Monthly Archives: May 2023

Do it for your horse

This week I was asked why people start working with me. 

Honestly most people start their enquiry with “I know I need to be better for my horse.” 

That could be backing a youngster, rehabbing through an injury, managing an older horse or just feeling like you’re on an absolute unicorn and you need to be able to keep up. 

Whatever our horse situation we know that being lighter, very stable and more in tune with our bodies is of great benefit to our horse.

That’s why when we start using the excuses of “ I don’t have time……..my back hurts……..surely I do enough yard work” Remember spending just 20-30 minutes on your own body 2-3 times per week could make a huge difference to how you feel as a load for your horse to carry. 

If you’re not balanced how can you expect your horse to be? 

If you can’t control your body and limbs how can you expect your horse to understand what you’re asking?

So although I could say that a correct exercise programme would help with those aches, pains and tiredness if that hasn’t inspired you before it’s time to think about being the best rider that you can be for the sake of your horse.

He doesn’t care if you’re the best rider but I bet he cares if you’re able to to let him get on with doing what you’ve asked him to do (and he’s understood it because it was clear) without hindering him in the process! 

Your lower leg

So many posts on lower leg stability. 

It comes from the hips.

If the hips aren’t stable the legs aren’t stable 

Yes as you move down the chain if there are issues within the knee or ankle they will absolutely affect the lower leg but you should always start at the hip. 

Focus on your hip stability-what creates hip stability I hear you ask? Great question!

Think about the big muscle groups attached to the pelvis.

The Glutes, The Quads, The Hamstrings, The abdominals and the lower back. They all work together to create stability in the pelvis. So all exercises to train this should include movement and cooperation between these muscle groups. 

Some examples: 

Deadlift 

Squat 

Single Leg Squat 

Single Leg Squat 

There’s tons of things you could do these are just some of my picks. 

If you think your actual lower leg may be the problem adding in exercises such as a Front leg raised Split Squat can help you to improve both mobility of the ankle and stability of the knee whilst loaded/absorbing movement. 

Keep an eye out on the socials for some videos of these exercises! 

Independent Hands

Watching Badminton last weekend I’m sure you’ll agree those riders are proper fit athletes. 

So many of them when interviewed about how they prepared mentioned their own fitness regime. This ranged from running, Pilates to PT sessions. 

Along with great endurance those riders that did well across country had something else in common-true independent hands. Demonstrated by the ability to stay upright and keep riding even when they had zero rein contact and the front end of the horse wasn’t where it was supposed to be! I also thought on some occasions it was the difference between a scrape through and kick on or a horse and rider fall. 

This comes down to more than what we’d term “core stability” which is often thought of as the abdominals. 

Independent hands require a strong back and shoulders which then work with the abdominals to create a really stable torso. This means the arms aren’t responsible for upper body stability. They can hold the reins, give aids and direction but if those reins are taken away it doesn’t take your stability with it.

So if you don’t already think about adding in some back and shoulder work into your rider fitness. 

I like to start with the basics of switching on the back and shoulder muscles with Pilates staple Dumb Waiters. This helps you find those muscles and then you can progress to moving the arm’s forward in a rein position or out to the sides, focusing on maintaining that muscular connection to the back. 

More of a Gym Bunny? Exercises like Lat Pull Downs and Bent over Row will strengthen your back muscles;  it’s really important that you connect to those muscles of your posterior chain as you work them to avoid over using your arms. 

Then when you ride, connect into those back and shoulder muscles and feel your arm’s work lighter yet the rest of you feel more stable. Testing it by throwing away your reins whilst cantering downhill optional…….

Strength isn’t enough

The thing with rider performance is being just fitter isn’t enough.

The ability to improve your riding often comes from the subtle movements, the tiny tweaks and noticing how your body reacts to your horse and how he responds to you. 

Of course it helps if your body is strong enough to make and maintain these movements but strength alone is no use if you aren’t in tune with your body.

How do you get in tune with your body?

  • When you are exercising, slow the movement down and feel what’s happening at each point in a movement. Which muscles are working? What happens to the rest of your body? Do the bits move that are supposed to? Do bits move that aren’t supposed to? Really use your exercise to build both strength and connection in your body. 
  • Do some slower paced exercise such as Pilates, Yoga or Thai Chi that really encourages you to connect with your movements. 
  • Roll parts of your body with a prickly massage ball before you exercise or ride. This can help to bring awareness to parts that you may otherwise struggle to connect with.

Do you struggle with body awareness when you ride?

What have you tried to improve it?