February 12, 2018

#iaeratip: The Pop-up

#iaeralady Ashley Neelands rocks the Tani Rash Guard in Bird of Paradise and carves it up at the world famous trestles.

As an essential movement of surfing, the pop-up sets you up for the rest of your ride. The more control and intent you practice with, the more opportunity you will have to adjust and respond in various surf conditions, and therefore improve your surfing overall.

Since conditions and surf sessions can be unpredictable, don’t wait around for your next session to practice the pop-up!

#iaeratip: Practice your pop-up on land without the distracting variables that come with being in the water. Focus on your movements, step-by-step, to develop the muscle memory for a rock solid pop-up.

I know, you’ve been told to practice on land in the past, but as a former crossfit trainer, I’ve witnessed that the fundamentals could never be emphasised enough! So whether you’re a newbie to surfing or a seasoned surf lady, check out the video below from kookbitches - How to pop up for women. She breaks down the pop-up progression beautifully.

#iaerasurfchallenge: After watching, we challenge you to 10 pop-ups each morning and 10 pop-ups each evening, practiced with control and intent.

Use a reference line for your stringer such as masking tape or a line drawn with chalk outside. Centering yourself on your yoga mat works as well. For your first 5 pop-ups, hold each position in the pop-up progression and feel which muscles are working. Make a mental note by saying to yourself “I feel this in my shoulders or I feel this in my quads.” This technique will help you build the muscle memory you can count on in the surf. Once you’ve done 5 pop-up progressions with control and intent, do the next 5 pop-ups at a comfortable speed while maintaining proper form.

Practice 10 pop-ups each morning and 10 pop-ups each evening for 1 week and let us know how your pop-up improved! #iaeratip #iaerasurfchallenge

Once you have this fundamental mastered you’ll be able to start learning how to tailor your pop-up to the conditions or set yourself up for a maneuver you want to achieve. You might choose to have slower or faster timing, closer or wider foot positioning or offset hand and foot positioning. All these options are what develop your skill and style as a surfer. We’ll go into more depth in the future, but for now, let’s practice this crucial fundamental.

Stay tuned for our next #iaeratip!

<3 Laura

Kookbitches - how to pop up for women