Many people ask: what size paddle board do I need for my weight? And no, this is not a question that only big-framed and weighty people ask. Many paddle boarding beginners ask this question before they can buy a paddle board.
Tell you what though… you need not worry about it at all. Whether you are tall, short, slim or fat, there is the best paddleboard for you. You just need to know how to choose one, and that is why you are reading this article.
To enjoy water sports, there is a lot of excitement and adventure. However, this exhilarating fun can turn nasty if you do not have the right gear. This is why you must always take meticulous care when selecting your gear.
When you are going for scuba diving, you need the best gear for underwater diving. This includes things like scuba tanks, scuba booties, knife, gloves, scuba fins for diving and many more.
If you are a stand up paddle boarding enthusiast, you need the best paddle board for the job. This can be the hard paddle board, or the inflatable paddle board.
But… when you are overweight, you wonder whether it is okay for you to paddle board. Luckily, the answer is yes. No matter how many pounds you weigh, there is a stand up paddleboard for you in the market.
Not even age should stop you from stand up paddle boarding.
When you are buying a stand up paddleboard, you can find it a tad too confusing for the first time. Firstly, you will need to get the length just right. Some people may be advised to buy 10 feet stand up paddle boards, some 11 feet and some are even 14 feet long.
It all depends on your weight, as you will see later in this article. The good thing is that no matter what you need, it is available. You can buy the best stand paddle board on Amazon.com.
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What size paddle board do I need for my weight?
A stand up paddleboard is powered by rowing with a paddle board oar. You do this while standing up or kneeling. Thus, paddle boarding is a surface water sport, exhilarating and a lot of fun. However, unlike snorkeling where you float on the water, here, you float on a paddleboard.
Because your hands will be totally occupied as you have to use them to propel yourself, the last thing you want to have to worry about is sinking. Or your paddle board breaking into two.
Paddleboards are expensive. Thus, you had better get the very best one, suited for your weight and even height. That way, you will get good value for your money and your SUP board will last a long time.
Buy a paddleboard according to the SUP chart
The size of your paddleboard depends on your weight and height. To some extent, it also depends on the kind of paddleboard that you buy.
When you use the SUP chart, you will not be buying blindly. This chart is going to help you make a good purchase of a paddleboard for your weight.
Before you can select your SUP board on Amazon.com or any other place, know your weight. That way, you can know within what range you can buy your paddleboard.
Usually, the length of the SUP boards starts at 9 feet. The longest one can be 12 feet 6 inches. Thus, whatever your weight is, you can find its match in between these lengths.
Here are the basics of the SUP chart:
- If you weigh between 50 and 125 pounds, the best paddleboard size for you is 9 feet to 10 feet 6 inches
- 125 to 150 pounds, the best size of the paddle board is 10 feet 6 inches to 11 feet 6 inches
- 150 to 175 pounds, the best paddle board size is 10 feet 6 inches to 11 feet 6 inches, and 11 feet 6 inches to 12 feet 6 inches
- For 175 to 200 pounds, the paddle board size should be 11 feet 6 inches and 12 feet 6 inches
- For 200 to 225 pounds, the paddle board size should be between 11 feet 6 inches and 12 feet 6 inches and/or bigger than 12 feet 6 inches
- 225 to 250 pounds – paddle board size should be bigger than 12 feet 6 inches
- for 250 to 275 pounds, paddleboard size should be bigger than 12 feet 6 inches
Before buying the best paddleboard, you need to know your weight. When you buy a paddleboard on Amazon.com, read the product description and reviews to see its weight rating.
Best length for a paddleboard
This usually depends on what kind of stand up paddle boarding you want to do. As you may have learned, it is quite hard to separate your weight from your height when buying a stand up paddleboard.
What this means is that a taller person will need a bigger paddleboard because their center of gravity is high. A shorter person would need a smaller paddleboard, but this will mostly be determined by their height.
Another factor that you need to bear in mind when buying a paddleboard is what exactly you are going to use it for.
If you are short, you need a narrow paddle board so that you can carry it easily out of the water. If you are tall, you just need to worry about the weight rating of the paddleboard.
Here are a few pointers for you to think about:
SUP board for all-round paddle boarding
An all rounder paddle board is a SUP board that you can use when you are not very experienced. If you are just getting started in stand up paddle boarding, or you just do not want to specialize in any one kind of paddle boarding, get an all round paddle board.
Usually, a length of 10 feet will do, or more, but not more than 12 feet. This can also have a maximum width of 33 inches.
Yoga paddleboard
This one should be wide because you will sit down on it. The wider it is the better it will float. You do not want your board to capsize just when you are starting to find your nirvana.
It should be about 36 inches wide. In the market, the yoga paddleboard is the widest. Since you have to balance well on most of the yoga stances, you need such a board to get it just right.
The thickness of the board also matters. Luckily, some inflatable paddle boards can be as thick as 6 inches. That ensures that they never sink as they can hold more air which makes them more buoyant.
Surfing paddleboard
This one should not be too long. Surfing is a very active sport, so you want to be as in control as possible, of your paddleboard.
The surfing paddle board should be a maximum of 10 feet. It should also have a pointed tail and nose for better navigation in the water.
Remember the streamlined shape of fish? It is what makes them able to swim so smoothly in the water.
Long distance paddling boards
Also called touring boards, these are long and they are used for paddling over long distances. They are shaped like the hull of a boat, with pointy nose and tail to make it easier for them to slice through water.
These paddle boards may also have several points to which you can attach gear for an expedition. They maintain direction easily.
To carry your weight and that of the gear that you will be taking with you, these boards have higher weight rating. Thus, if you are plus-size and you want a good paddleboard, order a touring paddling board.
Paddleboard width is very important
The width of the paddleboard is as important as the length. Wider is better and slower, but it is also safer. Narrower is faster. However, it has higher risk of toppling over.
Usually, the width of a regular sup board is between 29 inches and 33 inches. Thus, even the sup boards that have been made for performance still maintain some good width so that they can be safer for users.
However, as we have already said, for a SUP board for yoga, you will need to make it a wider one. They are 36 inches wide for more stability on the water.
Buying paddle boards by volume
This is another way to buy your favorite paddle board. First, you just need to know your weight and in kilograms. You can convert pounds into kilograms, simply by dividing your weight in pounds by 2.2. Then multiply the number of kilograms by 2.2 to get the weight rating for the paddle board that you should buy.
But that is not all that there is to it. If you are on the slim side, just multiply your weight in kilograms by 1.8. Actually, you can multiply your weight in kg by 1.8 or 2.2 to see the range of the volume that you should consider for your paddle board.
If you are weighty and you multiply your weight by 1.8, you will get a small volume paddle board and it will be alright.
It is recommended that bigger people multiply their weight by 2.2. Smaller bodied, or slim people can just multiply their weight by 1.8 and the paddle board they get will be just fine.
As an example, if you weigh 185 pounds, that is 84kg. If you multiply that by 1.8, you will see that the best paddleboard to buy would be 151.2 pounds. So, according to the paddleboard chart, you should buy one that is rated for 150 to 175 pounds.
If you decide to use the 2.2 for calculation, you will get 84*2.2 which comes to 184.8 pounds. According to our paddleboard chart, you should buy a paddleboard rated for weight range of 175 to 200 pounds.
Why is weight rating for a paddleboard so important?
There are many reasons for this. It is just like loading a boat with more weight than it can handle. Here are a few reasons for knowing what size paddle board do I need for my weight:
- Prevent the paddleboard from dragging in water
- Avoid sinking
- Prolong the life of the paddleboard since it will not wear out fast
- You enjoy more stability when on the water
- Paddleboard stays above the water for easier sailing
What size paddle board do I need for my weight?
You have seen that there is more than just your weight when it comes to choosing the best paddleboard for your weight. Other things that may determine the kind of paddle board that you buy include the type of the waters where you intend to paddle board.
Touring paddle boards are best for flat waters. They have a boat-like hull, which slices through water thus moving faster. The same applies for a yoga paddleboard because you need to pose on the board.
Another thing that you may want to consider is the shape of the nose and the tail. The sharper they are the better especially when the paddleboard starts hitting some waves. A blunt-nosed paddleboard cannot maneuver in rough waters as well as a sharp-nosed one. A sharp angle tail will also help in the steering and will keep the board fairly straight.
Paddleboards that can be used for surfing also have more than one fin. However, for a board to use in calm waters, just use a single fin board, a more rounded one actually, if you would like to make smoother turns in the water.
Conclusion
There are many brands, sizes and shapes of stand up paddleboards in the market today. However, what you buy is what you get. Thus, you should know your weight and then order a SUP board for just that weight range. To the question of what size paddle board do I need for my weight, well, you have seen the weight range. Just get your weight in kilograms, multiply by 2.2 or 1.8 depending on your weight, and order the best paddleboard from Amazon.com.
