What Muscles Do You Work When Kayaking? Which Body Parts Get the Most Benefit?

Kayaking for fitness and strength building

What muscles are we exercising during kayaking?

Depending on the sport you practice, certain areas of the body will be called upon more than others, but what about when you’re kayaking? Will you tone and refine your figure while kayaking? Below is a list of the muscles and muscle groups strengthened and sculpted by kayaking!

Upper limbs (shoulders, arms and forearms)

• Shoulder muscles: These are the muscles that connect the arm to the rest of the body. They include the rotator cuff muscles (subscapularis, infraspinatus, petit rond, supraspinatus), trapezius, deltoid, grand dentle and angular. These muscles enable arm and shoulder mobility (rotation, elevation).
• Biceps: These muscles, located on the front of the arm, are surrounded by two joints (scapulohumeral, elbow). The biceps comprise two muscles (long biceps and short biceps) that help flex and rotate the arms.
• The triceps: Located on the inner side of the arm, they comprise three muscles (vastus lateralis, vastus internus and long head of triceps) which complement the flexor role of the biceps brachii. The triceps allow forearm extension.

Trunk and pelvis (Chest, stomach and back)

• The pectorals: The pectoralis major, pectoralis minor and pectoralis major are located in the thorax region, ensuring arm mobility and stability in the shoulder region.
• Abdominals: These are made up of several layers of muscle (rectus abdominis, external oblique, internal oblique, transverse), whose function is to flex and rotate the trunk.
• Back muscles: The back groups together muscles such as the trapezius, the dorsalis major, the rhomboids, the infraspinatus and the round muscle. These muscles play a wide variety of roles. From the dorsal to the lumbar, they ensure arm and shoulder mobility, postural support and protection of the spine.

Lower limbs (glutes, thighs and calves)

Kayaking does very little work on the lower limbs.

Kayaking mainly involves the upper body. The use of the paddles, accentuated by the resistance of the water, strengthens the arms, shoulders and back. Alternating paddling movements rotate the trunk, strengthening the abs and obliques.