In today’s featured video, our favorite sponsored skateboarder from the San Francisco Bay area shows us how to skateboard when you’re old. Aaron Kyro is here to let you know that whether you’re in your 30’s, 40’s or beyond, there are a few simple tips to help you in your skating.

It’s true when Aaron says the best skateboarders in the world right now are taking care of their bodies. Though many don’t talk about it, elite skateboarders know that to perform at a professional level they’ll need to be working out and or doing some type of physical therapy. This is how they ensure their bodies don’t break down.

Stretching

After skateboarding, it’s extremely important to stretch. This will only benefit you and will help your body recover and be ready to skate the next day.  As for stretching before skateboarding… this is up for debate. Some claim stretching before you skate could make you more prone to injury. However, in Aaron’s opinion (which is not the opinion of a medical professional, rather the opinion of a skateboarder), some light warm-ups before you start skating harder will help you out a great deal.

Simple exercises to warm up your muscles and get the blood flowing will help you skate your best. Things like doing a few jumping jacks and touching your toes will go along way. Use more intense stretching after skateboarding to help your body fully recover.

Starting simple

A great way to start any skateboarding session is to cycle through your easiest and most consistent tricks. If you know you can land your ollies and pop shove its consistently, you should warm up by landing a few ollies and a few pop shove its. When Aaron skates, he’ll start his session by landing all of the Skateboarding Made Simple Volume 1 Tricks.

For Aaron, warming up means landing 5 ollies, 5 frontside 180s, 5 backside 180s, 5 pop shove its, 5 frontside pop shove its, 5 heelflips, and last but not least, 5 kickflips. After you’ve landed your easiest tricks, your body will be loose and ready to move! If you start your skateboarding session by trying your most difficult tricks first, you may find yourself getting into a negative mindset if you aren’t landing them. With a positive attitude, skateboarding will be easier and more fun. So, get yourself into a positive mindset by landing your easiest tricks first.

Staying hydrated

Kids and teenagers seem to be able to get away with skating all day in 100 degree weather, while only relying on a single glass of water or an orange soda from McDonald’s. If you’re getting older, this becomes physically impossible.

As Aaron put it, “If I did that now, I would die! I would literally die! I would get heatstroke and I would pass out, and I would get hit by a car and eaten by birds.”

You CANNOT do that. You NEED to drink A LOT of water. On top of this, you need to ensure you’re well rested and are eating well. You can’t survive off 4 hours of sleep and large pizzas anymore. Aim for 6-8 hours of sleep, and remember to eat your vegetables!

Seek help

If you have persistent soreness in a specific area, or there is a certain muscle group you’re working on, it’s never a bad idea to get the advice of a professional. If you need to see a doctor, physical therapist or a personal trainer to give yourself some direction or a program, then you should do that! These things can seriously help your skateboarding as you heal your body. 

Take Good Care of Yourself 

Watch the video for a more detailed breakdown of how to skateboard when you’re getting old (or older!)

Take good care of yourself in every way, be safe out there, and be the supportive, awesome skateboard community we know you are. If you have any questions or want any help on any tricks, leave it in the comments below! What should we write about next?