All Blog Posts Tagged 'rider fitness' (71)

10 Diet Tips to a Healthier You: Tip 1

Becoming more fit for your horse has many benefits and will allow you to do more with your horse both on the ground and in the saddle. You will also get the health benefits of reducing your risk of many chronic diseases and cancers.

Becoming more fit involves a good diet and physical activity. These tips will help you get started with a good diet.One new tip will be posted each week until…

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Added by Lindsey Forkun on October 15, 2010 at 11:00am — 2 Comments

Become More Fit For Your Horse

Become More Fit for Your Horse

By Lindsey Forkun, RN, PHN, BScN

Have you ever gone to see your horse, and afterward thought “hmmm that could have gone better”?

Have you ever considered how your…

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Added by Lindsey Forkun on October 15, 2010 at 10:30am — No Comments

Staying Safe – Plan ahead to keep trail riding a positive experience

Staying Safe – Plan ahead to keep trail riding a positive experience

**Lindsey Forkun Equestrian advocates for you to wear a helmet

Trail riding is an excellent way to mentally stimulate your horse, build physical fitness for both…

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Added by Lindsey Forkun on July 22, 2010 at 8:30am — 2 Comments

Rider Fitness- those old bones!

Hi, I just posted a blog entry about managing age and injury as a rider. The post was doing some funny formatting, so I had to fix it. Here it is again:

EquiTip July 2010: Those Old Bones…

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Added by Heather Sansom at Equifitt.com on July 19, 2010 at 7:34pm — 1 Comment

Those Old Bones- Ride well after injury (or age!)

Hi, I thought I'd share a recent fitness tip I send out in my newsletter about how to recover from injury and manage age so your body works the way you want it to when you're riding. (by the way, you can sign up to receive free monthly fitness tips for riders at www.equifitt.com )…

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Added by Heather Sansom at Equifitt.com on July 17, 2010 at 12:09pm — 3 Comments

"Fear vs Confidence"

"I have been raising a family for the last 20 years and I need help with my confidence. I was a fearless rider when I was younger, but now I am nervous. Last year I got hurt and I am not sure if I want to just hop on, now. My horse is very… Continue

Added by Randy Byers Horsemanship on May 21, 2010 at 12:00am — No Comments

Ride Fit 1-2-3- How to Ride Better

Hi, with so much going on at this time of year, I thought I'd share my latest fitness tip for equestrians. The EquiTips go around the world to a few thousand readers, and subscription is free (just email me at personaltraining@equifitt.com if you want to subscribe to the fittips). You can also read lots of free articles by looking up Fitness Tip of the Month in the search bar on www.equisearch.com .…

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Added by Heather Sansom at Equifitt.com on March 29, 2010 at 10:30am — No Comments

The Incredible Shrinking Leg (or How To Avoid Losing Your Stirrups!)

I've been giving a bunch of seat and leg position riding lessons lately, and I've discovered some interesting things about the correlation of the pelvis, lower leg, and losing

your stirrups.…

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Added by Ruth Hogan Poulsen on March 28, 2010 at 12:56pm — No Comments

Ride WIth Confidence: Part 10 - Celebrate Your Success and Have Fun!

It is important to celebrate every time you accomplish something with your horse. It is also important to stay motivated by taking the time to step back from all your hard work and have fun. Here are some suggestions:

Play games with your horse. Playing games is a great way to gain confidence while putting your new skills to practical use. In our arena we participate in obstacle courses, relay races, musical rides, and our new favourite activity, equine soccer. You can play…

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Added by Laura Hunter on March 19, 2010 at 1:52pm — No Comments

Ride WIth Confidence: Part 9 - Finding the Right Support

For most of us riding is easier if we have a coach or instructor to support and help us. It is always good to have another set of eyes on the ground and someone to offer encouragement to help us get over the emotional bumps.

There are a great many good riders in the equestrian world who teach. Being a good rider though does not always make someone a good teacher. Riding and teaching are two completely different skill sets. The ability to get on an athletic, energetic horse…

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Added by Laura Hunter on March 12, 2010 at 12:44pm — No Comments

Ride With Confidence: Part 8 - The Art of Staying in the Saddle

While we all know there is a huge psychological component to riding there is no denying that it is also very much a physical skill. Everyone needs to develop a balanced, stable secure seat on a horse. That requires improving your core strength and balance but there is a payoff for that effort. You will fee much more confident in the saddle if you know that you can stick there no matter what happens.

Your posture and balance also have a tremendous influence on your horse's…

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Added by Laura Hunter on March 10, 2010 at 9:49am — 1 Comment

Best of William Micklem - 11 - FEAR AND THE ‘MAGGOT IN THE MIND'

Never underestimate the power of the mind, not only as a power for good but also as a negative power that can subconsciously restrict your activities and achievements. Fear is often connected to a negative attitude. There are two…

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Added by William Micklem on March 5, 2010 at 4:00am — 5 Comments

Best of William Micklem - 10 - FEARS CAN BE CONQUERED

Why do we not talk more about fear, when fear is a common emotion in cross country riders? There is probably no sane person who is totally fearless and everyone has his or her limits. Even a Grand Prix racing car driver, who is brave enough to…

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Added by William Micklem on February 26, 2010 at 4:00am — No Comments

The Smile Muscles of the Seat

As someone who specializes in movement…

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Added by Sit_the_Trot on February 23, 2010 at 10:00pm — 1 Comment

How can I keep my hands quiet? The Secret Lies Below your Navel!

Question: When I ride my hands bounce up and down at all the gaits. Not a lot but enough so I am not riding horses to the best of my ability and knowledge. I can keep the horse on the bit but in the posting trot every time I go up my hands come up too.Holding a strap doesn't help. Trying to make my hands go down as I go up doesn't help. What can I do?

Basically if you are stiff in mid-back or in the upper chest and shoulders and the shoulder blades don't slide well over the rib cage… Continue

Added by Sit_the_Trot on February 9, 2010 at 10:00am — No Comments

Shoulders Back + Toes Up = Tension for the Rider

It is commonly heard in almost every lesson or at every warm up ring at shows.

"Get those shoulders back...or point the toes up"

I find this particular articulation to be misleading to the rider.

When a rider "brings the shoulders back" they generally believe the coach wants them to bring the shouldes back by engaging the muscles along that run along the spine while wrapping the shoulder blades around an imaginary fist to bring the upper body back…

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Added by Kairen Jamieson on February 6, 2010 at 5:18pm — No Comments

Beat the February Horse Blahs

Winters in Canada can be very long and arduous for the horse owner. If you don't have a riding arena the snow and the cold can really limit the quality and quantity of your rides. Don't get me wrong I love riding on those nice sunny winter days with a fresh powder on the ground but those days are far and few between here in southern Ontario. Most days we are dealing with deep snow, icy conditions, very cold weather or just a very bleak cloudy day.

I'll stop there before I… Continue

Added by Steve Wawryk on February 3, 2010 at 11:30am — No Comments

Breathing: A Lesson on the 1st Step to Effective Movement

As riders we get all sorts of information about how to have correct posture, how to breathe, and how to use our abdominal muscles. All of these things affect the way we stand, sit, move, and breathe. They even affect the way we think and our emotions. As babies we knew how to breathe naturally and use our breath for power. We filled our lungs, letting our belly expand, and screamed! When we breathe naturally our lungs fill as our diaphragm lowers and flattens out, and, because our stomach,… Continue

Added by Sit_the_Trot on January 30, 2010 at 9:30am — 1 Comment

Balance Exercises: #2 Here is another balance exercise that you can do! #2: Flip Around Start by swinging your left right leg over the front of the saddle so that you are sitting side saddle. Nex…

Balance Exercises: #2

Here is another balance exercise that you can do!

#2: Flip Around

Start by swinging your left right leg over the front of the saddle so that you are sitting side saddle. Next, put your right arm over your stomach and grab the back of the saddle. Then, reach around your back and grab the front of your saddle. Lift your self out of the saddle and turn around so that you are dangling off the side of the saddle, facing it. Finally,… Continue

Added by Sasha Merlin on January 28, 2010 at 6:07pm — 1 Comment

Balance Exercices: #1

Have you ever felt un-balenced on a horse? I know I have! So here are some exercices to help you stay in balence!

#1 Around The World

Swing your right leg over the front of the saddle, so that you are sitting side saddle. Next, swing your left leg over the back of the saddle so that you are facing backwards. Then swing your right leg over so you are sitting side saddle again, and then swing your left leg over so that you are sitting facing forward again.

Next month… Continue

Added by Sasha Merlin on January 25, 2010 at 9:22pm — 2 Comments