William Softky is a neuroscientist, biophysicist and technologist with a PhD in Theoretical Physics from Caltech who claimed yesterday in his column in the Half Moon Bay Review publication that surfing is biomechanically perfect and highlights that today, within all the activities that human beings can do, surfing is among the best for the body and soul for the following six reasons:

1- “Balance is the human superpower: Mechanically speaking, maintaining balance in an upright position is what made our species special. Computationally speaking, maintaining balance in this way is one of the most challenging things a nervous system can do. It therefore states that if you can surf, you can do one of the most difficult things humans have ever accomplished.”

2- “Waves and turbulence are challenging: The harder it is to predict something, the harder the brain works to predict it, and that's what happens with waves in the sea.”

3- “The incredibly complex physical nature of surfing is why even with the best Hollywood technology it was so difficult to make it look real. What took supercomputers so much effort, a surfer’s brain and eye can achieve in an instant.”

4- “Surfing is cooperative, not competitive: While there is competition in surfing, even those who compete focus their efforts on the wave and its performance.”

5- “Natural environments recalibrate the nervous system: it is proven that artificial stimuli and pixelated screens make people miserable. Surfing takes place in natural places and the body is nourished by water, light and sand, all at the same time.”

6- “Wetsuits wake up the muscles. The 3mm of neoprene adds weight to the skin and reduces elasticity. These two things reinforce better skeletal alignment and posture, providing many benefits in physical and chiropractic therapies.”

So next time you see a surfer, pay attention to their posture and movements, you can see what a human should be like and learn from it.