Do you actually have a set plan?

[Feawen]

This question really made me think, so thanks for posting @Trewsers.

I've never been in a position to compete regularly but I love to go out and about. Any competitive aims usually take the form of: “I’d like to be ready to do x if the chance comes up, and I’ll enjoy working towards it and making progress with our training even if it doesn’t.”

Like most of you, I’ve had times when my only aim is to have a horse who is as happy and healthy as possible in the circumstances. You can go so quickly from having all sorts of dreams for the future to just hoping that your horse gets well.

When all is well, though, I don’t enjoy aimless schooling sessions, so I tend to have a plan. Otherwise I find the session drags with no structure or definite end point, and I finish the ride feeling dissatisfied. That plan evolves as I go along, though, so I don’t stick rigidly to something that isn’t working, and I’m happy to change it up if I feel we’d benefit from doing something else instead.

I do quite a lot of visualisation too, where I mentally ride or re-ride future or past schooling sessions: thinking ahead about exercises that might be useful, how I hope the horse will respond, what might go wrong and how to work through it, and looking back on what worked and what didn’t, how I might approach a movement differently in future, and so on. Some of you non-planners probably find that super-weird! But I find it very helpful and a nice way to spend my train ride home from work.

 

[Trewsers]

This question really made me think, so thanks for posting @Trewsers.

I've never been in a position to compete regularly but I love to go out and about. Any competitive aims usually take the form of: “I’d like to be ready to do x if the chance comes up, and I’ll enjoy working towards it and making progress with our training even if it doesn’t.”

Like most of you, I’ve had times when my only aim is to have a horse who is as happy and healthy as possible in the circumstances. You can go so quickly from having all sorts of dreams for the future to just hoping that your horse gets well.

When all is well, though, I don’t enjoy aimless schooling sessions, so I tend to have a plan. Otherwise I find the session drags with no structure or definite end point, and I finish the ride feeling dissatisfied. That plan evolves as I go along, though, so I don’t stick rigidly to something that isn’t working, and I’m happy to change it up if I feel we’d benefit from doing something else instead.

I do quite a lot of visualisation too, where I mentally ride or re-ride future or past schooling sessions: thinking ahead about exercises that might be useful, how I hope the horse will respond, what might go wrong and how to work through it, and looking back on what worked and what didn’t, how I might approach a movement differently in future, and so on. Some of you non-planners probably find that super-weird! But I find it very helpful and a nice way to spend my train ride home from work.

I really like the idea of visualisation. Have been trying it myself (on a very low key small scale) before getting on Zi and it seems to be working. I saw it mentioned in Horse and Rider mag and though it was mainly aimed at competing I thought it would be worth a try just for plodding.

 

[Bodshi]

The actual 'workers' on our yard, ie YO and my RI who rides for YO and is partner in the horses they produce to sell, have a very structured plan for all the horses - it's written up on the board every week. I went over to ride this morning and RI was cooling down one that she'd just worked while YO was tacking up her recently backed mare to take her into the school. YO was rushing because she had to get her mare in and done before RI had washed down her current horse and got tacked up and ready with the next one. As I rode out through the gates for my hack I was glad that horses are my hobby and not my job

 

[Trewsers]

The actual 'workers' on our yard, ie YO and my RI who rides for YO and is partner in the horses they produce to sell, have a very structured plan for all the horses - it's written up on the board every week. I went over to ride this morning and RI was cooling down one that she'd just worked while YO was tacking up her recently backed mare to take her into the school. YO was rushing because she had to get her mare in and done before RI had washed down her current horse and got tacked up and ready with the next one. As I rode out through the gates for my hack I was glad that horses are my hobby and not my job

Yeah I am glad horses are my hobby too. Lol atm I'm struggling with just three! One that needs riding, one that needs re-habilitating in hand in order to come paddock sound - and one that needs snuggling regularlyI honestly find my days just disappear I always think how lucky I am to work from home, otherwise I don't know how it would all work.

 

[joosie]

Been without Annie so long now my only goal is to get her back with me! But I'm in a sort of life limbo at the moment in terms of my forthcoming career change, there's loads of stuff I'd like to do with her but realistically it could be a couple more years before I'm in a position for any of it to happen.
Mouse is thriving in the riding school so he will probably remain a French citizen for the foreseeable!

 

[Feawen]

@Trewsers I find visualisation useful for lots of things, from learning dressage tests to planning schooling sessions to delivering presentations at work. I think I have always learned things in a similar way, even when I was at school I did a lot of revision “in my head”, but now I use it with more awareness as a tool - if that makes sense.

Although I call it visualisation the thing that makes it immersive is imagining sensations (if that’s not too strange a thing to say!) So the feeling of putting my foot in the stirrup and swinging up into the saddle, checking my weight distribution, sitting upright, closing my legs around the horse and moving off…there is a visual element but I’m actually imagining myself riding rather than picturing. So maybe I use the term wrongly

I'm also a member of the lucky to work from home brigade! Only two days a week, though.

 

[newforest]

One thing I hate is any needing to rush, mine hates it and she knows you are and hence things go even slower!
But I get the methodical routine and just cracking on.
There is one I know that can whizz out and be back and gone and I haven't brought her in! But that's not enjoyment to me.

 

[PePo]

If I didn't do anything when I had time constraints, I'd work with my horse about once a year ...

Even if I'm rushed, usually I am, it's up to me as a horsemen to not let that show to my horse. I guess it's the old adage of if you act like you hsve five minutes, it'll take twice as long. If you act like you have all the time in the world, it'll take 5 minutes! Sometimes easier said than done ...

I'm envious if you don't have to worry about time constraints, but needs must - and for me, it makes having a (sometimes vague plan) all the more important so I can priotise what's important to my horse & how can I use that to keep my horse happy & remain progressive, in the time I *do* have.

 

[chunky monkey]

I have a short term plan. I have been trying to be organised by having a plan on how to keep both horses fit now that I'm back to basically exercising the boys myself. I was think m,w,f for billy and chunky t,t as he needs a quieter life and then the weekends would depend if I had my other rider. So weekdays the boys would be on set days. But if it happens to hammer down with rain on say m,w,f then Billy would get no work that week so now I've changed my plan and I'm going to alternate there days that way if it rains no one misses out as I'll pick up the next available day who should be worked. If I should be fortunate that my extra rider comes and we take both out the same day then chunky will get the next day off and Billy will get worked. Its the only way I can be fair to the boys and divide my time and love equally between them. As to whether i lunge or ride that will vary.
Long term plans are for me to just keep chunky going as long as I can before I retire him. With Billy it's basically to do more Funrides, and have some more lessons. There's also a country course not to far away and I was going to book myself on one of there itsy bitsy clinics but I haven't plucked up the courage. The course will close soon for winter so that's on the list. Someone suggested I should do a hunter trial with Billy. I thought no chance of that. I wouldn't have a clue what to do. But after someone posted there video on here a few months back I have to say it made me go, 'i can do that'. So I am now inspired thanks to a BR member. So maybe next year I might give it a go as well.

 

[OwnedbyChanter]

Yes I do and that is what keeps me going when times get rough as they are at the moment.

I have weekly schooling plans of things I want to work on then yearly plans

This year I nearly completed them all I only failed at not going to the area festival due to my father in laws illness. That over ruled everything.

Next year if health and soundness is on our side my aims are:

Crack simply changes
Work on the elusive medium trot that he just does not get

Yearly - dip our hoofs in to elementary
Area festival and actually go this year novice and attempt elementary
RoR champs again but at both novice and elementary
Bronze bd champs
Bronze dressage to music

It sounds a lot but I can get my qual in for most at the same event apart from the music

 

[newforest]

Only plan for today is a picnic.
The weather is saying go on have another.

 

[Trewsers]

Only plan for today is a picnic.
The weather is saying go on have another.

Sooo envious! We have the heating on today and I've got thumb splits already

 

[newforest]

Sooo envious! We have the heating on today and I've got thumb splits already

It's likely the last one that way until Spring. She's finally settled on the route she didn't like because I stop. ( so it's now one of the picnic routes)
Been known to picnic in the winter - with a little bit of "someatt" in the saddle bags

 

[newforest]

For what you want to achieve riding / groundwork wise? Or are you happy pootling and being pretty aimless?

Does planning create stress? Or is some stress healthy?

Thinking about this, my course is encouraging me to have a plan. Ie when to study, when to get the assignments in.
Perhaps I should add to know what I am talking about!
I decided originally I wanted to pass all the assignments, then I decided to opt for 110% effort and aim for a distinction.
But would not achieving that lead to disappointment? Whereas before anything over the pass would be better so great?

If I had a set plan with the cob will I cause stress if don't achieve it?
Plans for Autumn/ Winter are actually to carry on with the picnics (weather permitting) - though I don't want us to get bored. See a negative already!

 

[OwnedbyChanter]

Does planning create stress? Or is some stress healthy?

Thinking about this, my course is encouraging me to have a plan. Ie when to study, when to get the assignments in.
Perhaps I should add to know what I am talking about!
I decided originally I wanted to pass all the assignments, then I decided to opt for 110% effort and aim for a distinction.
But would not achieving that lead to disappointment? Whereas before anything over the pass would be better so great?

If I had a set plan with the cob will I cause stress if don't achieve it?
Plans for Autumn/ Winter are actually to carry on with the picnics (weather permitting) - though I don't want us to get bored. See a negative already!

Making and having a plan is not the same as setting a target in my eyes.

We have plans but they change last night it was to work in suppleness that was the aim of the session. However, I spend so long pampering Chanter that I ran out of time and just took him round the block on a nice soft contact.

My plans is to qualify for certain things but I have not set a target score for example I want to aim for 65% in ele every time. I just like to qualify which could mean competing a lot to get the required number of scores (3 above 62%) but if we don't get it he does not care he just enjoys competing as do I.

 

[Trewsers]

Does planning create stress? Or is some stress healthy?

Thinking about this, my course is encouraging me to have a plan. Ie when to study, when to get the assignments in.
Perhaps I should add to know what I am talking about!
I decided originally I wanted to pass all the assignments, then I decided to opt for 110% effort and aim for a distinction.
But would not achieving that lead to disappointment? Whereas before anything over the pass would be better so great?

If I had a set plan with the cob will I cause stress if don't achieve it?
Plans for Autumn/ Winter are actually to carry on with the picnics (weather permitting) - though I don't want us to get bored. See a negative already!

I think that depends on the individual. I stress not so much over riding goals and achievements but the other aspects of horse owning. I do have plans that I try and stick to with regard to their every day and long term management. If things don't go to plan in that aspect I do get a bit stressed. Mainly because I feel it lets them down - not me.