rforsyth1984
Well-Known Member
There have been a few posts recently about fittening programmes and it got me thinking about my own horse.
For the last year I have been doing a PGCE, and have not had much time of energy for riding. So, since about last October, the horse has been in very very light work (hacking once or twice a week, sometimes nothing some weeks). He is obviously now very unfit!
My plan was to just do a full scale re-fittening - 2 weeks walk, slowly introduce trot/canter/schooling, with the hope of jumping etc in about 6 - 8 weeks.
Horse had other ideas... 40 minutes of walking was not tiring him at all, so introduced some trot as he was getting quite lively anyway. This wasnt tiring at all, no problems with stiffness, lameness etc. When I lunged him, he did quite a lot of canter (his choice, not mine!) and again, no problems, not tired and just slightly warm under the roller after 20 mins work.
Last night, whilst hacking, he spooked and went into a canter. I let him canter to the top of the gentle hill we were on (it was quite a slow canter), then brought him back to trot and walk. Well, then he was fighting all the way back to speed up again, kept him in walk as I dont want him thinking he can decide when we speed up, but gave him a canter round a field back near the yard. I expected this to really tire him, and he did puff a little bit, but when we went back down the road to the yard his breathing went straight back to normal and he was doing a very lively walk, attempting to jog etc.
So, what Im getting at, is do some horses keep themselves more fit than others, and if you know your horse well enough can you take this into account? Given that I should be in my second week of walking and we are starting a bit of canter, Im a bit worried Im letting him do too much, even though he seems fine now? I worry if I do too much walk when he's so full of himself he might errupt in an almighty dangerous episode!
He is turned out for 14 hours a day, which involves a 10 minute walk down a road to the field (and back at night), so its not like he was on box rest with injury or anything?
For the last year I have been doing a PGCE, and have not had much time of energy for riding. So, since about last October, the horse has been in very very light work (hacking once or twice a week, sometimes nothing some weeks). He is obviously now very unfit!
My plan was to just do a full scale re-fittening - 2 weeks walk, slowly introduce trot/canter/schooling, with the hope of jumping etc in about 6 - 8 weeks.
Horse had other ideas... 40 minutes of walking was not tiring him at all, so introduced some trot as he was getting quite lively anyway. This wasnt tiring at all, no problems with stiffness, lameness etc. When I lunged him, he did quite a lot of canter (his choice, not mine!) and again, no problems, not tired and just slightly warm under the roller after 20 mins work.
Last night, whilst hacking, he spooked and went into a canter. I let him canter to the top of the gentle hill we were on (it was quite a slow canter), then brought him back to trot and walk. Well, then he was fighting all the way back to speed up again, kept him in walk as I dont want him thinking he can decide when we speed up, but gave him a canter round a field back near the yard. I expected this to really tire him, and he did puff a little bit, but when we went back down the road to the yard his breathing went straight back to normal and he was doing a very lively walk, attempting to jog etc.
So, what Im getting at, is do some horses keep themselves more fit than others, and if you know your horse well enough can you take this into account? Given that I should be in my second week of walking and we are starting a bit of canter, Im a bit worried Im letting him do too much, even though he seems fine now? I worry if I do too much walk when he's so full of himself he might errupt in an almighty dangerous episode!
He is turned out for 14 hours a day, which involves a 10 minute walk down a road to the field (and back at night), so its not like he was on box rest with injury or anything?
