l went to an instructor and he said l definetley should be trying to do pop up instead of sliding my knee so l can quickly get up. but everytime l do this l cant bring myself to because l feel im wasting a wave lol and end up sliding my knee to stand..fair enough it works for white water but l wanna progress. l know how to do pop up and practice on the floor but cant actually put it into practice thankyou =)

Your going to have to waste some of those waves to practice your pop up. Find slow moving mellow waves and use a longboard. Getting to your feet as fast as possible is the answer. The in-between stage is only going to cause you to wipe out if delayed. Do not go to you knees first, your only wasting time when you could be mastering your pop up and then move on from there. Check out the following for some tips and links: http://surfingcal.com/learn-to-surf.html

surfingb. summed it up pretty well. but your best bet is to go to a surf lesson or two.

Hi My name is Marty & l am an Australian qualified surf coach & have been in the industry for many years. l would like to answer ur question.
l believe that surfing should be comfortable & natural. The pop up has many advantages, but it is not always best for everyone.
It is best to be comfortable & relaxed when surfing & the truth is many surfers use the knee to standing version, eventually u just pop up naturally with time. This happens as ur shoulders strengthen & ur confidence builds.
You can view a series of photo is showing a demonstrated method on this website World Boardriders Club

http://wbc.wildapricot.org/Default.aspx?pageId=129739

Paddling technique & duckdiving is a must for riding green waves, & also physical fitness is a must for safety & making ur surfing enjoyable. There really r many things to consider such as ur surfboard design,,too small u just wo not catch waves, so get some lenght & thickness for extra stability & paddling speed.
Good luck with it, & if u need anymore tips visit
http://wbc.wildapricot.org
ps: there r also surf schools on line at http://worldboardridersclub.ning.com

hmm try purple waves. jk

confidence really helps, just convince youself you can do it.

l tend to agree with Marty, but the real bottom line is PRACTICE. Stop asking about this stuff on line, & get in the water & ask ur friends to help u out by describing what u r doing after take off. What we think we r doing on a surfboard is often different from what we r really doing, just like a golf swing. And get in the Water!!

Surfing is an ocean sport, to do it right, u have to be at home in the ocean, with its currents, rips, undertows & sometimes big waves. l do not just mean being good at swimming in a pool, the ocean can be very unforgiving. l have seen lots of really good pool swimmers have to get rescued. You have to learn surf etiquette (so the experienced surfers in the line up do not want to drown you), how to paddle & take off on a wave, & how to ride a wave.

Lessons r usually the best way to start, unless u r an adolescent or young adult with lots of pals who surf who can teach you. Go to a real surf shop. The folks there can hook u up with lessons, & even rent u a board to learn on. Just work on ur basics.

l have been surfing for 42 years, take ur time & learn the RIGHT WAY & u will have fun for life.