Winter
Fitness
Brighten
up your winter schedule with strength training exercises that will
improve your position and the results will show on your horse.
Republished with permission
from Horse Sport
For many Canadian riders, the end of the Royal officially signifies
the closing of another competitive season. We all head off to our
respective indoor arenas to hole up with our noses to the grindstone
for another winter. We'll set up those grids, and work on those circles,
and school, school, school until spring.
But what if, for a change, we looked at our training from another
perspective? How much could riders benefit from training in the gym?
Everyone knows the old adage, "Nothing gets you fit to ride like
riding," and of course any athlete has to dedicate a huge amount
of time to her sport to be successful. But many of our weaknesses
may be addressed off the horse more effectively than on.
I have chosen three die-hard positional problems that in many cases
plague riders for their whole equestrian career. By breaking each
problem down and looking at it from another angle you may be able
to rid yourself of it all together. Just as a reminder, before you
begin any in-gym training, you should have clearance from your doctor,
and you should find a personal trainer or fitness professional to
help you with your work out.
So the idea is to think about positional problems from a physiological
viewpoint. Keep in mind the basic principle that the muscles of the
body are paired up in agonists and antagonists. If you bend your elbow,
for example, your bicep is working (agonist), and your tricep is relaxing
(antagonists). With positional or postural problems, often one muscle
of the pair has become too strong or short, and the other is overstretched.
Round Shoulders
Consider the round-shouldered rider. This rider's posture is pulled
out of alignment by short chest muscles, and stretched mid back muscles.
This person probably exhibits this posture all the time - not just
on horseback. The round- shouldered rider needs to learn to think
about her posture habitually, not just during their riding lesson.
For this specific problem we would get to work at strengthening the
mid back muscles, and stretching the chest.
Exercise 1: Scapular Retraction : Begin by standing with your
feet together. Tilt your body forwards at the hip as in the two-point
position, your elbows at a 90-degree angle. Mentally check that your
back is flat, your shoulders down. Now squeeze your shoulder blades
together for 12 - 15 times, keeping the shoulders down. By the last
couple of repetitions your mid back should feel tired, if it doesn't,
you need to do this exercise with a small weight.
Exercise 2: Pectoral stretch: Place one hand behind your head
and lift your chest. Squeeze your shoulder blades together and press
back on your raised elbow. Rotate your torso to the opposite side,
still pressing back the elbow.
The round-shouldered rider needs to take responsibility for her position.
Often this kind of positional fault is accepted because it is part
of the rider's everyday posture. Muscles, however, are incredibly
malleable and will respond well to a regular routine. So if you put
your mind, and your body to it, you can change.
Weak Lower Leg
Another coach's nightmare is the weak lower leg, usually characterized
by floating heels and a boot that won't stay tight against the horse's
side. This rider may suffer from weak inner thigh muscles contributing
to a loose leg all around, but some riders are tight to the knee and
then loose below that. The best way to work on these problems is using
elastic tubing fixed to a wall.
Exercise 1: Attach the tubing around something solid and low
to the ground, and hook the other end around your foot. Stand far
enough away from the attachment that there is tension on the tubing.
Balance yourself using a chair with your feet about shoulder width
apart and check that you are standing with your spine in neutral position:
knee slightly bent, little arch in the lower back. Pull against the
tubing to bring your active leg to your standing leg; repeat 10 -
15 times. Your leg should be moving side to side, as though you were
applying your inside leg with long stirrups. Repeat on the other side.
Exercise 2: Stand on a step holding a railing, with the edge
of the step on the ball of your foot. Keeping your knees bent, allow
your heels to press down as far as they will go. You should feel a
stretch not
pain. Hold without bouncing for at least 30 seconds.
This problem would be dealt with using a myriad of different leg exercises
- these are just two examples that would be beneficial for any rider.
Note though, that some riders have hyper-extended ankles (from years
of telling themselves "Heels down!"), or ankles that are
too far down, which also results in a different kind of ineffective
leg. These riders should clearly not do the step exercise as their
calves are too stretched as it is.
Developing a Deep Seat
Finally, we come to the age-old problem of the deep seat. When I was
a child I remember my poor instructor hollering "SIT!,"
and I remember thinking, "I am sitting!"
Of course, she meant a Kyra Kyrklund sit and I was thinking the thing
you do when you aren't rising. The mechanics of a deep, effective
seat are complicated and involve the muscles of the legs, seat, lower
back and torso. But there are some simple exercises that can help
improve any rider's seat.
As an occupational hazard, riders tend to develop very strong inner
thighs. This is a good thing for a rider, but these muscles can become
tight and short as a result, not allowing the hips to open and the
seat to sink. In my opinion, riders can't stretch the hip/lower back
area enough.
Exercise 1: Begin by lying on your back with both knees bent,
feet flat on the floor. Rest the left ankle on the right knee. Grasp
the right knee and gently pull towards the chest. Try to keep your
head resting on the floor, check that your breathing stays regular.
You should feel the stretch through your left hip and gluteal. Repeat
on the other side.
Exercise 2: Begin by sitting beside a bare wall with your left
hip right against the wall. Roll onto your back so that your seat
is up against the wall with your legs resting up the wall. Gently
allow your legs to drift apart trying to keep your knees straight.
This is an intense stretch for your inner thigh so don't go too far,
stop where you feel a good pull but no pain. Hold for at least 30
seconds.
Keep in mind that stretching the hip and lower back area is very effective
in reducing lower back pain. Many riders suffer from fatigue or discomfort
in this area and would truly benefit from
regular stretching.
Work in the gym of course can't take the place of work in the arena.
But for riders who are working on positional problems, or strength
problems, isolating the issue down to a specific muscle group may
help to achieve the desired results. Any positional work we do on
horseback is hindered somewhat by the host of variables involved:
a spooky corner, new chaps, a pulling horse, etc. To ride well we
must learn to cope effectively with all these things, but to really
change position, eliminating them in the gym may do just the trick.
Mel Gromoff, the owner and founder of RideFit, has been active in
the equestrian community for 15 years. She received her personal fitness
education at Mount Royal College in Calgary, AB. Gromoff gained valuable
experience running a
riding school at her own Fallowfield Farm and is currently a Level
2 coach in
combined training. She now divides her time between Fallowfield and
personal training for riders.
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