Getting old!

[pistolpete]

So I get to ride twice a week now on the gorgeous Connie. Thing is I’m noticing in canter I’m struggling with my balance in a forward seat. I ready my hands on his neck to stay out of the saddle but obviously this is not ideal! We do have long canters! It’s core strength I’m lacking I guess ?. Rubbish getting old! Appreciate any suggestions.

 

[jojo5]

Hi, PP, do you mind if I ask what part of the country you are in? That looks exactly like a copse I used to ride past some years ago!

 

[Lady Jane]

Join the gang. My biggest problem is getting off - I have to swing my leg over and grab the other side of the pommel and slither gently to the ground as my knees can't take the strain. I do rest my hands on the neck in aforward seat but if I think about it I don't need to and can balance

 

[pistolpete]

Hi, PP, do you mind if I ask what part of the country you are in? That looks exactly like a copse I used to ride past some years ago!

Hampshire. Not far from Queen Elizabeth Country Park

 

[jojo5]

Thanks - so that’s not where I am thinking of, but your photo did jog my memory about my own rides around a copse. Have ridden in QE Country Park myself many times - Hampshire is a great county for off-road riding.

 

[ycbm]

Pilates. Can't swear by it enough, but teachers vary and you may need to experiment to find the right one.

And for canter it sounds like you might benefit from shortening your stirrups.
.

 

[Red-1]

HRT.

 

[pistolpete]

HRT.

Ooh no!

 

[Red-1]

Ooh no!

It was a genuine suggestion, if getting old is what is causing your lack of strength and stability. I struggled for 7 years, feel stacks better now.

I don't know your age, so apologies if that isn't age appropriate. Please don;t tell me you think 35 or something is old?

 

[Esmae]

I can relate to all of the above problems. I have taught my horse to stand by the mounting block to let me step off. Saves a lot of strife with knees. Canter I now do shorter canters, and when I feel myself start to become unbalanced, I drop back to trot, rebalance and go again. You are quite right, getting old is rubbish. I have just managed to injure myself so no riding at all for me for a bit. Goodness knows what tricks I shall have to employ after this.

 

[Goldenstar]

Yes it tough I am really struggling with it atm .
You just have to keep going .

 

[MotherOfChickens]

Yoga, shorter stirrups, short stretches of two point seat.
A good exercise in trot is to rise for 7 strides, sit for 7, 2 point for 7 without affecting the horses rhythm. Work without stirrups including riding trot without them.

 

[Gingerwitch]

Vitamin I is amazing lol x

 

[Highmileagecob]

Yep, all the above, plus aches and pains that kick in after any exercise whatsoever. I have now retired my oldie and haven't ridden for a few months. My knees hurt, it hurts to bend, shoulders ache......and my muscle strength is now beginning to drop. Not looking forward to mucking out and hay nets next winter.

 

[cauda equina]

Pilates is brilliant
I haven't done it for a while and can feel myself deteriorating

 

[J&S]

Yep, all the above, plus aches and pains that kick in after any exercise whatsoever. I have now retired my oldie and haven't ridden for a few months. My knees hurt, it hurts to bend, shoulders ache......and my muscle strength is now beginning to drop. Not looking forward to mucking out and hay nets next winter.

This is me to a tee. However, I am 75 now so I can't expect an easy ride!

 

[eahotson]

I started to really struggle,thought it was my age and nothing could be done about it.Then things got really bad, found a brilliant chiropractor and she also arranged for me to have some sports massages.Not fun but very effective.I am now on a rehab programme.I won't be what I was when I was twenty but I feel better than I have for a long time.There are also some good video sessions for older people.Better5 is one I find very good but there are others.

 

[MuddyMonster]

Please don;t tell me you think 35 or something is old?

You mean, I'm going to feel older than I do now at 33?! ? I'm still lamenting the loss of my 23 year old self's ability to stay out until 2am and still get up early to ride. I was in bed before 10pm last night to make sure I could hack before work AND take multi vitamins these days ?

PistolPete I definitely recommend pilates & yoga combined with some kind of cardio to help riding fitness. I try to do a couple of pilates/yoga classes and a couple of HIIT sessions & its helped my riding staying power no end!

 

[Red-1]

You mean, I'm going to feel older than I do now at 33?! ? I'm still lamenting the loss of my 23 year old self's ability to stay out until 2am and still get up early to ride. I was in bed before 10pm last night to make sure I could hack before work AND take multi vitamins these days ?

PistolPete I definitely recommend pilates & yoga combined with some kind of cardio to help riding fitness. I try to do a couple of pilates/yoga classes and a couple of HIIT sessions & its helped my riding staying power no end!

Oh, you have all the fun of the fair still to come.

My latest is needing a wee, as soon as I get off. I have to attach him to the wall, still tacked up and go straight in. Mortifyingly, I needed to stop for a wee last month, when we did a longer than normal ride. He learned to hide in undergrowth with me! No cups of tea before riding.

And don't get me started on brain fog! Or lack of Grrrrrr!!!

Genuinely, HRT has helped. I now have a new baby horse and am off to camp. 18 months ago, I wasn't sure I would ever be fit to ride any more.

 

[Skib]

You dont need to be fit to ride nor to canter. I started riding aged 61 so I was never young. I am also irretrieveably crooked. And I know that in a left bend canter I need to distance my right shoulder from my left knee to keep in balance. I think Pilates would teach the same.
I am obsessed by transitions and any horse I canter out hacking must be able to alternate 20 trot and 20 canter. I count the strides out loud.
My current share horse has a bouncy canter and I push my heels down and lift myself slightly out of the saddle so I am riding the canter in a light seat rather than in a forward seat. And I steer the canter so I choose our route along a fairly wide track. I get more and more idle and will just say trot or canter to inform her of what I want.

A good exercise in trot is to rise for 7 strides, sit for 7, 2 point for 7 without affecting the horses rhythm.

I had an RI who had me ride 10 strides of each. I was thinking of doing this yesterday but considered there might be some risk of getting her over excited and that I need to reduce risk level at the moment. She is a shared horse and I feared sitting trot might make her think she was required to canter.

 

[HappyHollyDays]

Pilates and deep tissue massage have kept me moving for the last few years. This morning I am wearing my back brace for the first time since last summer because I can feel my disc is about to go ping which means months off laying on the floor and not riding. Dismounting, both my horses have been taught to stand at the mounting block to allow me to get off as I can’t do jarring and it really doesn’t take them long to learn because they already know standing still for you to get on.

 

[MuddyMonster]

You dont need to be fit to ride nor to canter.

Kudos to anyone that can ride effectively without any extra rider fitness work but as a one horse owner with a desk job I'm a much more effective rider and much less a passenger when I'm keeping up my own fitness and straightness work.

I feel I owe it to my horse to be reasonably fit as I regularly ride fairly long distances at reasonable speeds where possible (an all day ride isn't uncommon in the summer for example) and whatever we find to jump & I don't want him to carry an unbalanced or tired rider any more than he has to.

Even for schooling and jumping, I find it all so much easier when I'm fitter and he must do too.The fitter I can be, the nicer ride we can both have especially as he's sometimes quite jolly out hacking.

I'd love to ditch the gym sessions as I can't say I enjoy resistance cardio (who does ? ) and I must say, I'm rather envious of anyone that can ditch the gym and still ride as well!

 

[oldie48]

I do equi-pilates twice a week, and if I have to miss sessions I can feel a difference and dog walking up hills helps with cardio. Do not despair, although we lose some of our strength and fitness etc as we age, we can still stay fit enough to ride but you need to work at it a bit. An illness and the side effects of some of the meds I now have to take really affected my ability to ride but I have made a huge improvement and I although I take more walk breaks when schooling I'm now back to riding for 40mins on quite a big moving horse. Don't give up!

 

[Parrotperson]

Hoik up your stirrups for cantering and see if that helps

like others I can recommend Pilates. I do a combination of Tai Chi, yoga and Pilates once a week. I also do two glasses a week called core conditioning. I can honestly say it’s transformed my confidence in all things. I’m much stronger now.

 

[ycbm]

My latest is needing a wee, as soon as I get off. I have to attach him to the wall, still tacked up and go straight in. Mortifyingly, I needed to stop for a wee last month, when we did a longer than normal ride.

You get to wait until you get off ? ? The worst is the days when I just can't get off or there will be a deluge as I swing my leg over. That and not being able to ride in anything thicker than a thin pad because it chafes so badly.

The joys of equestrian bladder control ☺
.

 

[Goldenstar]

I had Sky all over the hill today doing some fast work , I am so sore now it was dum while I was doing it not so much now .

 

[Goldenstar]

You get to wait until you get off ? ? The worst is the days when I just can't get off or there will be a deluge as I swing my leg over. That and not being able to ride in anything thicker than a thin pad because it chafes so badly.

The joys of equestrian bladder control ☺
.

giggle knickers

 

[Red-1]

You get to wait until you get off ? ? The worst is the days when I just can't get off or there will be a deluge as I swing my leg over. That and not being able to ride in anything thicker than a thin pad because it chafes so badly.

The joys of equestrian bladder control ☺
.

giggle knickers

Oh what joys I have to come!

 

[pistolpete]

It was a genuine suggestion, if getting old is what is causing your lack of strength and stability. I struggled for 7 years, feel stacks better now.

I don't know your age, so apologies if that isn't age appropriate. Please don;t tell me you think 35 or something is old?

Ha ha. Not 35 ? 58! But just surprised when my body doesn’t do what it used to!

 

[HappyHollyDays]

Ha ha. Not 35 ? 58! But just surprised when my body doesn’t do what it used to!

This is also the biggest surprise to me too ? I’m 60 in a few weeks and after being dragged across the fields by my two this morning I was ready to pack it in as far to dangerous. They redeemed themselves this evening by being foot perfect but I’m still suffering with a dodgy back and feeling completely incompetent. I sat down the other evening and tried to work out just how I had got to be so old as I was a teenager yesterday and then thought sh*t if the next 10 years go as fast I will be 70 in no time at all. Sobering.