The best diet for surfing

Surfing is a sport that requires a high-level of fitness, especially if you're surfing in more challenging waves or for longer periods of time.

It's estimated that a surfer will burn between 150-400 calories per hour, depending on factors such as your weight, surfing ability and wave conditions. This means you need to ensure you have enough energy to be able to get the most out of your surfing.

Having a good routine of exercises between surfs will help to keep you surf fit, but what else can help? This is where having the right diet can also really benefit your surfing and your health in general.

What to eat and what not to eat

When it comes to eating, there are certain types of foods that you should be aiming to eat and ones you should avoid or reduce as much as possible.

Good

• 'Good' carbohydrates - you need carbohydrates for energy, but focus on eating good ones that can be found in foods such as bananas, cooked rice, cooked oats, bagels and yoghurt
• Fresh vegetables and fruit, ideally organic
• Raw grains, seeds and nuts
• Lean meats, such as turkey or chicken
• Fresh fish, including oily fish like sardines

Bad

• Processed foods - these typically contain lots of sugar, salt or other ingredients, including preservatives, sweeteners etc
• Sugary drinks

Example meal ideas for surfers

Here's a few ideas of meals or dishes that are going to give you great energy for your surf sessions:

Breakfast

• Greek yoghurt with fresh fruit
• Oats with cinnamon and banana
• Black coffee

Lunch

• Turkey or chicken in wheat bread
• A large salad with leaves and other vegetables, plus an olive oil based dressing

Dinner

• Steamed fish, with vegetables - think of the rainbow and have vegetables of different colours
• Chicken tacos and salad

Remember to aim to eat ahead of time before you hit the water, to allow your food to digest properly.

Drinking

Don't forget water! Keeping hydrated is equally as important as eating right, so make sure you are drinking enough water on a daily basis. 

The more you surf or exercise, the more water you will need to replace what you are sweating out. Drink water regularly throughout the day and increase this after you've surfed (or down a workout).

You might want to supplement your diet with drinks like smoothies, but if so the best advice is to make your own at home and avoid the sugary shop-bought ones. 

The simplest recipe is to use some fresh or frozen soft fruits and some skimmed milk, whizzed up in a blender.

Supplements

If you are eating enough fresh, good foods, then you should be getting the right levels of vitamins and minerals in your diet. However if you feel you should be supplementing what you eat, then consider taking some of these daily, with a meal:

• Iron
• Vitamin D
• Zinc
• Magnesium
• Turmeric
• Calcium.

Ensuring you're eating right makes sense for your overall health as well, so why not have a look at your current diet and see what improvements you can make?

Got any good tips to share with other surfers? Let us know via our socials!