Forward paddling is probably most under-appreciated and under-practiced kayaking move. However, as you might imagine, this is most important move that you can learn. Depending on where you're going to be kayaking, and how long of a kayak tour you intend to go on, good forward paddling may end up saving you a lot of time, effort, and muscle strain.

The most important thing to remember about your forward paddling, however is that you should only work on improving it if you feel that you can't do everything that you want to be able to do while you're in your kayak.

While forward paddling is probably one of most commonly used paddling strokes, reverse paddling is just as important. In fact, before you go kayaking, you should definitely practice both forward and reverse paddling to make sure that you have necessary skills so that you do not end up in trouble while you are out at sea.

First, when you are reverse paddling, you should make sure that you are holding paddle lightly, just like you would if you were paddling forward. This will help you have more control over paddle, and it will also keep you from getting injured while you are paddling.