Fitness Training

[taramileusnic]

I am currently trying to put together a fitness schedule for my horse for the summer eventing season.

She is currently schooled 4/5 times a week and hacked out 1/2 times a week, generally will get a day off from schooling in the week and maybe a day off from hacking at weekends. Hacking will vary between 30mins to over an hour.

She will start off the summer season gradually in about 5 weeks time but will be out pretty much every week or fortnight from there on with the ultimate aim of doing some affiliated eventing latter end of the year.

We are going Cross Country schooling around an affiliated course in June which will be the first real taxing thing for her.

She is all round fit but I need to work more on her "fast work" fitness. I plan on doing interval training with her and wondered whether anyone had any good routines they use or advice?

[eventerbabe]

more hacking!!!!! my eventing friend has worked me out a fitness plan and the first six weeks is just hacking and only at walk, building up from 10-15 mins to an hour. next step from this is to introduce short bursts of trot, say just trotting 20m then walk again. once you are trotting for longer, start introducing hill work. my friend is at intermediate and started her fitness work just after christmas. you have got to be consistent and keep increasing hacking times, and within that increase the length of time you trot for. my friend only schools her horse once a week, if that.

[Jessey]

I think the thing with any fitness program is it has to be slow and steady. Depending on your horses (and your) current level of fitness you should look to set a goal each week, I think the goals should be achiveable (don't aim too high).
You should assess stamina, athletasism (sp?) and mental fitness. Lots of hacking at consistant speeds is good stamina work, lots of energetic walk, trot and transition work, including hills if possible. Athletasism is your canter work, collected and controlled, this could be your jump training or schooling, lots of short sessions are good. For mental fitness, get those complex manovres broken down in to manageable chunks so your horse can deal with them easily, if you over tax the brain sometimes it will blow a fuse.
Write your plan down and just increase work in all areas steadily. The more you hack, even if you school whilst hacking the less stress you will put on your horses body (and mind), going round and round a school all the time is really hard on them.
Good luck

J

[Jojo_82]

Hi Tara,

I worked at a yard for a year that specialized in rehabilitating ex-racehorses. For the horses not suitable for a life in the school (for the customers) we team chased them (a cross between point-to-point, XC and hunting, as a team of 4). This sport is very taxing on the horse and they would no way be competed if they weren't fit enough.

The horses main fitness regime would be hacking out. For the 1st 2 weeks we would take them into the stubble fields and trot about 4/5 laps (depending on size of field).

Weeks 3/4, we would start cantering the field circuits (1st lap; trot, 2nd and 3rd, steady, but rolling, canter).

Weeks 5/6, would progress onto 3/4 laps of field again, however, would build up the pace every lap, so the last curcuit would almost be a gallop (not flat out though, just a good, bowling rhythm on a short contact to encourage the horse to pull you along, rather than a sloppy contact and inconsistant pace).

Also in these weeks (bearing in mind we were very lucky with lots of stubble fields, hills etc) we would work building the horses strength and stamina up the hills. We had a ride called Devil's Drop, which was a steep bank. We would work up this 3 times; 1st time steady canter, 2nd time slightly more and the 3rd time, allowing the horse to run on. Each time though, letting the horse pull you up on a short contact, as this works them more effectively.

Normally we would start incorporating hill work into weeks 3/4, perhaps alternating days, i.e. day 1 stubble field, day 2 hill work, day 3 stubble etc etc.

Competitions were every sunday, so we would give the horses the monday off, then maybe cut down the training by a lap, or just give them a "happy hack" on the tues, depending on the horses fitness and how he copes with competition.

We would also make sure we gave them a pop over some jumps in the school once a week for 20mins to keep up their gymnastics.

Hope this is of some help? If your horse is already particularly fit, he should be fine to start off this training straight away. Also, if you start this training and found it wasn't enough for your horse, then obviously play it by ear abit, perhaps upping the number of laps to work him more effectively. It all depends with how he copes. You want him to get a decent sweat on, but not dripping and puffing his lungs out from head to hoof!

I have also done my dissertation at uni on the different training methods for eventers and how it effects performance. That does study fartlek and interval training, however the above has been personally tried and tested, but it does incorporate the same principles!

Good luck chick!!

Jo xxx

P.s. if you need anymore info, just give me a pm! :D