More Kayak tips and videos here: https://blueplanetadventure.com/how-t...
How to kayak for beginners: this video covers the basics, including: sit on top kayaks and why they are good for warm weather paddling, carrying the kayak, getting in and out, paddle handling, technique, steering, balance tips, draw strokes, safety and more, all in just five minutes!

Please also watch "How to Kayak for the first time in a two person kayak":
   • How to Tandem Kayak for the first tim...  

How to get back on a kayak:
   • How To Kayak: how to get back on the ...  

Please also watch our "How to SUP in 5 minutes" video here:
   • Learn to SUP in 5 minutes- How to Sta...  

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Aloha friends it's Robert Stehlik with blue planet in today's video i'm going to show you how to kayak in five minutes i'm going to cover how to carry the kayak getting in and out paddle handling stroke technique safety and balance tips sit on top kayaks are great for warm weather rough water conditions like paddling in the ocean if a little bit of water splashes in it's no big deal you don't need a skirt or anything like that it's easy to get back on if you need to and if it's rough and water gets in there usually sit on top kayaks will have like a drain hole this one has a plug so you just pull out the plug and the water can drain out so when you're carrying the kayak by yourself make sure to protect your back bend your knees when you're lifting it up keep your back straight and then lift up the kayak like this before you get on the water it's a good idea to practice getting in and out on land first the easiest way to get on is in shallow water you basically just sit down in the center of the kayak make sure your weight is balanced and start paddling if you're getting into deeper water in a place like this or from a dock it's really important to keep the kayak close to the edge and get on and keep your weight centered right over the center of the kayak at all times because if you're not centered you are going to fall in

the correct way to hold the paddle is with these scooped ends pointing downward so this is the correct way to hold the paddle and then the blades have a scoop in them this is the power face of the paddle so the scoop side is the one facing you so beginners often only use the tip of the blade ideally you want to use the whole blade so plant the whole blade in the water and the goal is to plant the blade in the water and pull yourself past it

sometimes beginners tend to hold the paddle too close together with their hands ideally if you put the paddle on top of your head and make right angles with your elbows it's called the paddlers box that's a good width for your paddle grip you don't want to have a death grip on your paddle keep your hands kind of loose kind of like an okay sign that way you can get a nice forward reach with your paddle without twisting your wrist when you exit the water you want to slice the paddle out of the water rather than pulling up water or pulling the paddle out of the water in the back so it's better to just slice the blade out of the water smoothly want to have a nice upright position in the kayak so sitting up straight and not leaning forward or kick back like this to turn around you can do a sweep stroke which is kind of further out to the side this will turn the kayak more quickly you can also turn by putting the blade behind you and moving it backwards doing a backward sweep stroke if you have some forward dimension you can also turn the kayak by just reaching the paddle behind you and using it like a rudder just pushing out a little bit to the side and that's also going to make your kayak turn when you're doing a backwards stroke you don't need to turn the blade around to face the opposite way just use this side of the blade for the backward stroke so that when you're ready to forward stroke on the other side you don't have to spin the paddle back around again most beginners kind of keep their body completely still and just use their arms to paddle like this to be more efficient you want to kind of wind up your body use a rotation and wind up your body like a spring and then use an efficient stroke by using your whole upper body so if you're struggling with balance a little bit just try to get upright look forward don't look down at the water at your kayak you can also use the paddle for bracing like you can brace the paddle in the water and then just keep your hips loose and keep your upper body over the center of the kayak