Salomé Abeger

Circuit Training Fitness For Surfing

September 5, 2018 by Salomé Abeger

Circuit Training Fitness For Surfing Better

Circuit training fitness for surfing better is a physical program that combines resistance training with a high-intensity cardiovascular workout. It builds strength and endurance and may be one of the best ways to burn fat fast. If you’re looking to achieve new goals for surfing such as losing weight then circuit training might be the way!

Circuit training fitness for surfing is great when working out for your specific sport. It increases the intensity and is a targeted workout in general. Circuit training is about doing a full body workout in one day instead of breaking it down to different days for the different muscle groups. Surfers all over the world use circuit training as part of their workout plans because it builds up your cardio and strength for surfing at an intensity that will help you surf longer and stronger.

Circuit training is also a great way to not get bored in the gym. It always switches up your workouts and challenges your body every day in different routines. With circuit training fitness for surfing, you will get the maximum results in the least amount of times, your metabolism rises, it makes you use all the workout tools, and you never waste another minute trying to figure out what to do next to increase your surfing performance.

When surfing we are using our whole body to move the surfboard and stabilize ourselves. It is a whole body workout that utilizes some major muscle groups such as the core, shoulders, and back. Surfing also requires some kind of endurance to be able to paddle to the lineup over and over again and to catch many waves. Sometimes the weather and waves are not the best and you will need to paddle more than usual and longer than on a clean day. This is when circuit training comes into play as it increases your endurance, as well as strengthens your entire body with a whole body workout that constantly changes.

Here are some advantages of circuit training for surfing:

Circuit Training Fitness For Surfing Burns More Fat

There’s nothing like a combination of cardio and strength training to burn more fat. A circuit training program is more intense than either strength or cardio independently. With circuit training, you move through a series of workout movements. Your metabolism will be soaring because of the high intensity interval training (HIIT). It kicks your fat burning into high gear. You will burn more calories in 20 minutes than you would in an entire hour on the elliptical machine. Plus for the next 48hours after your workout, your body will be feeling it and the aftereffect burn will have you burn more calories while at rest.

You spend a specific amount of time on each movement or work through a predetermined number of reps. When you reach the end of the circuit, you repeat it. The goal is to work through the circuit a few times and to exercise for 20-30 minutes. Yes you read that right! There is no point of working out for hours at a time, 20-30 minutes is enough at a high intensity. Remember, we are not trying to become bodybuilders.

Home circuit training fitness for surfing sample:

* 30 seconds of squats

* 30 seconds on a stationary bike

* 30 seconds of lunges

* 30 seconds of shoulder presses

* 30 seconds of jumping rope

* 30 seconds of push-ups

* 30 seconds of sit-ups

* 30 seconds in a plank

* 30 seconds on a stationary bike

* 30 seconds of burpees

Do all of these repeated for 3-4 sets or until 30 minutes is over. Do it at a high intensity that pushes you and don’t stop. Pace yourself and you will get it done!

Surfers Circuit Training Burns More in Less Time

You can burn 30 percent more calories in a 30-minute circuit training workout than in a strength or cardio workout routine. How much you burn depends on your age, weight, intensity and the movements you’re performing. We cannot guarantee you burning this much if you are not putting your effort into it at a 100%. But imagine burning double the calories when you do train hard!

Over the course of a month that’s an additional 2700 calories. And it’s important to know that when you strength train, you continue to burn calories long after the workout is over. As your muscles recover, they keep your metabolism high. You’ll continue to burn calories at night while you sleep. If you don’t have a lot of time to work out, circuit training may be exactly what you need. You just need 20-30 minutes 3 times a week and a little bit of space either in your house, garage or anywhere you can work out without disruption.

It is the perfect workout for the time restricted ones that need to get back to work as fast as possible. You can set up as many or as little stations as you would like and go through them until time runs out. It is the best way to get a whole body workout in 30 minutes. You can do this quick workout on the beach right before surfing and you will see a huge difference in your strength and endurance right away.

Circuit Training Can Be Performed Anywhere

Wherever you prefer to work out, at the gym, house, or outdoors; circuit training can be done anywhere, at anytime. You can cycle through the strength machines at the gym if you choose to as well. You can run outside and drop to the ground for push-ups, burpees, and sprints. We’ve provided you with a workout that you can do at home really fast. You will never waste another minute again trying to figure out what and how to workout. You will be able to get a great workout without having to use a lot of different machines at the gym. Professional surfers use circuit training when traveling on tour, and since they do not have equipment with them, they just do a quick and simple bodyweight circuit training fitness for surfing workout that will benefit them no matter where they go surfing.

In addition to these three powerful benefits, you won’t get bored with circuit training. The options of circuit training are limitless so gym boredom is never there. Create your circuit training workout before starting and follow it till the end. This is the best way to not waste time, change up your workouts and get the best of it.

Downside To Circuit Training

The only downside of circuit training might be the space and equipment required for it. But remember one thing, if you really want it, you will make it happen. Another thing to remember is that all of your workouts do not necessarily need equipment. You can do all bodyweight workouts as your circuit training and you will see the strength and cardio that you will gain. Weights and equipment’s only help you do some exercises and makes it easier to do it. But bodyweight workouts are the best workouts for surfing and life in general. You can do them anywhere at any time and it does not make you bulky and slow; which is not helpful for surfing.

Extra Benefits To Circuit Training For Surfers

Circuit training is a wonderful way to burn fat and tone your muscles at the same time as we have mentioned. Surfers use circuit training as a way to challenge their body in different ways to simulate what might happen when surfing. When setting up stations as part of a whole body workout, you are guaranteed to hit all the major muscle groups as well as the minor ones. Surfing uses a lot of major but also minor muscle groups and all of these muscles need to be strengthened as you do more advanced moves. Your muscles will build more endurance which will allow you to surf and paddle longer during one session.

Circuit training works for anyone, beginner to fitness expert. Get started today and enjoy the benefits of a high intensity strength and cardio workout for surfing. You will see how much stronger you will get and how much longer you will be able to surf. It’s amazing!

Below is a quick bodyweight pushups variations video that you can start adding one or multiple into your surf training workouts!

Why Consider A Whole Food Diet For Surfing

August 29, 2018 by Salomé Abeger

Why Should You Consider A Whole Food Diet For Surfing

Okay, so you’ve been exercising your heart out and you still feel low in energy, stressed, and you’re not losing the weight as fast as you want or performing as good as you want. That could simply mean you are not following a whole food diet for surfing. While there are many causes this may be happening, the most possible reason is that your diet needs a little modification. Over the past few years, whole foods diets have become increasingly popular. And we’re not talking about the supermarket (which is amazing by the way); we’re talking about EATING whole foods!

When you are surfing or working out for surfing, you are burning a lot of calories. So if you are not eating the way you should, your body will be tired very fast and you will not want to surf anymore or workout due to fatigue. The physical exercise part is not what needs to be changed at this point. You just have to adjust a couple of things in your diet that will give you more energy and power to surf more, workout more and surf some more after that. Like we say as surfers, we surf, eat, sleep, and repeat! Following a whole food diet for surfing can definitely help with that.

A whole foods diet will change your energy and make you feel amazing! When eating whole foods, you are eating fruits, vegetables, or meat the way it was created without any adjustments to make it taste better.

What Is A Whole Food Diet For Surfing?

Whole foods are foods that have not been processed or have been slightly processed. An apple is a whole food. A chicken thigh is a whole food. A frozen dinner, a box of cereal or a soda are not whole foods. Some people offer the advice that it’s probably a whole food if your great-grandmother grew up eating it. Chances are your great-grandmother didn’t eat instant oatmeal, hot pockets, or if she did she was making them from scratch! Whole foods are the best kind of food you can buy since it was not processed or changed to taste better with added salt, sugars and other things. It is just natural the way it was created.

Whole Food Breakfast Sample For Surfers

Hardboiled egg, avocado, tomatoes
Sweet potato hash, egg over easy, apple slices
Pineapple, orange juice, coconut milk, protein powder smoothie

Whole Food Lunch Sample For Surfers

- Side salad with green leaves, cucumbers, and eggs
- Chicken with some fresh vegetables and if you want a little tiny portion of rice (no bigger than your palm)
- Water
- If you have a sweet tooth like I do; an apple, banana, watermelon or any fruit will be great

Surfers list of whole foods snacks to pick from

Greek yogurt
Smoothie
Fruits
Vegetables
Almonds (no more than 5 a day)

You’ll notice that processed foods are mainly absent. Now, the protein powder is a processed item; however, you can buy organic whey protein that comes from grass-fed cows. Drinking an organic protein powder will be so much better than any other proteins. But remember to only drink one protein shake a day so that you are not replacing meals all the time.

Sugars Slow Your Surfing

When you eat food that originates from nature rather than a factory, you’re eating neatly and healthy. You’re not receiving the added salts, flavourings, preservatives, dyes, and sugar that are found in processed food. The processed food have added sugar, colouring, dyes, salt, flavourings, preservative and more just for it to taste better and for all of us to want it more. But even though it says its healthy on it, it is not at all. It might taste amazing but it is definitely not good for your body. Did you know that the average American consumes 22 teaspoons of sugar a day? You might not believe you’re in that average category but think about it.

A simple tablespoon of ketchup has a teaspoon of sugar. The French fries that you eat with the ketchup also has about a teaspoon of sugar. And if you get a drink at Starbucks, a simple latte (without any added sugar or flavouring) has 17 grams of sugar. That’s more than four teaspoons! The point is that it adds up and you may be closer to the 22 teaspoons of sugar than you think.

Sugar causes systemic inflammation. It triggers your blood sugar levels to rise and it causes hormone levels to become imbalanced. Too much sugar can trigger everything from diabetes to cancer. It can lead to heart disease, depression, and so much more. Who wants all of that? No one! It makes you feel tired, grumpy, and at risk for obesity. That is not fun! I love sweets sooo much and this makes me realize how much I eat and should stop eating sweets. Start slowly by cutting sugar and then you can go more in depths into other ingredients that you can stop eating as well.

When you go on a whole foods diet you involuntarily reduce your sugar intake. In fact, if you stick to it, you’ll only eat natural sugars like those found in apples, bananas, strawberries or any fruits. Any type of berries is the best fruit you can ever eat; it helps you lose fat and have more energy overall just by itself. Berries such as blueberries, strawberries, blackberries, raspberries and all the other ones that end with berries. Your taste buds will change so that you don’t crave the sugars. You’ll also remove the trans fats and chemicals found in processed foods.

Change Your Diet For Better Surfing

Try a whole foods diet for a month and watch how your energy levels and health change. You will feel so much more energetic, won’t need to take a nap, and that will make you have more time for surfing and working out for surfing. You may never go back to eating processed foods. That’s the whole goal of it all!

Trying this diet for a month will get your body used to it and most likely make you not want to go back because you will feel so much better. It feels so good to feel more energetic, lighter and healthier. You will 100% feel it.

You are probably wondering why trying it for a month and not a week or two. Well, there is a simple answer to this. In order for humans to get into a habit of some sort such as changing their diet, working out 3 times a week, reading a book, or anything that needs to become a habit; we need to do it for at least a month for our body to get used to it and adjust to the changes. So stick to it for at least a month and your body will start to get used to it slowly but surely, for the better. It is all about the way you eat and the portion sizes that you consume as well.

We have a very specific whole foods diet. We eat every 2-3 hours (yes that seems like a lot but it is not), we eat very small portion meals. There are always more protein and vegetables than there are carbohydrates. By eating small portions more frequently than 3 meals a day. Your body’s metabolism will build up and accelerate. This will help you lose weight and stay lean at all times. Try that and you will love it because you won’t need snacks in between meals and won’t be starving by the next time you need to eat.

One of my favorite meal to eat for breakfast or afternoon snack is an Açaï bowl. We went around town and videotaped our local food truck on how he does his bowls and here it is for you guys!

Now let’s get started on this new whole foods diet and you have to let me know in the comments below how changing your diet to whole food for surfing has changed your life and your family’s too. How you feel and if you would ever go back?

10 Ab Exercises For Surfing

August 22, 2018 by Salomé Abeger

Top 10 Ab Exercises for Surfing

Surfing is an extreme water sport, and just like any sport, it is really great to work your body and prepare it to be as fit as possible for that specific sport. So I have decided to share with you my Top 10 Ab Exercises for surfing.

Surfing is one of those sports where your core is the most important muscle group, and then your shoulders, back, and legs. But your core will keep you stabilized on your surfboard and you will fit very confident when working it hard for surfing.

You want the best core for surfing and any water sports that require a lot of core functionality and muscles. I would recommend picking 2 ab exercises and performing 20-50 reps per set to add to your daily workout routine specific to surfing and you will see how much better it will make you! We will go over leg raises, sit outs, knee through abs, Russian twists, windshield wipers, ankle slaps, v-ups, reach through side planks, elbow sit-ups, and kick out abs.

I am so excited to share this with you the 10 ab exercises for surfing, so without further delay let’s get going and make our core stronger than ever!

Best 10 Ab Exercises For Surfing

Leg Raises

Place your hand palm down under your lower buttock on both side to support your pelvis
Keep your knees straight
Raise both legs TOGETHER until they make a 90-degree angle with your body
Don’t forget to tighten your core when going up and even more when going back down
Do not touch the floor and control the descent (don’t let your legs just fall)
Exhale when going down, inhale when going up

Sit-outs

Start in a bear crawl position with both hands on the ground in front of you and both feet on the ground behind you (elbows straight)
Lift your right hand up and kick your left foot forward and under you
Place your left foot where your right hand without touching the ground used to be and keep your right hand up in the air (at this point only your left hand and right foot is on the ground)
KEEP SWITCHING BETWEEN RIGHT AND LEFT
ALWAYS tighten your core
Do not let your feet touch the floor when bringing it under your body
Exhale when kicking out, inhale when bringing it back

Knee Through Abs

Get in a pushup position
Keep your body like a table (imagine that you have to hold a cup of water on your back)
Bring one knee into your opposite elbow
Bring it back to pushup position and switch knees
Do not lift your hips
Don’t let your butt sag
Keep your abs squeezed
Exhale when bringing knee in, inhale when going back

Russian Twists

Place both feet off the floor touching each other, knees up to the sky
Lean your upper body back to a 45-degree angle
Place both hands together in front of your torso, elbows bent (instead you can use a gallon of water, medicine ball, rock, anything you want with a little weight)
Rotate your hands to one side, keeping your body in line
Touch the floor and then go to the other side
Keep your core flexed and tightened at all times
Make sure you touch the floor on each side before going to the other
Exhale when going to the side, inhale when going back

Windshield Wipers

Lay down on your back with legs straight and arms to the side
Bring both legs up TOGETHER to a 90-degree angle with your upper body
Slowly bring both legs down to one side, keeping your upper body straight
Slowly bring it up and back down to the OTHER side
Always keep it controlled when going up or down
Make sure your legs do not touch the floor on either side before bringing it back up
Squeeze your abs tight and your back on the ground

Ankle Slaps

Place both feet on the floor shoulder width apart and keep your knees up to the sky
Place your back straight on the floor with head and shoulders OFF the ground
Keep your arms straight in line with your body and your palms facing your legs OFF the ground
Rotate to one side and slap your ankle with the arm closes to it, the other away from your foot
Rotate to the other side and slap your other ankle
Make sure when rotating to move your upper body to the side you are rotating to
ALWAYS tighten your abs
To further away your feet are from your buttock, the harder it will be to slap each ankle
Exhale when rotating, inhale when resetting

V-ups

Lay down on your back feet together, and hands together above your head (like you’re about to dive in a pool but on your back)
Keep your arms and legs straight
Slowly bring them up together at the same time until your hands touch your toes or your ankles
Control the descent and go down to the first position where you started
Make sure both your arms and legs ALWAYS stay straight
Keep your core flexed
Exhale when going down, inhale when going up

Reach Through Side Planks

Get in a side plank position, with one elbow down at a 90-degree angle, one foot over the other and facing a side
Bring your upper arm across your body and under it while keeping your body straight in the line of the side plank position
Bring the arm back and repeat
Now switch to the other side and do the same thing
Make sure you don’t lose balance
Keep your abs flexed
Exhale when bringing the arm across, inhale when going back to rest position
Cut the reps in half to be able to do both sides

Elbow Sit-Ups

Place both feet on the ground, knees pointing to the sky and back on the ground
Bring your elbows out in line with your shoulders
Come up to one elbow and bring the opposite hand to your hand on the ground
Come back down
Roll on your shoulders and come up to the other elbow and opposite hand to hand on the floor
Make sure your elbows stay open
Keep your feet and knees in place
Exhale when going up, inhale when going down

Kick Out Abs

Sit down, lean back to a 45-degree angle and place your hands behind you to support your upper body
Keep both knees off the ground, together and close to your chest
Kick both feet straight forward and keep them about 6inches off the ground
Bring your knees back to your chest
Repeat
Make sure both knees stay close together
Keep your abs tight
Exhale when bringing your knees to your chest, inhale when kicking out

Don’t forget that it is very important to do these workouts with good technique and good posture.

Surfer Ab workouts PRINCIPLES to follow

These principles for the 10 ab exercises for surfing are very important to understand, so do not skip this part!

– While working out keep your core tight. This will keep all your muscles around your lower back and abs active which will prevent injury and better your posture.

– For you to do this you need to flex/tense your abdominal muscles as if someone was going to punch your abs.

– A good posture means keeping your spine straight, chest up, neck straight, shoulders back and down.

– Do not jerk and twist your body rapidly

Now that you know my favorite ab exercises for surfing, go get it and work out those abs! They are so important for surfing and will make you look and feel great!

The Anatomy Of A Surfboard

August 16, 2018 by Salomé Abeger

The Anatomy Of A Surfboard Explained

Surfboards have a very complex shape since they are made to be hydrodynamic objects. To understand the anatomy of a surfboard there are some parts that make it the best possible tool for gliding through the waves. Whether it is a 4-foot surfboard or a 13 feet paddle-board, the complexity is the same.

Surfboards have certain terms for each part, just like a human body, you will learn the anatomy of a surfboard. We start with the top of the board is the nose, then moving down to the rails, the fins, the tail, the leash, and so on.

Because a surfboards has numerous forces coming at them, they have a different shape depending on the wave and wind conditions. The core materials that are used to shape a surfboard but also evolved with time and technology are wood, foam, and fiberglass or epoxy. Nowadays, there is even more high-tech surfboards too; like the hydrofoil where the anatomy of a surfboard like this one would change on the fins.

Shapers on the anatomy of a surfboard

As a shaper, a blank piece of foam can be transformed into a perfect brand new surfboard in a couple of hours or days. The shaper works on that one piece to have a perfect buoyancy, gravity, drag, and lift. All surfboards shaped can be either custom made or not and then bought by the perfect person to fit that surfboard. A surfboard will fit somebody the right way depending on the height, and weight of the surfer, as well as the conditions, being surfed in. It also varies in length, width, thickness, and so much more comes into it as you progress through the years of surfing.

As a result of different conditions, surfers, and waves; there are 7 common surfboard types; shortboards, longboards, fish boards, guns, Malibu, soft surfboards, and stand up paddle boards.

Anatomy of a surfboard breakdown

All surfboards, no matter the shapes have all the same features and anatomy. So let’s take a look at the main parts and design of a surfboard.

1 Nose. This is the front of the surfboard. The first 12 inches. The tip of the surfboard. It has a huge influence on paddling and maneuverability. It is also shaped higher on some surfboards but not all to give it a little bit more space between the water and the surfboard. It can be shaped wide or narrow depending on the surfer surfing it.

2 Tail. This is the back of the surfboard. The last 12 inches. The tail has a big influence on speed and maneuverability. It can be shaped very narrow and very wide depending on the surfboard and surfer.

3 Rails. The rails are the two sides of the surfboard. They are round edges. This is where you will grab your surfboard when carrying it. This is also where it has the thickness of the surfboard.

4 Stringer. The wooden strip in the middle of the surfboard going from the nose to the tail. It is placed right at the center of the surfboard and is vertical. The stringer increases strength and reduces unwanted flexibility on the surfboard.

5 Deck. The top surface of the surfboard. It is flat. This is where the surfer stands on their board and the place that is typically being waxed.

6 Bottom. This area is the bottom of the surfboard. It touches and rests on the water when surfing.

7 Fins Plug. These are located in the bottom tail of the surfboard. They are usually two holes for each surfboard or one big slice of a hole. These holes are shaped differently based on which kind of fin setup the shaper is using and also which brand fin setup the shaper is using.

8 Leash Plug. This is a small hole that is placed on the tail of the surfboard, it contains a metal bar where the leash rope will fit through.

Outline. The overall shape of the surfboard. This is just the whole surfboard.

Foil. The rate of a surfboard’s thickness from the nose to the tail.

Rocker. The amount of curve from the nose to the tail of the surfboard. You will see that rocker when looking down the surfboard. The rocker depends on the surfboard and what is being achieved with it by the surfer.

Concave. The contour on the bottom of the surfboard to channel water. The concave is the space where water travels from nose to tail of the surfboard.

Now let’s talk about a couple things that the surfboard would need to be able to get started and head out in the water.

Fins. The fins are a huge part of a surfboard. You install the fins in the fin plugs. They are considered the wheels of a surfboard. They are placed at the bottom tail part of the surfboard and are big on stabilizing the surfboards movement. They prevent the board from sliding sideways and help in direction, drive, and control. There are 5 different fin setups: single fins, twin fin, thrusters, quad, and five fins setup. They are also 3 main brands of those fins: FCS, FCSII, and Future Fins. Fins can be removed and put back on unless you have a very old surfboard that has glass on fins. But in today’s world, all shapers make the fins removable.

Leash. The leash is a rope that connects the surfboard and the surfer together. The leash is installed in the leash plug at the tail end of the surfboard. The leash is for the safety of the surfer not getting hurt or having to swim when falling off the surfboard. It also made so that the surfboard does not go all the way down to the shore hitting other surfers.

Traction Pad. The traction pad is located in the tail end of the surfboard, very close to the leash and leash plug. It is made so that the surfer has a really great grip to prevent falling off the surfboard. The traction pad is mainly for the back foot only depending on your surfing stance.

Wax. We put wax on the deck of the surfboard so that the surfboard has more a grip. Just like the traction pad, but up the deck for your front foot. Surfers wax their surfboard usually before every surf session to make sure the wipeouts are prevented as much as possible.

Last but not least, a surfboard is tridimensional and is categorized by three main points. All of these characteristics are different for the surfer, and the wave conditions that it is being surfed in.

The length of the surfboard. This is the measurement in feet and inches from tail to nose.

Width. This is how wide the surfboard is. It is measured from rail to rail in inches at its wide points.

Thickness. Measurement from the deck to the bottom at its thickest points. Also measured in inches. The thickness has a big impact on the buoyancy of the surfboard.

Now that you all the terms for the anatomy of a surfboard, it is time for you to get that surfboard and revised all of them. It is very important to know them all so that you can relate when somebody else talks about it. Also, when starting out, always buy or rent a bigger surfboard. Do not try to surf on a shortboard like the pros do. We all started somewhere and that is on a longboard or soft surfboard, so go ahead and grab one of those for yourself.

How To Install And Remove A Surfboard’s Traction Pad

August 6, 2018 by Salomé Abeger

How To Install And Remove A Surfboard’s Traction Pad (Stomp Pad)

Did you just buy a surfboard or need a new traction pad?! Well today, we’re going to go over how to install and remove a surfboard’s traction pad so that you guys know how to do both when time comes to use it. Installing and removing a stomp pad is not hard at all, however, it is very tedious and time-consuming. So make sure you have enough time to spare to get the work done the right way.

To install a traction pad; it is fairly easy. You just need a new stomp pad and your surfboard. Remove the pad out of the plastic and glue it to the end of your surfboard where you put your back foot. To remove a traction pad; it can be a little tricky. You need to get some hot water, some acetone, and some strength. Just peel out the old pad using hot water, and pour acetone on the glue to get it all out. You need to make sure the glue is completely off to put a new traction pad eventually.

It is always fun to get new equipment, it makes it exciting and something to look forward to. A traction pad is probably, what I think, a very very important tool to have on your surfboard. It makes your back foot stay in place with the extra grip it offers. It also tells you where your back foot should be placed. And after all, it looks AWESOME! The board is not so naked anymore, it’s like a piece of clothing for a surfboard.

How To Remove A Traction Pad (also known as Stomp Pad) Off Surfboard

How to remove a traction pad is a question we get quite often when somebody just purchased a new surfboard. And honestly, not a lot of people out there teaching how to remove a stomp pad the right way! There is plenty of different ways to remove a traction pad, such as using a razor blade and so on, but we’d rather not use a blade so that we do not cut into the fiberglass so instead we use our strength, hot water, and acetone if needed.

What you would need:

Your surfboard with old stomp pad
Hot water
Acetone with towel
Wax Comb
Towel
Your muscles hahaha

The idea of removing a stomp pad is to peel off the traction pad completely and then get the glue off completely as well (this part is important so that you can put a new one in eventually).

Pour some hot water on the traction pad. That will make the material softer and easy to peel off.
Peel off the traction pad as much as possible. In reality, you want to peel it off all the way. Your stomp pad might come out as a whole or in little pieces like mine. If it comes out as little pieces, stay patient and peel it all off. I know this step might be tedious and time-consuming, but it is all worth it in the end. * If you need help getting the stomp pad corner off, use the wax comb to help you elevate that, and then peel off the pieces.
Once the WHOLE traction pad is off. You will notice there is glue where the pad used to be. The glue needs to be removed completely so you can install a new stomp pad with new glue.
To remove the glue off the surfboard, you can either get it out by rubbing your fingers on it and making a ball of glue, you can also get an eraser and get it off like that. But what we found was easier is using acetone on a towel or paper towel and rubbing the glue off with the acetone. It just makes it easier, but there is no easy way to do this either, you just need to rub the glue off all the way till there’s no more.
Now rinse your surfboard with water, to get all the leftover glue, stomp pad pieces, and acetone that are just hanging there.
Dry your surfboard off with a cloth.
Check if it is ALL removed. If it’s not getting it all out. If it is you are DONE!

Congratulations! You just removed your first ever traction pad off a surfboard!

How To Install A New Traction Pad (also called Stomp Pad) On Surfboard

Now that your old traction pad is off your surfboard, it is time to install a new one on there! This is the best part, you worked hard to remove the old pad that was on there and now the new stomp pad you just bought finally gets to go on your surfboard. It’s going to make it look sick and brand new! Adding new tools to my surfboards is my favorite thing to do so this is very exciting for me to teach you!

Before you start you need to figure if your new stomp pad is a 1 piece, 2 pieces, 3 pieces, 4 pieces, or more. For mine, it is a one piece (easiest to put on since you don’t have to calculate and align all of the other pieces together). If you are still debating on which stomp pad to buy, get a one piece for sure!

To install a new traction pad you will need;

Your surfboard. All clean, free of glue, and dry.
Your new traction pad
Yourself

To install a traction pad, it is really easy, all you need to do is do it slowly and be very careful on how to are putting it, if it is straight or not. Just little things like that will make it that much better when installing a traction pad on a surfboard.

Take the stomp pad off the plastic. But do not remove the paper glued to the back of it just yet.
Put it on your surfboard just to see where you want to install your new traction pad. I usually put the curved part of the traction pad where the plug for my leash is, it makes the stomp pad circle around the leash and usually is where we put our back foot when surfing. The sticker is still not out of the traction pad, it is just to see where you want it.
If you want it just like us and most surfers as close as possible to the leash plug, put it there.
Now that you like it where it is. Remove the protecting film one step at a time. As you are sticking the back of the stomp pad, and slowly moving forward, you are also pulling the paper off the glue as you are moving up. Do that very slowly all the way till the end.
Push down your new traction pad so that it sticks very well. Push down for a while and all over the place. Leave it untouched for at least 24hours, and to make it better you can always put a bunch of books or something heavy on it so that the traction pad that sticks on and lasts for a long time.
If you are not happy with the place and position it’s now in. You can pull it out and readjust it. Don’t do that too often though, it will get the glue used and won’t stick as good after that.

* If you bought a multiple piece traction pad, put it on the surfboard without removing the protecting film. And then remove the protecting film on the biggest piece first which is usually the middle part and then got down to the smallest which are the side pieces. When you do that, you can leave the other unglued pieces on the surfboard to help you see where to glue them exactly. Remember start in the middle, and then work your way to the sides and smaller pieces of the traction pad.

There you have it, surfers! We have explained and taught you how to remove and install a traction pad on a surfboard. It is pretty easy if you follow the instructions step by step and you will be completely fine and happy! Also if you would rather follow an instructional video on how to remove and install a traction pad, you can do that too! On our Surf Training Factory YouTube channel or the click the links above. Stomp pad can be so beautiful and make the surfboard look great so let’s get it and enjoy your next surf session out there!

Salomé Abeger

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