Getting Fit to Ride (Part 2): Finding and Supporting Your Balance Point, Off the Horse

by Mary Gallagher

Jess asks Bucky for flexion.

Most would agree that good horsemanship involves a certain amount of grace. The rider is balanced, strong, and supportive of the horse, whose confidence and abilities benefit as a result. I often tell my students that if they want a more confident horse, they need to work on their own core strength, along with finding their balance point. Especially, I emphasize, OFF the horse. We can work on our core

and balance at home, at the gym, and at the barn, and bring a better prepared rider to our faithful

steed.

It’s that ‘don’t ride to get fit, get fit to ride’ thing. This article will focus on finding your balance point and building your core while off the horse, and safely developing that strength and grace while on the horse. I’ll also share a couple of exercises I’ve come to think of as preparations for riding.

Getting Fit to Ride (a series, part 1)

By Mary Gallagher

As Jess Crouch pointed out in her recent articles on preparing to ride and mounting safely, it is important to review the basics and really prepare the horse for mounting. With time and experience, ironically, it’s easy to get careless or automatic about mounting. So I got to thinking about how we should also prepare ourselves to ride. We are riders in the active sense of the word, not passengers, and riding entails muscle conditioning and balance for the human, as much as the horse.

With this idea in mind, I have begun incorporating targeted exercises for riders in many of my classes, as part of the ground work portion, or in preparation for riding. In this first article, I focus on preparing ourselves to mount safely and smoothly, and share an exercise to support both. It’s better for the horse, and it’s definitely better for us riders! -MG

Mounting a horse is an athletic act. Getting on smoothly and seamlessly, without disturbing the horse—not getting hung up on the cantle, or flinging our leg over the saddle in an imbalanced way— is a practiced motion and a real skill. We need to get good at it. Just like we use ground work to practice moves with our horse that we will repeat while riding, we can also develop our own moves and muscles while on the ground.

Soleus and Gastroc Stretches: Good for Riders!

by Mary Gallagher, with Kenny Hall, fitness coach

I asked Kenny Hall, our Riders Fitness coach to give us some tips on maintaining great equitation by helping riders lower their center of gravity, utilizing the shock absorbing abilities in their ankles. Here is a summary of our exchange by email and during workouts. -MG

Mary Gallagher: Kenny, we coach riders in correct posture and center of gravity, supported by flexible, strong ankles. Can you give us some insight about that, and any exercise tips?

Kenny Hall: Sounds like you could focus on a commonly tight muscle in the body in the calf called the soleus. The soleus muscle helps us maintain good posture and keeps us from falling forward. Also, a flexible soleus muscle will act as a shock absorber for any athlete or rider, helping them to withstand impact while keeping a correct posture. Keeping this muscle toned and flexible is a must for a correct riding position.

Getting Hip to Horsemanship (and Hips)!

By Mary Gallagher


When I have seen photos of my riding position, I am always thinking, 'I need to get my leg under me, more perpendicular to the ground.' But when I adjusted my leg back, it wouldn't stay put!  In more recent photos and videos by Mary Tulin, my leg is right where I want it, but I can't say that I have been consciously working on it. What is up with that? I wondered. Here's what I realized: 



Inspiration: A Goal of My Own

By Michelle Grimmer

Earlier this spring, I wrote about setting goals and working toward them as the year progresses. So far things are going well, and the horses I am working with are right on track...but what about me? Am I on track? My focus on my client horses' progress and my busy life has taken my attention away from my own growth as a rider. If I had to pick a goal, what would it be?

Exercise: Sumo Squats

By Mary Gallagher, with Kenny Hall, fitness trainer
 
In February's newsletter, we presented Deep Squats, a powerful core and leg strengthening exercise for riders. In that article we focused on the basics and benefits of the exercise, performed with toes up and arms folded, back straight. This month we revisit the deep squat, but push the exercise a bit farther by adding the kettle bell, and calling it the "Sumo Squat".

Exercise: Toe Raises

By Mary Gallagher, with Kenny Hall, fitness trainer
 
My workouts with Kenny have helped me in so many ways. I just wanted to share with you another helpful insight about an often neglected muscle that is surprisingly important to our riding and horsemanship. A simple thing like limited range of motion or weakness in a particular area can impact our communication with our horse.

Exercise: Deep Squats

By Kenny Hall, Personal Trainer
and Mary Gallagher
 
MG: Kenny and I have been working together for two years now and as we combine our knowledge I am thrilled with the fitness knowledge and practice we can offer riders of all ages. As an instructor, I see focused exercise significantly improving riding, independent of our activity on the horse, saving our horse's good nature for the best we can offer. It is our responsibility as competent riders to be our best for our horses.

Is Working Out Really for Me?

by Kenny Hall, B.Sc., TPI-CGFI

 I asked Kenny Hall, who is my personal trainer as well as the coach for our Riders Fitness classes, to say a word about getting in shape. He offers a general perspective here, and I hope in the future will give tips on exercises of special interest to riders. I recently watched a great video of Annie Kursinski, a world class rider, Olympian, and trainer*, who emphasized exercise for herself and all riders. She said that in a fitness class or with a personal trainer, we get to 'become the horse' feeling something of what they experience when we work them. An interesting thought! -MG
 

Fitness at Freedom Farm: The Purple Lump of Thanks

By Mary Gallagher
 
I am so happy to report that this week, once again, I thanked my personal trainer Kenny Hall (at Any Time Fitness) for my fitness health. Usually I thank him because I am performing something with my horse that I wasn't able to achieve in the past, but this week I owe him a big, purple lump of thanks.

What Happens When We Don't Stay Fit?

 by Grace Lambert

We've been hearing a lot about fitness from Mary for good reason. She encourages riders to be fit because she has experienced changes in her own body as she becomes more fit, felt the difference in her riding, and has observed how it positively impacts the horses she rides. She's also noticed the changes in her students who are becoming more fit, and she notices changes in the lesson horses these students ride. I'm writing this article in support of all Mary says, but I am coming at it from a slightly different angle - and that is to describe (and show you images of) what can happen when we don't stay fit (or even get fit in the first place). These issues are not theoretical; they are based on facts gathered over decades about how inactivity can cause a host of problems.

Rider Boot Camp Report

by Hannah Crouch

Why would I get up early and head to the gym twice a week, when my friends are all still in bed? Because it is really worth the effort! The Saturday and Monday Rider Boot Camps have really helped me become stronger and improve my riding. Before I started working out, I was too weak to even do a push-up or a plank! I didn't realize how much that physical weakness affected my riding until I actually experienced the difference.