Winter riding routines

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Neptune

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I am just curious to know every ones winter riding routine.

As someone who works full time I am only at the stables in the dark mornings and dark evenings. We are lucky to have a decent school and floodlights so we can ride. But to have my horse in the school every day is just going to bore him and me! Hacking is not really possible in the dark, I have done it a few times but it is only limited to a walk round the outside of the farm buildings really. He doesn’t lunge other than at 100 miles an hour with legs flying in all directions and it is just dangerous for both him and I. I do not always have the time to be dragging poles out into the school as I also have a 2nd horse to look after and a home life to get back to.

So curious to know every ones riding routine for the winter months. Is it going to be ok to just school a couple of days during the working week and obviously he will do hacking/jumping whatever else at the weekend when I have day light and time. I just worry that I still am wanting to compete at weekends over the winter and he will not be fit enough. Admittedly we are only riding club level so surely 4 days a week work should keeping him ticking over enough for this?
 
I work 3-4 shifts a week rotating between nights and days. When I am on nights or day off can manage to ride in daylight but when on long days I don't ride at all. My horse is semi retired and only does little hacks so 3/4 times a week if fine for him. The horse I ride gets ridden between 4-6 times and just has to fit round my work so varies from week to week. He is fit enough on just that much and we do riding club etc. am sure your horse would cope fine with your planned routine x
 
I work full time and have just bought a 4 year old Connemara. My routine so far is....

Monday - day off
Tuesday - ground work
Wednesday - school
Thursday - day off
Friday - hack round tracks/fields
Saturday - hack road/fields
Sunday - 1hr+ road hack
 
As long as he went into the winter fit enough then riding 4 times a week, as long as he gets turned out each day, will be plenty to keep him at the same, or nearly the same, level, get a decent hack in every weekend with some faster work or jumping to get the muscles and lungs worked and you will be fine for the next few months. It is different if you are trying to get them up to a different level of fitness or training when I think it will be more tricky to make real progress, most people will be in a similar position and many will struggle to ride at all during the week.
 
My 4yo has just come back from her winter holiday so this week i've just put her on the lunge a couple of times but after x.mas when i pick her up with a bit more enthusiasm i imagine it will be something like;

Monday - School/ poles PM or Day Off
Tuesday - Lunge AM
Wednesday - Day off or school PM
Thursday - Lunge AM or School PM
Friday - School/ Poles/ PM or Day Off
Saturday - Road Hack/ Box up to Gallops or forrest/ Jump at home
Sunday - Road Hack/ Box up to Gallops or forrest/ Jump at home/ possible competition

So it probably averages out at; Mon-Fri - school once, poles once, lunge once and 2 days off Sat-Sun - fun stuff!
 
Neptune said:
I am just curious to know every ones winter riding routine.

As someone who works full time I am only at the stables in the dark mornings and dark evenings. We are lucky to have a decent school and floodlights so we can ride. But to have my horse in the school every day is just going to bore him and me! Hacking is not really possible in the dark, I have done it a few times but it is only limited to a walk round the outside of the farm buildings really. He doesn’t lunge other than at 100 miles an hour with legs flying in all directions and it is just dangerous for both him and I. I do not always have the time to be dragging poles out into the school as I also have a 2nd horse to look after and a home life to get back to.

So curious to know every ones riding routine for the winter months. Is it going to be ok to just school a couple of days during the working week and obviously he will do hacking/jumping whatever else at the weekend when I have day light and time. I just worry that I still am wanting to compete at weekends over the winter and he will not be fit enough. Admittedly we are only riding club level so surely 4 days a week work should keeping him ticking over enough for this?
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He wont need to be that fit for local riding club stuff. You could use poles for raised trot pole work and you could use them for canter work by setting them as bounces. You could set them on a related distance of six strides apart and then try and get your horse to do them in five strides and then seven strides as this lengethening/shortening will come in useful when you compete. I know you said you didn't want to drag them in the school but poles are very versatile and the seconds it takes to pull them over is well worth it. Otherwise you could lunge, loose school (if you don't wreck the surface too much) or do in hand work.

Winter weekdays I ride after work usually 5pm for half an hour schooling/lunging/pole work and weekends hack out or compete. Summer I tend to hack out four or five times a week.
 
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I work silly hours but am lucky that I both live on site and my horse is here. Firstly I make sure that EVERYTHING is done first thing in the morning, so, by 6:45am this morning he was mucked out, watered, hay bar full of fresh haylage, and his feeds are made ready for tonight and tomorrow morning. This means that all I have to do when I finish teaching at 7pm tonight is groom, tack up, and hop on.

I am lucky to have both an indoor and an outdoor with floodlights, which I use most of the time in the winter. I hack on my days off, and if I ever do a half day I take the opportunity to get out of the school too.

I don't have a set routine, and he's come into winter very fit so I don't have to panic too much if he has a quiet week with only four days work. I try to work him six days a week, and keep it varied so we don't get bored. In the school I'll lunge (when I bought him this was awful, but hard work has helped and he is now an absolute pleasure to lunge, and it's helped his canter enormously!), jump, school on the flat, do pole work - all sorts of things to keep it interesting.

It's doable, you just have to work at it! And on the days when you really just can't be bothered, don't beat yourself up about it. Give your horse a good groom and a cuddle instead, and then go and have a nice hot bath.
 
I work full time and ride after work with lights. Poles are great for keeping things different. I am lucky to have a 40x45 so some days rather than really work her I will let her have a lollop around the school and I get up off her back and let her have a proper canter/stretch. Usually 1-2 days off during the week and then hacking at weekends, though I have just moved yards and need someone to show me some better routes. I am also lucky that I have a lesson on a Thursday morning when we jump in the daylight which is great and I start work an hour later.
 
at the moment I don't have 1 !! I have 2 rising 4 year olds. 1 broken in spring the other in the process of being broken but taking it slowly due to all of this rain !! I only have paddocks.
 
Work full time and one horse on livery, no mucking out or jobs (helps a lot) just riding :)
Mon - day off
Tue - lunge in the school
Wed - hack or horse walker (nov & Dec I use half days on a wed to go riding or hunting :D in the new year I ride before work when the light allows
Thur - day off
Fri - polework/school or hack if on an early finish or its light enough before work
Sat - hack
Sun - hack/compete/lesson depending on schedules

If its really vile weather I don't school as we both hate it tbh and its all flexible depending on work/weather/horse. Also try and school on hacks as we only have a very small arena :)
 
Mine is 16 now and definitely doesn't want to be drilled in the school every day. He has Mondays and Tuesdays off. Wed I have a half day so often have a lesson or a hack. Thursday or Friday I usually school him, sometimes both days if weather ok. I won't ride in horrid weather as he hates it. Then we'll go out and compete either sat or sun and go on long hacks or hunt the other day. He's managing Advanced Medium and 1.05m BSJA on that routine. I work 9 till 7 most days and lose all urge to ride at 8pm at night in winter so one or two evenings is all I can make myself do!
 
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