Historically, research in sports performance has focused on traditional sports including soccer, football, basketball, baseball, track and field, and swimming. However, recent data indicates that the number of individuals participating in action sports is growing rapidly in the U.S. (surfing: 2.79 million, skateboarding: 6.44 million, snowboarding: 7.6 million, and climbing: 4.6 million). This increased popularity of action sports both in the U.S. and abroad led to surfing, skating, and climbing making their Olympic debut in Tokyo. Interestingly, there is a paucity of scientific data describing the physiological parameters required to compete in these sports. Over the past eight year my research has been focused on filling this gap in knowledge through the physiological characterization of action sports athletes and the role that their equipment/apparel has on performance. Findings from these studies have contributed significantly to the peer reviewed literature and have been featured by the lay press in Science, Outside, and Surfer Magazines. More importantly, these studies have allowed students (547 Exercise Physiology undergraduate students, 129 undergraduate interns, 14 graduate students, and 1 Fulbright Scholar) to gain valuable research experience that has aided in job acquisition and graduate school acceptance upon graduation from California State University – San Marcos. This talk will focus on a series of studies that investigated the impact of wetsuit design and materials on thermoregulation during surfing.
