How to surf skate safely in doctor’s view

How to surf skate safely in doctor’s view

Currently Surf Skate has become so very popular in Thailand especially in teenagers and working people. Many superstars and celebrities surf skated and posted on social media. Wg.Cdr.Dr. Ekapong Komolhiran, Orthopedic Surgeon of Sukhumvit Hospital has given us this piece of useful information.

What is Surf Skate?

Surf Skate is a combination of skateboard and surfboard. Basically, people cannot surfboard throughout the year because it can be played only when the sea is full of waves. When there are no waves, they thought of surfing on land. The board has been modified by attaching wheels just like skateboard. Special feature called “truck” has been added, it is a joint that is particularly designed to hold the board and wheels together. Truck makes a smooth zigzag gliding of the board, so it is different from the original skateboard which glides straight only.

What parts of the body are used in surf skating?

Players stand on the surfboard. They need to swing their core, shoulders, waist, back, and hip to move the wheels forward and to turn right or left with proper balance. The groups of muscle that are surely used are core, back, abs, hip, thighs and also the joints such as ankles and knees

Warm up and cool down

Warm up and cool down can prevent basic injury as it focuses on the stretching of muscles such as back, waist, hip, knees, and ankles. Warm up and cool down make these muscles and joints more flexible and ready for the activities.

Injury prevention

There are some injuries from surf skating that we should anticipate. Basically, the board body should be in a good condition. Wheels, trucks, joints, springs, need to be checked. Board and truck must be held together securely by standard parts. Protective wear such as helmet, elbow pads, knee pads, which are forgotten most of the time, should be worn as they really prevent the body for injuries.

Location is another important thing. Do not surf skate on road sides or curbs where there are traffic or pedestrians. Choose appropriate location specifically for surf skating because it has smooth surface and safe for surfing.

Your health also counts. Warming up and cooling down must be done, but as mentioned earlier what muscles groups are used, so you need to exercise your muscles in order to surf skate. Pay attention on core, back, abs, hip, thighs, and carves because you need to swing these parts to stay balanced. Keep them strong by taking regular exercise such as planking or squatting.

Who should not surf skate?

Kids lower than 5 years old should not surf skate because their muscles, ligaments, and joints and not fully developed. If they are above 5 but not 10, they need a coach or a parent to supervise closely. Old people also should not surf skate because they are likely to have diseases that are easy to get injured such as Osteoporosis that even a minor fall could lead to broken bones. People with underlying diseases such as heart disease or degenerative disc also should not surf skate. People with knees problems such as torn ligaments or degenerative knee joints are also not candidates for this sport.

Injuries that you need to see a doctor

There are 3 main injuries that you need to see a doctor. First, head injury. Although you just feel dizzy and not knocked out, see a doctor right away. When the head is injured, we never know how severe it is because some symptoms are shown later. Please see a doctor for examination and you need to observe yourself for another 24 hours. Second, arms and legs injury. If the pain developed to the unusual level and you have bruises, distorted shapes of arms or legs, it might be the injury of ligaments, bone fractures, or even broken bones.

Third is the injury that does not show acute pain but the pain becomes chronic and does not go away such as knee pain that lasts longer than 2 weeks even though you have rested. If this is the case, see a doctor. Such injury could possibly occur on your meniscus, ligament, or cartridge. We frequently found that patient’s joints become loose which indicates problems on ligaments after ankle flips or knee injury.

Benefits of Surf Skating

There are many benefits of surf skating. For example, stronger muscles, more calories burned, better body balancing, socializing, relaxing, new lifestyle, and new friends with the same interest.

Wg.Cdr.Dr. Ekapong Komolhiran
Orthopedics Surgery Center