Apologies to the landlocked who are unable to take advantage of this particular piece of good news. But for coastal residents looking for an emotional boost, grab your surfboard and hit the curls.
As LiveScience reports, surfing has been linked to an increase in positive feelings and a decrease in both negative feelings and fatigue. The effects, according to the study’s findings, are evident after only 30 minutes of riding the waves.
LiveScience indicates that the results were demonstrated across all levels of skill and at varying levels of activity ranging from the die-hard to those who surf less frequently. The study group of 107 participants was assembled simply through the process of heading to the coast at Manhattan Beach, Calif. and approaching anyone spotted carrying a surfboard to ask if they’d be willing to participate in the research survey. The study group was overwhelmingly male at 85 percent and ranged in age from 18 to 58, and participants were given a survey prior to and following surfing seeking insight into their emotional status and state of mind.
The results, recently presented at the 118th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association, demonstrated a consistent pattern of improved mood and calmness after the half-hour surfing sessions.
As we’re reminded by LiveScience, there is extensive research that links exercise to an increase in psychological well-being and to a role for physical activity in combating depression. We’ve also recently written here about the linkage between taking time to interact with nature and improved emotional health. Little if any research however has until now been conducted on how surfing in particular may bring about an improved state of mind.
We certainly wish the very best to the lead researcher, Ryan Pittsinger. While the surfing research was conducted during his course of study at California State University in Long Beach, Calif., Pittsinger now finds himself in a doctoral program at the University of Iowa where the prospects of catching a great wave are grim.
Fortunately, as LiveScience reports, Pittsinger continues to make his was to the Pacific for ongoing research that explores the surfing and emotional health linkage. Currently working with injured US Marines at Camp Pendleton, Pittsinger is currently focusing on a practice called ocean therapy which may offer an unusual but effective course of treatment for veterans afflicted with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Photo by Stan Shebs via Wikimedia Commons.