How to Deal with Aggressive Surfers

Understanding Surf Bullies

Every surfer eventually encounters someone who screams, threatens, or tries to intimidate others out of the water. These confrontations can rattle you for days—or worse, make you avoid surfing altogether. Here's how to handle aggressive surfers without escalating the situation or abandoning your session.

One of my students recently became the target of a notorious local who directs F-bombs at people in the lineup. My student wasn't doing anything wrong—she was simply surfing in "that person's" territory.

Graffiti like this can alert you to the fact that there will be surf bullies in the lineup.

I've been on the receiving end of similar treatment. Years ago, after watching one surfer repeatedly burn everyone in the lineup, I decided to burn her back. On the wave I took, she had already burned three other people. The irony that I was the one who deserved a drubbing wasn't lost on me.

I don't recommend my response. It didn't help. Fighting fire with fire rarely does in the water.

The Core Strategy: Hold Your Ground

Bullies work by bullying. If you're not bullied by the bully, half their job is gone. They try to scare you, and if you just hold firm and let it pass, you'll be okay. But if you let them intimidate you into leaving or changing your behavior, it confirms their approach works—and they'll keep doing it.

This doesn't mean confrontation. It means continuing to surf as you normally would, following proper etiquette, and not letting someone's aggression end your session prematurely.

Step-by-Step Response

Find your coalition. If someone you know is in the water, tell them what's happening. When my student told her friend what the aggressive surfer was doing, he said, "Oh yeah, she yells at everyone." Just knowing you're not alone—and that the behavior isn't about you specifically—helps.

Surf buds are more than just good vibes — they’re your social safety net in the lineup.

Check yourself honestly. Ask someone in your coalition if you genuinely did something wrong. Were you ditching your board in people's faces? Paddling around others without taking turns? If so, acknowledge it, course correct, and keep surfing. You're allowed to make etiquette mistakes—we all do. The difference is whether you learn from them.

Resolve to keep surfing. If you still have energy and desire to catch waves, don't let a bully end your session. Their anger is their problem, not your emergency.

Don't attack back. It's perfectly human to want to tell them to go fuck themselves. But it will be counterproductive. You can vent to your crew afterward. That's healthier.

When Someone Threatens or Assaults You

This is trickier. I have real-world experience here too. Filing complaints or making legal arguments rarely works in surfing and is usually more hassle than it's worth.

What works over time: continuing to surf as you normally do, in the places you normally surf. If you keep showing up, even the worst actors eventually give up. At some point, they'd rather just surf too.

If you're genuinely scared, double down on your coalition. Bring friends. Find allies in the lineup. Power in numbers. I keep a photo of one past assailant on a hard drive titled "In case I need to get a restraining order." Fortunately, just continuing to surf normally made it unnecessary.

Distinguishing Bullies from Bad Days

Not everyone who gets upset in the water is a bully. Sometimes people have legitimate grievances or are just having a bad day.

I get annoyed at people too. What irks me most: surfers who paddle for waves with their heads down, oblivious to others, especially right after missing a wave themselves. Recently I blocked someone doing exactly this. But when I explained—"It's okay, you can calm down, we're all sharing waves, just breathe and take turns"—I wasn't trying to intimidate. I was trying to communicate.

The test: use "I" statements. "Hey, I'm feeling like I pissed you off. Is that the case?" A reasonable person might explain what happened. "Well, you paddled into my path three times." That starts a conversation. But if someone leads with F-bombs and won't engage, they're probably not receptive—and they're most likely a bully.

The Long Game

Aggressive surfers aren't going away. They exist at every break, in every surf culture. The goal isn't to eliminate them—it's to not let them steal your joy.

Inevitably, more people will enjoy surfing with you than won't. It's because of the reasonable majority that you can weather the unreasonable few. Build your coalition. Follow proper etiquette. Keep showing up. The ocean belongs to everyone willing to respect it.

How many calories does surfing actually burn?

What 4 Years of Tracking Taught Me

Google "calories burned surfing" and you'll find wildly different numbers: 200 per hour, 400 per hour, sometimes 600 or more. After four years of tracking with a Whoop and various other trackers, comparing data against my actual weight and food intake, I finally have numbers I trust.

The Short Answer

For a 145-pound surfer with above-average fitness, here's what different types of surfing actually burn:

Intensity	Cal/Hour	What It Looks Like
Low	~325	Lots of sitting, lower wave count, easy paddle, mellow longboard sessions
Moderate	~450	Decent wave count, some exertion, midlength in fun conditions
High	~650	High wave count, hard paddle, challenging conditions, shortboarding in pumping surf

A hard shortboard session in pumping conditions burns approximately 600 calories per hour. A mellow longboard cruise? Closer to 300. The type of surfing matters enormously.

how i know these numbers are accurate

Four years of heart rate tracker data (Garmin, Fitbit, Whoop), daily weigh-ins, and meticulous food tracking. The key was learning to read the data intelligently—identifying outlier sessions and understanding what the tracker measures well versus where it struggles.

The proof: during a 10-day surf trip to Barbados, my Whoop showed I averaged 2,678 calories burned per day. I was eating 2,700-3,500 calories daily and maintained my weight at 142 pounds the entire trip. The numbers matched reality.

Fitness trackers work on heart rate, and surfing is fundamentally cardiovascular. Once you accumulate enough data and learn to spot the outliers, the patterns become reliable.

calculate your weekly surf burn

Weekly surf hours reference:
Beginner: 2–3 hrs • Weekend warrior: 4–6 hrs • Regular: 6–10 hrs • Dedicated: 10+ hrs

Low hrs × 325 = 0 cal

Moderate hrs × 450 = 0 cal

High hrs × 650 = 0 cal

Weekly Surf Calories: 0 cal

Daily Average: 0 cal/day

*Based on a 145 lb surfer. Larger bodies burn more, smaller bodies burn less. These are estimates—real accuracy comes from tracking over time or working with a coach.

What Affects Your Calorie Burn

Body weight. Larger bodies burn more calories doing the same activity. A 180-pound surfer will burn more than a 145-pound surfer in identical conditions.

Session intensity. This is the biggest variable. A mellow longboard session in waist-high waves burns far less than a shortboard session in overhead surf with strong current. Be honest about what kind of surfing you're actually doing.

Water temperature. Counterintuitively, warm water sessions burn more. In cold water, your heart rate down-regulates to keep you alive—your body goes into conservation mode. You're still burning calories in that 5mm, just not as many as you might think for all that work. Warm water? Everything runs hotter, you're more active, and the calorie burn reflects it.

Wave count and active time. A two-hour session where you catch 15 waves burns more than a two-hour session where you catch 5. Time spent actively paddling and riding matters more than clock time.

Currents. Strong currents mean more paddling to maintain position—significantly more calorie burn than a session where you're sitting in a calm channel.

Calculate Your surf-specific TDEE

Your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) is your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR)—what your body burns at rest—plus your daily activity burn from surfing. Plug in the daily average from the calculator above.

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Age

Weight (lbs)

Height (ft)

Height (in)

Daily Surf Calories

From the surf burn calculator (weekly ÷ 7)

Calculate TDEE

Your BMR: —

Daily Surf Calories: —

Your TDEE: —

A Reality Check on These Numbers

These calculators give you estimates—starting points, not gospel. The BMR formulas are based on population averages, and your actual metabolism could be significantly different.

And body weight alone tells you almost nothing. 180 lbs at 40% body fat and 180 lbs at 15% body fat are completely different bodies. 180 lbs on a 6-foot frame versus a 5-foot frame is a completely different weight distribution. The scale is a crude tool.

The only way to know your real numbers is to do what I did: track food intake and weight consistently over weeks and months, identify the patterns, and let the data tell you the truth. Or work with a coach who can help you dial it in faster. The calculators get you in the ballpark. Consistent tracking—or expert guidance—gets you the actual answer.

Beyond the Numbers

Once you know your calorie target, the application is simple: eat a little less to lose weight, eat a little more to gain weight. Whether your goal is to cut, bulk, or maintain, adding mobility and resistance exercises helps keep your muscles intact and healthy through the process.

And while CICO is king at the end of the day, not all calories are created equal. A diet built predominantly from whole food sources—especially plant sources high in fiber—is proven time and again to support healthy gut function. The healthier your gut functions, the better you surf. Energy levels, recovery, inflammation, mental clarity—it all connects back to what you're actually eating, not just how much.

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Want to dial in your surf-specific nutrition? My SR365 program includes personalized TDEE calculations, meal plans built on whole food principles, and the mobility and HIIT routines that'll actually improve your surfing. Set up a call and let’s get you in the best surf shape of your life!

Why Most Surf Content Doesn't Help You Surf Better

You've watched the YouTube tutorials. You've scrolled through the Instagram reels. You've read the listicles—"5 Tips to Improve Your Pop-Up." And yet, when you paddle out, not much has changed.

That's not your fault. Most surf content is designed to get clicks, not to get you waves.

The typical advice floats on the surface: bend your knees, look where you want to go, commit. It's not wrong, exactly. It's just incomplete. It tells you what without explaining why. It skips the underlying mechanics—the positioning that earns you priority, the forecasting knowledge that puts you in the right place at the right time, the fitness that makes your body capable of what your mind already understands.

Surfing is too complex to be reduced to tips. It's a system. Your paddling affects your positioning. Your positioning affects your wave selection. Your wave selection affects your confidence. Your confidence affects your commitment. Everything connects.

That's why I built Dr. Dion's Surf Secrets.

Every Friday, I send one publication to subscribers. Not a tip. Not a hack. A piece of the system—technique breakdowns that explain the why, surf-specific workouts, lineup strategy, forecasting decoded, etiquette that earns respect in the water. The kind of knowledge that compounds over time.

This isn't content designed to perform well on social media. It's designed to make you perform well in the water.

What you get for $25/month—the best value in virtual surf coaching:

• Weekly technique, strategy, and mindset breakdowns

• Surf-specific workouts and mobility routines

• Plant-based recipes for session fuel

• Gear reviews without the sponsored hype

• Forecasting tips so you stop missing swells

• First access to trips and coaching spots

• Direct line to a coach with a PhD who actually surfs

I've coached surfers at every level, from first-timers to competitors. The ones who progress fastest aren't the most athletic. They're the most curious. They want to understand what's actually happening—not just be told what to do.

If that sounds like you, Surf Secrets is the entry point.

Knowledge changes everything. Subscribe to Dr. Dion's Surf Secrets and start surfing like you understand what you're doing.

Why Most Surf Schools Teach You to Learn Backwards

Most surf schools start with pop-up drills on the beach. This feels logical—you need to stand up, so practice standing up. But after 22 years of teaching, I can tell you this approach actually decelerates your learning. The reversal sounds counterintuitive until you understand how surfing was taught successfully for generations before surf schools existed.

The Natural Learning Order

I grew up surfing a heavy beach break in Central California. Before I ever focused on standing up, I learned to observe waves—where they break, how they break, what the patterns are. I learned to paddle with proper form. The pop-up came last, almost as an afterthought, because by then I understood where to be and how to get there.

This is what I call the kinship structure—how kids learn to surf when they grow up around it. Ocean knowledge first, paddling second, standing up third. It's far more effective than any surf school method because it builds skills in the order they actually matter.

Why Reversing the Order Creates Problems

When you start with pop-up drills, you draw attention inward—toward your body, your feet, your arm placement. Meanwhile, the wave is doing something beneath you that you're completely unaware of. This is why so many surf school graduates struggle with looking down the line. They've been trained to look at themselves, not at the ocean.

The three most common beginner mistakes I see—not being patient with the ocean, poor paddling form, and not looking at the wave through the entry—aren't separate issues. They're symptoms of a learning process that's been reversed from its natural order.

How to Apply This

Learn some basic oceanography. A little surf forecasting goes a long way. You can get my Free Forecasting Cheat Sheet right now. That will get you started.

Spend more time watching before paddling out. Even five minutes observing—where waves break, where people catch them, what the rhythm is—beats rushing into the water blind.

Film your paddling. Most people have no idea what they look like. The "corpse paddle"—lower body dragging like dead weight—is epidemic. Fix this and everything else gets easier. Want me to critique your paddling? Consider a Mini Surf Audit.

Train yourself to look down the line, not at your feet. Your body follows your eyes. Staring at your feet means surfing toward the beach. Looking down the line means surfing along the wave.

If you're stuck, stop thinking about the pop-up entirely. Spend your next several sessions focused purely on reading waves and perfecting your paddle. Let the standing happen as a byproduct of better positioning. You may be surprised how quickly things click.

The Takeaway

Surf schools reverse the natural order because "learn to stand up today!" is easier to sell than "learn to patiently observe the ocean." But if you want to actually progress—if you want to feel confident in the lineup instead of perpetually confused—you need to learn in the order that creates competent surfers, not the order that's easiest to market.

Ocean knowledge. Paddling. Then the pop-up. Everything else follows. If you need help, I’m here. Book a consult and let’s go.

Winter Surf Missions: San Diego & Southwest France

Two epic coaching opportunities are coming up this winter, and I want you there with me. Whether you're looking to rack up reps on approachable California points or chase French beachbreak barrels, these trips are designed to accelerate your surfing while experiencing world-class waves.

And yeah SD is a no brainer!!

San Diego: November 8-15 (This Week!)

I'm headed to Southern California THIS WEEK for a week of high-volume surfing across San Diego's incredible range of breaks. This isn't a bucket-list destination chase—it's a strategic mission to maximize water time in clean, consistent surf.

Note: If you're reading this and want to join, reach out immediately. There may still be 1-2 spots available, but we're leaving in just a few days.

Why San Diego in November?

The beauty of San Diego is that it requires a massive swell to max out. While the rest of California gets blown out or too big, SD stays approachable. Both the south and north Pacific are active this time of year, guaranteeing clean 1-4ft surf throughout the week. The water temps are surprisingly similar to NY right now—mild enough that my 3mm hooded wetsuit and 3/2s will handle it.

The Spots

We're staying on the Pacific Beach/Bird Rock border, putting us in striking distance of dozens of quality breaks:

• Tourmaline

• Bird Rock

• Windansea

• La Jolla Shores

• Seaside Reef

• Cardiff

• San Elijo State Beach

The location gives us options every day based on swell direction, wind, and your skill level. This isn't about forcing you into waves you're not ready for—it's about finding the right canvas to work on your technique.

The Focus: Going Right

One of my main objectives for this trip is targeting rights over lefts. Most NY surfers simply don't get enough reps going right. If you're goofy, this is your chance to dial in backside fundamentals. If you're regular, we're building that frontside confidence that translates everywhere.

Equipment & Setup

We're not bringing boards—I've arranged rentals including several 9ft longboards. Perfect for the point break glide and working on trim, positioning, and reading unbroken faces. If you prefer shorter equipment, we can arrange that too.

A Typical Day

Here's what I'm envisioning:

• Early morning: Walk Pita to the beach, check buoys and winds, develop strategy

• 15-30 minute mobility warm-up

• Dawn patrol surf until 9-10am

• Beach snack or cafe breakfast

• Footage review on iPad (immediate feedback while it's fresh)

• Second surf session (shorter, targeted work on what we noticed in session one)

• Video review back at the pad

• Downtime/office work (you can work remotely, I handle admin)

• Late afternoon stretches

• More Pita beach time

• Dinner

• Early bed

Wind is the biggest variable in SD. The land curves differently than Northern California, so we'll be reading conditions daily and adapting. That's part of what you're learning—how to develop strategy based on what the ocean gives you.

Who This Trip Is For

This is ideal if you're working on:

• Frontside/backside development (depending on stance)

• Wave positioning and reading unbroken faces

• Trim and speed generation on mellow walls

• Building volume (multiple sessions per day)

• Understanding how to strategize across different breaks

San Diego is happening this week—if there's still space and you can make it work, reach out now.

Southwest France: December 3-24

This is the trip. Three weeks in one of the world's premier surfing regions, rotating through multiple towns to maximize conditions and experience. I went last year and learned the zone. This year, I'm positioned to get it right.

The Route

Hossegor (December 3-19)

The crown jewel of French surfing. All manner of beachbreaks—gentle sandbars for progression and tubing wedges for those ready to step up. If a massive swell rolls through, we'll pivot to Biarritz or St. Jean de Luz, where protected nooks keep things manageable.

I'm staying longer in Hossegor this year specifically because I want to catch those firing French barrels you see in magazines. But here's the thing: between those big days are stretches of clean 2-3ft and 2-4ft surf that represent the best conditions for continued self-overcoming. Those are the days that will transform your surfing.

The Hossegor house has space for several people throughout this window, with some spots still available.

Anglet (December 20-24)

A little town right next to Biarritz with fun beachbreaks hemmed in by jetties. I stayed here last trip and preferred it to Biarritz proper—the bakeries were just as good (if not better), and I'll be making daily walks to Maison Gautier for their olive focaccia.

These beachbreaks are incredibly fun and consistent for all levels. Like all beachbreaks, the sandbars shift, so it's never exactly the same twice. Our place is small but right on the water, with a pull-out sofa in the living room if you want to join.

Guethary (December 25-30)

South of Biarritz, home to the famous Parlementia. I'll be taking some personal time this week, but I'll still be surfing daily. If you're around and want one-off sessions, I'm available.

The waves around Guethary are rock reefs and beachbreaks. It's an absolutely stunning Basque fishing village with cobblestone streets, cute cafes, and firing restaurants. A perfect way to close out the year.

Why Multiple Locations?

Last year I went in blind—Anglet for a week, Biarritz for a week-plus. I learned what I needed: where to stay, which breaks fire in which conditions, where the best bread lives.

This year's route is strategic. Hossegor for the main event. Anglet for consistent fun. Guethary for beauty and reefs. Each location offers different wave types and learning opportunities.

Water Temperature & Gear

Bring your winter wetsuit. I'm running 4/3mm hooded most days, maybe a 5/4mm if it gets properly cold. The water isn't punishing, but it's the Atlantic in December—you need proper gear to stay out long enough to get the reps that matter.

The French Advantage

Here's what makes France different from most surf trips: the variety. You're not locked into one break or one style of wave. Beachbreaks, reefs, points. Mellow rollers and dredging barrels. Playful beach waves and serious paddle-outs.

Every day presents options based on your skill level and goals. That's the beauty of posting up for three weeks—you're not scrambling to score one good day. You're building a practice.

Who This Trip Is For

France works for a wide range of surfers:

• Intermediates who want to dial fundamentals in clean, consistent surf

• Advanced surfers ready to work on tube riding (when conditions align)

• Anyone who's been plateauing and needs the reset that only sustained water time provides

• People who love good food (plant-based options everywhere)

If you've been worried about big tubes not being your jam, look at the Surfline forecast for SW France this week. Yes, there are bigger, messier days. But they always calm down. You get sick 2-3ft, 2-4ft surf that's perfect for growth. And on those forecasted 4-6ft days? That's when all kinds of spots light up across the region.

Membership Pricing & How It Works

Both trips use the Conatus Surf Club membership tier structure:

Zine Level: 5% off trip rates
Sustain Level: 15% off trip rates
Progress Level: 20% off trip rates

All memberships require a 3-month minimum commitment and include varying levels of coaching calls, app access, text support, and nutrition guidance depending on tier.

Training Timeline

If you're coming to France, you need to start your training program by November 15th at the latest. That gives you just under three weeks to dial in your conditioning before we hit the water December 3rd. Don't wait until you're on the trip to get surf-fit. The Roadmap to Holistic Surf-Fitness gets you prepared so you can maximize every session once you're there.

San Diego is happening this week—if you're reading this and want in, reach out immediately. For future California missions, solid conditioning going in is expected, but the focus is more on high-volume surfing and technique refinement than physical preparation.

Final Thoughts

I don't run trips for the sake of running trips. These are strategic missions to locations I know well, with clear objectives for your surfing development. San Diego for volume and fundamentals in approachable conditions. France for variety, progression, and the chance to experience world-class waves in one of surfing's most storied regions.

Both trips will have daily mobility work, video review, strategy sessions, and the kind of focused attention that accelerates growth. You'll also have downtime to work remotely, explore, or just recover.

If either of these speaks to you, reach out now. Spots are limited, and I'd rather have a small crew of committed surfers than a large group where attention gets diluted.

Let's make this winter count.

Questions? Email or text me directly.
Ready to commit? Let's get you locked in.

The Hidden Connection Between Body Confidence and Ocean Fear

Most surf coaching focuses on technique—how to pop up faster, how to read waves better, how to position yourself in the lineup. But after years of teaching surfers and observing my own relationship with challenging conditions, I've noticed something that rarely gets discussed: the profound connection between how you feel in your body and how you approach fear in the ocean.

This isn't about having a "surf body" or looking a certain way in a wetsuit. This is about the subtle but powerful relationship between physical capability and mental confidence when you're paddling out into conditions that genuinely scare you.

The Moment I Realized Physical Confidence Matters

I'll be honest—I spent most of my surfing life avoiding systematic fitness training. I surfed, I stayed generally active, and I told myself that was enough. The ocean would keep me in shape, right?

Before fitness journey.

Then about four years ago, I started training specifically for surfing—not just surfing more, but actually doing structured resistance training and mixing up cardio zones. Nothing fancy. Just showing up consistently and doing the work.

After fitness journey.

The shift became obvious during winter surfing in New York. Full 5mm wetsuit, bigger pumping surf, cold water—the kind of conditions where a wipeout means getting properly worked. And I noticed something: I was just so much less scared of wiping out.

The waves hadn't changed. The consequences of getting worked in 40-degree water were the same. But my internal experience was completely different. The physical confidence in my body had shifted something fundamental about how I approached fear in the ocean.

The Two Layers of Ocean Fear

When we talk about fear in surfing, we often conflate two distinct types of anxiety:

Environmental fear: The rational assessment of objective danger—reef depth, wave size, current strength, the consequences of getting worked. This is healthy fear. This is what keeps you alive.

Capability fear: The uncertainty about whether your body can handle the physical demands of the situation—can you paddle hard enough, recover quickly enough between waves, maintain your technique when you're fatigued and cold.

Here's what most surf content misses: these two layers interact. When you're uncertain about your physical capabilities, your assessment of environmental danger becomes distorted. A wave that's challenging-but-manageable feels genuinely dangerous when you're not sure you can paddle back out after getting worked. A wipeout that would be uncomfortable-but-okay becomes terrifying when you don't trust your body's resilience.

The inverse is also true. When you know—not hope, not think, but actually know—that your body can handle the physical demands, your assessment of environmental danger becomes more accurate. You can distinguish between "this is genuinely too big for my skill level" and "this is just uncomfortable and scary."

The Myth of "Surfing Yourself Into Shape"

The surf industry perpetuates this romantic notion that if you just surf enough, you'll naturally develop all the fitness you need. For many surfers, this is partially true. If you live near consistent waves and surf frequently, you'll maintain baseline paddle fitness.

But here's the problem with relying solely on surfing for fitness: you can only train at the level of waves you're currently comfortable surfing.

Think about that for a moment. If you're intimidated by overhead waves, you're not getting overhead-wave fitness. If you avoid long paddle-outs, you're not building long-paddle endurance. The very conditions that would push your fitness are the conditions you're avoiding because you lack the fitness to handle them comfortably.

This creates a frustrating catch-22. You need fitness to surf challenging waves confidently, but you need to surf challenging waves to build that specific fitness. Meanwhile, you're caught in a loop of surfing the same comfortable waves, wondering why you're not progressing.

What Actually Changes When You Train

The transformation isn't complicated. Resistance training builds strength—the kind that lets you pop up powerfully on wave eight when you're cold and tired. The kind that keeps your body stable and controlled when you're getting tossed in a hold-down. The kind that means paddling back out after a set doesn't leave you gasping.

Cardio work—especially when you mix up zones—builds the capacity to paddle hard when it matters and recover quickly when you need to. It means you're not choosing between "go for this wave" and "conserve energy to paddle back out." You can do both.

Here's what's wild: just doing something—anything—systematically goes so much further than people recognize. You don't need a perfectly optimized program or specialized surf training equipment or complicated protocols. You need to show up consistently and do resistance training and cardio work that challenges you.

The physical improvements matter, obviously. But the confidence boost comes from something else entirely: you know you've put in the work. When you're paddling out into sketchy conditions, you're not wondering if your body can handle it. You know it can because you've been deliberately building that capacity.

The Clarity Fear Needs

Here's where this gets nuanced: physical preparation doesn't eliminate fear, and it shouldn't. Fear serves an important function in high-consequence environments. The ocean can absolutely hurt you, and healthy respect for that reality keeps you from making dangerous decisions.

What physical confidence does is clarify your fear. It removes the static interference so you can hear the actual signal.

When you're physically prepared, you can distinguish between:

• "I'm scared because this is actually beyond my skill level" (listen to this)

• "I'm scared because I'm imagining worst-case scenarios my body couldn't handle" (question this)

• "I'm scared because this is uncomfortable and challenging but manageable" (lean into this)

That last category is where growth happens. But you can't access it when you're unsure whether your body can back up what your mind is attempting.

For me in those cold New York sessions, the environmental fear was still there—cold water hold-downs are objectively unpleasant and potentially dangerous. But the capability fear had diminished dramatically. I wasn't wasting mental energy wondering "can I handle this physically?" I knew I could. That clarity allowed me to make better decisions about which waves to go for and when to exercise appropriate caution.

The Feedback Loop: Fitness Enables Experience, Experience Builds Skill

Here's where the relationship between physical confidence and ocean competence gets interesting: fitness creates access to experiences that build actual skill.

When you're physically confident, you surf more challenging conditions. When you surf more challenging conditions, you develop better wave reading, positioning, and decision-making. Those skills then allow you to surf even more challenging conditions with greater competence.

But this feedback loop only activates when you have enough physical confidence to enter it in the first place.

I've watched this happen with students repeatedly. They show up with clear technical issues—dropping in too late, hesitating on takeoff, not committing through turns. We work on technique, and they improve marginally. Then they spend weeks on systematic resistance training and cardio work, come back to the same waves, and suddenly the technical issues resolve themselves.

Why? Because they were never purely technical problems. They were confidence problems manifesting as technical limitations. When you're uncertain whether you can paddle back out after a wipeout, you're never going to commit to that steep late takeoff. When you don't trust your body's resilience, you're never going to relax enough to surf well.

Physical confidence removes the governor that was limiting commitment and progression.

The Practical Path Forward

If you find yourself avoiding conditions you want to surf, or hesitating when you know you should commit, or feeling anxious before sessions in ways that don't match the actual danger level, consider whether physical uncertainty might be contributing to your mental state.

Ask yourself:

• Do I actually know my paddling capacity, or am I guessing?

• Can I maintain powerful pop-ups when fatigued, or does my technique deteriorate?

• Do I trust my body to handle the physical demands of challenging conditions?

• Am I avoiding certain conditions partly because I'm unsure if I'm physically capable?

If the answer to any of these is uncertain or no, you've identified something you can actually change.

The good news: physical capabilities are the most controllable aspect of surfing. You can't control when swells arrive or whether the wind cooperates, but you can absolutely control your strength and cardiovascular fitness. These respond predictably to systematic training.

And you don't need anything complicated. Resistance training. Cardio work with varied intensities. Showing up consistently. That's it. The fancy stuff doesn't matter nearly as much as just doing something systematically instead of nothing.

The Integration: Fitness as One Component

I need to be clear: physical preparation alone doesn't create ocean confidence. It's one component of a larger system that includes wave knowledge, technical skill, experience, risk assessment ability, and psychological resilience.

Improving your fitness while maintaining poor wave selection won't keep you safe. Building paddling endurance while ignoring your limitations won't make you a better surfer. Getting stronger without working on your actual surfing technique won't suddenly make you rip.

But—and this is crucial—physical confidence makes everything else more accessible. It creates space for better decision-making. It allows you to focus on wave selection rather than survival. It enables you to work on technique without the anxiety of whether your body can execute what your mind is asking.

Think of physical confidence as removing barriers rather than creating abilities. Your wave reading doesn't improve because you got stronger. Your wave reading improves because you're no longer distracted by physical uncertainty while you're in the lineup.

The Question You Should Ask

Instead of "How do I get less scared?" ask "What specific physical uncertainties are contributing to my fear?"

Instead of "How do I build confidence?" ask "What physical capabilities would I need to trust in order to surf the conditions I want to surf?"

The answers to these questions are concrete and trainable. You might discover that consistent resistance training changes your entire relationship with powerful waves. You might find that improving your cardiovascular capacity eliminates much of your wipeout anxiety. You might realize that just being systematically stronger allows you to commit to waves you've been avoiding.

Physical confidence won't eliminate fear—nor should it. But it will clarify your fear, making it a useful signal rather than paralyzing noise. And in that clarity, you'll find space to expand your range in the ocean in ways that feel challenging but genuinely manageable.

The ocean will always demand respect. The question is whether your body can back up what your mind wants to attempt. And unlike wave quality, swell direction, or wind conditions, that's something you can actually control.

If you're interested in systematic fitness preparation specifically designed for surfers, I offer coaching programs that integrate resistance training and cardiovascular work tailored to ocean demands. The goal isn't to make you fearless—it's to make your fear accurate.