The Intermediate Surfer Plateau
How To Break Through
The beginning phase of learning to surf is exciting and fast-paced, you go from catching your first wave, to catching waves regularly and turning down the line quickly! As you reach an intermediate surfing level that progress can suddenly come to a halt, which can be extremely frustrating.
If you have been surfing everyday and feel as though you just aren’t improving, you are not alone.This is a common phase in every surfers journey and the best news is, that with the right approach you can break through this plateau pretty easily. Here’s some reasons why surfers hit a plateau and how to get through it.
Why do plateaus happen?
Surfing without feedback
Another reason you can hit a plateau is if you continue making the same mistakes, some surfers continue surfing without knowing what they are doing wrong. Small repetitive mistakes lead to bad habits. Common mistakes are poor positioning, looking down at your feet, not popping up fast enough and losing speed on turns, these mistakes going unnoticed can halt your progress.
To prevent this, one should get structured coaching and video analysis sessions. Seeing how you surf and getting feedback from a professional can really accelerate your progress. At Kima Surf Camps we offer 2 surf sessions every day for all levels of surfers, as well as video analysis six days a week, our experienced surf guides are there to point out your mistakes and give useful tips to improve them, this will help you beat that plateau.
If you want to progress faster Kima Surf has you covered with 6x/ week video analysis sessions and daily coaching.
Book NowSurfing the same waves
Yes sure it is great that you are surfing everyday, but if you are surfing the same surf spot day after day, this can hinder your progress. The same surf spot may feel comfortable but you are not challenging yourself. Different waves require different techniques. Softer waves are great for practising your turns and your flow, however faster waves improve your timing, pop up and speed generation.
To break this plateau it is important that you surf both types of waves, so that you can keep pushing your limits. When surfing in Bali, spots like Old Man’s and Batu Bolong in Canggu are great for practicing your turns and flow on these slow cruisy waves, but you should challenge yourself on faster waves, like those found at Echo Beach or in Uluwatu, these waves will help you perfect your pop up, focus on speed generation and improve your timing, all important aspects of an intermediate surfer looking to progress.
When surfing in Sri Lanka, the south coast offers a similar mix of wave types. Weligama is known for its slower, rolling waves, which are ideal for building confidence and practicing technique. Hiriketiya provides a step up, with slightly faster sections that help surfers improve timing and control on the face of the wave. It is important for intermediate surfers to mix slow, forgiving waves with faster, challenging waves to keep the progression linear.
Surfing on auto pilot
Catching wave after wave is fun, but when you keep approaching and catching waves in the same way you stop challenging yourself and adapting. If you don't think about different techniques when catching different waves, you can begin to surf in an auto pilot mode which can hinder your progress.
To prevent this it is important to set small goals for every session, maybe you want to work on a stronger bottom turn, or a cleaner cutback or focus on generating more speed. Setting these small goals helps you surf intentionally, this builds better habits and helps you improve.
Not surfing consistently
Repetition is key to all aspects in life, especially surfing. Surfing everyday is what builds muscle memory. If you are surfing occasionally it can be tricky to build confidence and refine your skills. Your biggest improvements happen when you surf everyday. Surf as consistently as possible. Even short sessions help maintain rhythm and technique. Breaking through your surfing plateau takes patience! Intermediate surfers often hit this plateau because they don’t surf enough, surf the same wave, or lack structured feedback, this is completely normal and bound to happen at some point of your surfing journey.
Come spend a week with Kima Surf Camps, either in Seminyak or Canggu in Bali, or Weligama and Hirikeitya in Sri Lanka, our experienced surf guides will push you through this plateau. Our Kima package has you covered so you can focus on what is important; surfing!
Two guided surf sessions per day, seven days a week, at world-class breaks suited to your level
Daily video analysis and surf theory classes to identify mistakes and refine technique
Access to yoga and fitness sessions to build strength, flexibility, and balance
Healthy and refueling meals
Surrounded by surfers who will push you
Ice bath and massages for recovery
All logistics covered — transfers, surfboards, and guidance included.
Sometimes all it takes is seven days fully immersed in surf, theory, feedback, and fun to break the curse and finally take your surfing to the next level.
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