Am I a bit lardy...?

J

Jonno

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OK gang, this is how it is... I'm a guy in my late 30's been riding for over 25 years and two years ago I stopped smoking... (Yay me!)... But I stopped at a time when I was laid up with a broken leg and two broken arms.. (Motorbike accident, not horse)..

As you may or may not know, stopping smoking causes an increase in appetite, couple that together with very little exercise and I'm afraid my six pack turned in to a keg.. And I went from 12 stone of pure muscle to 14 stone of pure lard (as my loving wife would put it).

Seriously, we have two TB's.. One a 12 year old, 16.0hh mare who can more than comfortably take my weight. She a well built powerhouse.. However, we also have a 15.2 TB Gelding who's 19 years old. He's more of a slight build in comparison but with very strong legs.. Question is, can he take me..?

We don't event any longer.. Just hack out a few times a week.. So he's not doing XC or anything daft, no jumping, just a happy hacker.

I've read all the theories about keeping under 20% of the horses body weight, dependent on breed, bone structure, fitness etc.. But I keep thinking back to Knights who are documented as favoring nothing more than a 15.0hh.. Romans and Celts only ever rode ponies.. I am also very aware to the culture of people wanting to ride/own the biggest horse they can find..

Personally, I think he can more than take me.. Just curious as to the forums views..

Worth bearing in mind I am fairly short for a bloke at 5' 7".. I am on a crash diet and fitness plan now I'm fully recovered, so the weight should drop off..
 
It's only hacking and he's your horse, you would know if he was struggling. I weigh about the same although tall and used to ride a 15.1 ISH of not particularly strong build, she is 23 and we used to bomb about with no problems at all and her owner thought I was ridiculous for even suggesting I was too heavy! Have a bigger TB now. Don't worry about it, I guess us heavier folk need to be realistic about their ability to jump with us on board but I don't often jump so not worried :-) this forum can make you paranoid...
 
well i got my conny x tb 11 yrs ago at 16 and i weighed 15stone at the time, im also 5'7 and she carried me with noo problems at all! she would happily jump anything, hack out for 3-4 hrs in jog and gallop the whole way! i was the one who used to cut the ride short because she was so strong and didn't walk!

she was very skinny when i got her, was in a medium saddle!

now at 27 she still carries me just fine, expect i've lost just over 4 stone, so i don't have to feel mean anymore haha! but she's also built up a lot of muscle and put on a lot of weight and is now in an extra wide saddle.

so in other words i can't see if being a problem for your horse to take your weight!
 
Oh perfect! I knew there would be some like minded and like"bodied" people like me out there somewhere..

You're right, this forum, and others, can make you a little paranoid.. I've had the comments in the past that I need a 17.0hh ex-police horse grrr... I might be carrying a few extra lbs, but i don't intend throwing a saddle on and the horse riding me!! :)
 
I wouldn't think light hacking would bother him, suppose you could always ask your vet or physio to be on the safe side though. I do feel obliged to point out that Celts and Romans would probably have considered you to be rather tall! Random bit of needless info for the day:D
 
Jonno said:
Oh perfect! I knew there would be some like minded and like"bodied" people like me out there somewhere..

You're right, this forum, and others, can make you a little paranoid.. I've had the comments in the past that I need a 17.0hh ex-police horse grrr... I might be carrying a few extra lbs, but i don't intend throwing a saddle on and the horse riding me!! :)
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Don't worry about what others say, you know your horse and what it can carry! I some times feel a bit mean when I'm riding a skinny horse even now I'm in the 10 stones haha! but you know know best whether your horse is able to carry you or not!

also I recommend weight watchers if you are trying to lose a few lbs ;)
 
Absolutely.. Have the vet out this week for their boosters and was intending on asking her..

I should have lived in the Roman times.. Would have been nice to be a giant amongst men for a change.. :D
 
Arizahn said:
I wouldn't think light hacking would bother him, suppose you could always ask your vet or physio to be on the safe side though. I do feel obliged to point out that Celts and Romans would probably have considered you to be rather tall! Random bit of needless info for the day:D
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Nah - 'Celts', Romans, Anglo-Saxons probably were similar heights to us on average. Medieval peeps and C18th-early C20th were the real stuntees becuase of their environmental circumstances. At 5'7" you'd be pretty average for a Roman.

ETA:
I think you would probably know if you are too heavy. I have ridden a couple horses of medium frame - 14.2 and 15 hh-ish - who I have known I am too heavy for from the feedback the horse gave me. The horse I ride at the moment is 15.1 and well capable of carrying me all day - she's fitter and heavier built.
 
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If im honest i think that is to heavy for a horse of that age, build and size.

I have a 15.1h 9 yo 7/8 tb but quite weak through his back and wouldn't want my 12 stone OH on him.
 
I have a lightweight 15.3 TB - he's 23 now and has recently retired, but his maximum weight was 10 stone (plus saddle etc.).

Think how bad you would feel if she tripped and went down. She's elderly and light framed and it's just not worth it.

Sorry, just realised he's a gelding.
 
Jonno said:
What would you consider a suitable weight..?
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I agree you are too heavy for this horse. You need to consider that by the time you add clothes, boots and tack you will be more like 16 stone and this will cause problems along the line for your horse. I would advise that you lose two stone before you ride him again.
 
If the horse has a strong back you should be fine, some big horses with long weak backs areare less able to carry weigh than a finer fitter type - look at arabs for example. Also if you are a well balanced rider that should help too.
 
It does tend to annoy me when people say their horses 'max weight', yes that you as the owner deemed acceptable. Different horse, different situation.
OP I think its hard to judge, the old adage of how 5 stone can feel like 15 stone if the rider rides like a sack of potatoes I think rings true and i believe there is such a thing as a heavy person who rides 'light', are you a well balanced rider? We don't know :p Does all your tack fit correctly as well?
I'm trying desperatley to loose weight for my boy, imo i'm the wrong side of 12stone now and not too happy. However really i'm loosing it for me, he is a 16hh cob with nearly 9'' of bone. I would happily let someone of 15stone ride him, indeed many well built tall men would exceed this weight and not be overweight in the slightest. As it is I still think I should be the least I can be for both our sakes lol.
 
Hi Jonno

First of all ..... a big well done for giving up smoking.... not easy ;)

I would think aa medium weight 15.2 could cope with a bit of light hacking, but it depends on the horses musculature and fitness.
 
Just for reference.. This is me on our 16.0..

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So, in conclusion, I'm a big, fat bloke who shouldn't ride anything smaller than a Woolly Mammoth, but if I want to lightly hack my Gelding its ok really.. ;)

Sorted! :rolleyes:
 
Keen said:
Nah - 'Celts', Romans, Anglo-Saxons probably were similar heights to us on average. Medieval peeps and C18th-early C20th were the real stuntees becuase of their environmental circumstances. At 5'7" you'd be pretty average for a Roman.

ETA:
I think you would probably know if you are too heavy. I have ridden a couple horses of medium frame - 14.2 and 15 hh-ish - who I have known I am too heavy for from the feedback the horse gave me. The horse I ride at the moment is 15.1 and well capable of carrying me all day - she's fitter and heavier built.
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Sorry, but the average height of a Roman male was 5'2". Celts were actually much taller at 5'6" and were considered giants! I don't think you are too heavy for your horse, but you'd want to discuss that with the horse.
 
My friend rides a 14.3hh lightweight horse and with her saddle she weighs in at 13 stone. She does endurance and was in 100 mile race a couple of weeks ago - the horse copes well, so I would say you would be ok.
 
I personally think you look very good on the 16hh, OP :)


Going on a bit of a tangent here, but I never understand the comparison to the knights, celts, etc.
Yes, it may be logistically possible, but people tend to forget horses were ten a penny then and most had very short life expectancies. They existed to get people from A to B, or to be a mount in war.

Just because they could carry the weight, does not mean they should.

(Not picking on you OP, just something I've seen a lot in these weight threads!)
 
fine_and_dandy said:
Not quite; you also ride said woolly mammoth in pink and purple judging by that picture... :D :D :D
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Ah, yes, I can explain this... The camera is faulty.. Makes uber cool and masculine colours look all girly..

It was actually a black and manly steel grey combo..

In reality, the wife tacked her up and thought she was being funny before going out in public...:p
 
Cobrastyle said:
I personally think you look very good on the 16hh, OP :)


Going on a bit of a tangent here, but I never understand the comparison to the knights, celts, etc.
Yes, it may be logistically possible, but people tend to forget horses were ten a penny then and most had very short life expectancies. They existed to get people from A to B, or to be a mount in war.

Just because they could carry the weight, does not mean they should.

(Not picking on you OP, just something I've seen a lot in these weight threads!)
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I fully understand what you're saying re Romans etc.. And thanks for the compliment! I'll tell the missus her 15 stone hunk of love actually looks good astride the horse.. You made my day lol
 
No! its not that your fat! I think very few 5' 7'' men would be light enough for the horse your describing.

As others have said it depends on the horses conformation, fitness, age and the way it carries itself - a horse that engages its stomach muscles and lifts its back will be capable of carrying more weight than one that doesn't.

I never understand the comparison to the knights, celts, etc.

Yes, it may be logistically possible, but people tend to forget horses were ten a penny then and most had very short life expectancies. They existed to get people from A to B, or to be a mount in war.

Just because they could carry the weight, does not mean they should.
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^ Nicely said
 
In theory I would say you sound too big for the smaller one at present given its age. But without actually seeing it, it's hard to be definite about it. Your idea of slighter built could be different to mine, it could be looking elderly & stiff or fit & muscular & physically like a younger horse. It could be more like a 14.3 with 3" of wither or it could be very full up. So whilst on the surface it sounds too much I could be wrong.
I do agree re the knights & celts, often goes hand in hand with the 'sec a ponies were bred to carry full grown men up & down a mountain' argument.
I do think you look perfectly fine on the 16hh horse though.
 
Jonno said:
I fully understand what you're saying re Romans etc.. And thanks for the compliment! I'll tell the missus her 15 stone hunk of love actually looks good astride the horse.. You made my day lol
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My God! You've put on a stone since the beginning of this thread. You really need to stay off the pies! :eek:
 
As a heavier rider myself I do feel that I am realistic when trying to answer these types of posts. IMO 15 stone 'all in' is too heavy for the horse that you describe.

I wouls say that 13.5 all in sounds like a fair max weight for a lightly built TB of that size! Even then I think you would be pushing it a little......
 
Yikes, sorry to hear about your triple limb breakage, that really is quite something to have to recover from! :eek:

Good for you giving up smoking at what must have been a really difficult time, as you're probably aware smoking really inhibits bone healing, so you've done yourself a massive favour. Going off on a different tangent, do make sure you're getting plenty of calcium and vitamin D for a good while to come, as your bone will be remodelling for a long time after the accident.

RE the gelding I would just see how he goes with you on top. Remember your fitness won't be amazing if you're recovering from all that (when did you do it by the way?) and so you'll be slightly more of a burden to him than your usual fit self, and at 19 take into acount his general fitness and health - is he arthritic, for example?

Cobrastyle said:
Going on a bit of a tangent here, but I never understand the comparison to the knights, celts, etc.
Yes, it may be logistically possible, but people tend to forget horses were ten a penny then and most had very short life expectancies. They existed to get people from A to B, or to be a mount in war.
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I'm so glad someone else agrees with me on this - its a bit of a bugbear of mine too. The footfall sequence for gallop wasn't even known, let alone if what they were doing was causing health problems to the horse further down the line. As you say they were 10 a penny and I bet the connection between the weight horse carried and damage to the horse's back wasn't made until centuries after.

Edited to add just a thought, but why not give the Thoroughbred Rehabilitation Centre a call? They rehome thoroughbreds out of racing to private homes, and I'm sure they have a weight limit, although I can't remember for certain I think its around 13 stone. Perhaps you could send them a pic and description of your boy, and they could tell you what weight they would be happy rehoming his type to? Don't forget it would be nice if you made a donation in exchange for their advice ;)
 
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