Lunging 4/5 times a week... ?

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K95

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Does anyone lunge this regularly? I've had varying opinions on how often to lunge, obviously I don't want to injure my horse!

He's an ex racer and been out of work for god knows how long. No muscle tone at all. Today I lunged for around 20 mins. It was roughly 5 mins in walk each rein, 2.5 mins walk-trot transitions each rein ( I don't have an arena so lunge in corner of yard on grass - currently trot the half circle that has the fence line and walk the open side, as he does fall out) and then about 2.5 mins each rein walking cool down. He does start dropping his head more in walk now which is nice.

Does this sound safe to be done 4 or 5 times a week?

He has no tack and cannot afford a saddle atm with being out of work due to corona. So lunging is the best way to get him moving and building muscle. I have tried a little inhand but he can quite a plod when I'm next to him. Working on voice commands to see if I can improve this so I can do more straight lines rather than just lunge.

EDIT

I should have posted this in training woops - any way the thread can be moved?
 
The lunging you describe doesn't sound too strenuous - it sounds like you are mainly walking? I would just look out for a couple of things:
1. the ground is pretty hard now after a few dry weeks and you are working on grass. This could put more strain on his joints especially if you introduce more trot work.
2. try to lunge on larger circles as this will be easier for him, especially once you introduce more trot. I always used to walk on a large circle myself with the horse going round on an even wider track, rather than standing fairly still (don't lunge often atm).
3. a good alternative to lunging would be long reining, especially if you can go round a field or have access to off road riding. It's good for building up top line and will help you do more straight lines.
 
As an owner of a horse with past chronic psd I would never consider doing this. It’s the horsey version of repetitive strain injury so would really avoid too much, maybe twice a week max. Try to do most work in straight lines, long reining if no tack, in hand groundwork/polework etc. If this isn’t an option I would just leave it till you can get him tacked up and worked properly. If he’s no muscle tone and not been worked for an unknown period of time you need to be very very careful - well that’s how I’d see it ?
 
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Thanks both! So far I've only lunged him about 4 times in 3 weeks, majority of the work is walk. People seem to have conflicting views on it, but then a lot of people lunge by just running their horse round in circles haha, so I wasn't sure if there was still damage potential keeping mostly at a walk. I do have a bit of a grasssed long side that I lunge him down in a straight line sometimes - he's pretty good at going straight with a supporting wall so maybe some polework and transitions down that :) Currently the fields are out of action as the sheep are using some with lambing and others being fertilised etc for summer. My aim is to have him hacking out by summer if corona permits. Even just at a walk tagging along with others as then that'll help build him up too :)
 
There are very conflicting views on walkers due to potential damage being on a circle - even though I couldn’t use one regularly for my horse I still see the advantages in some circumstances and have appreciated them in the past with uncompromised horsese. Walking in hand benefits them much more, and keeps owner fit, speaking from lots of rehab experience ? you just have to have the time and inclination to do it but it can make a massive difference. I remember reading that 20 minutes starts to work abs etc - once I’d got up to 45/50 mins a day with mine you could really tell a difference in his shape - saying this has just made me think to do it again now ?
 
I lunge but I use the whole arena so I probably run around as much as the horse! One of mine has arthritis do I don't keep him on a constant circle and I never do small circles I sort of lunge like I would school so I change direction a lot and just look at the horse in front of me, sometimes I lunge and then just go for a long walk back afterwards.
 
Once a week max- it's a recipe for disaster lunging more, especially on a weak and unfit horse.
Can you longrein? That would be much more beneficial, especially if you can get out and go for proper 'hacks'
 
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K95 said:
Does anyone lunge this regularly? I've had varying opinions on how often to lunge, obviously I don't want to injure my horse!

He's an ex racer and been out of work for god knows how long. No muscle tone at all. Today I lunged for around 20 mins. It was roughly 5 mins in walk each rein, 2.5 mins walk-trot transitions each rein ( I don't have an arena so lunge in corner of yard on grass - currently trot the half circle that has the fence line and walk the open side, as he does fall out) and then about 2.5 mins each rein walking cool down. He does start dropping his head more in walk now which is nice.

Does this sound safe to be done 4 or 5 times a week?

He has no tack and cannot afford a saddle atm with being out of work due to corona. So lunging is the best way to get him moving and building muscle. I have tried a little inhand but he can quite a plod when I'm next to him. Working on voice commands to see if I can improve this so I can do more straight lines rather than just lunge.

EDIT

I should have posted this in training woops - any way the thread can be moved?
Click to expand...
You need to bear in mind that horses are meant to move in straight lines and as soon as you start going round and round in circles, it invites problems for joints etc ?‍♀️
 
Pinkvboots said:
I lunge but I use the whole arena so I probably run around as much as the horse! One of mine has arthritis do I don't keep him on a constant circle and I never do small circles I sort of lunge like I would school so I change direction a lot and just look at the horse in front of me, sometimes I lunge and then just go for a long walk back afterwards.
Click to expand...

I am like this too. I don't keep the horse on a small circle really. But then I wonder, am I exercising the horse or myself here? :p


OP, you could also get started with some long lining. That might be productive as well.
 
if you can`t lunge a horse a few times a week without it breaking, its gonna break anyway

you sound very thoughtful in your approach, i do lots of straight bits as well as circles, eventually 10 meter canter circles, with horses who have been lunged for years before riding, and slow warm ups and downs, poles and jumping, the long reining, and walks in hand , anything to get him moving,if he`s sluggish perhaps its lack of fitness, its a start to his eventual fitness,
 
the one i am breaking at the mo is lunged max 3 times a week, we try to be calm about it, but he offers lots of forwardness, he`s a very lively soul, he lunges himself, then relaxes and calms himself, and spends ages galloping about at full speed when in the field loose, i`ve never seen one quite like him,!
 
If you have a reasonably sized field that is a good start Get him moving round the field. Take him over the roughest bits so he learns to balance. Walk him up and down any slopes you have. You can do this while he's on the lunge line, so you walk a bit, then send him out on the lunge and moving on, then bring him back in so he's in hand again. Get him backing up. Teach him shoulder in and leg yield in hand. Google some stretches you can do and intersperse with them. If you have poles then pole work is brilliant so long as you start slowly.

I haven't for a while but I used to take mine out to the local woods and let her jump logs and go over ditches.

In have to lunge a couple of times a week and that's how I break it up. Anything to get them moving over different surfaces and terrain will build muscle and be beneficial.
 
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