How to Train for a Multi-Day Paddleboard Expedition Without Much Paddling Experience
My best friend Michael Whalen and I didn't follow a structured training program before our five-day, seventy-two-mile paddleboard circumnavigation of Lake Tahoe. We finished it anyway, and looking back, here's what kind of preparation actually mattered, and what I'd recommend to someone with limited paddling experience preparing for something similarly demanding.
Why General Fitness Mattered More Than SUP-Specific Training
Neither of us trained specifically for paddleboarding, but both of us maintained reasonable general physical fitness heading into the trip, which gave us a baseline of endurance and core strength that translated surprisingly well to the demands of the actual paddling. If you're reasonably active but new to SUP specifically, that general conditioning likely matters more than you'd expect, since much of what a multi-day trip demands is broad physical resilience rather than highly specialized paddling technique.
What Core Strength Specifically Contributed
Balance on a moving paddleboard draws heavily on continuous small core adjustments rather than any single dramatic movement, which means general core conditioning, from whatever activities you normally do, transfers usefully to paddleboard-specific balance even without dedicated SUP training. If you have time to prioritize any specific area of fitness before a similar trip, core strength is where I'd direct that focus.
How to Build Real Water Time Before Your Trip
Beyond general fitness, actual time on a paddleboard matters, even if it's not extensive. A handful of sessions in the weeks before departure, ideally including some exposure to choppier conditions rather than only calm water, builds specific comfort that general fitness alone doesn't provide. We had some prior recreational experience, though nothing close to what our actual route demanded, and that gap showed most clearly in genuinely rough conditions like the crossing near Sand Harbor.
Why Mental Preparation Deserves Equal Attention
Physical training alone doesn't fully prepare you for the psychological demands of a genuinely uncertain, multi-day expedition. Practicing tolerance for discomfort, uncertainty, and sustained physical effort across multiple consecutive days matters as much as any specific physical conditioning, and it's harder to train deliberately since it mostly develops through actually facing similar demands rather than through a structured program.
What a Realistic Training Timeline Actually Looks Like
If you're starting from limited experience and want to prepare responsibly, give yourself at least a few months of intermittent preparation rather than cramming everything into the final weeks before departure. Spread paddleboard sessions across that time rather than concentrating them right before your trip, and use each session to specifically address whatever feels least comfortable, whether that's balance, endurance, or handling choppy conditions.
What We'd Do Differently for Our Own Preparation
Knowing what the trip actually demanded, I'd prioritize more time specifically in rough water conditions before attempting this route again, since that's exactly where our limited experience showed most clearly. General fitness carried us through most of the trip, but the specific skill of managing genuinely difficult water conditions is something only real practice in those conditions actually builds.
Why Attempting This Without Extensive Training Still Made Sense
Despite our limited specific preparation, I don't think waiting until we'd built more extensive paddling-specific training would have meaningfully changed the outcome. What mattered more was conservative decision-making once we were actually on the water, willingness to wait out difficult conditions, and enough general fitness to handle the physical demands, none of which required years of dedicated SUP training to develop.
What Michael's Own Preparation Looked Like
Michael came into this trip with a different fitness background than mine, more focused on general activity than any structured training, and his experience validated something important, there isn't one single path to being ready for something like this. What mattered for both of us, despite different starting points, was honest self-assessment and a willingness to make conservative decisions on the water rather than any specific training regimen we'd both followed identically.
What I'd Tell Someone Comparing Themselves to Elite Athletes
It's easy to look at extreme athletes attempting similar routes and assume you need that level of conditioning before trying something demanding yourself. Our own experience suggests otherwise, reasonable fitness combined with good judgment got us through seventy-two miles without either of us being anywhere close to elite-level paddling athletes beforehand.
What I'd Tell Someone Feeling Behind on Their Own Preparation
If your own trip is approaching and you feel underprepared compared to what you'd hoped, remember that Michael and I felt exactly the same way heading into our departure. Some of the readiness you need will build during the actual trip itself, provided you're paying attention and making conservative choices as you go rather than waiting until you feel fully ready before attempting anything at all.
The Bottom Line on Training
General fitness and some real water time matter more than any specialized program, and honest self-assessment combined with conservative decision-making on the water can carry you further than you'd expect, even without extensive SUP-specific training beforehand.
How Our Fitness Held Up Across All Five Days
Rather than declining steadily as fatigue accumulated, our physical capacity actually seemed to plateau by day three, holding steady rather than continuing to deteriorate for the remaining two days. That pattern suggests the body adapts to sustained demand faster than either of us expected going in, which is worth knowing if you're worried about cumulative exhaustion undermining a similarly extended trip.
What I'd Tell My Past Self Before This Specific Trip
If I could go back and give myself one piece of training advice before this trip, it would be to spend more time specifically in choppy water rather than assuming general fitness would translate seamlessly to whatever conditions we'd actually face. That single gap, more than any other single factor, is where our limited preparation showed most clearly once we were actually out there facing real conditions.
What Confidence Actually Looked Like by the Finish
By the time we crossed back into Ski Run Marina on day five, neither of us carried the same uncertainty about our own physical capability that had marked the earliest miles of the trip. That shift built entirely through doing the thing itself, evidence that readiness sometimes only fully arrives through the actual attempt rather than any amount of preparation beforehand.
Before You Close This Tab
What kind of physical preparation actually matters before attempting a long-distance SUP trip, based on your own honest assessment of what you'd need?
How would you build real water time into your own preparation, especially exposure to rougher conditions?
What role would mental preparation and tolerance for discomfort play in your own readiness for something this demanding?
Would you attempt a similar trip with limited specific training, the way we did, or wait until you'd built more extensive preparation first?
Dalton Johnson is a photographer, filmmaker, and brand storyteller based in South Lake Tahoe, California. Over the past decade he has worked with brands including Patagonia, GoPro, Arc'teryx, Four Seasons, Nike, Rivian, and Ford Bronco across all seven continents. He is the creator of the Follow The Journey distribution framework, which has produced over one million organic views per 30-day cycle without paid media. His work includes two published books, an award-winning documentary that aired on PBS, and more than fifty commercial spots directed. He runs Stories by Dalton on Substack, read by more than 34,000 subscribers.