71 Surf 5X Better in 8 Days
Do your bottom turns feel weak or inconsistent, even though you're surfing more than ever?
Most surfers plateau because they try to improve everything at once. In this episode, Mike breaks down how he changed his bottom turn dramatically in just 8 days — using laser focus, detailed movement analysis, and intentional training, both in and out of the water.
Discover how to train your body for specific surf movements using dryland drills
Learn how to mimic your surf heroes and use footage to replicate their technique
Understand how dialing in just one thing can create a massive breakthrough in your surfing
Hit play to learn how to transform your technique, starting with the most foundational move in surfing: the bottom turn.
https://surfmastery.com/workshops
Key Points
Surf Mastery workshops are being run by Michael, with the first one scheduled for April 9th in Wellington, followed by another on April 21st in Fitzroy Beach, and a third on May 7th in Auckland.
A promo code 'podcast' is available for a 20% discount on bookings at www.patreon.com for the Surf Mastery workshops.
Michael focused on improving his bottom turn during an eight-day surf trip, using techniques such as watching footage of Julian Wilson, emulating his body position, and building endurance and self-awareness.
Outline
Surf Mastery Workshops
Michael has started running Surf Mastery workshops.
The first workshop is scheduled for April 9th at 1pm in Wellington at the Lyle Bay Surf Lifesaving Club.
The second workshop is on April 21st in the evening at the Surf Rider Club in Fitzroy Beach.
The third workshop is on May 7th at 1pm in Auckland at AUT Millennium.
All details and bookings for the workshops can be found at surfmastery.com.
A 20% discount is available using the promo code 'podcast' at www.patreon.com.
The workshops focus on surfing fundamentals, particularly the bottom turn.
Michael's Surf Improvement Journey
Michael shared a personal experience of improving their surfing skills during an eight-day surf trip.
The improvement was particularly noticeable in the bottom turn technique.
Michael focused solely on mastering the bottom turn throughout the trip.
Michael had previous coaching and footage to guide their practice.
Michael learned the importance of focusing on one aspect at a time from Matt Craig's teachings.
Michael chose Julian Wilson as a model to emulate due to their similar height, body size, and surfing style.
Michael watched footage of Julian Wilson performing bottom turns in similar conditions to their own.
Michael used photos of Julian Wilson's bottom turn to practice body positioning in the gym.
Michael incorporated detailed body awareness and endurance exercises into their gym routine.
Michael emphasized the importance of focusing on the feeling of the technique rather than visual feedback while surfing.
Michael practiced the bottom turn on approximately 50% of the waves they encountered.
Michael analyzed Julian Wilson's technique by slowing down footage on YouTube to observe subtleties.
Michael realized the importance of getting deeper into the bottom turn after observing Julian Wilson's visual field during turns.
Michael's practice led to significant improvement in their bottom turn technique over the course of the trip.
Transcription
Go surfers! I wanted to let you know I have started running Surf Mastery workshops. I've got the first one coming up on April the 9th in Wellington. That's Saturday, April the 9th at 1 p.m. at the Lyle Bay Surf Lifesaving Club. That's this coming weekend.
And then on April the 21st, which is a Thursday, I've got an evening workshop at the Surf Rider Club in Fitzroy Beach.
And then I got another one on Saturday, May the 7th, in Auckland at AUT Millennium. It's at 1 p.m. as well. I've got all details, bookings, etc., all done at www.surfmastery.com.
At www.patreon.com, you can use the promo code podcast to get a 20% discount, and it's basically going to be targeted around surfing fundamentals. And of course, one of the fundamentals of surfing is the bottom turn. If you look at the photo that goes along with this episode... it is a before and after of me on an eight-day surf trip. The first photo was taken on day one, and the second on day eight. There is a very big difference between those two bottom turns. And that was an amazing trip. How did I manage to change my bottom turn in such a short space of time?
Well, the overarching principle is... I just focused in on that one thing for that whole trip. I was completely obsessed. I remember this was about five years ago, and at the time, all I wanted to know... I just wanted to know what it felt like to do a bottom turn.
Like a proper bottom turn. Now, obviously, there's some self-awareness that went on with that. I'd had footage and some coaching previous to that trip that I purposely... something I learned from Matt Griggs and "We're Out"—the previous shows—was you can only focus on one thing at a time.
So, I chose the bottom turn. It doesn't really matter what you choose as long as it's appropriate. My example is the bottom turn. I focused in on one thing, and I focused in on it until I got it. Now, outside of the water... I really sort of did obsess over it and think about it in a lot of detail.
So I made sure that my goal was appropriate by talking with different coaches, watching footage. And the second thing I did was I chose someone who emulates what it is I wanted to achieve. Now, I chose someone who surfs—I chose Julian Wilson. He's a similar height and body size to myself, and he has a great bottom turn.
So I was watching a lot of footage of him. And I was surfing a similar board, and the footage I was watching of him—he was surfing similar-sized waves that I had access to on that trip. And I really was quite obsessed with it. I printed out photos of Julian Wilson in his bottom turn, and I would go into the gym—there was a gym at this Puro Surf in El Salvador—and I would use those photos, and I would use the mirror, and I would get my body into as close of a position that Julian was in. I would add load, and I would get very detailed with how I would look at his body position. Now once I was in that position, I would do things like close my eyes for a little bit, open them, see whether I'd moved much. I'd put some load, some rubber bands around—anything that you might do in the gym—around that body position. And I built endurance and self-awareness of my body in that position, and I focused in on how it felt. Now, that's another really important thing—you don't get to really see yourself in the moment when you are surfing.
So you've got to focus in on how it feels. And as surfers, that's what we want.
Anyway, we want it to feel better. So you get all the thinking done outside of the water.
So I would do that in the gym. And I would do that before every surf.
So it was fresh. It was fresh in my body awareness of how I was trying to emulate Julian and build strength, endurance, and awareness around the way he did his bottom turns.
And then I would go surfing. About 50%—not every single wave, maybe 50% of the waves—I would do my first bottom turn. I'd really try and get that feeling. I stuffed up a lot of waves. It wasn't just his body position, but I was trying to have a lot of awareness about where, which part of the wave, that he would do his bottom turn and... watching footage of him, slowing it down. If you go on YouTube, the bottom right, there's a little sort of gear-looking thing, and you can actually slow the footage down, and then you get to look at more—at some of the subtleties of your favorite surfer doing whatever it is that you want to get better at. For me, it was Julian Wilson's bottom turn. I would look at, and just sort of almost pretend what it was like to be him. What is he looking at? I would get really detailed into which part of the wave was he doing his bottom turn in. And what did he get to see? When he was coming out of his bottom turn, one of the big realizations was that half of his visual field was actually taken up by whitewater. And I realized, and by getting that detailed, by watching him, I realized, man, when I'm at the bottom of my bottom turn and I look up, I usually just see wave face—green water?
So I realized through that process that I need to really get a lot deeper in my bottom turn. As well as getting my body in a position that's conducive to getting the angle of the board right and to spring out of that bottom turn. But all of that thinking, that overanalyzing, all those details are all done outside of the water. Remember, you've got to bring it back to one thing and simplify it.
So when I went surfing, I would just watch—what does it feel like to do a bottom turn on that part of the wave? And it just... it was a game changer. It did take me seven days to click into that, and I messed up a lot of waves. And I had very sore glutes and legs. But man, it was worth it.
So simplify it. Focus on one thing. Focus on the feeling of it. And come to the Surf Mastery Workshop, and we'll expand on this and more. And if you have any questions... peace.
71 Surf 10X Better In 8 Days With Dryland Training Techniques
For the passionate surfer—whether you're a weekend warrior, a surf dad, or an older surfer—this podcast is all about better surfing and deeper stoke. With expert surf coaching, surf training, and surfing tips, we’ll help you catch more waves, refine your paddling technique, and perfect your pop up on a surfboard. From surf workouts to handling wipeouts, chasing bigger waves, and mastering surf technique, we’re here to make sure you not only improve but truly enjoy surfing more—so you can get more out of every session and become a wiser surfer. Go from Beginner or intermediate Surfer to advanced.