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SUP Fitness: A Floating Gym with Waterfront Views

While you’re enjoying waterfront views, your core muscles are working overtime. Learn more about the exercise benefits of standup paddleboarding with Groupon’s guide.

Standup paddleboarding is a low-impact workout, and it’s considered easy enough for people of all ages and fitness levels. Factor in the relaxing properties of floating on calm water, and its strength-training and calorie-burning capabilities might come as a surprise. Paddleboarding on its own can use as many as 500–700 calories per hour, according to Shape, and it adds an extra challenge to workouts with moves modified from fitness disciplines such as yoga, Pilates, and even CrossFit.

The key is instability. As you paddle, the board wobbles with the movement of the water, creating an unbalanced surface. This forces the core muscles—those found in the upper thighs, glutes, stomach, and lower back—to work extra hard to keep the body stable and upright. Core muscles aren’t just the key to abs you can play jug-band music on—they’re also important for maintaining good posture and a healthy back. Strong core muscles can also prevent injuries in other muscle groups by acting as a full-body stabilizer. And, of course, all that paddling does wonders for the upper body, too, particularly the muscles of the mid-back, deltoids, triceps, and chest muscles.