This workout is designed for adult amateur riders who ...some degree, to the riding. If you did not,...

This workout is designed for adult amateur riders who understand the need to maintain yourself to ride like you want to. The workout plans in this book are designed to take physical requirements of a mature body into

account, without compromising your need for tools that help you reach your goals.

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Acknowledgements:

Author/Photographer: Heather Sansom

Photo Models: Heather Sansom, Birgit Barca Elaine Alexander, Kelsey Dickson

Cover Design: Karen Henderson

Copyright © Heather R Sansom, 2013

All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form without prior written permission.

ISBN: 978-0-9813391-2-2

"I know how important fitness and flexibility is for any rider, but especially as we get older, it becomes more essential that we do all we can to best prepare our bodies for

riding, whether it be for a stroll down a trail or blazing down a race track. Our bodies just are not able to rebound, joints and muscles do not have the recovery time like they

use to and unless you do something about it. Heather Sansom has done something about it for many of us that are not so resilient anymore. Although you may not be in training

to ride in the Kentucky Derby, I think you would agree that you would want to be strong, fit and flexible as possible that is not only for the good of your body, but the good of

your horse!" Frankie Lovato (award-winning jockey, 50yrs) www.franklovatojr.com

“Mature Rider or not, anyone who's interested in making their riding more beautiful, more comfortable and more effective should read this e-book. Heather has done an excellent job of realizing and explaining common physical and positional issues that all riders deal with. Being an instructo, rider and competitor, I find many of these issues with my students and myself. Heather shows us the effect and cause of some of these issues that we all struggle with. A good read.” Ruth Hogan-Poulsen, Grand Prix Rider, Dressage Trainer www.ruthhoganpoulsen.com

Photo by Susan Stickle

http://www.ruthhoganpoulsen.com/

iff

© Heather R. Sansom 2013, www.equifitt.com 2

Introduction Congratulations on taking an important step! You are reading this because you have enough life experience to know that you need to manage your time, resources and body wisely if you are going to do the things that are important to you, for as long as you can. Riding is classified as an ‘early start, late development’ sport. This means that it is one of those sports where participants who started very early, and who stick with it long enough, have a greater chance at elite performance. The reasons have to do with what is termed in the Canadian Long Term Athlete Development model, as windows of opportunity early in life for acquisition of ‘physical vocabulary’, and windows at later stages for development of the type of personal maturity needed to compete in riding at elite levels. Very simply, there is common wisdom in acknowledging that it is easier for young children to acquire riding skills when they are fearless and flexible, and it is much easier for them to anchor basics like balance and co-ordination early, so they always have it as a rider. Also, we know that working with horses takes patience and personal maturity, so it is easy to see that while a younger person may learn to ride horses quite well, it takes some time beyond that before they have sufficient personal maturity and knowledge of horsemanship to effectively train and develop horses up to elite performance. What does this mean for you if you are not an elite performer and just want to do your very best with what you have? Knowledge is often very helpful. A mature rider that takes up riding relatively late in life may or may not have had plenty of early experience building physical vocabulary and sport skill through other sports. If you did, you can transfer those abilities to some degree, to the riding. If you did not, then it is helpful to be aware that your riding plan should include acquisition of these skills. The time you spend out of the saddle can be helpful to your riding. The good news is that the time you invest is so worth it because riding is an activity you can enjoy until very late in life. While you are learning aids and very specific movement patterns in the saddle, you can also be improving your general transferrable base-line skills such as balance, cross co-ordination, proprioception (body awareness in space and movement), and joint mobility. As a mature rider, you have an advantage over your younger self that missed out on doing what you are doing now: you are more mature. You can use your stage of life to your advantage by educating yourself, having discipline and being wise about the risks you take and the progression and pace of your training. A well thought out approach will help you make up for lost ground. As a middle-aged rider who has recently taken up jumping myself, I can identify with the desire you may have to stay in your comfort zones. I would encourage you to make your plan in consultation with your coach, but let yourself get pushed out of comfort zones. Most people have so much more potential than they realize or give themselves credit for. A wise and good training plan should push you, while taking care to respect sensible and logical training progressions. If you feel unsafe or unbalanced in your riding, you may be right. You can work on the balance, then work your way up to the exercise that was formerly over your safe limit. Don’t take un-necessary risk, but do make regular baby-steps outside your comfort zone so that you can build the courage and competency that will help you reach your riding dreams.


Why a Workout for Mature Riders? Without a doubt, riding adds something beautiful to life. It is a wonderful way to keep active, stay healthy, and get all the positive benefits of relationship with animals and time in nature- not to mention the friendships and fun memories built through your connection in the riding community. The purpose of the Gentle Workout for Mature Riders is to help you build and maintain your general fitness for riding. The activities will also fit you up for any other activities you enjoy because the things that contribute to riding-readiness, are healthy for the body in general: joint mobility, balance, co-ordination, core strength to support your spine and supple muscle tone to support your posture and help you avoid strain injuries. There are several trends that happen in an aging body which you need to actively work against to keep yourself limber for your favourite activities. Ligaments lose elasticity, which contributes to joint stiffness. Life patterns (sitting at a desk through decades of a career) and postural habits also contribute to locking down joints, and wear patterns in your body. Joints need to be supple and mobile so that you can move in ergonomically efficient ways in your riding and other activities, and so that you can follow the motion of the horse. People typically start to lose mobility in their ankles, which changes their walking gait and the loading patterns on their hips and knees. They tend to have a certain degree of muscle atrophy, and trend toward using their leg and gluteal muscles less automatically, which further causes movement patterns that do not require optimal joint folding. Over time, working joints in smaller and smaller ranges causes the ligaments to shorten, and the joints to be less capable of movement. The less you use the muscles, the more they atrophy, and the cycle goes on. It is not helped by the sedentariness of the modern lifestyle. On the other hand, you cannot be too loose or floppy, because you need some tone to be able to carry your posture well, and apply aids or respond to sudden situations while you are riding. So, training that helps restore tone and mobility to a mature rider needs to include aspects of both flexibility and strength training. Horses are wonderful mirrors of your postural habits, since they will tend to move in the direction your weight sends them, not necessary the way you think you are steering them. Yet, by a certain age, your spine will have certain postural tendencies. You will need to work at training structural straightness on the ground, so that when you are in the saddle you can maintain good posture without tension or stiffness. A training program for mature riders should be heavily focused on postural straightening, and building ability for finding and maintaining a neutral spine. Of course, being able to perform tasks with a neutral and well supported spine will help you in all of your activities, not just the riding. A fourth component of a training plan for a mature rider is related to proprioception. Over time, you and your body have gotten used to the activities in your life. The neural-muscular connections for unfamiliar movements have weakened. It is literally more difficult to learn new movement patterns, because the brain doesn’t ‘read’ as well, and the body doesn’t respond as automatically. The good news is that you can increase awareness and responsiveness through ground training that helps you when you need it in the saddle.


How to Use This eBook This eBook is an 8-stage fitness program that uses gradual progressions and a variety of approaches to help you work your way through a ‘rider fitness training scale’. Your progress through the workouts will depend on your personal needs. You may find an early workout too easy- so progress to the next one. Or you may find that you need to spend a few weeks at one workout stage until you have mastered the routine. Each person will be challenged by different exercises, depending on your particular weaker areas and needs. Also, you may already have some great activities scheduled into your life like a yoga class, pilates or other sport which will adequately fulfill your needs for one of the puzzle pieces in your plan. You can then spend less time on the exercises in this program which cover that same area, in favour of spending more time on the areas that are a challenge for you. Exercises in this program are introduced in a progressive manner with deliberate design to train postural stability and correct movement patterns. Once you have moved to a new stage, you can at any time dip back into the previous stages and continue to do some of the exercises from those stages which you liked. However, try to avoid skipping ahead randomly so that you do not accidentally miss an important progression. Bear with the process until your body rebalances itself at each stage, and is ready for the next stage. You may do an exercise that feels easy- check to make sure you are doing it correctly. Sometimes the correct alignment is the really difficult part, and the exercise itself is quite simple. Sometimes if it feels too easy, it is because you are missing something in your alignment or the movement sequence. Resist persisting in an exercise when some part of your body is telling you it has reached its limit. Persisting anyway will cause you to use compensating patterns and muscle groups, instead of the areas that we are trying to stimulate and integrate. If you feel joint pain, stop the exercise or seek a gentler modification. You will find that the exerc ise photos are small on each page. This is so that you can minimize the amount of paper needed to print out each workout Step to use in your training area. To study the pictures more closely, you can enlarge the pictures and the text on your screen by increasing the document viewing size on your screen.

Rider Fitness Elements

Flexibility

Core Strength

Basic Tone

Awareness & Co-ordination

Cardio-vascular

Table of Contents

Common Rider Issues & Patterns p. 6 Upper Body p.6 Rounded Shoulders, Straight Arms, Inconsistent Rein Contact, Dropping one Shoulder/Collapsing, Tense Shoulders,

Loss of Balance, Low Back Pain Lower Body p.13 Chair Seat, Floppy Legs, Knees Too Pinched, Heels Raised Slow Timing of Aids, Workout Program Plan Step 1 p. 17 Finding spine neutral, and range of motion. Workout Program Plan Step 2 p. 20 Building core stability. Workout Program Plan Step 3 p. 22 Laying strength and movement foundations. Workout Program Plan Step 4 p. 24 Increasing awareness and accuracy. Workout Program Plan Step 5 p. 27 Training better balance. Workout Program Plan Step 6 p. 29 Improving stamina. Workout Program Plan Step 7 p. 31 Integrating core engagement with performance. Workout Program Plan Step 8 p. 34 Building more core strength and stamina. Workout Improvement Logs p. 36 Track your progress.

Conclusion p. 39


Common Rider Issues and Patterns The following are some common issues and patterns that riders have. While it is not by any means an exhaustive list, nor do the explanations cover all the possible reasons for each situation. A selection of very common issues are mentioned with their more common cause, to help readers select training priorities. For each one, there is a brief explanation and indication of the type of training that can help. Actual training solutions with each individual may be more involved than indicated here. Upper Body Rounded Shoulders or Collapsing Forward Frequent Cause: Tight pectorals paired with weak core, especially weak back. Riders often experience upper back strain and seek to alleviate with upper back massage…which further contributes to the problem by relaxing the already over-stretched back muscles. (muscle pattern commonly referred to as ‘upper cross syndrome’) Effect on Performance: Rider’s spine is collapsed causing loss of mobility in spine and hips, compromising seat aids and often contributing to chair seat; horse is pushed onto forehand and cannot move over the back because of the blockage of motion through the rider’s seat. Ground Training Approach: Restore structural straightness so that posture can be corrected without tension, through release of tension in pectoralis major and minor through immediate attention (massage or therapeutic techniques), and ongoing maintainance stretching, combined with program for strengthening torso strength support uprightness, and the longissimus dorsi and rhomboids to bring shoulders back). Mounted Corrections: Ensure eyes are lifted up; ride with a feeling of being pulled to ceiling by a string from top of head or of raising sternum with relaxation- correct the spinal posture and hip position first, the rest will follow. Common Corrective Errors: Further stretching the back muscles which are in pain and the symptom, not the cause; holding or shoving shoulders back with effort during the ride, which causes tension and loss of mobility in the back; wearing a back brace instead which brings shoulders back, but contributes to muscle atrophy in the areas that should be built up.


Straight Arms Frequent Cause: Rider is leaning back and therefore trying to reach hands forward; rider has upper body tension which is resulting in stiff arms. Often related to balance issues; or to rider mistaken idea that they need to use the reins to push the horse’s head down into a frame. Effect on Performance: Rider cannot follow hores’s head motion which causes breakdown in hand/mouth contact; Rider blocks or shortens horse’s motion so quality of gait is compromised (reduce impulsion). Tends to be accompanied with a slouch which also puts horse on forehand. Ground Training Approach: Balance exercises where rider holds arms in bent elbow position and practices giving and taking on ‘reins (exercise tubing) while maintaining correct torso posture and relaxation in the upper body. Riders who carry tension in shoulders can develop this tendency and end up overusing trapezius muscles. Trapezius may need tension release, and ongoing stretching so that it does not take over while rider learns to ride from their seat instead of upper body. Shoulder opening exercises prior to riding a good idea. Mounted Corrections: Correct rider position and do exercises with instructor holding the reins and working with the rider to illustrate the difference in feel to the horse’s mouth of locked versus mobile bent elbows. Practice ‘following the horses’s mouth’ at different gaits with the instructor holding the reins. (rider mounted at halt). Lunge work also recommended. Common Corrective Errors: Placing rider elbows behind back with stick for too long- causes loss of correct curve in spine and creates upper body tension or pelvis tipping forward; Rider setting elbows at a bend but stiff. The issue is the elbow being locked down instead of following from a well aligned position. Inconsistent Rein Contact Frequent Cause: The rider has not learned to have a consistent but soft contact with the horse’s mouth. Riders have stiff upper body or locked elbows, or fingers are too open and relaxed (reins pinched between thumb and index finger with other fingers too relaxed); poor balance causing attempts to balance through the reins (grippy hands), followed by loss of contact as rider does not want to pull on horse’s mouth; poor arm position (elbows winged out) or hand position (hands flat) which biomechanically impedes following arm/correct line from bit to elbow.


Effect on Performance: The horse cannot move forward confidently and fluidly to an intermittent, jerky or painful contact with the bit. They can move better with Western contact where the rein weight is a kind of contact but the rider’s hands are not in a direct line to the bit; or with correct direct contact. If very bad, inconsistent contact can cause the bit to jangle or yank in their mouth which hurts the bars or roof of their mouth, discouraging a head and neck that reaches toward contact. Reluctance to reach for a steady contact causes tension over the back and neck and will compromise the horse’s movement. Also, the rider will have reduced efficacy

signaling direction or bend. Jumping with intermittent or jerky contact may cause the horse to develop evasions or tension over the fences, due to lack of clear direction or unwillingness to have his mouth jerked on. For a rider who had balance problems to begin with, having the horse suddenly stop at or evade jumps would present safety issues. Ground Training Approach: Riders with arm tension may have balance issues that need to be addressed, and certainly have a need to develop better ability to separate body parts. The rider with the winging out elbows or flat hand position needs to work on muscle-memory for the right position, and be able to hold it while doing something else (ie: ‘posting’ on a trampoline or balance tool).

A rider whose arms are rigid or who cannot have soft but closed fingers and following elbows has had their brain turn the ‘on’ switch to their upper body indiscriminately. Their shoulders and arms have both gone rigid, or their elbow has locked, or their hands are also clenched. Exercises can be done on the ground or on balance tools to work on the rider’s neuro-muscular connections and ability to engage balancing or postural muscles, without also contracting arm or hand muscles more than needed to have good position and soft but closed hands.

This type of work is pair work requiring a second person to hold the ‘reins’ (reins or exercise tubing) and to pull and release or ‘trot while the rider is working on their balance or doing some posting motion, while maintaining soft and correct and following hands and arm. This type of work can also be done on a barrel once the rider has the feel from the ground. Other work that helps train hand independence from the body can be fun: egg-on-spoon, trotting and cantering with a cup of water are some ideas. Mounted Corrections: The instructor should adjust the rider’s body to the correct positions, and then do exercises to create a muscle memory for following hands with the instructor holding the reins under the horse’s neck. The instructor can also illustrate to the rider what their various hand positions and intermittent contact feel like to the horse. The rider can practice independently at the walk at first. If they are balancing on the reins, they should be doing more work on the lunge or being led without holding the reins to establish ability to balance independent of the hands. Common Corrective Errors: Teaching the rider to hold the reins when they are learning to ride, before they have a secure seat without reins; not teaching the rider what good contact feels like from ground or halted horse; not returning to basics and expecting too much to be executed while rider is just learning to get good contact (rider may learn to steer or balance with hands in compensation because of not taking time to establish balance); having an unbalanced or stiff-armed rider take up more contact without changing the problems, and allowing the horse to get constantly pulled or jerked on the mouth. Dropping One Shoulder or Collapsing to the Side


Frequent Cause: Since riders carry their natural postural tendencies into the ride, they most likely have a tendency to collapse to this side out of the saddle as well. It may only be noticeable during effort, as sometimes structural imbalances are not

visible until there is a demand on the body. Usually, the muscles on the rider’s short side will be tight, and they will be a little weak general in lateral core muscles (obliques, and other muscles supporting rib-cage). They may also be weak in the opposite low back area (allowing torso to tip in opposite direction). Effect on Performance: The rider will chronically weight to one side of the horse. Depending on the combination of compensation in the individual rider, they may weight to the side they lean…or their seat may weight more to the opposite side as they throw their hips out in that direction. Either way, the horse will be guided by uneven seat pressure, and will have more difficulty with bend in one direction, and lateral movements, and a tendency to list in the direction that more of the rider’s weight is telling them to move. At worst, the horse may physically compensate enough to cause uneven usage in his back and joints, or create structural or tissue imbalances such as are addressed by an equine chiropractor or massage therapist. Ground Training Approach: Exercises that train lateral structural straightness and functional symmetry. Typically, a program of side stretches and floor and standing exercises to establish symmetrical lateral core strength and stability. Generally training ability to feel and adopt spine neutrality, then core strengthening through isometric (held postures) and dynamic (moving) exercises, and then core integration exercise where loading is introduced to hips through the legs, or to the upper torso through the arms (ie: standing single arm overhead press while maintaining shoulders parallel to ground, or standing tubing side push with leg while maintaining straight hips.) The rider needs to establish an ability to make posture corrections with correct muscle engagement, once movement under them or loading is introduced- without falling into their natural tendency to collapse the weak side in favour of using their strong side to meet the challenge.

Capacity for symmetry and straightness that is not available on the ground, won’t suddenly appear in the saddle. Capacity built on the ground can be accessed while riding. Re-training muscle memory for true straightness has to start on the ground where the rider can achieve immobility to anchor the memory for true straight. Once mastered, it can be achieved on a moving horse. Usually riders think they are straight when they are not, and this is because their brain has memorized certain vectors of body position as straight, which need to be re-adjusted. Mounted Corrections: Address issues from the basic foundation (hips) up and down. Do not straighten the shoulders at the cost of hip symmetry or tension. Manually adjust the rider’s position until they are symmetrical on a halted horse and give them a moment to absorb or memorize the feeling of this position. There are also mounted stretching and reaching exercises which can help a rider find a better, more neutral and symmetrical position.


Through the ride, find cues they can be given which help them adjust position with the least effort. Creating more tension through too strong a correction or compensation would be counter-productive. For example, ask a left-collapsing rider to shorten the distance between their right armpit and right hip bone. This will bring about an adjustment with little effort that lowers centre of gravity and avoids shoulder tension. Riders who are very intense may sometimes get caught up in too much focus on their ‘problem’. Find a ridiculous cuing that makes them laugh and stop

trying to focus on some muscle group or other (which only creates tension). Sometimes also, the rider’s body can be adjusted as a by-product of the exercise you have them doing with the horse, just as the horse’s body is gymnasticized the same way. Common Corrective Errors: Telling the rider to sit up straight or lift up the falling down shoulder. They often engage neck and shoulder muscles, which introduces tension to the upper torso, raises their centre of gravity and creates other problems. Some riders respond to instructions like shoving their foot down, but many who take an action like that correct the shoulder position at the cost of hip position, ankle/knee elasticity or weight-distribution in the saddle. Also, pushing down on the stirrups shortens the horse’s stride. Tense Shoulders Frequent Cause: The rider with tense shoulders riding is likely to have a physical general tendency of tensing shoulder muscles in response to demand, or to loss of balance. They may do a lot of computer work, driving or other action in the rest of their life which causes frequent firing of the shoulder muscles, or carrying of tension in the shoulders. So, when they are riding, their brain responds to situations by flipping the shoulder muscle area switch…instead of other more effective muscle groups for achieving core stability, lower centre of gravity, controlling hips etc… Effect on Performance: Carrying tension in the shoulders affects the arms, which blocks the horse from coming through fully to a nice bit contact. It can also cause the rider’s centre of gravity to rise, creating balance issues which may put the rider in a slouching position, or behind the horse’s movement, all of which affect the horse’s way of going. Ground Training Approach: Depending on the individual, the rider may need therapies to release tension (massage, myofascial, other tension reducing manual therapy). They will need to engage in a program with rigorous emphasis on stretching and relaxing the affected muscles, while teaching new body responses for stabilization through the core, especially in the midsection. They may be quite weak in the core and need to really build core strength, especially in the low back. Mounted Corrections: Shoulder tension releasing exercises; practice lowering centre of gravity and learning an effective half halt through core engagement without shoulder tension; learn to direct the horse without reins (safely) to bring focus onto seat and thighs; shoulder tensers are often shallow breathers and need to learn diaphragm breathing mounted and unmounted, and to learn correct breathing and use of breath while riding.


Common Corrective Errors: Talking about the shoulders all the time. Release the tension and tightness, but then get the rider’s focus to some other part of their body they should be focusing on. Children are rarely shoulder tensers. Adults are often too intense, and focus or obsession on the problem area only increases likelihood of tension in that area.

Loss of Balance Frequent Cause: In most cases a rider with poor balance would also be challenged by balance exercises on the ground and lack a strong general sense of balance. The rider may also have anxiety or be breathing shallowly, both of which cause a rise in centre of gravity and affect balance. In some cases the rider may have a fairly good sense of balance on stable surfaces, but lose their balance as the horse moves. Also, they may be working in a seat position they are not used to.

For example, a rider that is most comfortable jumping, may have a hard time showing the same ability for position and balance in a dressage seat, because they are now having to balance in sit bones instead of over their feet in the same way. The rider may also be moving too fast for their level of readiness. Finally, the rider’s position may be the culprit. Correct alignment is correct because it is the most efficient biomechanically for horse and rider. When riders fall out of correct alignment, they are out of balance. Effect on Performance: Loss of balance can come in so many ranges. A beginner riders’ loss of balance is quite different than a more trained rider. The effects of the beginner loss of balance are obvious. Other times, the rider may have developed compensations to achieve stability, such as gripping with the knees, or other attempts to stay with the horse. The effect on the horse’s movement or ability to perform will depend on the situation and compensating patterns of the rider. Generally though, rider loss of balance blocks the horse from full and fluid movement, with lack of safety at one end of the spectrum, and micro-adjustments to the horse’s way of going, at the other. Ground Training Approach: Fortunately balance can be trained for the most part, barring serious influence by medical factors related to the inner ear, or body structure. Balance training on the ground does carry over to the saddle very easily. Riders can benefit from using tools like balance cushions, exercise balls, balance boards, or from single leg exercises. Since a culprit is also often stiffness in joints (ankles and hips), programs that include flexibility exercises for these joints are also helpful. When working with a rider for balance training, the actual program will vary depending on whether the rider’s loss of balance is primarily on the flat, over fences, or just general. Mounted Corrections: Common exercises include standing in stirrups while walking or trotting around the arena, posting exercises staying raised for several beats, exercises moving arms or legs while riding, exercises without stirrups, exercises without reins to force the rider’s body to balance from seat and legs.


Common Corrective Errors: Adjustments that overcompensate in another direction; neglecting the value of groundtraining for balance without the distraction of being on a moving surface, or having to direct the horse; proceeding in the riding past where the rider is able to maintain their balance without compensations. Proceeding past readiness creates compensating patterns which are hard to undo later. A common one is the rider who is balancing through their hands on the reins.

Low Back Pain Frequent Cause: The most frequent cause I observe is from excessive motion in at the waist, due to insufficient motion in the hips or upper torso. The low-back becomes over mobilized, stressing the muscles or sacro-iliac joint. Cumulative negative loading fatigues and strains the low back. Riders with long backs have more problem stabilizing the lower back. Riders with a lateral imbalance (uneven seat pressure, curvy spine) will typically have more pain on one side than another. Effect on Performance: The rider is constantly falling behind or ahead of the horse’s motion, which impedes the quality of motion, or their hips are moving laterally too much (side to side) which causes the horse to swing or roll and lose forward efficiency and impulsion. A rider that has back pain may also be reluctant to let their hips follow the horse in an attempt to support the back, and as a result block the horse’s motion from stiff hips. Ground Training Approach: A program that teaches spine neutrality and the ability to maintain neutrality in motion, and that builds up core strength, particularly the lower back while restoring mobility to the hips. The program should also emphasize strengthening the gluteals since they are the base to the low back muscles. Low back strength without gluteal strength is like building a house with no foundation. Mounted Corrections: Working with the rider to ensure supple, following hip joints, and low back stability with core engagement. If the rider’s back is already in pain, reducing the work so that they are not continuing to overload the area would be important to recovery before resuming full riding workload. The extra time for shortened riding load can be used to do the exercises needed to strengthen the area. When everything has been done, it is sometimes also worth considering whether the movement of the horse is suitable to the rider’s physical ability. Common Corrective Errors: Massaging and seeking tension release for the painful area. The area is already over stretched and overtaxed. Loosening it too much more will contribute to the hypermobility issue which is causing the pain. Some pain or strain relief therapy may be needed, but the rider interested in avoiding back injury needs to take the time to strengthen their back so it is supported by strong tissues. Similarly, back braces are short term helpful, but can contribute to the long term problem if used as an only solution, because they take away the body’s need for muscle tone and further reduce the natural supportive strength to the area. Lower Body Chair Seat Frequent Cause: Several of the most common reasons for riders’ legs creeping forward include never having learned correct alignment; stirrup bars too far ahead of seat for that rider; tight hip flexor muscles preventing open hip angle.


Effect on Performance: Two of the most obvious effects of riding in a chair seat are that the rider’s fulcrum of movement shifts ahead, so that they have to post in too large an arc. In other words, their weight is shifted behind the horse’s movement and they struggle in the ride to stay with the horse’s movement. They are also not able to find a strong balance position and the horse’s quality of movement is affected. Also, the rider’s leg ahead of the horse will make it very difficult to get the horse ahead of the leg, and responsiveness to leg aids will be an issue because the aids are not accurate. Ground Training Approach: Exercises that help the rider find balance in proper alignment, and that release tension from the hip flexors to allow the hip angle to open and the rider to be physically able to drop their knee more while seated in the saddle. Often tight hip flexors are paired with weak gluteal and hamstring muscles. These are the ‘backline’ muscles for the rider’s leg which would also be part of a muscle tone balance needed to bring their leg back under their body and keep it there without effort. So, exercises would combine stretching the hip flexor, with strengthening this backline. Mounted Corrections: Placing the rider’s leg in correct position- and stopping the rider to correct and re-adjust. The rider needs to be able to feel when legs are creeping forward, and have a reflex for correcting their own position. Continuing to ride in the poor posture reinforces the unwanted muscle memory. Correcting the position allows the rider to learn a new muscle memory, and meantime apply more effective and clear aids. Balance exercises to get the rider to align over their ankles correctly also help. Examples would be staying in rising position for a circle of trot, or alternating the number of beats the rider is in the up phase of a posting trot. Common Corrective Errors: Pulling the rider’s leg back without correcting possible physical issues that impede correct leg position, such as stiff ankles or tight hip flexors; allowing the rider to go round and round without correcting the position hoping they will find it themselves, so that they learn other compensations to try and achieve their goal- and consequently do not learn correct aids; lengthening the stirrup so that it is too long- the rider may straighten their leg momentarily to reach for it, but the leg will continue to creep forward, the lower leg will flap, and the rider may end up balancing by learning to pinch their knees. Floppy Legs Frequent Cause: Most frequently caused by thighs pinching against the saddle. The leg is stiff, and the joints are not supple, so motion is not absorbed up and down by softly flexing ankle, knee and hip. The motion escapes outwards instead through a flopping leg. Effect on Performance: The horse’s forward motion is compromised by knees which pinch and block his shoulders and back movement. Tension in the rider’s hips, knees and ankles will be mirrored in loss of elasticity in the horse’s hips, hocks, and fetlocks. He will not be as able to move under himself from the hind and there is a loss of impulsion and carriage.


Ground Training Approach: Tight adductors are sometimes identified as the problem. Sometimes they are, but sometimes they are the symptom- the result of clamping legs due to poor balance, or poor ability to follow the horse’s motion from the seat as a result of tight hips, or poor ability for correct leg position resulting from other tensions or tight ankles. Exercise programs to address any of these issues include stretches for the tight areas, as well as exercises to teach the rider better balance, and better ability to lower their centre of gravity through their legs and engage their core. Mounted Corrections: Manual tension release of the inner thigh and adjustment of the leg position. Often rider’s stirrups are too long and need to be shorted to the point where the rider can legitimately put weight in their foot instead of reaching for the stirrups. Lengthening of stirrups should keep pace with the rider’s ability to lengthen their leg, and not be used to try and get the rider to reach their leg down. The rider may have to learn to sit their horse’s trot gradually, for sections of the arena or circle with rests in between if they tend to get tense the longer they are trotting. Seated work without stirrups, and using leg lengthening and relaxing exercises can also be helpful. Common Corrective Errors: Lengthening the stirrups before the rider is ready- better to shorten the stirrups to where the rider can allow their weight to come down the leg and into the stirrup/heel, then gradually increase this length; not slowing down the ride to the rider’s ability to follow the horse (sacrificing the quality by trying to get movements out of the horse when the rider needs to learn to sit the gait with relaxation in their joints first). Knees Too Pinched Frequent Cause: Most frequently the rider has not found a secure balanced and aligned position with supple hips. The body seeks to create stability and stay with the horse by clamping to the saddle using the inner thigh. It is not always easy to see whether this rider developed tight hip flexors and adductors (lower cross syndrome) from the riding, or was pre-disposed to that pattern and brought it into the riding. Effect on Performance: As above, squeezing the horse with the upper thigh blocks motion and creates a noisy lower leg which makes it hard for the horse to feel leg aids precisely. The rider would feel they need to use their whip or spur to get the horse to be more off the aids, or to get more impulsion. Ground Training Approach: Exercises to stretch the inner thigh and possibly hip flexor, while strengthening the often simultaneously weak external hip rotators, and balance exercises. If the rider pinches because they do not have the stamina to maintain posture, they may need cardio-vascular work and core training to teach their body to stabilize through the core rather than legs, and to build up stamina so that they do not fall back into the pinching compensation pattern as they fatigue.


Mounted Corrections: Very similar to the floppy leg problem. These are often connected. Other exercises that can help include lifting legs away from the saddle or lifting and circling (while at a walk, or on a lunge or lead). Common Corrective Errors: Focusing on the rider opening their knee without addressing the whole leg and hip position; focusing only on mounted exercises without attention to stretching the tight areas in a much bigger range than is possible in the saddle; focus on the physical position issue without addressing possible causes of mental tension. Heels Raised Frequent Cause: Correct hip position leads to correct leg position, which is always accompanied by a flexed ankle since the ankle must flex for the lower leg to be placed correctly. Raised heels are usually paired with a bit of a chair seat, and common tightness in the rider’s hamstrings and hip flexors. The rider’s stirrups may be too long for their ability to maintain correct position, so they are reaching for the stirrups; their ankles may be stiff or calves tight, impeding proper flexion of the ankle; they may have very poor balance and be attempting to stand on the stirrups with the balls of their toes. They will typically be gripping with legs or hands to find balance since a heels up position does not allow the rider to balance over the horse’s centre of gravity, and lower their own centre of gravity. Effect on Performance: At the very least the rider will have very ineffective leg aids since the contact between calf and the horse’s barrel will be reduced. The horse’s motion will be blocked and the horse will be showing difficulty moving up over the back, and probably be going fairly hollow in the back as a result of the other seat, weight and balance issues which raised heels are a symptom of. Ground Training Approach: Depending on which issues are contributing most to the problem, ground training would emphasize or combine the following: ankle and hamstring flexibility, balancing exercises, work on a trampoline or soft surface to train heel dropping and balance through core and alignment instead of toe gripping. Very often intensive work to mobilize stiff ankles and retrain triple-folding of ankle, knee and hip. Mounted Corrections: Manually working with the rider to place leg in correct position with an appropriately adjusted stirrup; manually working on ankle flexibility while mounted; reminding rider to shift their lower leg back and raise their toes. Common Corrective Errors: Ignoring potential for saddle fit issues placing rider too far back in saddle, or stirrups too far forward; advising rider to put heels down which often creates more tension in the legs; ignoring potential ankle flexibility issues which can be addressed most effectively on the ground; leaving stirrups too long for the rider’s ability to lengthen leg. Continuing to ride around and around with the problem, or with adjustments that create more tension, teaches both horse and rider incorrect muscle memory and encourages development of compensating patterns.


Slow Timing of Aids Frequent Cause: The older the rider and the less opportunity they had to establish muscle firing patterns, sport ability and muscle memory when they were younger, the more likely they are to have challenges with timing. The rider may have poor rhythm, or have never learnt it, or be missing the signs preceding the moment the aid is needed. They may also have complex muscle firing compensations where they do intend to perform an activity, but other muscles engage impeding the accuracy of the aids. Riders can also be lower on the scale for innate sport skill and have lower body awareness resulting in slower ability to respond accurately to situations. The rider may also still be in the conscious acquisition stage of the various aids, so that when too much is going on at once they are not able to put the pieces together accurately and quickly. If the rider is dehydrated, has low blood sugar, is experiencing any levels of anxiety over the exercises, or is carrying distracting concerns into their ride, their response times will be negatively impacted. Effect on Performance: The rider will be behind the horse’s movement, and a step behind so to speak in readiness for movements which will show in transitions, changes of direction, lateral movements and jump combinations. Slow response presents varying degrees of safety concern depending on the exercises and tasks. Ground Training Approach: Exercises that develop proprioception and agility. Exercise programs should progress from very slow movement and muscle firing repatterning/patterning, to faster activities that promote more accurate response, and ability to multi-task accurately. Fortunately body awareness and accurate response can be improved through regular training. Having a variety of activities on a variety of tools and terrains is particularly helpful. Variety trains new movement possibilities, which can then be used to hone more accurate specific movement patterns. Mounted Corrections: Allowing the rider more opportunity to isolate the various parts of their aid combinations so that they can gradually create more automatic and correct actions/reactions is important. For example, when a hand pattern is repeated and repeated until it shifts from the conscious acquisition stage to the subconscious stage, it can be combined with another aid that has also been worked on this way. Work at walk to perfect aid combinations or work on a lunge before the rider is challenged at a faster gait seems slow, but training automatic response is well worth it. It is like using gymnastics in the arena to train a horse that will eventually use these skills cross country. Common Corrective Errors: Giving too much at once; too many directions too fast; using a gait that is too fast for the rider’s stage of adoption of the desired aid patterns; telling the rider what to do constantly without explaining how it is all working and allowing the rider to integrate and adopt each movement pattern. Adults are usually slower than children, because they are struggling to analyse and understand, and they are working with greatly reduced movement capacity due to loss of physical athletic ‘vocabulary’ over time (or they never had a high amount of it in the first place), and genuine loss of mobility and neuro-muscular connections.


Gentle Workout for Mature Riders: STEP 1 Theme: Finding spine neutral and range of motion. The goals of your initial sessions will be:

Unblock tension through joints Establish true spine neutral posture

You will mainly be engaging in stretches and postural activities. To get the maximum benefit of these exercises, it is recommended to do them for a few minutes each and every day. Flexibility improves the most when you stretch daily because you keep increasing your range and mobility slightly each day. Each day that you do not stretch, your body’s natural tendency will be to tighten back up again. The postural exercises are also recommended for workout as a daily activity. Teaching your body to find and maintain an spine neutral posture is a foundation for all of your activity, and a muscle memory and proprioceptive activity. The more you can reinforce the new patterns and posture in the initial period, the more they will become automatic, which is your goal so that you do not have to think about posture as much consciously while you are riding or doing other activities. The Step 1 workout may seem quite easy, but if done correctly, the exercises will help you identify your imbalances and tight areas. Personalise the workout so that even while you perform all the exercises regularly, you spend the most time on the areas that challenge you or reveal your asymmetries. Frequency of Exercises: Daily, at least 5 days Duration of Step 1 Workout: approximately 15 minutes STEP 1 EXERCISES: before you ride, or anytime through the day Mobilizing Exercises 1. Gentle shoulder rotations to open shoulders 2. Side bends to increase flexibility through ribs 3. ‘Round and hollow’ back to improve spinal mobility 4. Side to side neck stretches to release upper back 5. Side to Side lunges to open hips, loosen inner thigh 6. Forward lunges to open hips at the front 7. Opposite toe touch to open hips from back, and improve rotation 8. Ankle stretches on a stair to improve foot position in stirrup Stabilizing Exercises


9. ‘Sit’ against the wall to find your neutral spine, then walk away from the wall maintaining alignment and core engagement. Progress to walking around the room with a neutral spine, and test your alignment with an object placed on your head.

Step 1 Exercises 1. Gentle Shoulder Rotations: mobilize shoulders 2. Side Bends: increase flexibility through ribs 3. ‘Round and Hollow’ (or standing ‘cat and dog’): improve spinal mobility 4. Neck Stretches side to side: release upper back and neck

Remember to log your progress using the Workout logs on pages 36-39. Logging your progress will help you stay on track. Go at your pace, not

someone else’s.


Roll your shoulders up and back slowly, creating a squeeze you can really feel in the muscles, breathing in. As you drop them back down and let your breath out, imagine your arms are heavy.

Flow back and forth over each side, reaching your arm over your head to loosen hips, maintaining alignment (no tipping forward/ back). Keep a slight bend in your knees to keep spine neutral. You can imagine you are curving around a ball to keep aligned and stretch through your ribs.

Bring your arms forward and roll your upper back into a ball. Then open your hands outward (thumbs back) and bring your chin up. Take care to keep you hips slightly back so that you protect your lower back.

Holding your arms down to keep your shoulders down, tilt your head from side to side bringing your ear toward your shoulder. Do not roll your head back. You can also tuck your head forward as if looking under your arm-pit on each side.

Step 1 Exercises Continued: 5. Lunges side to side: open hips, loosen inner thigh 6. Forward Lunges: open hips at the front (hip flexors/psoas) 7. Opposite Toe Touch: open hips from back, improve rotation 8. Ankle Stretches: mobilize ankle to improve foot & leg position in stirrup 9. Wall Sit: train feeling for straightness and core engagement


Line your spine up against a wall with your feet out from the wall. Remember to pull up with your stomach to reduce the hollow in the small of your back. Walk away from the wall seeing if you can keep the same neutral and straight alignment.

A flexible calf and ankle allow for absorption of the motion of the horse. Riders with stiff ankles do not absorb motion at the ankle, making sitting trot and a deeper seat more difficult. Support your weight on one leg, while stretching the other. You can hold an object or wall for balance.

Standing with legs wider than shoulder width, bend at your hips to bring your back forward until you feel a pull up the back of your leg. Do not round your back. Then cross your body and reach for the opposite toe with one arm. Only go as low as you can without rounding or collapsing your back. Twist to reach the opposite foot. Looking toward the sky will help you twist further.

Lunge forward to stretch hip flexors, keeping your head and torso upright and hips, knees, toes and shoulders facing forward. You can hold a solid object for balance. You should feel the stretch in the upper thigh at the crease with your hip, in the hip flexor area.

Start with legs quite wide and flow side to side, aiming your seatbones back and down to open up your hips and stretch inner thighs. You can hold a solid object for stability if it would be easier to balance. Only stretch your legs as wide as you need to, to feel the stretch.

Gentle Workout for Mature Riders: STEP 2 Theme: Building Core Stability. The goals of your second week will be:

Maintain and continue to build joint mobility through stretching Strengthen postural stabilizing muscles

Core strength exercises in this workout must be done with attention to the details of your spine neutral posture. Exercises are designed to help you develop more spine supporting strength that is needed to maintain good posture while riding, while protecting your back and joints from negative wear or strain. Do the exercises at least 5 days out of the next 7. As you build up strength you can increase the number of each exercise that you do, or the number of times you perform each set. If you do an exercise 10 times or for 10 seconds and then rest or change exercises, that is one set of 10 repetitions or seconds. Cycle through the exercises in the order they are shown. They are combined specifically to help you increase your endurance without fatiguing specific muscles. If you find that your technique or position is beginning to weaken, then stop. Once your spine neutral posture is lost, your spine stabilizers have fatigued. Should you keep on going, you would force negative loading (strain) in your back. Even though your body might employ other muscles to keep doing the exercise, it would not be good for your back to do so. If you cannot do all the exercises in one session, no problem. Do the rest at a later time. It is more important that you squeeze in the time so that you give yourself the best advantage, than it is to do them all at once if you do not have the time to do so. Frequency of Exercises: Daily, at least 5 days Duration of Step 2 Workout: approximately 15 minutes STEP 2 EXERCISES: stretching anytime in the day, and especially before you ride; core strengthening exercises at a time in your day when you can concentrate on proper technique. Mobilizing Exercises Perform Stretches from Step 1 Core: 10. Basic Crunch 11. Crossover Crunch 12. Limb raises lying prone (single, then opposite pairs) 13. Opposite pair raises on all 4’s Stabilizing Exercises 14. Holding position of opposite pair limb raise on all 4’s (4-6 second counts)


15. Plank

Step 2 Additional Exercises: 10. Basic Crunch: trains core engagement, strengthens front 11. Crossover Crunch: improves cross co-ordination & trunk stability 12. Limb Raises (lying prone): improves cross co-ordination & trunk stability 13. Opposite Pair Raises (all 4’s): cross co-ordination, balance, back strength 14. Isometric Pair Raise (same as above, but hold the posture 6-10 seconds) 15. Plank: promotes deep core engagement, develops straightness


Lie on the mat with your knees bent, then tuck your pelvis slightly to reduce the hollow in your lower back, by engaging your abdominals. Support your neck and head with your hands, and lift your head and shoulder blades off the ground by using your abdominals to shorten the space between your bottom rib and hip.

Work your way up one day at a time to being able to do 10-20 repetitions of each crunch exercise. For the cross-over variation, reach towards your knee, squeezing your abdominals. Crossing your body with a good effort is more important than actually reaching your knees.

Lie on your stomach on the mat with your arms and legs straight out in front of and behind you. Take a break, engage your core muscles, and start to lift your limbs by lifting one at a time, holding for 5-6 seconds and then releasing. Next, lift them in opposite pairs.

Position yourself on all fours so that you feel even weight in both hands and both knees. Use a cushion under your knees if you need to. Keep your spine neutral (tummy pulling up). Practice with lifting each limb one and a time until you have good balance and can work on lifting opposite limbs.

To do the plank properly, you need to use the feeling you have developed for tucking your pelvis. Also draw your stomach muscles upward with a feeling that you are making as much distance from the top of your head to your heels as possible. Hold for as long as you can until you feel your back hollowing, then stop.

Gentle Workout for Mature Riders: STEP 3 Theme: Laying Strength and Movement Foundations. The goals of your third workout are:

Integrate your core stability with strength and movement training Increase your general muscle tone Further develop straightness

In the previous two workouts, you established a better awareness of the spine neutral position supported first by the wall in the vertical plane, and then by the floor in the horizontal plane. Enhancing proprioception starts with the slower exercises where you have a guiding surface such as the wall or floor. Once you move away from the wall and floor, you rely much more on your core and hip stabilizers and your muscle memory for spine neutral. It is easy to get crooked in ‘mid air’ so to speak, because you do not always have a surface to let you know when you are crooked. You need to apply the feeling of muscle engagement from your previous workouts, to the less supported exercises since your body probably had a different idea of ‘straight’ before you re-educated it with the wall and the floor. In riding, you are constantly moving, not trying to achieve a rigid position. Training the ability for good riding posture requires that you move into different positions you could not use if you were in the saddle. Strength exercises in Step 3 are focused on hips, sides, and gluteals and long back muscles which control your upright posture and rearward leg aids. If you have quite stiff ankles still, or stiffness in a knee or hip joint, you will find it a challenge to do the strength exercises smoothly. It is more important to maintain symmetry than to go deeply into the exercises if you cannot do so while maintaining straightness. Stretch constantly between exercises. Frequency of Exercises: Daily, at least 5 days out of 7 Duration of Step 3 Workout: approximately 15 minutes, for 1-2 weeks

depending on your rate of progress STEP 3 EXERCISES: Warmup Mobilizing Exercises One round of Stretch routines from Step 1 Workout Floor Exercises Core exercises from previous workout: Cross over crunch (11), Opposite limb raises on all 4’s (13), Plank (15) 16. Gradual leg lowers (one leg at a time.) Standing Strength and Movement- remember to maintain your neutral spine and fold at the hip, knees and ankles…not your back! 17. Side bends holding ball overhead (bent knees and ankles) 18. Simple squat with arms out to side 19. Squat with forward ball raise


20. Simple single leg forward tip

Step 3 Additional Exercises: 16. Gradual Leg Lowers (one at a time): lower back/abdominal strength 17. Side Bends Holding Ball: improves lateral strength & stability (obliques) 18. Simple Squat: promotes correct joint folding 19. Squat with Forward Ball Raise: joint folding, multi-task & back strength 20. Single Leg Forward Tip: balance, hip stabilizer strength


Stand on one leg with your knee slightly bent, and a feeling of pulling up your stomach muscles slightly. Tip forward, keeping a straight line from your shoulders to hips, to foot. Your back and gluteal muscles will engage to keep you straight, working your postural muscles as well.

Once you have a good basic squat technique, you can introduce more strength training for your back by adding the weight of an object. Reach the ball forward and upwards, keeping your back very straight. If your back collapses, try it with just your arms at first.

Stand with your legs just wider than shoulder width. Lower your seat down and back as if you were poking your sitbones backwards. Make sure your knees stay a bit back. As you lower your seat, fold at the hips tipping your back a bit forward while keeping in flat. Do not round or collapse your back.

First, position yourself in a spine neutral vertical position: legs shoulder width apart, knees very slightly bent, abdominals engaged. Hold the ball overhead, and round your spine and ribcage over, then engage your abdominals a little more, and use them to pull you back upright. Make sure you round , not fold at the hips.

Start in the same position on the floor with knees bent as you used for your Basic Crunch. Lift one leg straight up in the air, and then slowly lower it inch by inch to a maximum of about 10 inches. You will likely need time to work up to going that far. As soon as you feel your lower back coming off of the floor, stop, rest, repeat.

Gentle Workout for Mature Riders: STEP 4 Theme: Increasing Awareness and Accuracy. The goals of your fourth workout are:

Further develop postural awareness Increase neuro-muscular accuracy Continue to build stability and mobility

Now that you have a basic ability to maintain your spine neutral position with core engagement, and you have increased your joint mobility through stretches, it is time to integrate these abilities into movement exercises that build focus and accuracy. The step four exercises should be attempted very slowly at first, with attention to the details. By moving your body into different positions, or introduced balance challenges and more complex movement patterns, you will be much more at risk for defaulting to familiar muscle engagement or compensating patterns. Starting out very slowly will help you monitor yourself closely, so that you can correctly engage your core and stabilizing muscles, and remember to bend or fold in the right joints, the right way. You may find that the workout takes longer the first few times, or that you need a couple of weeks with it rather than just one, until you are able to do the exercises at a steady pace without compromising form. Pay attention to the where you start to fatigue or where you start to lose form first. This will be an indication of the weaker links in your chain of movement. Wait for those weaker areas to become stronger through repetition and rest, rather than pushing through. Using the correct form each time will teach your body to use your supporting muscles differently, while building strength. Teaching your body to use itself differently translates to better movement in the saddle, in the same way that you would more easily speak a language in a foreign city, which you had already practiced quite a bit in study. Pay attention to the where you start to fatigue or where you start to lose form first. This will be an indication of the weaker links in your chain of movement. Wait for those weaker areas to become stronger through repetition and rest, rather than pushing through. Maintain your stretch routine prior to every ride or workout- or anytime you feel the need to limber up. Frequency of Exercises: daily, 5 days out of 7 Duration of Step 2 Workout: approximately 20 minutes STEP 4 EXERCISES: maintain your stretches! 21. Cross over toe touch crunches 22. Side planks 23. Forward tips in squat, pickup weight and stand up 24. Single arm forward raises in squat 25. Single leg step back lunge 26. Round the clock toe points 27. Lateral weight raise in a lunge- keep hips stable through core


NOTE: If you have to miss a day, just pick up the next day where you left off. Life happens.

However, retraining your body takes patient, daily

application since you are creating positive or

negative muscle memory on a daily

basis.

Step 4 Additional Exercises: 21. Cross Over Toe Touch: cross co-ordination, lower back strength 22. Side Planks: improves balance, side and hip stabilizer strength 23. Squat Picking Up Weight (forward tip): postural and leg strength 24. Forward Raise (single arm): shoulder strength, core stabilization


Get into a light squat that feels a bit like a two-point position, using your back muscles to straighten your back. If you have a tendency to collapse forward, lift your chin and chest up. Raise one arm holding an object while engaging your core to keep your shoulders straight. Do not allow your hip or shoulder to fall.

Side planks, like regular ones, are all about alignment and building postural stamina. Line your body up shoulder to hip to knee with a feeling of abdominal engagement. Lift your hips off the floor and hold. Shown is a starter version with knees bent and supporting hand. You can progress to full leg.

This cross-over variation is performed exactly the same way as the cross-over to your knee, except that with your legs in the air your lower back and lower abdominals have to work much hard as well. If lifting your legs straight up is difficult, bend your knees to start. If lifting both is too difficult, start with one and a time.

Use the squat technique you have been training, but go lower, teaching your body to support your back with your legs. Pick up the object, and then stand up again. If your ankles are stiff, you may need to put your object on something so that it is closer. Keep a flat back.

Step 4 Additional Exercises Continued: 25. Step Back Lunge: promotes balance & hip folding, builds thigh strength 26. ‘Round the Clock’ Lunge Variation: co-ordination, balance, hip stability 27. Lunge with Lateral Weight Raise: balance, co-ordination, core integration, shoulder strength

Remember to log your progress using the Workout Improvement Logs on

pages 36-39. Logging your progress will help you stay on track. Go at your pace, not someone else’s.


Start as if you are going to do a step back lunge, then reach your foot to objects around you, keeping your core engaged. Use your core engagement to prevent your hip from poking out. If you lose your balance, reduce the bend in your knee and hold a stable object.

Bend your knee and poke your seat back as you reach one leg behind you to place it on the ground. Keep your weight over your front foot. Most people shift their weight back and lose their balance that way. Make sure that you poke your seat back, not your knee forward. Hold on to something for balance if you need to.

Once you can master getting into the lunge position and holding it, raise your arms up to shoulder height (repeat 6-12 times). This exercise trains balance and co-ordination as your upper and lower body are being challenged differently. Your core muscles must now be engaged and integrated to keep you stable.

Gentle Workout for Mature Riders: STEP 5 Theme: Training Better Balance. The goals of your fifth workout are:

Revisit core and hip stabilization and strength training Improve balance

Many of the exercises in Step four already introduced more of a balance challenge, so you have a good foundation for Step five. Balance on a horse is interesting because it involves forward/back, side/side, and rotational dimensions. Suzanne von Dietze’s excellent book is well named “Balance in Movement” because balance on a horse involves constant adjustment to a moving base. Balance has nothing to do with rigidity, even though the outcome looks so fixed and placid. There are many other examples where this becomes obvious: tightrope or trampoline work, surfing, skiing, or boating to name a few. Lowering your centre is the key. Unlike those other surfaces, horses actively respond to your position with some thinking. They are as affected as these other surfaces by what your body does, but they will willingly try and do what we seem to be asking, whereas a surfboard will just pitch you off if you lean too far. Riders can therefore cause many imbalances, compensations and even strain injuries in their horses over time as the horse does what is asked, even when the rider’s body is impeding correct biomechanics. So, we have a responsibility to train balance. At a much more basic level, training balance will help you avoid accidents, stay on if the horse spooks, and have the kind of happy and harmonious ride you live for. The ingredients for good balance are the flexibility, stabilizer strength and awareness you have been working on up to this point. You have been working pretty diligently up until now, and balance training can challenge your neural connections quite rigorously so the Step five workout is much shorter. Be patient with yourself and have some fun. Stop and drink water if you feel suddenly tired or frustrated. Exercises that really challenge neural-muscular pathways can trigger emotional reaction. Attempting the exercises is the goal, perfecting them is not necessary. Frequency of Exercises: 4 days in a row Duration of Step 5 Workout: approximately 5-10 minutes STEP 5 EXERCISES: remember your dynamic stretching routine first! 28. Single leg stand for as long as you can each side 29. Balance in a slight squat on tennis balls or pool noodle or equivalent 30. Single leg stand with moving the other leg to different positions


31. V-sit on a cushion or other unstable or soft surface

Step 5 Additional Exercises: 28. Single Leg Stand: balance, hip stabilizer strength, posture stamina 29. Balance Squat (on unstable surface): balance, posture stability 30. Single Leg Movement: balance, leg placement control 31. V-Sit on Unstable Surface: balance, core stability


Sit on the cushion with your knees bent and feet on floor. Straighten your back up with a feeling of pushing your chest up. Then lift your feet and hands off of the floor without collapsing your back. Hold for a few seconds. As you get stronger, you will be able to straighten your legs in the air more and more.

Use your basic squatting technique but with your feet on an unstable surface. A flake of hay or cushion are good starts. You can also use pool noodles, socks, tennis balls or other objects to balance on the balls of your toes, lifting your heels slightly off the ground. You will really need to keep your centre of gravity low.

Stand on one leg with your knee slightly bent and core engaged. Your core engagement will keep your hips and shoulders level. See if you can increase the amount of time you are able to hold this position. Remember to breath to keep your joints soft so that your body can make the micro-adjustments needed. Hold something for balance if needed.

Once you can stand on one leg keep your hips and shoulders square and straight reliably, change the position of your free leg. Don’t swing. Place it and hold momentarily. Each time the weight of your leg is changed, your core will be challenged to maintain your straight and neutral posture.

Gentle Workout for Mature Riders: STEP 6 Theme: Improving Stamina. The goals of your sixth workout are:

Increase postural stamina Increase stamina for hip muscles influencing leg aids

Now that you’ve had some fun working on your balance, and you’ve done the hard work of laying down some good foundations so that your joints fold where you want them to, while your torso stays stable, it’s time to work on stamina. Stamina is important because it is no good to you or your horse if you are able to achieve great posture and accurate aids, but only for the first 10 minutes of your ride, or only under perfect conditions. As soon as you are riding fatigued or inaccurately, you are undoing your hard work by reinforcing the movement patterns and compensations you don’t want…and straining yourself and your horse in ways that you do not want. When you were younger, a certain amount of stamina came much more naturally because you had a different quality of soft tissue fibre, and a higher natural muscle ratio. Now you need to maintain yourself intelligently to keep or build these qualities. Good soft tissue elasticity and tone will also support your joints, and help you recover more quickly from any sudden strains that could occur when you are working around horses. No-one likes to wrench their back choring around the horses or doing some other unrelated daily task, and find that they are then unable to enjoy riding as a result. Stamina comes from the tone of the tissue (size, strength) as well as the efficient transfer of oxygen from the blood stream to the cells. Cardio-vascular training will help, and is introduced with Step 6. Frequency of Exercises: 2 days on, 1 day off for 4 cycles Duration of Step 6 Workout: approximately 20-30 minutes STEP 6 EXERCISES: stretch before, during and after the workout. Stretch extra on your ‘off’ day. Core Stamina Routine: Use your previous core exercises in this continuous (non-stopping) routine that pushes your stamina a bit more: Basic Crunch x 20 (#10), Crossover crunch (toes) x 15 (#21), plank (#15, for 30 seconds), opposite arm and leg raise on all 4’s (#13), side planks (#22, for 20 seconds each). Repeat cycle. Hip Stamina Routine: Continuous for one round, then rest, then repeat once more. Step back lunge (#25, 10 each side), Squats with raising ball forward x 15 (#19) and 32. Lying side leg raise (maintain alignment!) x 25 each side.


Cardio-Vascular Capacity: Brisk walking or activity for 10 minutes, at a level that forces you to breath and at which it is not easy to maintain a conversation. You can use intervals of more effort, slowing down to catch your breath as needed. The cardio segment can be done at a different time or day than the Hip & Core segments.

Step 6 Additional Exercises: 32. Side Lying Leg Raise: lateral strength, hip control Walking with Good Posture


Now that you have developed a better feeling for a straight and neutral spine, you have also started to train your core muscles to support straightness. As you keep training them, they will engage more and more automatically. Of course, the horse moves and is not rigid. The next step is to work on maintaining the alignment with tone in your core, but with a looseness and freedom that allows movement. In your walking, be aware of your hips moving forward and back, and your shoulders moving as well. You should not be stiff, rigid or stuck in your back as you walk. Your shoulders should not appear frozen. Swing your arms more forward and backward in your walk so that your shoulders move slightly forward and back as well. Having proper movement in your walk will be healthy for your spine, and reduce the possibility of excessive and straining motion happening in your lower back. Remember to keep a feeling of pulling up your abdominal muscles slightly so that your pelvis is upright. Do not let your pelvis spill forward. A tipped forward pelvis is a sign that the lower abdominals are not engaged, and your purpose is to train your body to be able to have movement in the pelvis and spine, without losing abdominal engagement.

Lie on the ground with your knees bent, and alignment in shoulder, hip and ankle. You will need to engage your stomach muscles. Reach your hand over your hip and reach toward your ankle as you raise your leg.

Meet the Gentle Workout Exercise Models: Birgit is a 50+ amateur dressage rider who has been riding since about the age of 20. She walks regularly to maintain bone strength, posture and hip mobility. Heather is a 40+ rider and coach and the owner of Equifitt. You can read more about her at www.equifitt.com. Elaine is a 45+ competitive dressage rider who trains with Canadian Olympian Gina Smith. With more mounted hours in her week, stretching is important. The oldest Equifitt client to perform these exercises on a regular basis, was 89

years young !

Gentle Workout for Mature Riders: STEP 7 Theme: Integrating Core Engagement with Performance. The goals of your seventh workout are:

Improve ability to multi-task with accuracy Establish stable core with other moving parts or weight/balance

challenges

Training your body to move more efficiently really is like learning a language. You learn words, and then you put them together in sentences. The more complex the thought you want to express, the more you have to think about putting parts together. However, the more you practice, the easier it becomes. You may not be able to express yourself in your second language as effortless as your mother tongue, but you can achieve an ability to get your ideas across quite effectively. With riding, your body needs to be able to co-ordinate several parts at once, with some parts moving while others are stable and your hands, legs and seatbones often in different positions. As you train your body to multi-task, you will find that you learn these aid combinations more and more quickly. When you are riding and have to remind yourself to engage your core, it is a bit of an inconvenience because for a moment it takes your mind of the aids and the horse. However, when core engagement during movement has become automatic for you, you are able to engage your core without removing your attention from the other tasks at hand. The exercises in Step 7 train multi-tasking, while continuing to develop your stamina and muscles for postural straightness and balance. Frequency of Exercises: 6 days- alternating exercises with cardio Duration of Step 7 Workout: approximately 15-20 minutes STEP 7 EXERCISES: Stretching Warmup Integrated Core, Strength and Balance with Multi-tasking 33. Crunches holding weight with leg pumps (in and out, one at a time) 34. Back extensions on ball 35. Arm raises and circles seated on ball with one foot raised 36. Tubing push and pull in squat 37. Tubing push and pull in lunge (each side) 38. Partner push/pull balancing on noodle/socks


Cardio-Vascular Capacity: Brisk walk or other activity for at least 15 minutes, 3x/week. Going at the pace you need to, with little intervals (spurts of more effort, followed by slowing down to catch your breath before your next spurt) will really help you to build your cardio-vascular capacity as well as mobilize your hips (if walking) and promote bone density.

Step 7 Additional Exercises: 33. Crunches with Weight and Leg Pumps: co-ordination, low back strength

34. Back Extensions (on ball): balance, back strength

35. Arm Raises on Ball with Single Leg Raise: balance, co-ordination

36. Tubing Push and Pull (in squat): forward/back postural stability with action


Lie face down over the ball, with the ball under your pelvis and thigh. Hook your feet under furniture, against a wall or similar. Drop your chest down toward the ground, then pick your back up to about level with the ground. Repeat.

Using the same starting position as the regular crunch, perform a crunch holding your weight up. Next, bring one knee in while pushing the other leg out, then switch. A left and right pump are considered one pair. Work your way up to 6-10 pairs, but rest in between whenever you need to. Start with a very light object in your hands.

Sit on the ball so that you feel even weight between your two seatbones, and your feet. Make sure your hips and shoulders are straight. Maintain straightness through core engagement as you lift one foot slightly. When you are ready, you can add arm movements.

The goal of this exercise is to use your core to maintain postural straightness, in spite of pushing and pulling coming from one side. In your squat, first pull and hold, and then switch facing direction, and push. Use one hand and a time.

Step 7 Additional Exercises Continued: 37. Tubing Push and Pull (in lunge): same as above plus balance 38. Partner Push/Pull While Balancing: balance, posture stabilization

Remember to log your progress using the Workout Improvement Logs on pages 36-39. Logging your progress will help you stay on track. Go at your

pace, not someone else’s.


When you are fairly consistent with balancing on objects in your ‘horse width’ squatting position, add some fun by having a partner push on your hands, or on one hand. Remember to engage your core and drop your centre of gravity to keep your balance, not lean into you partner.

Once you have mastered the squat version, increase the balance challenge by doing the same exercise in a lunge position. Take care to keep your shoulders straight. Remember to drop your shoulders and centre of gravity.

Gentle Workout for Mature Riders: STEP 8 Theme: Building More Core Strength and Stamina. The goals of your eighth workout are:

Increase your core strength and postural stability Develop more physical fluency: ability for multi-tasking and switching from one

exercise to the next with postural stability and balance becoming more automatic

The eighth step is really a bonus step that brings everything together which you have learned so far, while pushing you that extra little bit needed to really anchor the new movement patterns in your muscle memory. You may take more or less time than indicated to go through the routine twice. I would encourage you to persist and continue with it until you feel quite comfortable and fluid with each exercise, and can complete the entire routine twice with a short stretching break in between the two cycles. There are many more stabilizing muscles and movement patterns involved in completing the routines from this book, than there has been room to discuss at length in this book. If you have progressed to this point, you will have already noticed differences in your riding, and in your performance of other activities. At any point, should you feel strain or pain, stop the exercise and consult a physiotherapist. You may also have found that you can do some exercises better than others, or better on one side than another. Remember that your goal is to build suppleness and symmetry, not to force your body past a blockage or other limit. Be patient with yourself and take the time that you need to work things through until you can see improvements that are improvements for you. Photos and descriptions are guidelines. Frequency of Exercises: alternating days (3x/week) with walking or intensive

stretching on the days in between Duration of Step 3 Workout: approximately 20 minutes, for 2 weeks STEP 8 EXERCISES: Warmup Stretch Routine Integrated Routine (repeat cycle through twice, stretch between cycles) Basic Crunch (#10) x 25 Crossover Crunch (#21) x 20 pairs Single Leg Lowers (#16) x 10 each side Plank (#15) 40+ seconds Opposite pairs limb raise on all fours (#13) x10 each side Side bends holding ball overhead (#17) 6 on each side Squats reaching ball forward and up (#19) x10 39. Stepping forward lunges (6 times in a row, each side), arms out for balance


40. Stepping sideways lunge (6 times in a row, each side), arms out for balance

Step 8 Additional Exercises: 39. Step Forward Lunges: increased balance and control 40. Side Step Lunges: improves weight shifting and hip stability

35© Heather R. Sansom 2013, www.equifitt.com

Now that you have mastered your squat technique, you can ‘walk’ it sideways. Lift one foot, place it to the side in a wide step and shift your weight into a balanced squat. Next, shift your weight over the new weight supporting leg, so that you can pick up your trailing foot without losing balance.

Forward step lunges are more challenge for balance. Keep your knee behind the middle of your foot- you should still see your toes ahead of your knee. Only bend your knee as much as is sensible for you. After stepping into the lunge, shift your weight forward so that you can stand up. Hold a wall or object if you need to.

Gentle Workout Improvement Logs Step 1

Number of Days Stretched (use tick marks)

Example: l l l l

My Asymmetry:

Favourite Stretch:

Improvement Noticed:

Step 2

Dates I Exercised:

Stronger Side:

Favourite Exercise:

Improvement Noticed:

Step 3

Dates I Exercised:

Biggest Challenge:

Favourite Exercise:

Improvement in The Exercises:

Improvement in My Riding:


Gentle Workout Improvement Logs

Step 4

Dates I Exercised:

Biggest Challenge:

Favourite Exercise:



Step 5

Dates I Exercised:

Biggest Challenge:

Favourite Exercise:





Dates I Exercised:

Biggest Challenge:

Favourite Exercise:



Step 7

Dates I Exercised:

Biggest Challenge:

Favourite Exercise:





Dates I Exercised:

Biggest Challenge:

Favourite Exercise:



CONGRATULATIONS! Taking on the eight-step workout for mature riders will have challenged you in areas you did not expect. Perhaps at times you felt like you were not making the progress you had hoped. It does not matter. Your journey to better riding, is your journey. Some exercises will be more helpful to you than others, and you will proceed at your own pace. By reaching out to try something completely new and different in preparing your body to ride better, you have made a significant investment in yourself and your riding. Sticking with a program through 8-12 weeks proves that you are determined to do everything you can to keep learning, growing and getting better at your riding.


As you went through the program, you may have discovered areas you would like to work on some more. You can obtain a more personalized program with Equifitt either in person, or by using telephone and internet options to work together with Heather over distance. Programs always complement your goals, scheduling, riding discipline and personal requirements. Personal programs address all the rider fitness areas, as well as nutrition or lifestyle coaching according to your needs for success.


About the Author Heather Sansom, MA, Certified Personal Trainer & Centered Riding® Instructor

Heather is a rider biomechanics and conditioning specialist. She is a certified elite Personal Trainer, Centered Riding® Instructor and Equine Canada Competition Coach. A lifelong rider, she has trained in Dressage at Level 4 and is proud of having done at least one barrel race in her life, taken polo lessons, and hunted with hounds. Heather's personal cross-training program varies according to season to include activities for cardiovascular, strength, core and flexibility training. She hikes, and trains in martial arts and dance for overall conditioning and to improve rhythm and co-ordination.

In a project management role with the Canadian national equestrian federation, she was responsible for the development of the national equestrian coaching and riding curriculums and certifications. She is recognized for her innovation in remodeling the equestrian adaptation of the Long Term Athlete Development sport model.

Activities with EQUIFITT include fitness (talks, workshops, small group and individual), biomechanic and performance analysis (mounted and unmounted) and riding instruction to improve biomechanics. Equifitt ‘virtual coaching’ is also available: Heather works with clients around the globe through Skype and other tools. A comfortable speaker, she has presented nationally and internationally. In addition to several rider fitness ebooks, Heather has published over 100 articles on rider fitness and biomechanics in national and internationally read publications such as Horse Sport, Canadian Horse Journal, Dressage Today and some Australian publications. The monthly Equifitt Equestrian Fitness Tips newsletter is free, and has a few thousand subscribers worldwide.

The EQUIFITT vision and mission are to contribute meaningfully to excellence in equestrian sport by helping riders improve the conditions for riding at their best- good fitness, a supple and athletic body, effective movement patterns and good biomechanics. Balanced training for better riding really means you and your horse have more fun reaching your goals and improving your performance.

Other ebooks by Heather Sansom:

“The Complete Core Workout for Riders” “Handy Stretching Guide for Riders” “Fit to Ride: Collected Equestrian Fitness Tips and Articles Volume I” “Fit to Ride: Collected Equestrian Fitness Tips and Articles Volume II”

Many thanks to my clients and readers for modeling the exercise photos in this book. It’s my hope that the illustrations of correct technique will be helpful, and that seeing ordinary people doing

them will be encouraging and inspiring.

Photos in memory of

my training partner, Breeze.

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