Do you keep a log?

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Cob Life

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Do you keep a log of when you've ridden, what you've done and how they've found it?

I do but maybe that's because I'm a bit obsessive with keeping everything written down and recorded. I find it really useful to look back on how we were doing 4, 5, 6 months ago and where we are now. It also highlights any areas that I often neglect to train, with my current ride it's the canter work.
 
Not quite, but I’d like to get to the point that it would help. I did take a photo every time I rode Tinner though, and I print off my photos now so they don’t just float around in the ether.
 
Spotherisk said:
Not quite, but I’d like to get to the point that it would help. I did take a photo every time I rode Tinner though, and I print off my photos now so they don’t just float around in the ether.
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I like to video my rides as well although can't if it's windy as the tripod falls over and sends us flying across the area!
It's really highlighted how little canter work we do, I know I purposefully avoid it as we both struggle with it but I know if we can get the canter work with a little more work and time he would be able to do a Novice test. (Funnily enough his counter canter is quite good!)
 
I do! Don’t have my own horse but have private lessons 2-3 times a week on Flyte. Mine is an Excel file with date, what we did and marks out of 10 (plus notes of anything interesting that’s happened at the yard). It’s helpful to look back after a ‘bad’ lesson to remember how much I’ve achieved. I also have an ongoing photo album with comments (only the best pics go in it ?).
 
I do! Don’t have my own horse but have private lessons 2-3 times a week on Flyte. Mine is an Excel file with date, what we did and marks out of 10 (plus notes of anything interesting that’s happened at the yard). It’s helpful to look back after a ‘bad’ lesson to remember how much I’ve achieved. I also have an ongoing photo album with comments (only the best pics go in it ?).
 
No, something I would love to be organised enough to do though. Whenever I have made an effort for short periods of time it has been really useful
 
Yes
Not only about ridden work (it's especially useful after lessons when there's loads of stuff I need to remember) but also any feed changes, whether he seems a bit 'off' and so on
 
I do. My horse has ulcers so I find it useful to log how he is to ride or brush off, what feed he’s getting at the time and also how we do in lessons and competitions.

I’ve been a bit lax recently though which is annoying as he had a bronking fit last week and I think it’s because I stopped giving him his ulcer powder - but I’ve not recorded when it stopped, duh!
 
I started keeping a detailed diary/ journal for a previous horse to track our journey together but then he started having issues and was diagnosed with wobblers and eventually pts I felt it was tempting fate for my next one. However I’ve recently started a very basic one that logs things like hack, school, lunge but also worming, vaccs, bedding used, hay bought etc. But it’s not very descriptive. I may note if good or behaved like a twat.
 
Have done the last 2 years as a training and event diary. Dropped off this year as we had time off for cellulitis. Now that he bask and I’m starting to think about getting out again, I will start again so I can plan properly.

I tend to be better if I’m working to a goal. Not identified this years one yet though!
 
I used to when I rode more seriously .
one for each horse lesson notes made straight after the lesson
ideas of things to try
short medium and long term goals for each horse
it’s was fun and helped me to keep track .
 
Yes, training notes - short, mid and long term goals - write down weekly the types of training and workload I think we need to concentrate on then update every few days or as and when I need to change something.

It definitely does help with the training although I very very rarely look back - only if I wanted to check back for notes on an injury or similar
 
As progress with one of mine is so painfully slow and on occasion we take a few steps backwards. I keep a note of any milestones improvements we've made and try and get a photo. I only write it briefly in the diary on my phone. Along the lines of 'saddle on with out issue' or 'girth on second hole'

I can't wait for the 'sat on' note to be written in.
 
Yes, I used to note on calendar with the name of horse and what we did (ie where we hacked, lessons, competition etc) but now I do same on equilab which also includes the tracking of ride etc. I rate how pony was on equilab too, biggest smiley face is anyone who can ride a bit could have ridden her, next happiest any one who can ride to an ok level could have ridden her, middle face bit of monster and would have to ride quite well to have ridden her etc :)
 
I loosely use FB for this
Partly to keep a note of things we've done (as GS - lessons, things that occur to me to try and little things I've stumbled across) as I can find them again
And partly because I enjoy it when FB memories pops things back up later on.

tbh I find writing it anywhere helps me remember things, I have that kind of memory.
 
I do do this with the Equilab app, once a ride has been completed it has a space with notes, and smiley faces for both horse and rider for a quick view summary. I usually put in 'great ride, worked on x, horse felt shuffly, or horse was forward etc'.

I love this app, it's made a huge difference to how I plan my rides.
 
I use Equilab to hack with - it measures pace/gait and distance. I also have a diary with his days off/ridden work so e.g if we hack 4 miles and it takes an hour I put that in and similarly if I school for 30mins that goes in. I don’t go into masses of detail but I find it helps keep me on track and plan his days off to coincide with easy/harder days x
 
It's something I started doing earlier last year, as I felt I wasn't progressing as well as I'd like to. My instructor suggested it, and for the main I will write down the lessons, I'll also jot down any lightbulb moments I've had schooling alone or competing etc.

I have to say, it has helped. It's interesting to look back and see what I was struggling with 6 months ago is a breeze now (well it was before sarcoid-gate and time off). I think it helps keep momentum, and it's really useful as my memory is so poor I can forget really good little nuggets of info as soon as the saddle has come off
 
Yes, I do.
I started a Pony Diary (just an MS Word document) back in 2007 when I got a 2-year old pony as I thought it would be useful and I have kept it going ever since. I start a new document every year. I find it fascinating to now go back to see what i was doing on the same day over several years. It is also useful to sometimes get a perspective on things when you are feeling a bit lacking in confidence as you can see that you have come a long way, you have just forgotten what it was like at the start!
I am looking forward to reading them all when I am past the age of riding and no longer have ponies :)
 
When I had 3 I kept a colour coded Excel spreadsheet detailing what I'd done with each horse each day so I could see at a glance who needed more hacking or hadn't had a lunge session for a while.
Now I'm down to two and have started a new physical unicorn diary to record in a bit more detail what we're doing
 
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