What Type Of Fitness Is Needed For Kitesurfing?

By Author: Tim Greyton
Total Articles: 30
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The sport of kitesurfing has seen its popularity soar in years of late. Incredibly, the sport is seeing its participation levels rise faster than all other water sports according to the sport's national governing body. You will need to seriously work on your body however if you're considering trying out the sport properly. These main areas are where your fitness focus should be.

Upper Body Strength. This is arguable the most important element of your body fitness that you will need to work on. The upper body is responsible for around 75% of the work load when you're on the water and if you want any chance of staying in control, it is vital these muscles are conditioned. Your "deltoids" or shoulder muscles are the main ones that need developing. These are responsible for a lot of the movements and are also stabilising muscles. Also pay attention to the muscle of the upper back and the major pectorals

Core Strength. because the sport is largely about moving your body around under dynamic force conditions, you body should have well developed core stabilizing muscles. Using a Swiss Ball is one way to effectively ...
... develop core muscle efficiency. You will probably have to add weights into you core workouts though in order to replicate the strains you will experience whilst out on the water. Often the kite will want to pull you in a direction you do not want to go so it will be your developed core strength that will let you remain planted

Aerobic Fitness. Whilst most people may not think the sport is aerobically based, work will still need to done on your lungs and heart. Because so much demand will be put on lots of different muscles, they will be requiring vast amounts of oxygen and producing lots of carbon dioxide and lactic acid. You will feel the effects quite early on if you lungs and heart cannot feed the muscles with oxygen quickly enough and remove harmful bi-products at a steady rate. Running or swimming are great ways to work on your cardiovascular system.
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