Man, I just held that reverse plank for the whole prescribed 3 minutes.... Very easy way to break a sweat. Great video.

This is something I definitely will work on.  I’m still walking out to the waves at the moment as I get absolutely exhausted after only a few seconds of paddling.  I can barely lift my head up so I think I’m using all the wrong muscles.

thanks for this. I will be 68 in a few months, and have been surfing since my teenage years. I started doing these exercises and instantly recovered my good paddling posture

Changed my technique with how you demonstrated paddling and have significantly cut down on neck strain and pain.

Thank you for the small but invaluable advice. 👌

Thanks Kale. I have been out of surfing for 12-15yrs as I was struggling with injuries and my old custom board was just getting too hard to paddle and at the time so I lost interest and moved on to another sport as I couldn’t afford a new board.
WELL I have just bought myself a new weapon 5’11 with 34.4 litres of foam and watched this video before heading out for my first surf in a very long time. I caught 27 waves over a 2hr 50 minute session, this video gave me reminders of things I had forgotten which made a huge difference.
I also cannot get over new board technology, especially to help this 47yr old kiwi get back to a sport I’ve missed dearly.
You break things right down and explain everything so clearly.
Keep up the great work Kale 🤙🏽
Thanks again 😃

I broke my arm 8 week ago so some lake paddling at Lennox for now cheers for the pointers

Cheers from Uruguay mate. Incredibly, after having surfed for 25 years now, this is the first time I find myself with a paddling tutorial on YouTube. Great tips. Much appretiated.

I roll slightly and bring my hands under the board for most of the stroke. It keeps your board from shifting direction and is more efficient, with the force you generate being linear. Years of the gold coast sweep haha.

Thanks for the tips Kale! I struggled with paddlingin my first years of surfing. My advice is to start freestyle swimming once or two times per week. Trust me, after a few months your paddling will be much stronger and your endurance will rise! Especially if you are not living near a surfspot. Cheers!

I find that wearing my wetsuit makes me burn out in the surf much faster compared to boarders

Great video. Although I’ve been surfing and bodyboarding intermittently for around 25-30 years or so, sometimes with large gaps in between routine sessions, I still would definitely consider myself a novice at surfing because my paddling has always been weak due to lack of endurance (killer body boarder though, for what it’s worth.)
Even though I’m very comfortable with larger surf, pop up, balance, reading the water, etc, my weak paddle has always limited my wave count and thus my progression as a surfer.  
This video has been very informative for me, so thanks Kale!
With some hesitation I might recommend getting some paddle gloves.  They give you more paddle power while giving your arms a good work out.  You have to be careful though.  improper technique along with the increased resistance the gloves create can cause problems in the shoulder muscles, so your paddle strokes need to a lot more deliberate and slower so you don’t tire out or tweak a muscle.
Also the kook factor lol.
✌🏽

this lesson took a huge huge impact to my surf. you´re great dude! and a hell of a teacher. Greetings all the way from Portugal! love your work!

Watching from the shore, my wife was the first to point out to me that more experienced surfers arch their backs.  As a noob I know my head isn't up high enough.  I think it's basically just lower back strength.  The more you surf/paddle the stronger your lower back and you're able to maintain the "Cobra" position.  Doesn't have to be an erect banana bro!

Broccoli, your videos are very well made. My partner and I appreciate them all down here in San Diego! Thank you from two kooks.

Great video! I’ve been surfing with a buddy of mine and noticed that I’m progressing a lot faster than he is, now I realize it’s because of our difference in paddling. I’ve practiced paddling as your vids teach and my buds paddling is pretty shite. Lol. Thanks guys, yew!

Been struggling with my endurance in my traps/rear delts to the point of my eyes rolling back in my head from the pressure around the back of the neck.  I'm in to bodybuilding so I have a lot of mass up top and was being stubborn trying to just push through it.  Going to work on keeping that back arched and using the lats more!

Great information! Besides the reverse plank suggested here, I’d like too recommended the kettlebell swing. Great for lower back endurance.

I used to get really tired surfing and my back would be sore. I don’t surf every day or every week. It’s more like once or twice every few months. But for some reason ever since like a year ago, everytime I surf my neck and back doesn’t get sore anymore. I’ve been surfing for years but I guess my back just finally decided not to be sore. Paddling still wipes me out though. I mean I can get back behind every set of waves I go to surf, but a big wave day always just destroys me so I need to work on that endurance.

Hey Kale 😊
Thanks for this info. I've been learning more about the importance of paddling lately as I'm still I'm the beginner stages and I've just come across your video again focusing on the importance of paddling. Thankyou. Very valuable info!!

Kale, thanks for the great video and technical tips. My secret to paddling stronger for longer surf sessions is that I got a vasa swimming machine. It's like a rower for swim or surf paddling. I do sets of interval paddling - alternating arms, both arms and also I lay backwards to replicate bringing my arms back to front while I hold my head and chest up. It's killer and it has worked great since I can't get to water often anymore.