Tom Walt – Horses and Riders

Experienced Equestrians/competitive horse riders-advice needed!?

Can you please help me put together a exercise routine that will specifically assist me in becoming a better rider?

Strengthening the inner leg muscles, esp. the inner thighs, and the back muscles are two important areas. Also working on stablizing the body core.

Exercise One
Trying to ride by sitting on your butt compresses the muscles in your seat and spreads the flare of your hips.

Sit on your butt in a chair that has wheels, like an office chair, and put a basketball between your knees. Now try rolling the chair across the room using your feet. You can’t hold onto the basketball after one or two steps. This posture prevents your inner thigh muscles from being able to grab the basketball when you use your feet to walk the chair.

Now try sitting on the chair by rocking forward on your pelvis and putting a slight arch in your back. Put the basketball between your knees and try walking the chair. It’s now easier because the angle of the lower back and pelvic cradle control the strength and agility of the inner thigh muscles.

This exercise tones your rump and thighs and builds your riding (sartorius) muscles:

Get a soft play ball about 8-10″ in diameter.
Put the ball between your thighs.
Use your inner thigh muscles to squeeze the ball and keep it from falling.
Now walk or crawl with very tiny movements.
Start with a few steps and add more each day.
While you’re watching television, put the ball between your thighs and hold it.

This works to build riding muscles because the sartorius muscles used for riding are used to hold the ball.

Exercise Two
Do this every day to help keep your heels down.

Remove your boots. Barefoot is best.
Stand on the edge of the stairs.
Drop you heels down until you feel a stretch.
Hold 5-10 seconds.
Raise up on your toes, hold 5-10 seconds.
Repeat.
When you release from the stretch, try to relax the muscle, then slowly go back into the stretch.

All stretches should be done until you feel the stretch, but not to the point of pain. If it hurts, you’ve gone too far.

Exercise Three – Inside upper so like exercise one
Lie on your side and take the top leg and move it out of the way. Take the bottom leg and do leg lifts Lift up 6 inches and hold and then a bit higher and hold and then lower back to 6 inches and hold. (up, up, down,down [that counts one] – never touch the ground) If it is too easy then lay weights on you ankles. This is the hardest one because if you are strong (inside of upper leg) then you can do these and you won’t feel very much – need to add a lot more weight.

Exercise Four
Those big balls used to lie on and sit on are very good for basic core balance.
Just sit on it feet together, knees together, back straight, shoulders back and just sit there, – uses many muscles

Exercise Five
Use the above ball and put it between you and the wall behind your back. Legs shoulder width apart and out from the wall. Roll the ball down the wall beding your knee as you go, when you are in the position of sitting in a chair, hold for 10 seconds and then roll back up. Roll down, hold and roll up. Three sets of 20. Remember to hold when in the sitting position.

This is it, I have to go to the barn. By the time I get ready and get there it will be time to throw them all some lunch. Have a good day and enjoy your exercises. Don’t over do it!! I have heard but have no experience, that pilates is excellent for a rider. Maybe look on the internet under pilates and try some of there movements. Cant hurt. There is lots of pilated information here:

http://pilates.about.com/od/pilatesexercises/Sample_Pilates_Mat_and_Warm_Up_Exercises.htm

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