Sore Ribs

[Castletyphoon]

Hey guys, really new to surfing. Tried it out many years ago but used a wetsuit as lived where the water was colder. I now live in the tropics and am trying to get back into it but my ribs are killing me! Cant do 2 days in a row its impossible. Any ideas? I really thought that u d get rashguards with a rubber insert but cant seem to find anything. Is this something that goes away with time? Thanks all!

[oldmansurfer]

Learn to paddle without moving your chest so there is less strain on your ribs. Rest when your ribs are sore. Do exercises that strengthen your core muscles.

[Lebowski]

This pain goes after a little while. You can make it easier by buying a 0.5 or 1mm rashy for a bit of cushioning.

[LostAtSea]

I had sore ribs my first few surfs, it hurt to breathe afterwards. I also vouch for the fact that it goes away after awhile. Both the above posts are really good advice.

[BaNZ]

Just surf more and your ribs will get used to it. Ignore the pain and keep surfing.

[oldmansurfer]

I have never had this problem but I figure the only way you can keep surfing and not make this worse is if the pain keeps you from moving your chest so you start to paddle corretly

[Tudeo]

It's like any other injury pain, it can disappear or get worse by continued exercise. Recognise when you need to rest it or when you can continue, know your body's signals.
I often had (and still have) the painful ribs after some time of not surfing, 2 weeks inactivity is enough for me to feel this (mild) pain again. I usually can ignore this and after another 2 weeks it will be gone.

But it happened, some years ago, that I really needed to give it rest. As OMS mentioned this was due to improper paddling technique where my upper body, and by that my ribs, moved too much on the board. When the pain got worse every session I had to stop surfing prone.

I switched to SUP surfing for a month or so and could go back to prone surfing after that. My big board never felt so small after this month of SUP

[Big H]

I went on vacation for a few weeks and was busy on return....more or less only a month away from my regular routine of just about daily surfs....little sore the first two times back out. As Tudeo says, while "sucking it up" and toughing it out is an option, listen to your body and ease off when you feel real pain. Lebo's suggestion for a little neoprene between you and the board it spot on; I wore a 1.5mm yest or a rashie that was lined in the chest and back with 1mm of neoprene when I was first starting out....took me a few months of regular surfing with the neoprene before I could surf without it and not have pain. I do believe that my improved paddle technique developed via time in the water, instructional videos and discussions here, improved paddling posture on the board as I learned how to position myself and the development of all the large and little supporting muscles so that I could hold that posture better all contributed to no longer experiencing rib pain.

Quick answer - get some neoprene between you and the board and surf more!