Standing up on a surfboard in 3 simple steps

Have you booked your surf vacation at our surfcamp and want to start practicing how to stand up on a surfboard at home? In this article, including a video tutorial, I’ll explain how to do it so you can come to your surf lessons more confident.

How to stand up on a surfboard in 3 simple steps

Standing up on the board, also known as the take off, is the most important moment in surfing, since mastering this technique will determine whether you can surf properly and perform different turns, tricks, or maneuvers. That’s why you need to master a series of basic movements that help you control your body when standing up on the board.

At our surf school, we created this simple guided video tutorial where you’ll learn to stand up on the surfboard in three easy steps. This is the same technique we teach in our surf courses during the summer in Suances, Cantabria. Knowing these simple steps can be very useful if you’re a beginner and haven’t practiced surfing yet. It’s also a great refresher for those who have surfed before and want to polish their technique before getting back into the water.

The advantage of practicing this technique for standing up on the surfboard, compared to others, is that you don’t need to be at the beach to do it. To train it, you only need two bosu balls and a surfboard, but if you don’t have these, you can practice on your bed using cushions or pillows as a makeshift board. The bosus, being round, provide an unstable feeling similar to the sea’s movement, making the learning experience outside the water more realistic. When using pillows or cushions on your bed, you create the height you would have on the water.

Positioning to lie down on a surfboard

The first part of the exercise is to lie down correctly on the surfboard. First, lie on the board or pillow with your knees over the fin area and your feet slightly off the board. If using a bed, your feet should hang slightly off the mattress. A tip to check if you’re lying correctly is to touch the tail of the board with your insteps for reference. Another option is to stretch your arms forward and find a mark or reference on the board to position yourself quickly.

Keep in mind that where you place your feet and body on the surfboard is fundamental for executing the take off correctly. Starting from the right position is key, because poor positioning can lead to falls. Then, paddle a little as explained in our article about paddling, imagining a wave approaching. The moment to start the take off technique is when you feel the tail of the board lift slightly and you begin to gain speed. At first, it’s better to paddle too much and stand up in the foam than to miss the wave, as knowing the exact moment to stand up is tricky.

How to stand up on a surfboard in 3 steps

Starting from the correct lying position on the board, here’s the 3-step technique we teach at our surf school:

Step 1 of Take Off

Place your palms flat on the board at the level of your lower ribs, just below your chest. It’s important never to grab the rails of the board as that will unbalance you. Your hands will be your first support points to stand up, so keep your arms close to your body.

Step 2 of the Take Off

Bring your back foot forward. Usually, this depends on whether you are right- or left-footed, although sometimes it varies. To check your back foot, stand behind the board and push it — the foot you leave behind is your dominant or back foot.

Then, place the back foot where your knee was, slightly turning your hips. With your leg bent, place the inside of your foot fully on the board. At this moment, you have three supports for standing up: both hands and the inside of your back foot (heel and toes). It’s very important to position both heel and toes, because if not, your body will pivot around the back foot incorrectly when standing up.

Step 3 of the Take Off

This last step requires the most skill and energy. With your three supports ready to push and stand up, quickly push off. Place your front foot (which is still extended) in the center of the board between where your hands were. At the same time, the bent back foot acts as a hinge and fully supports the board.

In this position, you’ll be standing on the board, but keep in mind some details: don’t fully extend your legs, keep your knees slightly bent to create a more aerodynamic stance. Also, your feet should be perpendicular to the board — a common mistake is placing the front foot parallel, which reduces stability. Perpendicular feet, similar to a snowboard stance, provide better balance once standing.

Finally, position your arms pointing forward. Each arm should be over one rail of the board to gain more speed, reduce drag, and increase stability. Slightly rotate your hips and keep your gaze high, fixing on a reference point ahead.

Conclusion on how to stand up on a surfboard

This take off technique requires practice, so you may need to repeat it several times to do it smoothly and master it. For this, we made another tutorial where our director, Pablo Ruiz, continuously performs the technique.

Don’t worry if you can’t stand up the first day — it’s normal. You’ll notice practicing out of water is harder than in water because the sea conditions are variable and the surface is unstable. As mentioned before, in our surf courses, we practice this technique on the sand before entering the water to correct mistakes and refine details that prevent full control.

Once you master standing up outside the water, it will be much easier in the sea, significantly improving your surfing level.