A Beginners Guide to Paddleboarding

So, you are planning on getting a SUP but don’t know how to get started? In this blog we will discuss everything you need to know about your SUP and how to build your confidence on it.

You need to choose a SUP that has stability in mind, if you’ve never experienced being out on the water with one before choosing one that is rigid is important to building up that confidence. 

Our flagship Cruise is the best all-round beginners board that will see you through from learning how to SUP to becoming a master at it, you won’t be limited on this board! With regards to choosing the height of the board the general rule of thumb is if you're under 6′ & below 85kg then you should go for a 10’8″. If you’re over 6′ & 85kg – then a 12" is usually ideal. If you want even more length & width, then the 15′ tandem works perfectly as a solo option, as well as taking tandem.

You can then take your paddleboard to your chosen location- read our blog post here on the best SUP locations in Germany Start off small by staying close to the shore in knee deep water, get used to feeling the board and how it moves underneath you in the water.

When you are comfortable on the board you want to take a kneeling position just behind the centre of the board (you can find the centre of the board by locating the carry handle) as you will have a low centre of balance it will make it feel more stable and is easier to balance, you can stay like this for as long as you want to . Then when you are ready, keeping your hands placed on the sides of the board to help stabilize it, you want to place your feet one at a time where your knees were. Looking forward you can stand up by raising your chest and keeping your knees softly bent. Once your chest is upright you can then straighten out and extend your legs to stand up fully, keep your knees slightly bent to help with stability. Making sure to pick up your paddle through this motion. Your feet should be hip-width distance apart and parallel with your toes pointing forward.

Paddle grip is important to ensuring you aren’t fighting against the water whilst trying to have fun! When adjusting your paddle, you typically want it to be around 8 inches above your head, this may change later down the line if you start to do fitness or racing on your board, but this is a good height to start off with. 

You want to place one hand on top of the paddle and the other hand should grip the shaft roughly around shoulder width distance from the top of the handle. Make sure that the blade angles away from you, so when the paddle is help upright the tip is tilted away from your body, this is important as it helps you to move through the water with ease. 

There are two strokes that you need to know as a beginner and that’s how to go forward and how to go backwards, without these you’ll just be going wherever the waves take you! 

Forward Stroke: You want an extended reach and for the blade of the paddle to be completely immersed in the water, keep your core engaged and paddle on alternate sides to keep going in a straight line, when switching sides you also need to reverse your hand positions so if your paddling on the right your right hand is on the paddle shaft and the left hand at the top of the paddle holding the grip. Bring the paddle right back until it reaches around your ankle then back out the water and over again. 

Reverse Stroke:  The reverse stroke is used to bring your paddleboard to a complete stop or to decelerate your board. Essentially it is the opposite to how you’d do a forward stroke, reaching right back behind you and placing the paddle near the tail of your board ensuring that the blade is fully submersed underneath the water as you twist your torso to get the paddle to come towards the nose of the sup. 

No-one is an expert first time around and so practicing how to get on your board when you’ve fallen off is important to practice before taking your SUP into deeper water. Make your way to the centre of the board, use the centre carry handle as guidance and hold onto this handle, your other hand will be holding onto the edge furthest away from you. Start to kick your feet from behind you to give yourself a good boost as you push off use your arms to move your chest up onto the board and swing your knees onto the board. The motion is quite similar to getting out of a swimming pool. Then follow earlier steps to get back to a standing position. 

Protect yourself against the sun by wearing suncream, sunglasses and a cap. UV rays can reflect off water and so taking these precautions is advised.

Carry a whistle and a light on board especially if you are paddling when there’s not going to be much light (sunrise/sunset etc) this will make you more visible to any other boats/crafts that may be out on the water and if you get into any trouble the whistle will help people to determine your location. 

Wear a PDF, whether you are a beginner in paddleboarding or have been doing it for years, it is always advised that you wear a flotation device in case of an emergency.

Before heading out on the water make sure that you check the weather and conditions for the area, you shouldn’t paddle in dangerous currents, storms or strong winds. If you do head out and there is wind, I would recommend paddling against the wind and that way when you have less energy and are coming back to shore the wind will aid you.

Lastly, we recommend heading out with a paddle partner for the first few times instead of going out to try paddleboarding alone. And make sure to take with you your mobile phone in the waterproof phone case so that you can call for help if you get stuck.