When I broke my toe it was quite a panic not being able to run, but it also put the majority of the fitness adventures off the table.  Kick boxing, for example, just wasn’t going to work. But then I came across the idea of Stand Up Paddle boarding, SUP to those in the know.  I figured I might be able to manage that, and the class I found included prosecco, which if anything would numb the pain.  Did we fall in Regent’s canal?  What are the heath benefits?  How was the prosecco?  All these important questions answered and more.

The benefits

I thought this would be a pretty great low-impact total-body workout, and it would in particular be good for the core.  And that’s pretty much spot on.  Deceptively simple to get going, but your whole body is engaged, pushing you forward and of course balanced to keep you dry.

The toe

I can’t keep going on about my toe (especially as it’s all better now, click here if you want to read more about my broken toe), but I did struggle in the kneeing position, where it put pressure on the top of my toe.  But standing up, which is the point, and where I spent most of my time, was pretty much fine.

Falling in

Everyone I talked to was convinced I was going to fall in.  From my toe offsetting my balance, to the promise of prosecco, possibly also offsetting my balance. The grimy depths of Regents Canal felt like they were calling to me, and I was a little bit scared.  This wasn’t alleviated at all when the girls running the session had a strict safety briefing about what happens when you fall in.  Basically, keep your mouth shut and get out as quick as possible.

Getting started

Upon arrival, we had to borrow some flip flops. I just assumed we’d do it barefoot and although I did bring a change of clothes, I didn’t bring a change of shoes.  Luckily they had flip flops aplenty, and we were soon choosing our boards and getting a lesson on how to hold the paddle, get up to standing, and of course what to do if we fell in.

Snail-like

I was one of the last ones to get on the water, and in the back of the pack with another lovely gentleman.  He was very tall.  I soon learned being very tall and paddle boarding don’t really go together. Unfortunately, being quite small, also didn’t bode well, as I soon found out.

My new tall friend fell in after about 10 minutes, as I was in the back of the pack with him, I dropped to my knees so the waves didn’t knock me in too.  He was quite shocked by the whole situation, but he gamely got back on and cautiously started again.

I on the other hand had a different problem 🐌.  I just couldn’t get going.  The board was so big and wide, each paddle I took propelled me in a zig zag fashion across the canal, rather than in a straight line.   I couldn’t simple put the paddle in, without leaning my body to one side or the other due to the width of the board.  This meant, no matter how much effort (or coaching on my form), I couldn’t speed up.  It didn’t really matter, but my friend Hollie was way up front and I was a little jealous.

Tandem

On the way back, the instructors put us into tandem formation, where the two paddle boards were butted up together, and you only paddle on one side.  This was the best for me, I got the chance to catch up with Hollie and go at her speed.  We had a great little natter and at last I wasn’t stuck in the back 👯

The prosecco part 🥂

So before we knew it we were back at the dock, and getting off our boards.  My tall friend, fell in 3 times all together, poor guy and was whisked off for some serious antibacterial scrubbing (I think…).  The rest of us popped our shoes back on, and sat on the chairs and indulged in some prosecco.  One of the regular SUPers brought some low-cal prosecco which we all had a taste of, and then another bottle or two of the normal stuff was shared around.  It was great to have a chat at the end and find out more about the other people on the course, and the lovely instructors too.

Would I do it again?  I would definitely do SUP again, it was fun, and easy.  I’d like to try a smaller board, and try to get better at going straight.  While the central London experience was nice (and a great activity to do with a friend), I’ll try somewhere closer to home (at a lower cost).

Would you like to try it?  Check out London Paddle Boarding here.

What’s next?  We’ve been given an opportunity to try the final item on the Psycle menu, a strength class, and we’ve chosen T.U.T.

Read about our all our other fitness adventures here.

—

Have you done stand up paddle boarding and how did you get on? Please share, I’d love to hear what you thought.