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Friday 17 July 2015
Wednesday 15 July 2015
Free Stand Up Paddle Board Lessons from Kostal Paddle
“It’s like the mafia. Once you’re in – your in. There’s no getting out” (KS), Well you can get out of Stand Up Paddle Board but you might not want to after learning how to paddle on the calm waters of the Long Island Sound. We will have three sessions of paddlers on the water, accompanied by trained instructors who will help you stand up and enjoy this wonderful sport.
Stand Up Paddleboard Yoga - Why should you try it?
So lets imagine your the kind of person that loves to do with anything "outdoorsey", you love the water and then not to mention the whole fitness thing like Yoga. You might even be someone who wants to get back into shape but have not found that fun exercise regime you crave. Let me introduce to you the world of Stand Up Paddle Board Yoga. This new craze will help you improve your balance, mind and give you back that great shape.
As we all know floating on the water is a fantastic feeling and so relaxing. So why not allow the water to become your free space and the board become your new Yoga mat and lets found out the 10 reason why you should give this a go.
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| Source - http://www.the-house.com |
It's a much more all around workout.
As you can imagine a board on water is not a stable as your normal Yoga mat but this is the secret to the workout. While you try and keep your balance on the board you are using all you core muscles. Yoga instructor Dice Lida-Klein was recently quoted in Men's Fitness as saying "Your whole midsection will have to work to keep you balanced and afloat. You have to work harder and focus more on the water."
It will improve your Yoga technique.
You will become much more aware of you balance within each pose. The Paddle board can be unforgiving and a simple shift of weight in the wrong direction and your going to get a little wet.
This Paddle Board Yoga is calming.
I dont know if its got something to do with our internal wiring but floating in water feels so relaxing. You will find that practicing Yoga on your board floating in water will remove all those stresses life just loves to throw at you.
It will help you focus on your breathing.
Have you ever seen or heard those CD's you tend to find on the shelves where you can press the button and hear rain water or the jungle. One of these has the sound of the ocean waves. This is no coincidence and many believe the sound of the ocean will soothe your mind to help concentrate more on your breathing. This method is referred to as Ujjayi Pranayama, or Ocean Breath.
It's empowering.
Just standing on the board with you, your paddle, the water and the horizon is a powerful feeling. Some would even go as far to say as its like walking on water itself. Teresa Van Eyk, owner of Satya Yoga in Saugatuck, MI, recently told the Holland Sentinel. "It's about letting go of the fear. You get off the water feeling really rejuvenated. It's empowering."
It's fantastic fun.
How many times have you joining a gym with all the best intentions in the world only to stop after a month as it just simply was not fun. Having fun and enjoying what you are doing helps you want to keep going and Stand Up Paddle Board Yoga is just that tons of FUN!!Watch out for the water.
The idea that if you get things a little wrong you might fall in helps keep you focused and motivated. You might even find that worrying about falling in could produce some adrenaline. And that, explains Men's Health, could help you fight the ill-effects of stress in your everyday life.
It teaches you to never give up.
Yes you might fall in and yes you might get a little wet, well ok very wet. However you are forced to climb straight back on that board just like a knock back in life. You get knocked down but you get back up again. Yoga-instructor lida-Klein says that conquering the fear of falling in is essential. "The quicker you become okay with falling into the water," he told Men's Fitness, "the better you'll feel and the easier it will be."
It's a Yoga Challenge.
You might be one of those people that find there current Yoga has become a little easy and boring. Well then you should take up Stand Up Paddle board Yoga as the board becoming you mat adds a new element. There is no room for error on this mat.
It's beautiful.
Between breathing fresh air, soaking up vitamin D and enjoying the natural landscape, it beats just about any gym or studio out there. "Yoga means 'union,'" Hilary Kimblin, owner of Yoga Under the Trees in Beverley Hills, CA, told Yoga Journal. "When it's practiced outdoors it seems like the union with nature, humanity, and the universe is truly felt."
Tuesday 14 July 2015
How to Paddle Board out in the ocean
So the easiest way for us to explain this will be to break it down into steps. Once you follow the simple guide you will see that its so easy a kid could jump on and get going.
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| Told you it was easy !! |
GET OUT THERE
So this is obvious but you need to get out there first. Walk out until the water is up to your knees. With the paddle lying on your board then just hop on to it and onto your knees. Keep watching for a break in the waves. Once one breaks you need to jump to your feet.JUMP TO YOUR FEET
Once your up you need to make sure your stance is shoulder width part, knees slightly bent and in the centre of the board. You should grip the paddle with one hand around the top and the other at the halfway mark. You need to realise this is a full body exercise and you will be using your core for stability.STAY CALM
The one thing children show is a lack of fear and so learning how to paddle board is usually easier for them. So with that in mind be one with the water. If you fall stay calm and get back on and never give up. At some stage it will be like someone hit a switch and you will be riding that wave.PADDLE BOARD YOGA
Paddle boarding uses all your muscles and a recent craze is to now practice Yoga while out in calm waters. You could however also consider meditating. Its the perfect place to move around your board while in calm waters with not a sound anywhere. Calm and relaxing.Standup Paddle Board Guide
Standup Paddle Board Guide
When I first started out learning to Standup paddle board I discovered you need alot of patience and balance. A fair few people said to me oh you need to be really fit for that sport. However I discovered that having the correct paddle board and learning in the right conditions is all you need.My instructor asked me a few questions to help establish the best board for me.
These are as follows:
How much do you weigh?
The heavier you are the bigger the paddle board you need. Sounds like one the those duh answers but with so many questions you do go mind blank.How tall are you?
Same as above with this one really. The taller you are the longer the paddle board needs to be. I had a shorter board than I should when I started and made moving around so much more difficult.Where will you be doing most of your stand up paddling?
Will be doing most of your paddling in calm conditions of more extreme conditions? Will be going for long distance or do you fancy yourself as a more standup surfer?As you can see there are so many questions before youy even jump in the water.
So what is a Standup Paddle Board?
The Standup paddle board all have the same parts to it no matter what style you go for. These are known as nose, tail, deck, bottom, rails and fins. The boards themselves are usually found measured in feet and inches. As I mentioned above certain paddle boarding conditions will dictate what size your board will be. The size and weight of the paddle boarder determines the volume of the boards flotation. The skill level of the boarder will also dictate the above information. | ||||||
| The image above shows the different variations of paddle boards |
The width of the board is also very important and for beginners a wider board will help as it will be more stable. For an average 12st beginner Standup paddle boarder a 28 inch board will be harder to control than a 32 inch wide board.
What are they made of?
Most Stand up paddle boards are what they call the Inflatable type. These boards are very solid once all the layers are put together and inflated. These layers are made from PVC plastic with fibres all woven together. The main reason why these are most popular is their ease of storage. Inflatable boards can be pumped up within ten minutes and be flat packed back down again into a storage bag. This SUP board is ideal for a paddler who plans on using their board on either rivers or calm lakes.If however you see yourself as more of a wave rider after the top performance possible an Epoxy Fibreglass board will be your choice. These have a foam core laminated with fibreglass layers for strength.
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| The images above show an Inflatable board and all its layers
and a EPS boards typical construction. |
So where could you use your SUP board?
Flat Water Standup Paddle Board
So these boards are made for more inland paddling. Rivers, lakes and protected coastal areas are all made for this board. Measuring in at between 30 to 34 inches wide and over 10 feet in length these SUP boards have plenty of volume to keep things stable in the flat water.I have touched base with this a little already but I will cover it again. The more volume your board has the easier it is to handle. Again this will depend on the paddlers weight and skill.
Below is a formula to give you an estimate for how much volume you will need for your board.
Beginners - Your weight in kg x 2
Intermediates - Your weight in kg x 1.7
Advanced - Your weight in kg x 1.3
Flat water SUP boards usually have single or 3 fin configrations so that you can choose depending on what paddling your taking part in.
Surf Standup Paddle Board
I think most people see the sport for these boards. Its wave riding time!! This is where you can get very confused as there are many boards on the market for this. The boards style and shape can play a major role with this type of board. As previously covered the more volume the stand up paddle board has the easier to control.
Boards with less volume will be hard work to stand on for long periods but perform better on waves, volume has a key role to play in choosing the type of surfing you aspire to do.
Longer boards with more volume and width will have better paddling glide, speed and also catch waves easier than shorter boards.
Longboard style SUP boards are geared towards catching waves early and enable the rider to cruise and perform classic longboard style maneuvers such as 'walking the nose' and noseriding 'Hang fives'. These boards will usually have a full and rounded nose to them and either have single , 3 or multiple fin configrations.
Shortboard style SUP boards look very similiar to the classic pointier surfboard shape and will be better at more radical slashy and vertical style surfing. These boards are usually narrower in width making them perform turns easier on waves than wider more stable boards. They too will have 3 / multiple fin configrations which will change the boards performance.
Race/Touring Standup Paddle Boards
If its all about speed and paddling from A to B in the fastest time possible then this is the board style for you. You will notice that on the nose of the Racing boards they look a little like a ships hull. The idea behind this is that you should glide through flat or choppy water. You will also find these have a single fin configuration to reduce drag and are very thin. This means that these boards are not made for beginners as they are unstable.
The racing classes for competition paddleboards are stock class 12ft 6 inches, 14ft or even unlimited 14ft plus boards.
What you will find with Racing stand up paddle boards is that their increased length will usually mean increased weight unless they are manufatured in carbon.
Boards made from carbon mean a lighter, stiffer construction making them more dynamic in racing.
There is a element to racing called 'down winders' meaning you paddle with the wind blowing in your back taking you downwind of your starting point. This is usually done on longer boards of 14 foot plus length , these boards are long and fast, and enough speed can be gained to catch ocean running swell with the wind behind you , and 'glides' of 50 -100 metres are not uncommon in the best conditions, therefore another cross-over is created with SURF SUP.
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