Let’s optimise our horses’ loosening-warming up routine
Let’s be honest, we’ve all had days where we arrived late at the barn. We have to rush off again but we want to squeeze that quick ride still in. What do we tend to sacrifice to save time?
More often than not we skimp on warming up. Guilty? Read on ;-)
Never mind the discipline we ask our horses to perform in, the importance of warming up before we ask for a more strenuous workout remains imperative. Lest we want to risk unnecessary injuries, and at the least unwilling equine partners.
As usual there is more than one road to Rome, but there are some essentials, such as time taken and speed, which should be in everyone’s warm up and cool down routines
.
We’ll discuss those, and other nuances of warming up, and how it affects your equine friend’s body, to get the best out of your training session.
Warmed up? Let’s dive straight in.
Why we should warm up our horse:
The warm-up phase isn't just a prelude to the main workout; it's a critical component that sets the tone for your horse's performance. Here's why it matters:
Physiological Preparation: A well-executed warm-up primes your horse's muscles for action by increasing blood circulation and oxygen delivery, preventing early fatigue and the buildup of metabolic wastes.
To have the good energy sources of the horses working for you during warmup it is mandatory to walk for +/- 10 minutes otherwise you have the energy of the fight and flight system will be used and during main training you find more easy fatigue in your horse.
Improving Suppleness: Proper warming up enhances your horse's suppleness and flexibility, allowing for better responsiveness to aids and improved performance during the training session.
What happens during the warm up to our horse:
Blood flow to muscles and organs increases
Pulse and respiration rate adjust to work out mode
Your horse’s ability to stabilize its core gets activated
Muscles, ligaments and tendons get stretched.
The joints lubricate getting ready to work in their full range of motion.
Flexibility and range of movement in general improves
Although we tend to just use the term warming up, there is an important component within this routine, loosening up. Let’s take a look at the difference.
Loosening vs. Warming:
It's important to understand the distinction between loosening up and warming up. Both are essential, but they serve different purposes:
Loosening Up:
Basically, is the initial, or pre - phase if you will, of warming up. It involves gentle activity, such as walking, to allow your horse's joint fluids to circulate thus lubricating the joints. Loosening up is crucial for preparing the muscles and joints for more strenuous activity.
Warming Up:
Once your horse has loosened, so is moving comfortably, it's time to transition to the more energetic activity of warming up. This phase involves engaging the skeletal muscles through active forward movement in trot and then canter, to stimulate blood flow and oxygen delivery.
Structuring the Warm-up:
Tips for an effective warm-up routine.
Begin with Gentle Activity (Loosening up)
Start with 5-10 minutes of relaxed walking, allowing your horse to move freely on a loose rein.
Gradually Increase Intensity (Warming up)
Transition to brisker activity, turning up the speed, start with a 5 min trot, and then you could introduce another 5 min of canter to stimulate skeletal muscles and enhance blood flow. Again, preferably avoid restrictive rein contact.
For those training in an arena, now it is time to pick up the reins and introduce some supplying exercises. If you’re out and about, such as training for an endurance ride, a few leg-yields as you head along the track won’t hurt either ;-)
Suppling Exercises:
After the initial warm-up phase, introducing suppling exercises such as circles, and leg-yielding, shoulder-in and shoulder-out to further enhance flexibility and responsiveness are a great way to prepare your horse for collection.
These exercises help to stretch joints and encourage the hind legs to step under, and across the body, to loosen and supple your horse, as well as engaging his core. An engaged core, encourages your horse to move anatomically correctly, saving it from putting unnecessary strain on its musculoskeletal system, in particular…. back and reducing the load on the front end.
Please note the former mentioned possibility could also be inversed as this depends from horse to horse.
Observe your horse:
During the warm-up phase, pay close attention to your horse's responses to the exercises. Look for signs of looseness, longer strides, responsiveness to aids, and physical readiness for work.
If your horse feels good, go ahead with your planned training, otherwise consider warming up a little longer, or adjusting your plan to something lighter. Or maybe, you found a problem area, you need to address before continuing.
Main Workout:
Now all your need to make sure of is that you your warm-up seamlessly transitions
into your planned training session, with exercises progressively increasing in intensity to maximize strengthening and suppleness benefits.
Conclusion:
Mastering the warm-up routine is essential for all of us as riders to optimize training sessions and keeping our equine partner not only in peak condition, but also helps to keep your horse sound.
Taking on board the importance of warming up and following a structured approach, you'll set the stage for your horse’s success in every ride.
Cool Down:
It’s a good idea to let your horse walk for 5 minutes on a long rein to gently cool down your equine partner’s body and let its breathing return to normal before heading back to the stable.
Allowing your horse time to stretch down in a long and low outline helps him to elongate his muscles and gives the circulatory system a chance to remove toxins, and lactic acid from the muscles reducing the likelihood of inflammation, like tying up.
It also gives the heart and respiration rates a chance to come down.
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Happy riding!