really think all surfers should give yoga a shot.

5 Basic Yoga Poses for Surfers

Maybe you’re just learning how to surf or you have decades of experience in the water. Maybe you’re aging and beginning to feel your body a bit more! One of my favorite tips for beginner surfers is to take care of the body out of the water. Yoga is a great way to do this, so let’s get to it!

Extended Child’s Pose

I seriously do this pose every single day. I actually hurt my shoulder and lat while surfing in Costa Rica, and it’s never quite been the same. I went to a physical therapist here and they recommended this stretch. I was already familiar with it, but I became a huge fan. It helps stretch and relax the lower back, inner groin, hips, and thighs. It also can help the spine, and the variation I offer hits your lats as well.

To do this pose, start on your hands and knees on a mat or bed.
Spread your knees to slightly more than hip-width apart while keeping your big toes touching each other.
Slowly bring your butt down toward your feet and your belly toward the floor. If you can, rest your forehead on the floor with your hands outstretched in front of you. If your forehead doesn’t reach the floor, consider using a yoga block or pillow.
Stretch through your spine, feeling the hips and spine pulling from one another as you reach your hands forward.
For my favorite variation to hit the lats a bit, move your hands over to one side just a few inches. I recommend doing this very slowly. You should feel the stretch through your tricep, armpit, and into your lats. It’s important to move into this position and out of it really slowly to avoid injury or seizing. Repeat on the other side.

Cobra Pose

Cobra is another one I actually do daily. It stretches the chest, abs, spinal extensors and back, hip flexors, shoulders, and neck. It’s a bit like the position we’re in when paddling the surfboard, and gives surfers a good after-surf stretch.

Begin by lying on your mat face-down. Keep your legs extended with the tops of your feet on the floor. Place your hands under your shoulders, almost like you’re going to a pushup.
Draw your belly in, engage your core, and press your feet into the floor as you lift your chest and upper body up off the mat.
Open your chest and drop your shoulders back and down as you reach your torso up, stretching through the front of your body.
I recommend holding the position for a few breaths and then returning to the mat, repeating a few times.

Cat Cow Pose

Next we have a combination pose that hits both the front and back of the core. This is one of my favorites after a surf session to stretch out the back and abs. But it also works well as a warmup mobility movement to activate the back and core and begin warming it up!

Start on your hands and knees in a tabletop position. Your hands should be under your shoulders and knees under your hips.
Inhale slowly into the cow pose. Drop your belly to the floor, arch the back, and lift your chest and tailbone into a U shape. Draw your shoulderblades together and either look forward or upward. This is somewhat similar to a cobra pose, stretching through the front of the body while activating the muscles of the back.
Exhale into cat, essentially reversing the pose. Drop your head toward the ground slightly, draw your stomach in, drop the tailbone, and feel the stretch through the back.
I like to repeat this 10 times, syncing the movements with deep breathing.

Downward Facing Dog

Maybe one of the most well-known yoga poses, downward facing dog works well as both an after-surf stretch or a pre-surf warmup as well. You’ll stretch through your hamstring and calves, activate your shoulders and arms, and feel some lengthening in the lower and mid back.

Again, start in a tabletop position as with cat cow.
Tuck your toes under and begin to lift your hips up and back. You’re looking for the inverted V shape, but it is 100% okay to bend the knees a bit if needed. Don’t overdo this.
Try to engage your core by sucking your belly button in toward your spine. This is essential to help protect your lower back from overworking.
Press into your hands. Try to really feel your hands pushing against the mat or floor.
Try to bring your heels closer to the mat, stretching through the backs of the legs. It’s alright if the heels don’t touch the floor (mine often don’t), but work to feel the stretch.
Come out of this pose gently and slowly to avoid any injury.

Pigeon Pose

Finally, we have pigeon pose. I have tight hips and glutes, so this is a daily one for me too. You’ll hit the hip flexors and glutes, as well as the piriformis. It’s a good one to help our hips after a long day of surfing.

For this one, I actually recommend starting in a downward facing dog position. Once there, bring your right knee forward to the mat. If you can, keep your shin perpendicular to your body. The right side of your lower leg should be resting on the mat.
Extend your left leg back, straightening it behind you as you lower your hips to the floor. Try to keep your hips squared, facing forward at all times.
As you lower your hips slowly, you should feel the stretch in the right glute/hip area. If you’re able to, you can fold your torso forward a bit toward the mat to deepen the stretch.
Come out of this pose very slowly, and repeat on the other leg!

Yoga Resources

One of my favorite ways to do yoga is at home with Bulldog Yoga. To be honest, we started working with them because of a few online projects we have and wanted to test them out. We actually legitimately ended up using their classes regularly as we liked them so much. It’s nice to be able to do yoga with a teacher/routine from home or wherever you are.

Another one of my favorite resources is Yoga with Adriene. This is a free YouTube channel with a ton of yoga routines. You can find short videos, longer routines, morning poses, nighttime poses, and routines for specific parts of the body. I like her videos because she’s relatively gentle and beginner-friendly. I included her video on yoga for surfers below, but don’t be afraid to head to her channel and look through her playlists for more good yoga.

Finally, check out some surf and yoga retreats! There are a ton of these available in places like Mexico, Ecuador, Nicaragua, Pero, and of course Costa Rica. We even have a list on our site of The 4 Best Surf and Yoga Retreats in Costa Rica if you’re interested. Much like with surfing, dedicating a week to actually investigating and practicing yoga with a trained teacher will help you really kickstart your practice. I actually started my own yoga practice when my sister gifted me a monthlong yoga program that was 3x a week.