Done before but life after riding?

pistolpete

pistolpete

Well-Known Member
Joined
29 July 2009
Messages
5,976
Visit site
Just wondering about all those that have given up riding how you spend your time now? I know lots of people enjoy dog agility/showing. Neither are for me. I’d have some extra cash though so maybe some travelling or spa breaks etc. It’s getting harder and harder to enjoy what used to feel easy.
 
Honestly I loved it absolutely loved it up until the last two weeks ( it's been since May ) I'm currently missing it very slightly but not enough to go back to it. I don't miss the stress of their various ailments, or yard politics, or the wading through mud. I'm loving having time and money. I'm hiking a lot, spending time with friends, having the odd spa day, going to the gym
 
Last edited:
webble said:
Honestly I loved it absolutely loved it up until the last two weeks ( it's been since May ) I'm currently missing it very slightly but not enough to go back to it. I don't miss the stress of their barious ailments, or yard politics, or the wading through mud. I'm loving having time and money. I'm hiking a lot, spending time with friends, having the odd spa day, going to the gym
Click to expand...
Thank you for your reply I feel energised by riding but realise the dependence quite possibly isn’t healthy. Wonder about a better balance.
 
teapot said:
Lots of walking, learning how to play golf, debating whether to try padel 😂

Not ridden in almost four years now :o
Click to expand...
Nope don’t fancy golf or padel. Love walking. Maybe some hiking holidays. 🤔. I walk every day sometimes miles.
 
Last edited:
I took up downhill mountain bike racing (and all other forms of bike riding, dirt jumping, road cycling, etc)! I can’t say I recommend it as I’ve had more serious injuries in 3 years of biking than in the preceding 2 decades of horse riding and ownership.

However it is quite nice to be flying through the forest without having to worry about my bike teleporting sideways because a rock looked at it funny/there was a daffodil/a plastic bag was there once 18 months ago.
 
I am newly horseless but it's unlikely my health will allow riding or ownership anytime soon. I have been walking miles, enjoying a slower mornings without mucking out/turning out and evenings are now for my son. He loved the farm but would disappear off to play so I barely saw him and id feel guilty dragging him out every days and weekends. Free cash is now more readily available so will hopefully have more holidays/weekends away etc. So far I am relieved tbh but I am sure come spring I will start to miss it.
 
DirectorFury said:
I took up downhill mountain bike racing (and all other forms of bike riding, dirt jumping, road cycling, etc)! I can’t say I recommend it as I’ve had more serious injuries in 3 years of biking than in the preceding 2 decades of horse riding and ownership.

However it is quite nice to be flying through the forest without having to worry about my bike teleporting sideways because a rock looked at it funny/there was a daffodil/a plastic bag was there once 18 months ago.
Click to expand...
Nope you’ve not sold that to me either! 🤣. I do like running but my knees aren’t hugely keen!
 
If I didn’t ride/look after horses (the riding isn’t that much at the moment) I would knit more, play more piano, work more and have a tidier house and nicer garden. I already walk the dogs. I would probably take up swimming.
 
My mare was pts towards the end of last year. She was old and it was all planned. I miss her everyday and I think the guilt of letting her go will always haunt me.

However, life after horses is not all bad, a lot of it is very nice. We've had two holidays already - two more are booked already for this year - maybe more because we (OH and I) are no longer tied to doing horse care.
We've joined a health club/gym and go there 4 times a week. At weekends we go hiking... maybe followed by a swim and then sauna at the health club.

We also cycle although not too much atm, mainly because the weather has been grim. I've rekindled my love for music and have started having violin lessons (used to play as a kid).
There's also been shopping trips - I actually looked well dressed now! I have my hair cut and coloured (no more bag lady vibes).

I've also enjoyed going to the cinema and just having a more easy going life. I don't think you realise how hard (and expensive) horses are until you don't have horses.
 
rara007 said:
Driving…. !
Click to expand...

Its the driving I miss the most!

I walk with the dogs, take the youngest racing and swimming and just generally worry and fuss over them the way I did with the horses. I also game a bit. I mainly just enjoy not being physically wrecked by the hard slog!
 
pistolpete said:
Thank you for your reply I feel energised by riding but realise the dependence quite possibly isn’t healthy. Wonder about a better balance.
Click to expand...

If you are still enjoying it & feel energised by it I might not be in too .uch of a hurry to give it up. Generally think if something makes you feel good, continuing might not be a bad thing. Unless of course, there are other reasons for not wanting to continue - which of course, is perfectly fine too :)

Outside of horses I watch a lot of live music (including festivals), cycling, gym, go to a weekly yoga class, go to the theatre, see/have time away.with OH/family & friends and do some volunteer work with a local charity.

If I didn't have a horse I'd volunteer more, get a personal trainer, go away for longer - yoga retreats especially; have more beauty & spa treatments & just do more of what I do now without feeling so rushed all the time.
 
MuddyMonster said:
If you are still enjoying it & feel energised by it I might not be in too .uch of a hurry to give it up. Generally think if something makes you feel good, continuing might not be a bad thing. Unless of course, there are other reasons for not wanting to continue - which of course, is perfectly fine too :)
Click to expand...
Yes....if you don't have your own horse(s) any more could you keep back some of that money to have a really high quality lesson or hack out every couple of weeks? Or the occasional riding weekend? I know those things seem very expensive on the face of it but when compared to the costs of running your own horse I'd imagine it's still cheaper.

(I say "imagine" because I have two of my own horses and therefore absolutely NO desire to do that maths 😆)
 
In the 10 years when I was having the 3 babies, and working Full-time in a demanding career my riding was confined to the odd holiday hack or scrounging a ride on friends horses.
I ran (a lot) about 30 miles a week, was a parkrun regular and competed up to marathon distance, read books, paddleboarded, swam regularly, camped a lot at weekends with the family, watched films and definately socialised a lot more.

Now having 2 of our own on DIY (albeit at a friends house) I have no time and am always rushing around chasing my tail and feeling guilty, I'm skint, tired, run-down and unkempt having not had my haircut for 6 months. Hubby is supportive and the 2 non-horsey kids aren't resentful but don't understand the time my hobby takes up and this adds to the guilt.
If both horses dissappeared tomorrow I would watch the kids every football game, walk up mountains with my friends, have weekends away with hubby and family, paddle board in the summer and probably throw myself into a new career having more "bandwidth" and time to study.
 
Can't comment on riding as I don't seem to do a lot of that versus the time spent looking after them 😅 If I didn't have horses to care for I would sleep, a lot. Oh to sleep....... and probably cook nice meals instead of chucking something in the air-fryer at 9pm. Maybe do the 300 DIY jobs outstanding on my house that I keep promising to get round to. And sort the garden out. Maybe spend a bit more time with OH rather than feeling like ships passing in the night.

During lockdown when I was furloughed and had a lot of time on my hands I made myself 3 healthy meals every day, I discovered I actually loved cooking. I went running, enjoyed gardening, did pilates and actually cleaned my house. So probably something like that 😳🤣
 
KikiDee said:
Can't comment on riding as I don't seem to do a lot of that versus the time spent looking after them 😅
Click to expand...
*Hollow laugh of agreement*

Yeah same here....although to be completely honest I have little desire to ride in winter anyway, and I get enormous satisfaction from going up in the morning and seeing the baby flat out asleep on the barn floor in a clean comfy bed, and my older boy dozing next to him with a full belly and a wobbly bottom lip.
 
I still have mine but they're not ridden now. So I still do the donkey work. But I took up medieval reenactment / combat (HEMA-adjacent) and bell ringing around that time. Combat is brilliant and I love it, but it's not for the faint-hearted. Rapier fencing isn't so bad, but the bruises I get in unarmoured places when I fight in full armour are epic. It's cool, but I probably wouldn't recommend that one here. Reenactment / living history is a broad church though and a lot of people do it without fighting. There are people who focus on medieval cooking, weaving, tailoring, woodworking, calligraphy, illumination, metal work... basically anything that was done historically, someone is doing it, or researching it. Doing something you enjoy, with friends, in a castle, is a pretty fun way to spend some time.

Bell ringing is also brilliant. It's social, active - mentally and physically, but not likely to injure people (under most usual circumstances), you get to see lovely churches, you don't have to be overtly religious or attend services if you don't want to. You can ring competitively, or not. You can ring for services and weddings if you enjoy that, or just turn up to practices. It often results in cake or pub trips, and we have a tower dog to make a fuss of between ringing. Also, all the older ringers I know look at least a decade younger than they actually are!

I also have an active dog and spend a lot of time in the forest with him which is lovely. I don't cover the ground as fast as I did on a pony, but it's more relaxing! Oh, and I mountain bike, as well. Except I only use it to go up the yard along the riverbank now, because the dog isn't old enough to do mountain bike speeds / distances yet!
 
Last edited:
Yeah I’ve not ridden my horses regularly for a few years but I must say I’m at a loss as to what to do on trips away when there aren’t horses to get up for. I’ve usually done my run and folk still aren’t awake and then I don’t have anything else to do all day 😂
But if the other options are spa days I think I’ll stick with mud and poop 😂 I probably would be able to put more time and effort into running/gym stuff.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top