Windsurfers Physique

Ok .. you see a smooth legged T-Rex walking along and there's a good chance they ride a bike , a swollen calf gets your attention they probably skate or the visually appealing upper body on someone probably surfs or swims regularly soooo surely someone who has carpenter forearms , van damme biceps and arnie pecs must windsurf right ??
From my observations there seems to be more kiting/windsurf Dadbods resembling middle aged golfers ( myself included ) than Taty Frans or Antoine martins getting around.

There is an article circulating that claims Professional windsurfing burns 1000 cals/hr and Recreational 500/hr if this were half true we should ALL be pretty ripped !!
Reckon a Man wrote that to show his wife why he needs to windsurf more

So I'm thinking that once a kite/wind surfer plateau's in abilities they may no longer be getting the benefit that a newby gets and perhaps shouldn't rely on windsurfing alone to keep in check .

Since Xmas I've been smashing the cardio and strength training on alternate days continuously and the spare tyre is disappearing fast , swapped the large pizza's for mung beans and consequently my windsurfing energy has more than doubled , everything from general well being / posture to balance , shagging like a champion and sleep patterns all improving
There is something to be said for life extension activities

Has anyone had a substantial break from windsurfing and noticed any part of them wasn't what it used to be ? Only asking cause I have not stopped since I started and looking at photos of myself prior to windsurfing I don't look any different.

One major thing I noticed was an absence from cycling made my knees ache after windsurfing

Sorry to ramble on everyone but would like to hear from others who may have different stories or pointers from experience
p.s photo of nood dood is not me

Mandurah mob in training

Been wearing a Garmin Fenix 5X when sailing for the last 12+ months which includes heart rate monitor. Huge difference between flat and waves, comfortable v overpowered. If overpowered and in bump n jump conditions, exertion easily matches if not tops cycling, surfing, surf SUPing and other activities.

Physique is 90% food. Chances are significant changes are due to the mung beans ;-)

Did someone mention pies ?
Dont forget krispy kreme doughnuts. Got my distance pb with about 8 of them over the course of the day.

In a nut shell this is why fat, or unfit people can windsurf.

Two things are at play here. Adaptation and diminishing returns.
As with any sort of physical activity or training the initial sessions (if done frequently enough) force the bodies systems (muscular-skeletal, nervous etc..) into an adaptation phase. This how we get better at doing something or something becomes easier to do.
As we adapt to the activity (get better at it) we need to make the activity harder to force further adaptations. With windsurfing once we can weight up those harness lines, get in the foot straps and rip across the water easily, the bodies systems don't need to work as hard and thus we no longer get a training effect (adaptation). In fact, unless you continue to try new things there is a real potential that your body's systems "let go" a bit as you are no longer overloading the systems.
This is actually what we seek in windsurfing - flow state - where everything is working comfortably and it feels effortless, within our limits, and relatively "mindless" to what needs to happen as we do it automatically.
If you windsurf 2-3+ times per week and have done for a while you can learn a lot from this. Compared to the rest of your body, what hurts the next day? What feels like it's done all the work? This can tell you a lot about what you might be doing wrong or poor technique. Example - if your forearms are always sore after/while sailing you may not be loading up the harness lines properly etc..
If you want to force adaptation you need to either do longer, do harder, or do different. The body will only work as hard as it needs to, if you are a pretty competent windsurfer, it becomes relatively "easy" and thus the body reflects this. This why very over fat people can windsurf well.

One thing for certain if you live in Qld and rely on windsurfing as your fitness and body savior your in trouble, cause we have had the worst summer for wind ever so far, you simply have to do other things to be in shape so when it does blow your'e ready.

There is also a MASSIVE difference in energy and muscle use between flat water and open water sailing, chalk and cheese.
One of the best ways you can improve windsurfing fitness when your out there is to sail 'non stop' for long periods, eg 1hr plus, and or get out on some open water and get your heart rate racing going through waves, open swells, chop etc, big difference compared to flat water..nothing gets the heart racing more than trying make a water start before the next set closes out on you, or even way out at sea in swell where no body would even notice if you become fish food! :) remote WA is classic for that feeling!

Windsurfitness is clearly on display in the 1Hr GPS races, from what i have seen most people start to struggle at 15min, then start begging for mercy at 30min, the 2nd half of the hour is the section that really tests sail fitness, as if you're tired you start to drop gybes and naturally tend to back off speed rather than pushing hard all the way, the added adrenaline rush of sailing in competition mode increases heart rate and ads to fatigue also.

If you could windsurf in decent wind 3-4 days a week in a variety if conditions for an hour or two each time, you would look like a machine no doubt, as some of the Pro's do...but for the rest of us there needs to be routine of cross training semi regularly to be even close to 'match fit'

Jonesy, sailing at GB since Xmas is all about goin BIG. 9.5 is all i rig. Even then im flappin n pumping like a humming bird, just to get goin.Take Saturday for instance. Sailed 2hrs dredging all for one lil squall which had me fully powered for two passes then nothing. Trying to pump a 9.5 is great cardio n great for fitness. Phew!!

When I haven't been sailing for a while I get a bad neck. Skipped sailing all of last summer since my gear was in storage while moving house, and every time I moved by neck it sounded and felt like someone had thrown a handful of sand into a gear box. Had a couple of sailing sessions, and now it's as good as new, full movement and not a single grind. No other exercise or treatment has ever come close to the same results. Can't explain why, but it always works.

I'm losing heaps of weight sailboarding at Lake George..great in usual life but I think I need to eat more pies and add 20kgs so I can keep the board on the water and not bounce in the speed run..