Nervous hello...

[armyoforigin]

Hi all, new to the forum as I am starting to get to the point in my life where I realize there will never be the 'perfect time' to get back into horse riding and if I keep delaying I will never get there!

I used to love riding as a kid however I am a *smidge* nervous that now as an overweight adult I have missed the boat, I have called up a few horse riding schools near me (I am in south Birmingham) and they were polite if abrupt in telling me they have strict weight limits that are 13, 13.5, 14st... I weigh in at a whopping 15.2s stone after some recent weight loss and simply feel very discouraged!

I was hoping this would be a motivating factor in helping me get out more to do something I have wanted to do for so long, but I'd never put my wants above the safety of any poor horse I was asking to carry me, I think I may have simply underestimated just how large I am and have been expecting too much from these wonderful creatures!

That being said any advice would be very welcome, is there a target weight I have to aim for to be able to start enjoying these awesome creatures?

 

[OlderNotWiser]

Hi from another newbie! I also returned to riding later in life; I was in my forties and hadn't sat on a horse for 23 years so go for it!

Firstly congratulations on being motivated to start your weight loss journey. Personally I do not think there is a target weight, it would be the weight that is right for your height and build that would be the important number.

There are heavy horse centres that have horses that can carry more than 14 stone, for example www.cumbrianheavyhorses.com in the Lake District - may be excuse for a weekend away??

Another suggestion I would make would be to consider volunteering at a rescue centre where you can be involved with horses and ponies again without riding. This would give you the opportunity to enjoy horses again, burn a few more calories in the process and hopefully motivate you to continue with your weight loss program.

Keep up the good work and let us know how you get on!

 

[Equi]

I returned to lessons after years never having one, but i was however riding my whole life so had basic riding balance etc which probably helped when i asked riding schools for lessons. Some were strict and said no sorry, some were less so and said that they can provide me with horses that would carry me and were not used much in the RS (mostly due to being too large) and it was all fine. Now i have my own horse again i don't need RS but i still go for a trek now and then on the massive maxi cobs who are quite happy to carry 15st. If i was you, i would find a riding school that would be willing to let you help out a bit, so you can sort of get back into horses while you contemplate losing more weight if you want to, or look at someone who drives cause thats also a lot of fun and the weight limit can be a little more slack!

 

[ester]

In my recent experience it can depend a lot on your location and what they are used to. The few enquiries I have made around here been fruitless and I was worried about it when a friend and I decided to ride while on holiday in Wilts. It seemed I was either met with a sharp intake of breath, or 'our limit is 17stone' and a 'but you can ride well?, in which case that's absolutely fine'- the latter being an approved riding school but also doing hunter hirelings etc.

I'm well aware that people do need to protect their horses as they are 'assets', and know their horses well but many do seem to err on the side of caution more than others. However I also suspect few would guess my current weight correctly. I am still wearing the same clothing as when I was nearly 2 stone lighter, though am much fitter than I was then!

 

[armyoforigin]

I will definitely ask around and see if there are any schools in my area that I could help out at, but if there are some places that have a limit I fit under I would be thrilled to have the chance to get some lessons, perhaps I should make a post in the relevant section and see if anyone has recommendations for my area.

 

[Surbie]

There are two RS near me that will take beginner/returning riders to 16 stone so they do exist. Bear in mind that's rider weight when wearing everything they will ride in.

RDAs are great places to get a horsey fix too. When I started volunteering at an RDA I saw their calculations for weight - while some of their horses can in theory take 16-17stone, their maximums for each horse are much lower to allow for the extra strain on a horse regularly carrying unbalanced riders.

I do sympathise - I didn't have many options for riding and then lost 3stone over a year of volunteering at the RDA.

 

[Keith_Beef]

I'm a novice, too, having only ridden on the beach on holiday once or twice a year between the ages of about 10 and 15, but taking it up regularly from around 2012 in my forties.

At the moment, I weigh in at 95kg (14st 13lb), but I've ridden at 100kg (15st 10lb), and the horses didn't have any problem carrying me.

If I'm on a whole day ride, I'll also have two or four litres of drinking water for me, a couple of folding buckets to be able to give the horse a drink, basic first-aid kit, bag of feed for the horse... at a guess, that would add between four and six kilos, and the ride leader is confident that her horse can carry all that for four hours at a time.

I suppose the problem is that a small riding centre might not have many big horses, just ponies and small horses mostly for kids and teens.

As far as I'm concerned, your weight is not a problem for the horse, it's an organisation problem that riding centres are not geared up for what is probably a small market. If you are determined to get your weight down to below 14st, for example, then aiming for a weight that's acceptable for a nearby riding centre might be good for motivation, but it's not an absolute requirement as far as horse riding is concerned.

The idea of Cumbrian Heavy Horses is good for a weekend away, but if you feel the need for some lessons to get back confidence, it's not going to work very well.

 

[armyoforigin]

You are right Keith in that I need the lessons before I could go n a riding holiday! I do feel after talking to some schools and looking at their website that they are very much kid focus, at least here? Which I think is great! But also leaves me feeling a bit left out, though I do understand why they wouldn't have horses that could take larger riders if they cater to young people.

 

[ester]

Have you asked for any local recommendations on facebook groups?

 

[armyoforigin]

I am not on facebook but I could ask someone who is to have an ask around, are there any good groups to ask on?

 

[ester]

Usually there is one main local group for the area, I would do that . That is how I managed to find somewhere that would have me on a recent wiltshire trip (I used to live there but had my own). Got several recommendations for what I wanted.

 

[ponyparty]

Try these Facebook groups:
Solihull & Warwickshire Riders, Worcestershire Horse Group, Wythall Riders.

Some great ideas here for getting involved with horses again, which will help towards weight loss - volunteering with the RDA a good place to start, their National Centre is based at Lowlands Farm in Shrewley, Warwickshire (not far from South Brum). They have some big horses there but I'm not sure what the weight limit is - they do able bodied lessons as well as RDA. You could offer to help there; or a more local riding school, they often have their own RDA groups. You could also offer to volunteer to help with mucking out etc - it's a great calorie burner! And you'd learn the stable management/horse care side of things then, too.

Making small changes to your lifestyle rather than going on a big diet is always the best way to lose weight - replace drinking Coke with water or flavoured water if you really can't stand water (I love it - life juice!). Drink a glass of water if you feel hungry; more often than not you're actually thirsty and confusing it for hunger. Get off the train a stop early and walk the rest of the way, take stairs instead of lifts etc all easy ways to burn some extra cals. When you eat - sit and actually think about what you're eating, chew each mouthful, slow down. Stop when you're full (I'm crap at this... was always trained to finish what's on your plate as a kid, it's a terrible habit as you really should stop if you're full!).

 

[armyoforigin]

I will have an ask on those, but Worcestershire horse group is by invitation of a group member only apprently!

I have struggled with my weight for a while as well as some other medical issues, it's been stable but annoyingly slow to go down, the change from constant soft drinks I feel helped a lot already, though it took me time to adjust to the sugar crash.

I will give the RDA a call also and see what they say, I didn't realize there was a place so close!

 

[Leo Walker]

In the meantime if you just want some horse time I will bet there will be local drivers who would love to hear from you! I have a vast assortment of people who come out with me as and when they can, from none riders to people to heavy or broken to ride, to people who have horses but just fancy a drive every now and again.

 

[armyoforigin]

I've honestly never even considered driving as a 'thing' I sort of assumed it was only done for occasions and recreationally in america, I have never seen a non 'wedding car' horse driving up here or when I was in Cambridge, though I got to see plenty of horses thanks to going through Newmarket a lot.

So there are people who would let me go on the drive with them or just be there to help with horse related tasks? Sorry I am really surprised I never even considered it!

 

[ester]

lol there are plenty of people that drive competitively (and for leisure) here and they always need a spare pair of hands because doing it on your own is really tricky/not really safe). I spent a fair amount of time over the summer standing on the back of a carriage for a fellow HHOer, it's good fun.