Bad Habits of an old surfer girl

[surfinggrrrl65]

I have been surfing for over thirty years. I ride a 9’ 2” board, I am 135 lbs, 64 year old female
I have been surfing tiny 2’ point breaks for the past 8 years or so. When I go out on bigger days,
I always fail miserably. I used to be able to pop up and catch rides easily on 3- 4’ waves. For the past Five years or so I developed an awful habit of dropping to my knees, slowly my pop up to a crawl.
Now I live in San Jose Del Cabo and the waves are bigger, no more 2’ breaks, even on the smallest days. At the suggestion of a surf coach, I tried changing my pop up style, and it works great on land. I practice these every day, with no problem. When I get in the water, I either slip and fall on the pop up, or revert back to my old knee crawl up.
Anyone have any suggestions? It seems like a mental block/bad habit, and I haven’t had any success breaking it. Been trying now for several months Last time I went out I fell about six times and only three rides. Any help appreciated.

[waikikikichan]

1) Do you do YOGA ?

2)

Last time I went out I fell about six times and only three rides.

Which direction do you fall as you get up ?
a) Over the nose
b) fall backwards
c) into the face of the wave ( frontside)
d) towards the beach ( frontside )

[dtc]

It’s hard to change something on the wave where everything is happening really fast and stress is high and the rest, so I have sympathy. You can’t even practice the pop up in slow motion to get it right.

What had worked for me - albeit that my changes weren’t as drastic as yours- are

1. Whitewater. Spend sessions in the whitewater. It’s not the same as on the wave but it’s a step closer than doing it on land. Do it 20 or 30 times.

2. Have a word ‘trigger’. So just before you pop up, think (or say out loud if you want I guess!) something that reminds you that you have to do it differently. My pop up problem was getting lazy and trying to push off the back foot (not much use on a shorter board when there is no board for you foot to push off!) and this was because my hands were too high on the board. So as I paddled I just thought ‘hips hips’, meaning ‘put my hands down toward my hips’. Of course I could have said ‘porpoise’ or ‘apple crumble’ - it’s not the word itself, it’s the trigger in your mind to focus and not go back to old habits without thinking.

Hope that helps. Of course I’ve assumed you know what to do and just can’t do it (vs don’t have the right technique at all)

Potentially what works for you is different, so finding hints from various places and trying them until one clicks is worthwhile.

[LostAtSea]

I agree with dtc about whitewater. My case is different, I learned a bad habit from the beginning and had to break it.

I went for a surf and the waves were terrible, so I told myself I am going to spend the whole day doing pop ups in the whitewater (and crank turns as radically as possible once I am up, just for further practice).

I needed to popup faster and more fluid. It really helped me get my form together.

[pmcaero]

If your paddle fitness is above abysmal, maybe you can "reset" your surfing by trying a shorter board, for example a 7' soft top. Shorter boards tend to make the drop without pearling, and it might give you a bit more time to pop-up. Also, 7' soft tops usually have a lot of volume and are very forgiving in general.

[surfinggrrrl65]

Thanks for all the imput. I have tried working in the white water, and I need to go back to that. Hard to give up my potential wave riding time, but sometimes necessary.
Waikikikichan, yes I do yoga and work out 5-6 x a week, also I fall backside, away from the beach. To my right, as I am a goofy foot.
I know what to do, since I used to able to pop up no problem, just developed a bad habit.

Thanks again



Thank you

Bunny Weis

[waikikikichan]

So you are a goofy footer going Right on your back side, and falling into the wave.
1) look up and out more
2) open your right foot to more 10-11 o’clock, not 9 o’clock.
3) drive down the face. Falling back means you’re scared and unweighted.
4) Going to your knees means you’re scared.
You need to get your butt up high to clear room for you front foot to get under your torso. You need to explode your hands off the deck, not just let go. All the while keep looking UP.
Practice this pose and see if you can twist out of it and plant your feet in your goofy stance.

[tomthetreeman]

Also, in crow pose, looking forward helps with balance, and simulates what you should be doing when popping up.

[surfinggrrrl65]

thanks again. This is the same technique exactly my surf coach suggested. I did dry land videos of my practice, I have it down perfect. I realized I wasn't raising my hips high enough before. Unfortunately, because of fear/habit, this hasn't translated to the surf. I either fall, or more likely, drop my left knee, or sometimes both. Probably just need to practice over and over in the white water. I still do practice my dry land pop ups every day. Right now we need some waves, its not breaking here.

[waikikikichan]

Probably just need to practice over and over in the white water.

I do not agree with that. In the white water, other than the churning bounce, it's flat - horizontal. The problem you have is on the Take-Off / Pop which is on a decline, at an angle.

Some instructors teach the pop on the sloping sand near the water line to mimic the take off drop. Maybe you can find a sloped sandy area ( fully supporting the bottom of the board ) or use a softtop instead of your nice board.

You need to practice on a decline. An example of lifting weights, you maybe fine with benching weights in the FLAT - regular position, but try doing it in the INCLINE setup. Feels totally different. Same for you practicing in the FLATS, you need to get the DECLINE feeling and muscles form.

( and stop looking at the nose )