Surfing is one of those activities where, to watch it, you wouldn’t think there was a huge amount to it.
The best surfers make it look really easy, and at the end of the day all you really need to get the hang of is balancing—but is this really the case?
Is surfing easy, or is it hard?
Surfing is tough, and it takes a lot of commitment to get really good at it. The best surfers do make it look easy, because they know exactly what they’re doing and have learned over many years. You might say surfing is relatively easy to pick up, but very difficult to master.
So, yes, surfing is hard—there’s no getting around that.
But it’s also an incredibly rewarding thing to learn, and really satisfying once you get the hang of it.
It’s like any sport in that sense, then.
It’s just that it’s also a bit easier to pick up than most other sports.
Let’s find out more.
How hard is it to get into surfing?
Firstly, with surfing it is the case, as it is with virtually any skill or hobby, that some have a natural aptitude for it.
Some can pick it up much, much more quickly than others, depending on their proclivities.
For most of us, though, it’s going to be a fairly long learning curve to be able to get properly started at surfing.
At the very least, it’s going to take several weeks of practice before you can consistently catch waves.
It will take months to be able to consistently ride those waves for longer and longer, and it will ultimately take years for anyone to really master the sport.
However, in many ways, how hard it is to get into surfing is really going to depend on what your personal goals are.
For many people, surfing is just a casual activity that they do for fun. It’s less about mastering it, and more about having a good time.
If that’s all you’re looking for, then it isn’t hard at all to get into surfing!
You can start enjoying yourself from day one.
However, if you’re thinking of surfing competitively, it will indeed take several years before you’re on the level of professional surfers.
It’s an Olympic sport now, after all, so there is some truly phenomenal talent out there now.
Another common question is about swimming ability—how important is this for surfing?
Can a non-swimmer surf?
Not really, no.
It’s really important that you are able to swim if you want to go surfing, for several reasons.
The most obvious is that, by its very nature, surfing is an activity that will eventually throw you into the water.
There’s not much avoiding that.
If you can’t swim, then you’ll be disoriented when thrown into the sea, and have no chance of getting back to your board.
Naturally, this can lead to drowning.
It’s commonly asked if you can surf as a non-swimmer while wearing a life jacket, but for most surfing instructors, the answer is still no.
You need to be a strong swimmer in order to surf to avoid being swept away or pulled under by the waves or a rip current.
If you want to surf but can’t swim, you’re going to have to learn to swim first.
It is definitely in your best interests to keep yourself safe while surfing.
What is the hardest thing about surfing?
It can often depend on the person, as some people find some aspects of surfing easier than others.
However, for the most part, many surfers agree that the hardest part of surfing is actually just paddling out to a point where you can catch the waves.
Depending on the conditions, this can be relatively easy, or it can be a really intense workout.
So, in order to surf, you need to be pretty physically fit in order to be able to paddle yourself out.
This can be one of the hardest parts of surfing.
Balance is the other big issue for most beginners.
Learning how to balance on your board to properly catch a wave can be taught to an extent, but you’ve mostly just got to learn by experience of what works and feeling.
These are the two main hardest parts—so how hard do surfing lessons end up being?
How hard are surfing lessons?
Again, it’s important to remember that everyone has their own pace.
Some things will be more challenging for you than they are for others and vice versa.
When taken as a whole, most would suggest that surfing lessons are moderately difficult—up to 7 on a scale of 1 to 10.
But if you are an especially athletic person or you have excellent balance or some other natural leg up, it will probably be much easier for you.
Anyone can learn to surf with the right perseverance and commitment, though.
It’s the same as any hobby. Learning it takes time and patience, and you’ve got to be prepared to fail over and over again before you will get it right.
Surfing is far from easy, then.
It takes time and practice like anything else, and you’ll get frustrated during the learning process.
This is really part of learning any skill, though, so you just need to learn to be patient.
With patience and perseverance, you can learn to do just about anything you set your mind to.
Just be prepared to take some time with it.
