Indoor surfing: five ways to make the most of new Hong Kong fitness trend

Besides the great outdoors, sports enthusiasts have been flocking to old industrial buildings in the city for new ways to work up a sweat. Over the past few years, those sprawling industrial spaces have been converted into all kinds of sports venues, including ski slopes with real snow, a car racing track and a baseball diamond. The latest unconventional indoor sport: surfing.

While the waves are nowhere to be found at Surfset, the Hung Hom training centre has 11 surfboards, each supported by three rubber balls and two strings which mimic the wobbling surfers feel on the waves.

The 1.78 metre stationary board, called the Rip Surfer X, was invented by American surfer Mike Hartwick for use in a gym. The sport was first imported to Thailand and was introduced to Hong Kong by Surfset in September 2015.

A novice with no experience in surfing, I joined a class last month led by instructor Cherilyn Chow, who is also Surfset’s managing director. While Chow struck all kinds of poses on the board with ease, I found it hard to balance. I try to stay upright by holding my stomach in. Keeping the soles of my feet and toes flush on the board also helps balance.

Chow says the most difficult thing for novices is to find balance on the board. The strings can be adjusted for different degrees of wobbling. “It takes four or five lessons to get used to the wobbling board. You have to keep your stomach in throughout the time you are on the board. If your core muscles are weak, you will have poor balance.”