Use Video Analysis to Improve your Surf
Available at all Kima Surf camps
If you’ve ever seen a video of yourself surfing then you definitely know the feeling of “Do I really look like that when I’m surfing a wave?”.
At Kima Surf, video analysis is one of the best tools that we use on a daily basis to improve your surfing. Whether you are a complete beginner, or an advanced surfer, video analysis is the perfect way to learn from your mistakes, and progress on your surfing journey. We have two video analysis sessions per day at Kima Surf. If you join a video session, you will join your surf guide and watch your videos along with everyone else in your group. Your surf guide will explain what you did well and where you can improve. You can even download your videos afterwards to show all your friends and family back home!
Here are some ways that video analysis can change your surf game!
1. See what you can’t feel
When you catch a wave it is hard to know exactly what your body is doing. Especially for beginner surfers. It is difficult to think at all, since you are overcome with the thrill of catching your first wave This is where videos can help slow things down, and allow you to see what you’re actually doing on the wave. Videos can show you:
Are your feet too close together?
Is your pop up as smooth as you think?
Are you compressing enough and at the right times?
Seeing these mistakes in front of you opens your eyes to what you can improve.
2. Faster progress with clear feedback
During your video analysis sessions at Kima, our experienced surf guides break down each of your waves and explain exactly how to improve. Through these explanations, you’ll
What you are doing well
What you need to adjust
Exactly what you can do to fix it
This kind of feedback boosts your progress. One session of watching your videos can save you a lot of time doing trial and error. Sometimes it's just one thing that you are doing incorrectly that can change the game for you, completely.
3. Create better surfing habits
Having good technique in surfing is all about repetition. When you can virtually track what you are doing through multiple video sessions, then it becomes easier to:
Correct bad habits early on.
Practice and perfect your movements that work.
Build muscle memory.
By doing video analysis, you find things that work and do not work and then practice what works intentionally over and over until it sticks.
4. Boosts your confidence
Seeing how you are improving on video is motivating. Sometimes a surf session can be very frustrating, and it feels like you are getting nowhere. Luckily, videos will show you the little ways in which you are improving, giving you the motivation to keep doing what you’re doing! Watch the small ways you improve, like:
Smoother pop-ups.
Better positioning.
Getting sharper and more efficient turns.
5. Perfect for all levels
You don’t need to be very advanced to benefit from video analysis. Beginners are often the ones benefiting the most, because the changes they need to make are sometimes missed in the water. Small changes like:
Standing up earlier.
Improving paddling technique.
These all seem small, but can make a world of difference to your surf.
6. Watch and Learn
At Kima, we do group video analysis sessions so that you don’t only learnfrom your mistakes and accomplishments, but from others too. Video sessions are done with everyone together, meaning that you will be watching all different levels of surfing. This is the perfect opportunity to learn from other people’s surfing and take tips for yourself.
7. Keeping you motivated on your surf journey
When you start collecting a library of your videos from now and in the past, you will start to see how far you have come. It is easy to get caught up in all the mistakes you are making, but looking back on how much you have improved is extremely motivating!
