What to Do When You're 'Older' to Enjoy Your Ride and Ride Safely

Hi, This week I spotted a great question posted to the 'over 50 rider' group. I've copied it below:

What are you doing to keep fit/get fit, keep supple, improve or keep your balance, stretch muscles or even to control nerves and be calm? And what supplements are people taking, or herbs or meds to keep from feeling pained and creaky before and after riding or barn work?

Balance and confidence are big questions I get a lot. We keep in mind that riding is really about the fact that when it comes down to it, we all want to enjoy our lives and have the fitness level to do the things we enjoy. As riders, enjoying our horses is a big part of that. Enjoying them of course, is all wrapped up with a variety of factors including clear communication and harmony with your horse, physical ability to be with them and do the things you want to do without fear or danger. When we were 12, we were invincible. Now we have mortgages and children and maybe even grandchildren to be healthy and fit for, and the body just doesn't bounce back from injury the way it used to.

People are often surprised when I tell them that in fact, the majority of participants in my rider fitness clinics are not serious competitive athletes. The majority are over 45, amateur riders who want to ride with greater harmony and safety. So, the question of balance and confidence is a biggie that's on a lot of your minds. You wouldn't know it from the marketing, but in Canada statistically the majority of riders are women over 40. This fact is of course following the general trend of the aging demographic in North America. So, don't whisper your questions like they're a confession of a 'has been' or wannabe...shout them out. There are 100's of people with the same question, who just didn't ask it out loud.

Back to the question! I don't really have space here to address supplements for people. In fact, I don't actually use supplements, and there are many athletes and body builders that don't. Recently a client told me she was using Power Gel which is made by Absorbine for arthritic pain in horses. She said it really helps. I cannot professionally recommend a product not approved for human use, but like all horse-people, you can find various items in my bathroom cupboard at home.

What I can tell you for certain is that as we age, we lose physical confidence and balance because the tendency is for the body to lose suppleness and muscle tone. It's a lifelong project to keep as much of those two things as you can. Lack of suppleness affects your ability for balance, because it affects the way your joints absorb motion. You can see this in the way very elderly people walk: little hip movement, and very stiff ankles really impedes simple walking motion, let alone ability to negotiate varied terrain such as a sidewalk curb.

The upside of age is that your mind knows more than ever before, and you are maturing emotionally. In other words, some things don't matter like they used to, leaving you free to use your head and focus on the things that do. Like:
1. Using dynamic warmup stretches before and after you do anything physically strenuous
2. Using strengthening exercises to keep your core tone because core tone supports everything you do
3. Listening to your body like you listen to your horse, and stop when you need rest, and know when to push the envelope a little, while staying well behind the line of what your body is able to cope with.

You'd be amazed at what 5 minutes of stretching and balancing exercises, and 5 minutes of core strengthening a day will do for your balance. Taking a mindful and disciplined approach to your preparation for riding will only take a few minutes a day, but you'll see the difference in your body's ability to engage and respond to the demand placed on it, and your confidence will increase as a result.

For more specific suggestions, you are invited to post your questions on this blog. I pick some questions each week to respond to (Free). You can also signup for free for my monthly equestrian fitness tips newsletter. Just go on my website: www.equifitt.com on the Resources page. Filling in the form is easy, step by step.

Until next time, happy and safe riding!

Sincerely,
Heather Sansom, Equifitt.com Equestrian Fitness Training

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