Surf your way to fitness at Watergate Bay Hotel (and indulge the Cornish way while you're at it)

Surfing may be associated with cheeky Aussie dudes with bleached blonde hair and arm muscles that make your stomach flip but it doesn't just have to be for male beach junkies.

 
With Hollywood stars like Cameron Diaz and Vanessa Hudgens leading the way, the sport is increasingly being adopted by women as a means of keeping fit.
 
Watergate Bay Hotel on the North coast of Cornwall is making it its mission to seamlessly incorporate surfing into the classic beach holiday.
 
And although at first I think I’d rather be lying horizontal by the pool, than horizontal on a surfboard, I find myself tentatively agreeing to a beginner’s lesson.

 
My instructor Nick at the hotel’s Extreme Academy (who just so happens to be stereotypically hot) tells me that surfing uses 40 per cent more energy than a normal workout.
 
We’ve barely started but I’m already sold.

Couple that with the fact that it works the whole body – core, abs and arms are pushed especially hard – and I’m starting to see why more girls than ever before are pulling on a wetsuit rather than a gym kit.
 
Nick, who I couldn’t help but notice has pretty fine abs and arms himself, tells me: “Surfing’s great for strength and especially good for people who sit at desks as it’s all about the core.”
 
So far, so 40 per cent more calories burned (and with such delicious scones and clotted cream at the hotel's Living Space eatery, every calorie counts).

But there is a catch – it’s not quite as easy as riding an exercise bike or pulling on rowing machine handles in a climate-controlled gym.
 

For starters it’s freezing cold - and the water is colder. At the mercy of the British weather, even in June I wince as the waves lap over my toes.
 
Then there’s the challenge of just carrying the equipment (Home & Away always made it looks so easy). As I struggle awkwardly to tuck the board under my arm as we make our way into the sea, I’m already cold, exhausted and wet. This is embarrassing.
 
But Nick is positive our little group will be standing up shouting “cowagbunga” by the time our three hours is up. And there’s no going back to the shore now.

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Amazingly after being dunked by at least 26 waves, sliding off my board repeatedly and making a right idiot of myself, I’m up.
 
Yes, on my feet, on a board, in the sea.
 
It’s all over pretty quickly as I lose my balance and come crashing down but for the short time I was up there, I actually felt a bit like a surfer.
 
What’s more I felt liberated mentally (there's nothing like a bit of concentration to rid you of daily worries) AND by the time we came back in to dry land I felt like I’d done real exercise, without it being for exercise’s sake.
 
The best bit? With the hotel’s ‘ski resort on a beach’ ideology, I am welcomed back to Watergate's Swim Club by a steaming hot tub, a glass of red wine, an inviting infinity pool and the most amazing massage I have ever had courtesy of my therapist Jess.
 
Now to find those scones…
 

Rooms start at £125 for a house room, B&B basis for two people sharing.
 
To make a reservation or for further information on Watergate Bay Hotel call 01637860543 or visit www.watergatebay.co.uk and follow @watergatebay on Twitter.