Horsey Fitness

[Cassie]

Ok, my horse is fairly muscular and looks very healthy but I'd really like to get her just ripped (really really muscular). Any tips on exercises for her to gain more muscle?
I've heard trotting is good for muscles. I've also heard that lots of quiet loping will help them run fast for longer but thats garbage. Shadow can do 30 min straight easy-passed loping while pushing with her hind end, but its quite hard to keep her running hard for 6 large fast circles at shows. From my experience, going fast is the way to build up their endurance for speed.
Any suggestions on what I should do?

[EquitationRocker♥]

Trotting and walking up and down hills is a good way to tone the butt muscles up. Uh collecting and doing lots of trot circles, cantering circles (like 20 meter), and serpentines is a good way to build up Shadow's neck muscles. Hm I think lunging in a passoa system or something will help too, I know it helps something but idk what lol.

[cass]

ok thanks.
Arg, looks like I'm gonna be doing a lot of trotting then. I hate trotting

I can't lunge Shadow anyways so that wont be happening

[Cassie]

Question, how are you supposed to steer in serpentines? I've done them with Shadow before just as something different to do and to work on steering and I worked it just using my legs. How do I do it to work her neck muscles?

Would doing circuits help get her in better shape? Example: 5 min trotting, 5 min loping, 5 min trotting, 2 min galloping, 5 min trotting, switch directions and do the same. All with no breaks in between of coarse. Would it help? Would it need more min's added on to be benificial? Would it just flat out not work?

[EquitationRocker♥]

I don't really time it, I just do about 1-2hrs(rarely 2) of work depending on what we've done during the week or how hot it is and stuff. But you don't have to have a set time for how long you trot and stuff just do it to where you think Shadow has worked to her best ability. And I never thought of this but serpentenes help enlgish horses with their neck muscles as long as you keep them collected so their necks are "flexed" and they're balancing and shifting wait during the change of direction. I stear with my legs and hands, but I totally forgot about the differences in collection between diciplines.

And circles help a horse losen up, which really isn't to get into shape, although it will in the long run because it's physical work, but it just helps losen them um and stuff so they're not stiff and it will feel better to them as they are working.

But going up and down hills really works, it works better when you walk or trot. For some reason cantering or galloping doesn't really do as much, but it will build up stamina and balance.

[FreeStyle08]

yup it sounds like to me with shadow not being able to do a hard gallop for over 6 circles you need to gain stamina I dont tend to think it would be a stingh thing.

but ya for stamina one good exercise is to go into a really deep field or arena and trot until you feel her start to breath hard and then walk until her breathing slows down and then do it again. and do this for like 20 minutes or so and this will also gain stringth and slowly like once a week increas the time you trot and decrease the time you walk and then to change it up like 2-3 days a week take her in an arena and have her do a medium canter and do the same thing like when you feel her to start breathing hard let her walk until it slows down and do it again for like 20-30 minutes. and 1 day a week or every other week (depending on how fast she develops stamina and stuff) warm her up (but dont tire her out during her warmup) and ask her to run circles until you feel her getting tired and keep track of how many she can do and eventuly she will get were she can go from 6 to 7 and so on.

hope this helps

good luck.

[Cassie]

She can run a lot in our arena, its just at shows were the arenas are bigger that she struggles. I'm also getting a little worried about running circle in the arena because shes been starting to hit herself on the walls and she gets close to them. I think shes kicking them by accident.

Is giving her breaks to walk going to help? I never do that. I normally warm her up (loping) for 20 min, then go into galloping then smoe more slow, then gallop, then switch directions doing the same, then sliding stops for 5-20 min depending on how please Brian is with it, then spinning for 5-10 min, then right into rollback drills for about 15 min. With no walking break inbetween. Seems like a lot but she can hadnle it easily.

[FreeStyle08]

if its in a bigger aena that you are having trouble with then just have her do a medium canter until you feel her start to slow down and then push her on for another 5 minutes and increase that every week or so.

that should help get her were she can run longer.

[Cassie]

I've been doing a slow/medium lope for the past few days. Its so incredably dull.