Going for a hack needn’t be a lob-about on a long rein – it’s a great time to work on your own position and fitness. Try this exercise in trot to boost your own strength – and see how much you improve each time you do it. If you prefer, you can also try this exercise in an arena or field.

Aims

• to improve your balance in the saddle
• to put your lower leg in the correct position with the weight in the heels
• to make your seat more secure
• to stretch and build up the necessary muscles

The setup

No setup required: you can do this in an arena or out hacking. Using a neck strap will help you balance without pulling the reins.

How to ride this exercise

• Put your stirrups at cross-country or galloping length.
• Go into an active trot, and slip two fingers under the neck strap in case you need to balance. Adopt a racing position (pictured above, left), tucked up with your bum out and your hands low. Push your weight through your heels, allowing the ankles and knees to absorb the horse’s movement. Do not rise to the trot. You should feel the burn!
• Sit up slightly as you move into a light seat as though you were preparing to jump a fence (pictured above, centre), with your bum lightly brushing the saddle but not full rising trot.
• If you can balance well in these two positions, try the extreme version which is to stand upright in the saddle (pictured above, right), with your legs straight (still no rising), absorbing the movement through your ankles, knees and core. Do not rely on your hands. Keep the weight in the heels, using the neck strap if you need to balance.

The more you practise these three positions, the more you will hone your balance, strengthen your muscles and develop a correct lower leg position.

Start with short intervals to avoid fatigue, gradually building up your stamina over several weeks.

Pitfalls to avoid

1. Leaning too far forward

This puts weight on your horse’s neck and forces your lower leg back. Instead, push your weight through the heels and slide your bum back to redress the centre of balance.

2. Gripping with knees

This causes the lower leg to slip backward and destabilises you. Keep the weight through the heels, using your calves to keep you in place.

3. Swinging legs

Try shortening the stirrups, so that you can hover more efficiently above the saddle allowing your horse to move underneath you without you interfering.

Want more ideas? Check out our full daily training inspiration library

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How soon can we get back in the saddle and ride after giving birth? It’s a question riders ask online again and again, but the answer is different for everyone. If you’re Ros Canter, then it’s possible to win Mars Badminton Horse Trials less than four months later, while other equestrians find they need much more time to recover, and this can be for a wide range of reasons.

If there is one topic that’s almost guaranteed to cause fierce debate, it’s motherhood. Natural births versus caesarean sections, breast or bottle, spoon-fed or baby-led weaning – the list goes on, and the arguments are endless.

Then you throw horses into the mix and things get even more complicated. Is it safe to ride while pregnant? Can you find the time and energy to ride when you have a small baby to look after? How do you feel about doing what’s essentially a risk sport now you have an infant depending on you?

How soon can you ride a horse after giving birth?

All this has been widely discussed, but what isn’t talked about as much is the physical effect that pregnancy and childbirth can have on women, and when we should return to the saddle, regardless of whether riding is your hobby or your livelihood.

Riders are generally a hardy bunch, and there can be the attitude that having a baby is something you do in the off-season, that you’ll be out for a hack as soon as the epidural wears off and be back in your best competition breeches by the following weekend. The official advice, however, is to wait until around six to eight weeks postpartum before you start strenuous exercise, for those who had straightforward vaginal births, going up to three months if you had a caesarean section.

“Healing time can really vary from woman to woman,” says Justine Elliott, a chartered physiotherapist who specialises in women’s pelvic health. “The advice is to wait until your postpartum GP check before starting to do any strenuous exercise, but in reality it’s difficult to put a time-frame on healing from childbirth.

“It depends on how the pregnancy was, the difficulty of the birth, how the mother is feeling postnatally. Nor are C-sections the easy option – it’s major surgery, which involves cutting right through the stomach muscles, and these need time to heal.”

The early factors

Everyone knows that labour isn’t exactly a hack in the park, but perhaps we are guilty of downplaying just how traumatic an event it can be in our hurry to get back into the saddle.

“Unlike an injury, recovery from childbirth is multi-faceted – physically, emotionally and hormonally – and one aspect might recover more quickly than another,” says Pilates instructor and former midwife Chloe Beazley.

In the days and weeks following the birth, there may be obvious short-term issues – soreness and swelling, particularly if there was any tearing or an episiotomy, pain around a C-section scar, uncomfortably full or leaking breasts, postnatal bleeding and bladder weakness, to name a few. By the two-month point, a lot of these will have healed or at least improved, but some of the other effects of pregnancy and birth might continue for much longer.

“Even if a new mum feels well enough to start riding again, she might find her balance is affected and her reaction times are slower, which can be an issue particularly if your horse has had some time off during your maternity break,” says Justine, who has owned and ridden horses from a young age.

“One of the risks of returning to exercise too quickly is prolapse, particularly as altered oestrogen levels from pregnancy and breastfeeding can cause some ongoing laxity to these structures, plus the process of giving birth puts a huge amount of pressure on these internal muscles.”

One mother and dressage rider had to stop riding early in her pregnancy after a freak riding fall while hacking left her with fractured vertebrae in her neck. Fortunately her baby was fine and she made a good recovery from her neck injury, but a lengthy break from riding followed by a quick return afterwards ended up causing problems.

“I had a quick birth with no external tearing, and I was back on my horse about two-and-a-half weeks after my baby was born,” she says. “But then I had an internal prolapse, which might have been caused by returning to riding too quickly or doing too much yard work in late pregnancy.

“I wish the postnatal information given to me was more in depth, especially regarding the risk of prolapse. My health situation could have been avoided with proper guidance, and I’m now paying the price mentally, physically and financially as I’m having to see a private physio and gynaecologist.”

Another potential issue is that of diastasis recti, which is a partial or complete separation of the rectus abdominus muscles (or the six-pack muscles, for those lucky enough to be familiar with them).

“These muscles have to adapt throughout pregnancy to allow space for the growing bump” says Justine. “As many as one in two women will be left with a gap in these muscles, which can take time to heal and may need special targeted exercises. But seek professional advice, as doing the wrong type of exercises can end up doing more damage than good, and take longer to repair.”

Ongoing challenges after birth

Pelvic floor issues – and accompanying bladder weakness – is another barrier for making a speedy return to the saddle. A bit like running and trampolining, the impact and the “squatting” position of riding can put extra pressure on a weakened pelvic floor and make it harder to switch on these essential muscles.

It’s a common issue, and women of all ages, even elite athletes and teenage gymnasts, can suffer from pelvic floor weakness. That said, it isn’t something to be ignored or classed as normal, and these conditions can often be improved with professional help.

The pelvic floor muscles form a big part of your core, something that many mothers find to be lacking after childbirth.

“Core strength is vital to riders, whatever their discipline,” explains Justine. “Many new mothers find a sudden disconnect when riding, that their bodies no longer do as they want them to do and they struggle with a lack of balance. So much changes in your body throughout pregnancy and it can take time for things to settle; plus there may be weight gain, postural changes, muscle weakness – all of this can affect your riding.”

Grand prix dressage rider and trainer Sarah Sjoholm-Patience found her core strength to be the biggest challenge after the birth of her daughter.

“All the basic skill set was still there, but my core strength was so much weaker,” she says. “It took six months for it to return to how it was, while my pelvic alignment has never quite been the same since.”

Sarah was back to riding and coaching “as soon as the stitches were out”, which isn’t uncommon among professionals when riding is your income and career.

Showjumper Yazmin Pinchen rode up until five months pregnant, with her doctor’s consent, and returned not long after the birth of her son, but even a short maternity break saw her dropping down the rankings.

“There was huge pressure to get back competing and getting my points back up so I could compete at certain shows,” she says. Since then, the FEI has announced changes to the maternity rules for dressage, showjumping and driving to offer further flexibility.

Most women will change shape during pregnancy, with postural differences and weight gain commonplace, despite what we see on celebrity mothers’ Instagram feeds. Even if the baby weight drops off quickly, women might find their shape has changed and their pre-pregnancy clothes don’t fit as they did before. Showjumper Jessie Drea got a shock when going to put on her Team GBR jacket after the birth of her first son.

“It didn’t fit, so I asked for a bigger one, and the replacement didn’t fit either!” she says.

Jessie stopped riding early on during both pregnancies for medical reasons, but was back in the saddle within days of giving birth both times. Like many new equestrian mothers, riding provided her with a big psychological boost and gave her a break from mum duties, but she did feel a degree of pressure to bounce back.

“One year I was on Nations Cup teams and going to the World Equestrian Games – the next I was having a baby,” she says. “I thought once I went back I’d be exactly the same as I was despite having had a break and a baby, but of course you’re not the same, your body changes so much.”

How preparation can help a smooth return to the saddle

Whatever your views on riding during pregnancy, doing some form of exercise and keeping active while you’re expecting may well mean a more straightforward birth and quicker recovery.

“Being in great physical shape prior to and during pregnancy is the best way to ensure a quicker and easier recovery from labour and delivery – studies have shown this,” says Chloe Beazley.

Badminton winner Piggy March missed an entire eventing season when she had her son Max in 2016.

“I’d missed the whole season so I wasn’t under any pressure to rush back,” she says. “It meant I had the whole winter to get fit again, so once I started riding again I just built things up gradually.”

One thing Piggy did was to start weekly sessions with a personal trainer.

“I was keen to start doing some rider fitness work, which I hadn’t really done before, and that was very beneficial. She got me back into shape and back into my breeches in time for the following season.”

It is a challenge to get back to feeling like the rider you were pre-pregnancy, but it is doable. Some riders even report feeling better after childbirth, as it led to them focusing on improving their core strength. It’s all a case of managing expectations, taking things gradually and allowing yourself to enjoy your new role as a mother as well as retaining your identity as a rider.

“Be kind to yourself,” says Sarah Sjoholm-Patience. “Give yourself time to recover, put less pressure on yourself. Your baby is only going to be small for a short period of time, and our sport will still be there when you go back to it.”

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Artificial intelligence (AI) might once have belonged to the world of science fiction, but it is now playing an increasingly significant role in training horses, entering our stables, arenas and even competition warm-ups. From motion-tracking cameras to advanced gait sensors, AI is becoming a quiet presence in how we school, monitor, and manage our horses.

AI is part of our daily life; from the way we shop and communicate to how we navigate and work. It’s widely used by athletes to track performance, prevent injury and optimise training so it’s no surprise this powerful technology has made its way into the everyday equestrian world too.

Supporters say it helps riders train more intelligently, spot subtle changes early, and make better-informed decisions in the saddle. For others, though, the growing use of data sparks concern. Could all these numbers erode the intuition, feel, and instinct that underpin true horsemanship?

AI in the horse world

Artificial intelligence refers to computer systems that can learn, adapt, and make decisions based on the data they receive. Unlike traditional recording tools, AI analyses patterns over time, detects changes and offers insights, whether on a rider’s position, a horse’s movement, or the demands of a particular training programme.

In practice, it takes the form of wearable sensors, smart apps or video-analysis tools, offering a new layer of objectivity to complement traditional methods of observation and coaching.

Smart cameras are perhaps the most familiar introduction to AI for many riders. Devices such as Pivo use artificial intelligence to track horse and rider automatically around the arena, allowing riders to record sessions without a helper. Others, like Ridesum’s AI Horse Analytics, go further by allowing video uploads and then analysing specific biomechanical markers such as the horse’s frame, stride length or the rider’s seat and position.

Designed to support coaching and self-assessment, these systems are helping bring professional-level analysis to more riders, even those schooling alone.

AI trackers for horse riding and training

Wearable trackers have become increasingly popular, especially in disciplines where fitness and recovery are closely monitored. Tools like the Seaver smart girth measure data such as heart rate, calorie burn and jump symmetry. The Polar Equine heart rate monitor is already widely used in endurance training, helping riders evaluate how well their horses are coping with the work.

Garmin, a market leader in GPS-enabled technology for sportspeople, has also made waves in the equestrian world. The company has released the Garmin Blaze, a device with a sensor that is secured to the underside of the horse’s tail. This tracks the horse’s activity, as well as health and fitness metrics, such as heart rate, stride, gait and skin temperature.

These devices don’t just show how hard the horse is working but they help determine how well it is coping, and whether adjustments need to be made to promote sustainable progress.

AI is making a significant mark in the field of motion and pressure sensors, where the emphasis is on analysing how a horse moves, loads each limb, and responds to the rider. The Equestic SaddleClip, for example, is a small sensor that sits beneath the saddle flap and records a wealth of data during each session. It tracks rhythm, impulsion, symmetry and time spent on each rein.

The data is recorded and analysed in an app, and over time, the AI builds a picture of the horse’s way of going, helping riders and coaches identify subtle trends or changes.

Other wearable devices are being developed with clinical precision in mind. Tendiboots, created by French company Ekico, use embedded sensors to measure fetlock joint extension, comparing the loading between forelimbs. Since the fetlock’s function is closely linked to soft tissue strain, changes in its movement can indicate the beginning of lameness well before it becomes visible.

The data is interpreted in real-time and delivered through a mobile app, offering support to riders, vets and rehab teams looking to intervene early.

Technology is also helping riders understand and refine their own input. TeleRein C IT, for instance, measures rein tension and displays the results via LED lights positioned on the horse’s poll. It aims to promote consistent contact and improve rider feel. Devices like these are increasingly seen not as gimmicks but as training aids, tools to support subtlety, lightness, and effective communication in the rein.

Some AI tools don’t rely on hardware at all. Software platforms such as Ridesum and Equicty allow riders to log training data, monitor recovery, and evaluate behavioural or biomechanical patterns over time. These platforms are designed to offer actionable insights, whether that’s helping to shape a schooling plan, manage a competition schedule, or highlight signs that a horse may need veterinary attention.

Does AI supersede “feel”?

The ability to capture and compare data over time is one of AI’s most significant contributions to equestrian sport. As Dmitry Marchenko, chief commercial officer of Smart Horse, explains: “The unique benefit that AI technologies brings to riders and coaches is the ability to objectively compare events over a long period of time, for example, between today and yesterday, or over the past week or month.

“This objectivity is especially important when it comes to health, fitness, or professional sport. It opens up new possibilities to evaluate progress or spot signs of regression. It helps identify the most effective training exercises for development, or to align rehabilitation protocols with the evolving condition of the horse. And it supports many other aspects of ethical training, all rooted in the objectivity of measurement.”

That objectivity, combined with the right guidance, can give riders new levels of confidence. Used thoughtfully, AI offers a second set of eyes in the arena, helping validate instincts or gently challenge them when something isn’t quite right. It can’t replace feel, but it can sharpen it.

Pammy Hutton FBHS, international dressage trainer and principal of The Talland School of Equitation, is one of many voices reminding riders not to let data distract from instinct.

“Feel is everything,” she says. “Knowing when to push, when to back off, and when something doesn’t feel quite right is a skill that develops over years. Data can’t tell you how your horse feels that day or whether they’re mentally engaged. Misused, it could encourage riders to train to the data rather than listening to their horse.”

Others see it as a complement to traditional horsemanship rather than a threat.

“When instinct and data match up, it builds confidence,” says Dmitry. “If the AI flags something you hadn’t noticed, it can prompt a conversation with your coach or vet. Over time, it helps fine-tune your awareness in the saddle. It gives your horse a voice.”

Grand prix dressage rider Becky Moody also sees value in combining feel with feedback.

“I find watching videos and analysing data so helpful, especially for those who work a lot on their own,” she explains. “Rider feel is all good and well if you’re feeling the right things. But take straightness as a good example, you might think you and your horse are straight, but then you review it and realise you really aren’t. That creates a useful talking point and helps shape your training plan.”

Welfare benefits of AI

There’s growing recognition, too, of AI’s welfare potential. At the 2024 FEI Sports Forum in Lausanne, tech companies were invited to discuss how AI might play a role in safeguarding equine wellbeing. From spotting early gait anomalies to supporting ethical training plans, these technologies are increasingly seen as allies in long-term horse management. But concerns remain about misinterpretation, data overload, and riders attempting to diagnose problems without expert input.

“An app should never replace your vet,” says equine vet Lucy Penrose, of Epona Equine. “If your horse feels unbalanced or lame, it’s essential to speak to a professional. The risk is that some might try to self-diagnose without the right knowledge.”

Pammy echoes this caution: “The horse must always come first. Technology can support but should never replace our fundamental understanding of horsemanship.”

Used correctly, AI doesn’t ask riders to abandon feel or instinct. Instead, it offers another tool to support clear decision-making and consistent development. Whether you’re aiming to sharpen performance, improve balance, track fitness or flag small issues before they become major setbacks, artificial intelligence – like any good training aid – works best in educated hands.

It’s unlikely AI will ever replace the eye of a coach, the experience of a vet, or the feel of a skilled rider. It could however back human judgement and give us a clearer data-based understanding of the horse and their needs.

For the modern equestrian, the challenge isn’t whether to embrace AI, but how to do so thoughtfully. The best results come when technology and tradition work together when objective measurement supports lived experience, and when data complements the quiet art of listening to your horse. The future may be digital, but good horsemanship will always be human.

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The annual World Menopause Day (18 October) was founded to raise awareness of menopause and improve the experience of women across the globe. Although perimenopause and menopause remains one of the least discussed topics in women’s sport, it presents unique challenges for riders at every level.

Former advanced event rider and veterinary physiotherapist Antonia Bealby used to think nothing of squaring up to gaping ditches or schooling flighty racehorses. But that suddenly changed five years ago. Menopause is common to nearly all women of a certain age, but the impact of menopause on horse riders is specific to the unique demands of the sport.

“It came like a bolt out of the blue. I started getting horrific anxiety and palpitations,” reveals Antonia, who was 45 at the time. “I’d always been a reasonably laid-back person, but I was shaking and sweating. My core felt like it had deserted me and I didn’t feel safe or confident on a horse any more.”

Antonia’s symptoms had all the hallmarks of perimenopause, although at the time she didn’t realise it.

“Once I had a diagnosis and I knew what I was dealing with I could start doing something about it,” she says.

A combination of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and some simple lifestyle changes gave Antonia back her mojo. Now, aged 50, she says she is feeling as “strong and confident as ever”.

Menopause, which signals the end of a woman’s reproductive years, and perimenopause, a phase that can last for 10 years before the menopause itself, with similar debilitating symptoms – is rarely talked about as often as it should be, especially in sporting circles. Initiatives such as British Equestrian’s female health campaign are seeking to address this, but there is still a way to go.

The fact that in equestrianism, more so than in almost every other sport, athletes are still competing at an elite level well into their 40s, 50s and even 60s means there is a substantial window of time where athletic performance has the potential to be significantly affected by perimenopause and menopause.

So, what are the main symptoms that affect riders? And, more importantly, what can we do about them?

Understanding menopause in horse riders

Knowledge is power, according to female health and fitness specialist Dr Jenni Douglas, who is a senior lecturer in exercise physiology at Hartpury University and runs her own online coaching programme, Empowered.

“Once you understand how your body is changing, there is plenty you can do to optimise your performance,” she says. “If you go into the menopause with a scientific understanding of what is going to happen, you can then do your best to offset these changes for as long as possible.”

Perimenopause can begin as early as your late 30s or early 40s and is characterised by fluctuating hormone levels and irregular menstrual cycles. During this time, the main sex hormones, oestrogen and progesterone, start to go haywire before they eventually fall right away.

“HRT, which replaces dwindling hormones, has its place and can be incredibly effective at relieving symptoms and protecting bone and muscle health, but it doesn’t suit everyone and nor should it be thought of in isolation,” says Jenni, who highlights the importance of exercise and diet as key management tools.

“Muscles, joints and ligaments are particularly affected by hormones and when our oestrogen levels start to deplete, this has a big impact on bone density and muscle mass,” she explains.

With reduced bone strength comes a greater risk of breaks and fractures.

“This is especially important in relation to riding and the effect of trauma,” says Jenni. “You are at much greater risk of breaking a bone if you fall off in your 50s than in your 20s, and you’re not going to bounce back as quickly.”

Exercises for horse riders to help offset the challenges of menopause

Although living a horsey lifestyle has many health benefits, riding itself is a relatively non-weight bearing sport.

“You don’t get the same bone adaptations as you would if you were doing land-based exercise like running or lifting weights,” explains Jenni. “This is where strength training comes in.”

“People think it’s going to be hard and scary, but it doesn’t have to be. Strength training can include anything that involves pushing, pulling, twisting or turning against resistance, such as gravity or weights.

“To enhance muscle mass you need to increase the load gradually – whether this is through more reps or adding weight – and this is where riders can really benefit from a structured training plan.”

Jenni adds that going to the gym is not essential – and there are plenty of exercises you can do even out of the saddle to build strength.

“There are lots of little workouts that you can incorporate into your day-to-day routine,” she says. “You could do 10 to 15 squats while you’re filling water buckets, or 10-12 inclined press-ups on your tack room counter while you’re waiting for your kettle to boil, for example.”

Oestrogen also has a protective effect on the heart, so when levels fall it can affect our long-term cardio health.

“Sometimes, riding alone isn’t enough to protect heart health during menopause,” says Jenni, who recommends incorporating 10–15 minutes of brisk walking, short bursts of skipping or running uphill into your routine.

“Start by doing this a few times a week and gradually build up so that you are doing around 150 minutes of moderate cardio exercise or 75 minutes of vigorous exercise per week, alongside strength training.”

The right diet for menopause

Like bone and muscle health, fat distribution affects men and women differently, and changes as we age.

British Equestrian’s human physio and athlete health lead Ash Wallace, who works with numerous elite female riders across the disciplines, says: “Riders sometimes complain that they are eating the same things as they have always done, yet they are putting on weight. This is because the body is no longer able to process carbohydrates as effectively and so it stores them as fat.”

The best way to manage this is through making simple diet changes.

“Aim to get your carbs through vegetables and try to cut down on pasta and starchy foods,” advises Ash. “And if you’re someone who eats a lot of fruit try to stick to berries, and avoid fruit that is high in fructose, like bananas and mangoes.”

Calorie reduction should not be the aim – if you’re not eating well but still working as hard, then you’re not giving yourself a chance to recover properly. Instead, focus on eating well, incorporating a variety of foods, including those that support bone and heart health, like high-quality protein, plenty of fruit and veg, omega-3s, plus plenty of calcium.

“It can also be a good idea to take a vitamin D supplement for bone health, especially in the winter when there isn’t much sun,” says Ash.

“Although I’m not big on taking supplements, increasing your magnesium intake can help with sleep, as can drinking a shot of tart cherry juice – which is high in sleep-inducing melatonin – just before bed.”

Painful joints, arthritis and old injuries often flare up in menopause, as oestrogen protects joints and decreases inflammation.

Ash explains that intolerances can change with time and affect the body’s inflammatory processes.

“A lot of people find their bodies can’t tolerate highly processed foods or alcohol as well as they used to,” she says. “We become a little bit more sensitised to things that cause inflammation, which can then affect all sorts of body processes.”

Cognitive changes, from confidence to brain fog

Consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist Tracy-Louise Appleyard, who is also a keen rider, says that cognitive changes, including anxiety and a loss of confidence, are very common.

“They can manifest in different ways – some people might lose their nerve in the saddle, while others suddenly decide they don’t want to drive their lorries anymore,” she says.

“Recognising that the cause could be hormone changes, as opposed to a mental health issue or ‘just old age’, is crucial so that women can get the right support and treatment.”

Tracy-Louise’s observations as a clinician are backed up by the results of a study carried out by British Equestrian level four coach, University of Gloucestershire student and saddle fitter Steph Bradley, who looked at the effect of perimenopause and menopause on riders.

Around 75% of the 1,600 female riders who took part in the study said their enjoyment of the sport had been affected by anxiety and confidence issues.

“It’s not only riders who need to understand that their hormones might be behind their symptoms, but coaches need to recognise this, too,” says Steph. “They need to be prepared to say: ‘It’s OK that you’re not up for this today, let’s focus on something else.’

Brain fog can be a particularly frustrating problem in menopause for competitive riders.

“Forgetting your dressage test is annoying, but sudden mental blocks can also have serious repercussions,” points out Steph. “At top-level eventing, for example, you need to be mentally on your game. It’s important that riders recognise when to seek help.”

Action plan

While subjects like forgetfulness and weight gain can make for relatively easy lorry park banter, other menopause-related symptoms are less openly discussed.

“Pelvic and genital discomfort is something that women don’t like to talk about, but it’s a very common problem among female riders – as it is for cyclists,” says Tracy-Louise.

“Problems like dryness and irritation in the genital area can make sitting down anywhere exceptionally uncomfortable, let alone in a saddle.

“There has been a lot of discussion on the subject in women’s cycling, but while cyclists can get some relief by wearing padded clothing, this is not an obvious option for riders.”

There are some padded underwear options for equestrians, but many riders don’t know they exist.

For some, medical intervention may be the best course of action.

“Discomfort can be greatly improved with the application of topical vaginal oestrogen, which is absorbed locally,” says Tracy-Louise.

Paying attention to clothing can make a big difference to temperature regulation and comfort, especially where hot flushes are concerned.

“Hot flushes and horses don’t mix well, especially when you’re weighed down with all the protective gear,” points out Tracy-Louise. “I always advise people to wear layers which they can take off, and to choose modern, breathable fabrics.”

When it comes to offsetting the effects of perimenopause and menopause, small changes can make a big difference.

“It is important to remember that menopause is not a disease, but a natural stage of life,” concludes Dr Jenni Douglas. “And while it comes with its challenges you have the power to influence it.”

Case study: “We’ve got each other’s backs”

When company director and former three-star eventer Emily Brodrick-Stewart found herself hurtling towards a surgery-induced early menopause at the age of 37 she admits that she was “floored” by the symptoms, which “just kept coming”.

“I was exhausted all the time and I really struggled to keep on top of work and competing,” recalls the now 48-year-old, who made the decision to switch from eventing to showjumping.

“I liked the challenge of trying something new, plus I found only having to concentrate on one discipline easier to fit around work.

“I also used to be a real gym bunny and go really hard on cardio workouts, but my body started telling me that I needed to do things a bit differently. Now my workouts are gentler and focus on strength and flexibility.”

While Emily acknowledges the contribution that exercise, diet and hormone therapy have made to restoring her riding mojo, she says that having the support of friends going through the same thing has been “the biggest game-changer”.

“There are three of us who go jumping and we call ourselves the ‘Dorset girls’ because we met at a clinic in the West Country,” she says. “We remind each other to send in our show entries, pack our breeches and take our vitamin D.

“We have a WhatsApp group where we plan our training and stay-away shows, and we help each other once we get there,” she says. “To know I’m not the only one struggling to remember the course or how many strides there are in a combination is really reassuring. We’re all going through the same thing, and we’ve got each other’s backs.”

If you would like more support, here’s where you can find more menopause advice for horse riders.

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Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

In the final part of this series on rider balance, exclusive for H&H subscribers, we address how you can work on improving your core and strength out of the saddle. Check out these exercises you do at home without loads of gym kit – or even while waiting for the kettle to boil

In the previous articles in this series, Horse & Hound has spoken to top trainers to find out how to improve rider balance while riding at home. But what horse rider strengthening exercises can you do off the horse?

Rider, coach and equine-specific personal trainer Christine Gay says that what happens off the horse impacts riding. “It’s important to have an awareness of our posture, strengths and weaknesses,” she says.

“However a rider walks, sits or stands will be reflected in their posture on a horse. So, if you have an asymmetry – for example, you drop through a hip – but only ever work on it when you’re riding, you’ll only see limited progression.”

Christine says balance and strength are interlinked, and cultivating strength and symmetry in the body means riding with appropriate levels of suppleness and resistance.

“You have the rider who’s tense, showing too much resistance, the rider who’s too supple and has no stability, and the toned rider who is supple enough to absorb the horse’s movement, but can at the same time resist it to stay stable in the saddle,” Christine explains.

“It’s about finding a balance between all three. You have to have strength to have tone, but you don’t want to go to the extreme of becoming tense.”

Many equestrians are pressed for time, although Christine says horse rider strengthening exercises can fit around equine and work commitments.

“We only ride for a limited time, so any extra time spent working on symmetry and strength is beneficial,” she adds. “In five minutes while the kettle boils or you’re waiting for the farrier, you can do something small to improve yourself.”

Horse rider strengthening exercises: before you begin

Christine explains that any physical exercise should be conducted with caution. She advises consulting your GP before engaging in any of these horse rider strengthening exercises if you:

• have a heart condition
• feel chest pains when exercising, or have had chest pain in the last month at rest
• experience dizziness
• have a bone or joint problem that may worsen as a result of exercise
• take medication for blood pressure or a heart condition

Exercise 1: Chair squat

How it helps: This exercise strengthens the quads and glutes, and engages the core. This helps increase lower body strength, which improves stability and balance.

Kit: a stable chair or stool

• Put both feet flat on the floor. You may need to shuffle forwards in the chair to achieve this.
• From this sitting position, clasp your hands together in front of you with elbows bent, engage your core to lift yourself out of the chair.

3. Once upright gently and slowly lower yourself back into your chair, keeping your arms clasped together, like you are searching for a chair that might not be there.

4. Repeat this 12 times for 3 sets, total of 36 times with 30 seconds rest in-between each set of 12.

Step it up: You can progress this onto a single leg version, have one foot flat on the floor and the other leg lifted off the floor by six inches, then repeat the steps keeping one leg lifted off the ground.

Repeat 10 times on each leg for up to 3 sets, resting in-between.

Exercise 2: Glute bridge

How it helps: This exercise strengthens the glutes, hamstrings and core to improve stability, hip mobility and lower back posture.

Kit: a yoga mat if you have one, otherwise a carpeted floor or a thick towel or rug

• Lie on your back on the floor and bend your knees, ensure you can just touch the back of your heels with your fingertips.

2. Ensuring both your shoulders are in contact with the floor, lift your bottom up to raise your hips as high as you can, driving through the heels of your feet

3. Lower yourself gently to the floor. You can progress this exercise, if stable in your body, to lifting your arms off the floor, pointing them up to the ceiling, palms facing each other.

4. Repeat 12 times for 3 sets with a rest in between.

Step it up:  A further progression is a single-leg glute bridge. Lift one foot off the floor to approximately the height of the opposite knee. Keeping your lifted leg knee at a 45-degree angle, push your hips up into a glute bridge using only one leg.

Repeat 10 times on each leg for up to 3 sets, resting in between.

Exercise 3: Standing balance leg abduction

How this helps: This exercise mobilises and strengthens the hip abductors and stabilises the pelvis to improve balance, stability and coordination.

• Starting in a standing position, ensure you are balanced equally over the corners of your feet with a neutral spine and core engaged.
• Lift one foot three to four inches off the ground.
• Once you feel balanced take your lifted leg out to the side, abducting it away from your body with your foot flexed. Only take your leg away as far as you can keep your upper body still, well controlled and balanced. You don’t want to tip to the side, forwards or backwards.

Repeat 10 times on each leg for three sets, resting in between.

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Horse rider strength and balance go hand in hand, as five-star eventer and BHS Fellow Kylie Roddy explains: “If you imagine carrying a backpack that’s heavier on one side than the other, it’ll be harder for you to walk. So, if you aren’t balanced on your horse, it’s going to have the same effect.”

Balance requires stability, which means conditioning the muscles.

“It takes strength to stabilise your pelvis, and a lot of muscle groups are involved,” Kylie continues, adding that it’s all-encompassing, not just the core. “Your abs and back, hip flexors and glutes, all the way to the quads in the front of your legs; all those muscle systems work to balance you, so they all need to be strong.”

According to Kylie, lack of condition in these muscle groups might lead riders to rely on other ways to balance, such as their reins.

“You quite often see people with a lot of weight in the heel and their leg forward,” she adds. “A balanced rider has their ear, shoulder, hip and heel in a vertical line. If that line isn’t vertical, then the rider is out of balance with their horse.”

Strength is also important because muscle fatigue impacts the quality of your riding.

“If you go into a dressage test after a 30-minute warm-up, but that’s also the time it takes to reach your muscle fatigue zone, then you’re going into your test and will be doing your best work with tired muscles.”

How to improve horse rider strength and balance at home

“Keeping your ear, shoulder hip and heel in the vertical line is the easiest way to check that you’re in balance,” says Kylie. “It’s great if you’ve got arena mirrors, because every time you ride past, you can check yourself. If you don’t, ask someone with good eyes who knows what to look for to watch you.”

If you need to adjust your position regularly, it’s a sign you lack some of the strength you need for balance in the saddle. The good news? It’s easy to incorporate fitness exercises into your busy equestrian life to target these groups. The best news? You can do it mounted.

Exercise 1: ride a centre line without stirrups

“This is best if you have arena mirrors, or can get a friend to film you,” says Kylie. “Simply ride down the centre line without your stirrups, and turn at the end of the area.”

The aim is to keep your pelvis equally distributed in the saddle throughout.

“If you drew a line pommel to cantle down the center of your saddle, your horse’s spine should align with that, with your seat bones sat evenly on either side.”

The benefits

A go-to for horse rider strength and balance, no-stirrup work engages your core and helps expose any crookedness, which allows you to improve it.

“When you’re watching yourself down the centreline, you’ll likely notice that one leg looks longer than the other,” explains Kylie. “Actually, it’s that your pelvis has slipped to the side. Your aim is to ride towards the mirror or helper on the ground while keeping your feet level.”

Kylie says turning one way will likely feel easier than the other.

“Most riders’ pelvises will slide to the outside, so you’ll go from having a long, straight inside leg to it gripping up. This is associated with an unstable seat.”

To remedy this, riders should feel that their outside seatbone is on the pommel to cantle line through the saddle. “That won’t be the reality – you’ll actually be sitting square.”

Exercise 2: remain standing

“Kenneth Clawson trained me as a young rider,” says Kylie. “One day, when we were working in, he said: ‘no one’s allowed to sit today’. He had us walking, trotting and cantering all without our bottoms ever touching the saddle!”

The benefits

While we wouldn’t recommend jumping straight in with a whole ridden session (why not set a 30-second timer and build up from there?) standing in the stirrups is an intense leg workout that’s easy to do.

“The other benefit is that the relief from sitting down helps you relax into the seat, making you more secure,” adds Kylie.

Exercise 3: 10 strides at a time

For something a little more involved, Kylie recommends:

• Put your stirrups to jumping length and pick up canter
• Sitting normally, count 10 canter strides
• Adopt a two-point seat for 10 canter strides
• Stand for 10 canter strides
• Return to the two-point seat for 10 canter strides
• Repeat steps 2-5

The benefits

“This balance-improving exercise requires the rider to gently find their way back down to the saddle without disturbing the horse’s rhythm or falling backwards to hit the cantle,” explains Kylie. “It develops the strength needed to control that movement, which is all part of being stable in the saddle – you have to find and control that softness in the knee and ankle to lift and slowly lower yourself back into the saddle.”

Kylie suggests steadying yourself by putting a finger into the neck strap if you feel yourself wobble.

• Have you tried these horse rider strength and balance exercises? Let us know how you got on by emailing hhletters@futurenet.com, including your name, nearest town and country, for the chance to appear in a forthcoming issue of the magazine

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Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Horse and rider training

Welcome to Horse & Hound’s training hub. Whether you are looking for techniques to improve your riding skills, insight from top trainers and riders on how to prepare your horse for a specific sport, or tips to help solve specific problems, you will find useful advice from experts to help.

Horse & Hound’s training exercise of the week

Choose a topic:

• Dressage
• Eventing
• Showjumping
• Showing
• Cross-country
• Hacking
• Polework
• Gridwork
• Lateral work
• Groundwork
• How horses learn
• Young horses
• Riding techniques
• Rider fitness
• Rider mindset
• Problem solving
• Learning to ride

Daily training inspiration

Execute smarter square halts with just four poles

• Improve horse’s straightness
• Help with accurate placement of the halt
• Create a square halt

Try today’s exercise or find more daily inspiration.

Riders are often guilty of overlooking their own nutrition in favour of their horses’, but both are vital for peak performance. Andrea Oakes investigates in this article from the H&H archives...

While their horse’s diets may be planned with precision, how many riders could say the same about their own? Skipping breakfast and reaching for sugary snacks when energy levels drop might get you through the day, but neglecting your nutritional needs can negatively affect your performance and outlook in the longer term. According to British Equestrian nutrition consultant Dan Martin, a more organised dietary approach will pay dividends in any discipline.

“It’s easy to find excuses not to eat well,” says Dan, who acknowledges that the “equestrian lifestyle” – early starts, long hours and frequent trips away – can play havoc with eating habits. “But while the health benefits of good nutrition are well known, many riders underestimate how their diet can influence not just their own performance but that of their horse.”

One positive spin-off of eating well is riding at the optimum bodyweight for your shape and height.

“Showjumping can be described as an ‘anti-gravitational’ sport, in the same way as our own high jump or pole vault,” explains Dan. “It’s not rocket science to understand that the heavier an object, the more force is required to get it into the air. The aim is to be light enough to help the horse but with sufficient energy and strength to control him, which might mean losing or gaining weight.”

The good news is there’s no need for crash diets or complex meal plans. Healthy eating means nothing too faddy, says Dan, rather a sensible approach that fits into a busy lifestyle.

“Begin with just one good habit, building to two or three,” he advises. “The reward then comes from reaching landmarks and goals, whether that’s seeing your weight come down or your energy increase.

“Start each day with a decent breakfast that includes slow-release carbohydrates, such as porridge, with a source of protein like milk or Greek yoghurt and perhaps a few berries,” he says. “Lunch could be a meat-filled sandwich, combining protein and carbs.

“If there’s no time to stop for lunch, have something small every 1.5 to two hours, instead,” he adds. “Riding is not technically an endurance sport, but some of the same principles apply such as the ‘little and often’ approach to refuelling. Suitable healthy snacks include malt loaf, hard-boiled eggs, half a bagel with peanut butter or jam and protein-based yoghurt drinks.

“Base your evening meal around protein, for muscle repair, with two to three portions of vegetables,” he continues. “This is your least active time, so dinner should be less heavy on the carbs. But if you didn’t eat adequately during the day, you’ll need carbs to refuel.

“Fluid intake is also important, especially if you’re working hard and sweating all day,” says Dan, who explains that sweat tests can determine fluid and electrolyte losses during exercise. “Hydrating – or rehydrating – is key. Don’t drink your calories in the form of sugary drinks, and limit caffeine – especially coffee – to the morning, to avoid sleep disturbance.”

The best intentions can soon unravel during long lorry journeys or at stay-away shows.

“If you’re underprepared, calorie-dense food may be the only option available,” says Dan. “Plan carefully to suit your needs and goals, so there’s less chance of a relapse. While I wouldn’t usually recommend a high-carb meal in the evening, this will set good foundations if you’ll be up early the next morning and won’t have the time or appetite to eat.

“Topping up your carbs and addressing immediate energy needs with flapjack or Jelly Babies just before entering the ring will do no harm for a day,” he adds. “And it’s OK to eat food at weird times – rice or pasta for breakfast, for example – if it works for you. The important thing is that you’re properly fuelled and feel comfortable to perform.

“Your first main meal after the event should balance protein, carbs and micronutrients [vitamins and minerals]. The emphasis is then on repair, so aim for fewer carbs and higher protein. Foods that reduce inflammation – dark green and dark red vegetables, and dark berries – are ideal.”

If you’ve let healthy habits slide over the Christmas period, can you get back to being at the top of your game before you head out competing again?

“Now is the time to eat with winning in mind,” says Dan. “Work towards your optimum weight: try to consume 500kcals less per day than you’re burning to lose weight, or 300kcals more to gain it. Wearable technology such as Fitbit and Garmin watches can help estimate this.

“Clean out the lorry and restock the cabin and living area with healthy, non-perishable goods. Then make a plan for your competition energy needs and practise it now, not on the day that it really matters.”

“Eventing is particularly demanding,” he adds. “We know from racing that every extra pound carried over a mile equals a deficit of one horse length at the finish, so, if you’re a few pounds over the optimum, time-penalties can really add up around a four-mile cross-country course. Over the three days, any excess weight negates the horse’s speed and increases fatigue.

“Carrying weight is also an issue in dressage, especially at higher levels,” says Dan. “Anything we can do to lighten the load is a bonus, causing the horse less undue stress and reducing long-term wear and tear.”

Another key factor for success is the ability to make rational decisions and keep problems in perspective. Could dodgy dietary habits be undermining our motivation?

“Foods that are high in sugar give us an instant feel-good hit, but we become dependent on this and develop cravings,” explains Dan. “A downward spiral follows, where we feel bad about these choices and our mood becomes low.

“We can break the cycle by establishing good habits,” he says. “Yet some riders struggle to address dietary issues because they don’t see themselves as athletes. If you make a living out of riding, you are a professional athlete – and you stand to benefit if you start treating yourself that way.”

Five-star eventer Matt Heath

“I never used to eat breakfast,” says Matt, who rides as many as 16 horses a day. “I grew up on a racing yard, as my dad was a jockey and then a head lad, and jockeys dieted differently then. But now I’ll have scrambled eggs on toast.

“The start of the year is tough as we’re bringing the horses up to a level of fitness, ready to compete,” he adds. “I don’t stop for lunch but I often make a snack when I get home late afternoon – maybe a sandwich, or some leftover pasta. I like tea and coffee at the yard, but I also keep hydrated with water or weak squash.

“I have a substantial evening meal such as roast chicken or Thai green chicken curry, with potatoes, rice or pasta and vegetables,” says Matt. “We still eat well when we’re away eventing, cooking in the lorry or lighting the barbecue and making a big salad.”

Dan says: “Eggs on toast is a superb breakfast, providing energy, protein and fibre, which helps us feel fuller for longer. If you struggle to eat in the day, consuming energy and protein in drink form may suit you. Try warm milk, or a homemade smoothie with oats, protein powder and berries.”

International dressage rider Amy Woodhead

A bowl of porridge sets Amy up for her first ride at 7.30am. With up to 14 horses to school, however, there’s no time for lunch.

“I don’t ride on a full stomach because I get stitches,” she explains. “I’m more of a ‘light grazer’. I like a cup of tea, followed quickly by coffee, but I limit caffeine; at the moment, I’m drinking hot water and lemon.

“It is important to eat well,” she adds. “I might treat myself when I buy pastries for the team, or have some chocolate biscuits to dunk in my tea, but I don’t overload with sugar or fast food. It’s only fair to the horses to have some kind of balance.

“I have a good evening meal, such as chicken or fish with vegetables,” adds Amy, who often cooks with meal kits from Hello Fresh. “When we’re away at a show I’m the designated chef; we like chicken fajitas, or spaghetti and meatballs. And I made us all bagels with avocado and egg each morning.”

Dan says: “Top marks for cooking when you’re away. With that workload I’d consider some better high-energy snacks, as biscuits and pastries provide only refined sugar and fat. Good homemade options include peanut butter brownies or banana bread; load them with extra vitamins and minerals to get more bang for your buck.”

International showjumper Georgia Tame

Georgia’s aim is to have strength and energy, whether she’s at her home base or jumping in the UK or overseas.

“At home I start with eggs or cereal for breakfast,” she says. “I stop for lunch if I can, usually soup or a sandwich with some protein in it, but during a busy day I just grab an energy-giving snack.

“My main meal is in the evening,” Georgia adds. “I love food, so each night is different, but I particularly enjoy a Mexican meal or a good steak. I eat a lot of fruit and vegetables, but I am a bit of a chocoholic.”

Georgia keeps well hydrated in hot weather, but finds it harder to drink water when it’s cold. She admits that healthy eating habits are harder to maintain while travelling or away competing.

“Luckily, my nerves don’t affect my appetite on show days,” she says. “Not many venues give you a healthy option, though – it’s normally burgers and chips. I do snack while driving long distances, to keep myself awake, but finding something suitable can be difficult.”

Dan says: “It’s always good to see a varied diet, as this means there’s less chance of a deficiency in certain nutrients. Optimal nutrition while travelling is all in the preparation, so buy your driving snacks ahead of time, not when you’re on the road and hungry. By planning your venue meals, you can steer clear of the burger van.”

• To stay up to date with all the breaking news throughout major shows, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

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Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

It can be easy to forget about your own fitness when you are focused on keeping your horse in peak condition. Here, sports therapist Debbie Rolmanis explains the importance of a rider's core — and busts some misconceptions about it

Arenas around the globe are full of a familiar cry of “your core needs to be stronger”, and it is used for the rider who cannot sit to the trot all the way up to those unable to conquer a clean flying change.

It has become the go-to, get out of jail free card for every unbalanced piece of riding and whilst the message that a strong core will give you an independent seat is not inherently wrong, piggy backing off the fitness industry’s obsession with a six pack, is.

So, what really is the core?

To be biomechanically correct, the core should be thought of as every muscle that attaches to the pelvis (of which there are over 30 including attachments to the sacrum and the hips).

The pelvis really is the biomechanic super power of the human body, and for the rider it is especially critical as it becomes the base of support in the saddle. Every movement of the horse is received by the pelvis.

That means that all the muscles which connect to this titan of a structure; above, below, front, back, side to side, superficial and deep, will have an impact on the positioning of the body in the saddle.

Thinking of the core as this entire unit will give the rider a much more accurate and holistic approach to ‘core training’ and how it influences everything; from how the upper body is stacked above the pelvis, to how the legs hang beneath it.

Back to front

Mechanically, the strongest part of the body should be the posterior chain — ie the muscles at the back of the body; lower back, glutes and hamstrings.

In days of old we would’ve used our bodies in a way that complimented this design; every movement our ancestors made in the form of squatting, pulling, pushing etc would be strengthening the back and keeping the hips mobile. Modern day compressive living leaves us shortening the front of the body and leaving the posterior chain lengthened and weak.

Sitting for long periods of time presses against the hamstrings which restricts the bloodflow they receive, putting them into a habitually shortened and weak position.

At the same time it lengthens and weakens the glutes and tightens the hip flexors. The upper body begins to fold forward, shortening the front of the body. In clear terms, all we are succeeding at is bringing the nose and the knees closer together. And nobody wants that.

Unravelling this posture is not possible by just standing up (however this does help) as habitual shortening of the front of the body pulls the pelvis out of optimal alignment, even when standing.

Transferring this misalignment and weakness into the saddle creates an incredibly difficult challenge for the pelvis. Trying to maintain balance and stability when it has to constantly adjust to the horses’ movement with poor “complete” strength becomes a near impossibility.

Crunch time: how does the core work?

This network of muscles that attach to the pelvis are a complete unit. They are constantly communicating with each other and when the body is aligned and functioning correctly they are happily all speaking the same language.

The muscles of the lower back, who have been assigned the role of the strongest member of the team, dictate the conversation. When these muscles are switched on and strong, their communication (via spinal stabilisation) tells the abdominal muscles to switch on at the level of strength required. That is a key piece of information. If the body is working correctly, the lower back fires up and provides intelligence to the abdominal corset on how strong it needs to be. It is the conductor of the orchestra, the CEO, the captain of the ship. You get the idea. It’s the boss.

Unfortunately, when the lower back musculature is weak and abused from poor movement, it cannot stabilise the spine and therefore cannot direct the rest of the core muscles into their roles.

Targeting the front of the body (standard “core” training) without looking after the posterior muscles, is similar to communicating vital statistics on a phone with poor signal. Information is lost and the result is unsatisfactory.

Without the leadership of the lower back, targeting the front part of the core becomes purely an exercise in shortening the abdominals whilst closing the gap between the vertebrae of the lumbar spine, which ultimately means damage and pain.

The message here is that the lower back needs to be the first one on the list of priorities. When we are able to align and strengthen this area, the abdominals at the front and sides of the body are able to switch on and carry out their supportive roles with the appropriate level of tension.

The hips

The function of the hips forms a massive part of this story of looking at the “complete core”.

The muscles below the pelvis, particularly the glutes and hamstrings are key to the correct function of the pelvis and the hips, which is vital for the rider. In order to sit in the saddle with a long, elegant leg the rider needs to take the hip into some external rotation and extension (moving the leg towards the back of the horse), which requires the glutes and hamstrings to be firing.

The unavoidable truth is that most riders have at least one hip they wished could be traded in, and once again, we have to look at the effect of compressive living; that is a habitually seated posture that closes our hip joint and makes our butt muscles disappear.

The result is a hip that cannot move into extension (glutes weak, stretched and unable to contract) which impacts the positioning of the pelvis, the leg and the upper body in the saddle.

The hips should be the main fulcrum of the body, and treating every muscle that attaches to the pelvis as part of the core ensures that the hips start to regain some mobility.

Find out more at dbmuscletherapy.com

• To stay up to date with all the breaking news throughout all the major shows in 2025, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

You may also be interested in:

Rider biomechanics: 13 things to bear in mind if you want to be a good rider

Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

If you’re looking for some fitness exercises to do at home that could benefit your riding, then we are here to help.

We have teamed up with Phoebe Bolton, a human and equine osteopath who specialises in rider strength and conditioning, to bring you some simple fitness exercises you can do at home to keep your strength and fitness levels up while away from the yard.

“The main thing most riders need to work on is their posterior chain — the back of the body,” says Phoebe. “People often focus on working the muscles they can see, for example targeting their quads with lots of squats. But the propulsion of the horse’s movement tends to throw the rider forward, meaning the back of the body has to be strong to stay balanced. Most riders need to improve the strength of their upper back muscles, their glutes and their hamstrings.”

Adding resistance to your strength exercises gives you extra bang for your buck, and one of the easiest ways to do this is to use a resistance band.

But Phoebe also have an ingenius alternative to using a resistance band.

“Simply grab an old pair of tights — you can use them in so many ways, like you would a resistance band,” she says.

Start off by incorporating the following four exercises into your routine, ideally spending 20 minutes on these exercises, four times a week.

*H&H recommends riders are suitably warmed-up before attempting any of these exercises and that you remain within your comfort zone in terms of repetitions and frequency. If you have any existing health conditions and are unsure about the suitability of these exercises, please check with a medical professional.

1. Bent over row for your upper back

“Stand on the middle part of the tights with your feet shoulder width apart and bend forward slightly, keeping your back straight,” instructs Phoebe. “Hold your resistance band or tights like reins, bend your elbows and pull your hands up towards your chest, pulling your shoulders back and your shoulder blades together.

“This exercise strengthens the mid-traps — the muscles between your shoulder blades.”

2. Clamshells for your glutes

“Clamshells target your glute medius, on the outside of your pelvis. Lie on your side with your knees bent and feet stacked on top of each other. Put the resistance band or tights (tie a knot halfway down the tights) around your knees, then lift your top knee slowly up the sky,” says Phoebe.

“Ideally, don’t let your body tip backwards – imagine your body being between two panes of glass.

“Strengthening these glute muscles helps with your pelvic balance. In the saddle, we want our seatbones to be equal – when a rider is weaker on one side of their pelvis, they will be less stable on that side. This is often the reason riders tend to ‘collapse’ their hips on one side.”

3. Side plank for your obliques

“Lie on your side, propped on your elbow, with your body straight and your feet stacked on top of each other, then lift your hips off the floor so your body is in a straight line,” says Phoebe. “Try to hold this for up to 40 seconds, starting with shorter periods and building up.”

“The side plank is great for shoulder stability as well as your obliques, the core muscles at the side of your body.”

4. Internal rotation hip stretch

“Hip flexibility is really important for riders,” says Phoebe, who recommends holding stretches for up to five minutes to reap the full benefits from them.

“Sit on the floor with you knees bent up and you feet on the floor, a little wider than shoulder width apart, and your weight equally across both seatbones. Drop the inside of your left knee to the floor and the outside of your right knee to the floor, then lean forward over your left knee, trying to keep both seatbones on the floor. You should feel the stretch on the inside of the left hip. Bring your knees back up and swap sides.

“You’ll probably find that this is harder on one side than the other,” adds Phoebe. “When you start the stretch, only go to the first point where you can feel it, then when that lessens you can push slightly further into it – this could be every 30 seconds.”

Resistance bands

Resistance bands are an effective, space-efficient way to take your fitness exercises to the next level. They are small, lightweight, hugely versatile and come in a range of sizes, designs and resistance levels, making them suitable for everybody. Whether you’re new to exercise or experienced and confident in the the gym, resistance bands can benefit your workout.

Fitness exercises involving resistance aim to increase your muscle strength and function through working against a resistant force. This could be a weight, a resistance band or your own body weight.

Resistance bands tend to come in different colours to indicate their resistance, which mimics the power of weights, and a beginner should opt for a band featuring lighter elastic resistance. Many bands come in sets with different resistance levels, so you can match the most appropriate band to each exercise.

Probably the versatile type are mini resistance bands, which are small loops usually sold in multi-packs with different colour bands indicating different resistance levels, and can be used in the fitness exercises described above.

• To stay up to date with all the breaking news throughout major shows, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

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Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Learning how to improve your balance in horse riding is a cornerstone to becoming an effective rider. Whether navigating a challenging cross-country course, perfecting a dressage movement or simply enjoying a hack, a rider’s ability to stay centred and connected is key to communicating harmoniously with their horse.

However, achieving true balance is a nuanced and ongoing process, even for the most accomplished riders. It demands a combination of physical awareness, mental concentration, and an understanding of the horse’s natural movement.

“Riding is all about balance,” stresses Dickie Waygood MBE, one of Britain’s most successful military event riders and current eventing performance manager. “The reason we strive for a correct seat is because this is how the horse can carry the rider with maximum efficiency, and it is the most effective position for the rider to apply the aids.”

A rider’s fitness and biomechanics play a huge part in this, but you don’t need to be spending hours in the gym on top of the riding you’re currently doing to improve. Alongside the at-home strengthening tips we’ve included below, there are some in-the-saddle exercises you can incorporate into your ridden sessions.

Ridden exercises to improve balance in horse riding

Exercise one: no-stirrup work

Riding without stirrups is the most tried and tested way to improve strength and stability in the saddle, training you to rely on your core and seat rather than gripping with your knees.

It can be done both on or off the lunge. At the Spanish Riding School, for example, it’s still compulsory for trainee riders to spend the first two years of their education on the lunge without stirrups.

But if you’re on the lunge make sure it’s with a suitable horse and that you have a knowledgeable person on the ground to help you – not only will this help keep you safe, but they’ll also be able to remind you of the basics like looking up and ahead while letting you know if your position changes.

Likewise, if you’re off the lunge, it’s safest to warm up with stirrups so you can assess whether your horse feels like they will be able to cope with you riding without stirrups that day.

Top tips: 

• “If you are going to ride without stirrups it’s important to have a neckstrap so you have something to put your finger through if you lose your balance or your horse spooks,” says international event rider Ibby Macpherson.
• Dickie reminds riders to still ride with intention even without stirrups: “Think about what you are trying to achieve and do specific exercises to help.” Pay attention to your lines, and keep reminding yourself of the basic alignments, like “head, shoulder, hip, and heel” and “elbow, wrist, thumb, rein, and bit”.
• He adds that it’s important to take regular breaks: “If you feel yourself starting to tire, take a short break. Tension only has a negative effect; it is a downward spiral. When you are fatigued, and also when the horse is tired, muscles become tense and tight. Then you lose relaxation – physically and mentally – you and your horse. Relaxation equals suppleness.”

Exercise two: no hands

Riding without reins is another excellent way to help develop an independent seat and eliminate the habit of using hands for balance. For safety, it should be done on a lunge line with the assistance of an experienced handler. Depending on the rider’s skill level, this can be performed at the walk, trot, or canter, with or without stirrups to increase the challenge.

Katie Jerram-Hunnable, one of the country’s leading show producers says: “If things are not going well, I strip everything back. When I’m lungeing someone without stirrups and reins, I can see whether they have an independent seat and whether their hands are too strong. I make sure they can do rising trot and transitions without reins.”

Top tips: 

• Performing arm circles helps improve balance and body awareness. Work one or both arms at a time, moving them forwards, backwards, or even in opposite directions simultaneously for an extra challenge. This exercise helps riders improve their body awareness, a crucial skill for disciplines like dressage where different parts of the body must work independently.
• Visualise holding a large, delicate beach ball in your arms directly in front of your torso. Keep your imaginary ball intact as you transition between paces. This encourages riders to maintain an open, upright posture through the chest and midsection without collapsing. Likewise, try riding with your arms outstretched and rotating your torso slowly from side to side while keeping your lower leg position the same.
• Experiment with transitions. Practice transitioning between gaits without using your reins. Likewise, try moving the horse’s quarters in or out. This improves your ability to use seat and leg aids independently and effectively.
• If you have your stirrups, try standing up in them. Check to see if your upper body tips forward, or if your lower leg slides back. You can use a neck strap and build up to riding without it.

At-home exercises to improve balance when riding

A rider’s lack of flexibility, strength and fitness can severely limit their ability to find balance in the saddle. With more and more people now working behind a desk and moving less, we all have tightnesses we should be working on.

However, Dee Holdsworth, who’s the founder of Dynamic Sports Therapy, says a relatively small investment in time can have far-reaching positive effects on your performance as a rider.

Here – and in the video above – are some at-home exercises she recommends to help improve your horse riding balance.

Exercise one: banded chop

This exercise strengthens the legs and lower back through a dynamic chain exercise to improve rotation through your core and the ability to balance your body across your pelvis.

• Don’t have a resistance band with handles? Try this one from amazon.co.uk

Exercise two: lunge on the beam

This functional dynamic exercise will improve your balance and your ability to sense movement within your joints and joint position. This enables us to develop awareness of where our limbs are, which is essential for maintaining the correct position while riding.

• Want to try using a balance beam? Here’s one we found on amazon.co.uk

Exercise three: bosu squat

This exercise combines leg strength, utilising your core and balance. It is a great exercise for riders of all disciplines as it combines all the body elements required to achieve the best possible seat.

• Want to have a go at using a bosu balance ball? Try this one from amazon.co.uk

This video is brought to you in association with fitnesstroop.co.uk (Katie Brighton-Jones), shadowplay.co.uk (Philip E James) and performbetter.co.uk.

• To stay up to date with all the breaking news throughout major shows such as London International and more, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

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Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Mary Wanless, an internationally renowned dressage coach and rider biomechanics specialist, shares some useful advice on how correct biomechanics can positively affect performance.

1. The way in which you position your limbs, how stable you are and how you are able to influence your horse is done through the biomechanics of your body. The more strong and stable, yet supple you are in your body, (i.e where the rider has good biomechanics), the more they can positively influence their horse.

2. As you are sitting on your horse, your shoulder, hip and heel should all align. Think about whether you would land on your feet, in balance if your horse was taken from underneath you.

3. Your thigh bone should be 45 degrees to the vertical for optimum effectiveness.

4. Most riders fall into one of two categories — they are either hollow or round backed. Riders should be neutral and vertical in their back positions, where the distance from seat to neck is the same amount on both the front and rear of a rider’s upper body.

5. It is also common for riders to either fall into the up or down category in their seat. “Up” riders tend to ride like the saddle is very hot, and will sit very tall, whereas “down” riders plonk in the saddle with a heavier seat. Riders with good biomechanics will fit in-between these two categories.

6. Riders need to have the same amount of weight through both seatbones.

7. The “up” movement of a rider in rising trot should match the forward thrust of their horse.

8. There should be no movement from the knee down in the rider’s leg in rising trot. Equally, riders shouldn’t hollow their backs at the top of the rise.

9. The contact area between horse and rider should be the equivalent of the area of a full-seated pair of breeches. The rider’s weight should be distributed over the horse’s ribcage

10. Good rider biomechanics isn’t necessarily about how relaxed they are, but is more about good use of their muscles and strength (which isn’t always that relaxing!) to stabilise themselves on the horse.

11. To ride effectively, riders need to engage their core muscles — think about sucking your tummy in to make a wall and then push your core out against that wall.

12. Riders need to be equally well “stuffed” with strength through their bodies.

13. There should be more weight through your thigh than in your foot.

• To stay up to date with all the breaking news throughout Horse of the Year Show, London International and more, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

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Sports therapist Debbie Rolmanis explains the importance of controlled breathing for riders, and offers a useful exercise to help you improve your technique

Thankfully, remembering to breathe doesn’t have to be on our daily ‘to do’ list, or scheduled in our phones with a reminder alongside other chores. But while I am very grateful for evolution to have taken this responsibility away from me, there is a trade-off.

Having something of such critical importance happen without any conscious thought tends to relegate it to the pile of low priority. The casual disregard for how we bring life affirming oxygen into the body and rid it of toxic CO2 can be damaging our health, the way we move our bodies and the way we sit and function in the saddle.

Sound dramatic? That’s because it is.

Humans evolved to be predatory bipeds. Our ancestors were expected to hunt and gather; moving their bodies all day every day, performing all manner of movements; lifting, pulling, pushing, dragging, squatting, running, walking, climbing, hanging. To do this the body needed to be strong, flexible and well fed with oxygen from fully inflated lungs. We are still in bodies that are designed to do all of those things, and biomechanically we haven’t changed at all.

Humans are designed to have a long, strong torso. The ribcage and abdomen should create a strong cylinder that supports the spine and enables the limbs to work independently. This is influenced purely by the mechanic of breathing.

The impact for riders

We now know that in order to be strong and stable through the torso (a requirement when riding), we have to be able to fully expand the lungs. This allows the limbs to work independently from the spine/rib cage and it allows us to be in better balance over the horse.

Breathing out correctly is also crucial to the rider. There is a reason that some trainers encourage you to breathe out for downward transitions, so that you can increase your horses’ connection.

Why? Once you control an out breath you should feel why; you are now holding your own weight within your body. You have increased the stability of your position as you are maintaining the expansion of the torso, your spine is open and supported which enables your pelvis and hips to have more synchronicity with your horse. When you are in a more balanced seat, your horse is able to balance himself more correctly.

Exercise: expansion breathing

Recommendation: 3-5 reps of expansion breathing 3 x daily. More if possible.

Benefits

I have met very few people who breathe at their optimum, but for riders, being able to tap into the ability to breathe correctly is a massive secret weapon and here are a few of the benefits:

• Lowers heart rate for you and your horse

• By exhaling correctly you recruit trunk stabilising muscles, which will control downward transitions

• Muscles can work longer and more effectively with better oxygen supply

• Expanding the ribcage to inhale improves upper body posture and the connection of spine, pelvis and hips

• Correct breathing maintains a long and strong torso which is essential for balance, independent aids and synchronicity with your horse

• Helps digestion, organ function and reduction of pain

Technique

Stand with your feet hip width apart with a neutral spine and the back of the head lifted. Rock your weight back over your heels, and have a very small bend in the knee (soft knees).

Place your little finger on the top of your pelvis and your thumb touching your bottom rib.

To inhale: Take a deep breath in and increase the space between your thumb and little finger. The rib cage should rise as the diaphragm flattens to allow the lungs to expand and to draw air in. Your shoulders shouldn’t move, the movement should come purely from the ribs. Imagine that you are filling the lower back lobes of your lungs. Try and breathe in to a count of five.

To exhale: Squeeze the abdomen inwards and try to let the air out of the lungs in incremental bits whilst keeping the rib cage lifted. You want to think about releasing the air from the top to the bottom of the lungs bit by bit. By doing this you will engage the muscles that will keep the torso in expansion for a beneficial amount of time. Try to breathe out for as long as you can. If you can breathe out to a count of eight or nine (or more if possible) you will start to strengthen the muscles of the trunk.

Practice off-horse first, you may experience some slight light headedness initially, but persevere and this should resolve.

Once you have done a few breaths on the ground, do it next time you are riding. Practice controlling your exhalation as you ask for a downward transition and see how you both feel.

Find out more at dbmuscletherapy.com

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What if I told you there’s a breathing exercise for riders that’ll help you unlock your potential in the saddle and beyond? Like for most equestrians, improving my riding technique is a major priority. However, we in the equestrian community are typically pushed for time with tasks in all areas mounting up – most days there’s barely time for a cuppa, let alone a workout. I found myself thinking: “Can I work on my riding while going about my normal day?”

What is diaphragmatic breathing?

According to APCAT chartered physiotherapist Maeve Sheridan, tapping in to the power of the diaphragm could be the key. “The diaphragm, deep abdominal muscles and pelvic floor all work together to regulate our breathing,” she tells H&H. “Your diaphragm is the parachute shaped muscle under your lungs, it’s the main muscle for breathing.”

In riding, there’s a great deal of focus on engaging the core, which equestrians usually interpret as the need to constantly tense the abdominal muscles. “What this actually does is block the diaphragm from working effectively,” says Maeve, who runs the Activate Your Seat instagram account. “We then rely on apical breathing, using the muscles of the neck and shoulders, for sustained periods. These aren’t designed to work constantly, so they can get tight and sore.”

So, how can you engage your core while breathing effectively? When you tap into optimal diaphragm function, the abdominal muscles take care of themselves.

“On inhalation, our diaphragm contracts and moves down to allow our lungs to fill with air,” explains Maeve. “Your deep abdominal muscles need to relax to allow this to happen. At the same time, your pelvic floor muscles lengthen. When you breathe out, the reverse happens. Your pelvic floor and deep abdominal muscles contract to push the diaphragm back up and expel air out of your lungs.

“If we’re constantly thinking about keeping our abdominal muscles tense, that will block the full function of our diaphragm. If we train our diaphragms to work effectively, we don’t actually have to tense to activate our core. It happens all subconsciously through diaphragmatic breathing.”

A breathing exercise for riders: the diaphragm reset

The first breathing exercise for riders that Maeve uses with new clients is the diaphragm reset. “The diaphragm reset helps encourage you to use your diaphragm effectively,” she explains.

• Place your thumbs on your belly button and rest your palms on your belly. Relax your shoulders.
• Take a deep breath in through your nose, right down in the base of your lungs and into your belly. You should feel your belly expand, sides and lower back expand slightly. Then, blow out through your mouth as if you were blowing through a straw.
• Repeat two or three times.
• Imagine an upside down Y shape running from the middle of your chest and flanking your ribcage. Spend a couple of minutes tracing this shape with the pads of your fingers, starting on the edges of your ribs. Apply enough pressure to feel it, but not so it’s painful.
• Work along the edge of your ribs in to the centre of your ribcage, where the muscles can be tight, and then up your sternum all the way to the edges of your collarbones. Then, work your way back down. Spend a few minutes doing this.
• Try the breathing exercise again – in through your nose and out through your mouth. You should find it easier to activate your diaphragm. Think of air filling the base of your lungs in 360°, so the front, sides and back of the ribcage expand to allow this, then flatten as you blow the air our through your mouth. Aim to repeat for 20 breaths.

Maeve adds: “You can try the diaphragm reset anywhere, including in the saddle, but it’s a great exercise to practise last thing at night, while laying in bed. This is because the slow, controlled breaths help us transition from a sympathetic nervous system (fight and flight) state to a more parasympathetic nervous system (rest and digest) state.”

Horse&Hound’s verdict

At first, the diaphragmatic reset felt completely alien – it just goes to show how subconscious processes like breathing are. On my initial tries, it felt impossible to inhale for more than three or four seconds and I felt I was barely inflating my belly. It was also hard to keep my shoulders relaxed at first and I had to really think about it. By the middle of the week, though, I could breathe in for five counts comfortably before even rubbing the upside-down Y shape zone of my chest and ribs, and now I’m closer to eight counts.

Like with anything new, you shouldn’t expect overnight changes – but even after a week, I’ve noticed positive benefits from daily diaphragmatic breathing.

For starters, I’m falling asleep faster and more easily. A couple of times I’ve not even made it to 20 breaths before I’ve nodded off! Diaphragmatic resets are so easy to fit around my routine that I’ve performed some at my desk, too. I have found it really helps me keep on top of shoulder tension, which can only help my posture while seated and in the saddle.

It’s so easy to do diaphragmatic resets while hacking and in recovery periods during schooling sessions – I just take one hand off the rein to perform the reset. Again, I’ve found the biggest benefit is releasing tension here, but I’ve also noticed that I feel as though my seat has deepened. In the latter stages of the week, I noticed my share horse, Lenny, was more responsive to my half-halt, and rather than killing his forward momentum like it sometimes can, he felt like he maintained the energy in this gait (especially in canter), but just briefly paused.

I haven’t noticed an improvement in my cardiovascular recovery – that might come when Lenny and I get fitter and we do some faster work and jumping – but that fact I’ve identified a few plus points in only a week makes me feel like diaphragmatic resets are absolutely worth my time. And, because I barely have to make time to do them, practising them fits in so well and makes diaphragm resets a worthwhile exercise for busy riders. I’ll definitely keep them as part of my routine.

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Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

A 55-year-old rider who will compete at the Voltaire Design Grassroots Championships at Badminton Horse Trials this spring has urged others not to give up doing what they love because of the menopause – and to seek support dealing with the symptoms.

Rachel Fisher, from Surrey, qualified for Badminton with her 17-year-old Irish sport horse Sidney Rebel at Blindley Heath in August last year. Rachel has owned Sidney since he was a four-year-old, and the pair event up to BE100 level. This is the second time Rachel will compete at Badminton, having completed the BE90 final in 2019 with a double clear.

Rachel told H&H she started experiencing symptoms of the menopause aged 52, and this started to affect her riding and confidence.

“The first thing I started noticing was joint aches, which I know is common with riders anyway, but I was struggling to get my leg on properly. Another common thing with menopause can be frozen shoulder, and I’ve found I really struggle with one of my shoulders when I’m riding,” she said.

“I noticed my confidence slipping, and I’d find myself sometimes looking at things and thinking ‘Do I really want to jump that?’. I’d think ‘I don’t recognise myself, that’s not how I used to be’. Brain fog is also a big thing; I’ve found I need to walk courses three or four times to really make sure I’ve got it in my head, and I never used to have to do that.”

At the beginning of the year Rachel, who runs a gardening business, started working with personal trainer Frankie Clutterbuck of ProRiderFitness, who takes a holistic approach to rider health and fitness, and offers a “PowerNotPause” toolkit and coaching system for those going through peri–menopause and the menopause.

“We first spoke about nutrition and me feeding my body properly. I’m always in a rush, with work, four horses, dogs and a family, and my lunch would often be a chocolate bar or crisps,” said Rachel, who added that she was also not staying hydrated enough.

“Frankie encouraged me to make all my lunches for the week ahead, and suggested linking my water intake to doing something. For some it might be whenever you empty a wheelbarrow you take a drink, and for me it’s whenever I get in the car between clients I make sure I have a bottle with me. Water is really good for lubricating the joints and staying hydrated and it really does make you feel better.”

Rachel has also been working with Frankie on her fitness. Rachel sees Frankie once a week, and has an exercise programme she does at home.

“We looked at which is my stronger and weaker side, and that definitely corresponds to Sidney’s stronger and weaker side. I was given strengthening exercises and I also do weights, with the aim to get my core stronger and my legs equal in strength,” said Rachel.

“We also considered whether I’m breathing properly when I’m doing a showjumping or cross-country round. The answer is probably no because I always end up blue in the face, so we’ve been working on breathing exercises and things to release and move my neck, which gets really stiff when I’m competing.”

Rachel has urged other riders to talk about the menopause with each other, and to seek help dealing with the symptoms.

“A lot of my friends have stopped competing because they’ve lost confidence, and the brain fog has kicked in. We need to try and help ourselves to keep doing the things we love, and not give up,” said Rachel.

“You do so much for your horse, like paying for physio and spending time getting them fit, you look at their nutrition and everything else, but I don’t think enough of us think about our own health and fitness.

“I think it’s really important to speak to each other and recognise that a lot of us are feeling the same. There’s a lot of help and support in just knowing other people are going through something similar. We can do things like walk the course together, do it three or four times to really get it in our heads, and if someone has had a confidence knock then there’s also no shame in stepping down a level and enjoying it.”

Rachel will continue working on her fitness and nutrition as she prepares for Badminton in May. She is competing in memory of her long-term friend Kristi Lane, who died from cancer in June 2023 aged 54.

Rachel is raising money for Hannah’s Willberry Wonder Pony Charity, which organised visits for Kristi to Carl Hester’s and Pippa Funnell’s yards before her death. The charity was set up by young eventer Hannah Francis, who died from cancer in March 2016.

“It was in 2019, just after Kristi had come to watch me compete at Badminton, that she found out she had cancer. She struggled with it for four years or so, and I told her before she passed away that if I got to Badminton this year, I would do it for her. Then I did qualify and I decided I wanted to raise money for Willberry Wonder Pony, who were so brilliant with Kristi before she died,” said Rachel.

• Visit Rachel’s JustGiving page

“Kristi loved Badminton and she had a very close-knit group of friends known as the ‘Pony Mafia’ who have visited Badminton for the last 20 years. It was always a highlight of Kristi’s year, and they’ll be there remembering her this year. Kristi was a real trooper, and I know she’ll be cheering me on from up there.”

You might also be interested in:

Menopause and riding: where to find advice, support and more information

Lack of information on menopause symptoms directly affecting riders: women speak out to empower others

Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Today (18 October) is World Menopause Day, so to mark the occasion, H&H has compiled some useful links to information and support, plus handy apps and podcasts.

Numerous horse riders have found their enjoyment of life and riding had been seriously affected by distressing symptoms, such as severe anxiety, mood swings, weight gain and physical pain – but had no idea at the time these were linked to perimenopause or menopause. Some reached the verge of giving up horses, for many their lifelong passion and source of exercise, and others had stopped riding altogether.

With females making up 51% of the UK population, menopause is a topic that would benefit from more open discussion within the equestrian community. And while not every woman, or trans or non-binary person, will suffer negatively, around 25% do experience serious symptoms. The links between menopause and decreased bone density is also something for riders to understand, especially given this is a risk sport.

H&H always recommends seeking professional medical advice on healthcare matters, and the below list is in no way an alternative to that.

Useful sources of menopause information

GP and menopause specialist Louise Newson has a library on her website, with factsheets, booklets and podcasts newsonhealth.co.uk/resources

Dr Newson also founded the Balance website and app, where women can track their symptoms and download a report. It also contains a vast library, plus advice for partners, businesses, and more at balance-menopause.com

For NHS advice on menopause, visit nhs.uk/conditions/menopause , hormone replacement therapy (HRT) nhs.uk/conditions/hormone-replacement-therapy-hrt and other treatments nhs.uk/conditions/hormone-replacement-therapy-hrt/alternatives

Diet and exercise

British Equestrian’s human physio and athlete health lead Ashleigh Wallace spoke to H&H about understanding what is happening to the body during perimenopause or menopause.

She says she sees riders enter a “vicious cycle”, by trying to counteract weight gain by eating less. That coupled with other symptoms such as reduction in strength and sleep disturbances, which mean people are not recovering properly, means it is no wonder some are exhausted.

She advises looking at diet, fuelling the body for what it needs, rather than starving, and eating plenty of leafy greens, “reds” such as berries, high-quality protein and omega-3s, plus enough sources of calcium.

She adds reducing inflammatory foods, such as crisps and fried foods, can be beneficial in reducing joint pain.

Incorporating off-horse high-intensity interval exercises that help promote bone density, like skipping, are important. This is because the drop in hormones that goes with menopause can lead to bone loss. For this reason, she also recommends taking vitamin D.

Prioritising recovery is also a must – something she recognises can be easier said than done, given the impact that menopause can have on sleep and riders’ busy schedules. The saying “train hard, recover harder” is pertinent and some find things like cherry juice and warm baths with magnesium salts can help.

She adds that HRT is a “different world” now compared to in the past, and is something riders can find out more about from a doctor. H&H also recommends speaking to a medical professional to bust myths, and to discuss the benefits and any associated risks, as with any treatments, to make an informed choice.

Clean sport

Riders are bound by World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) rules when competing in national and international competitions, so it is key for competitors to know the status of any medications they are taking. It is also important to make your doctor aware that you are competing under WADA rules.

To check the status of your medication, visit www.globaldro.com/Home and it is possible to print or save a copy of the result for your records. The WADA list is updated annually, so it is a good idea to check each year. Alternatively, the full WADA list can also be found here www.wada-ama.org/en/prohibited-list

Therapeutic use exemptions (TUE) enable athletes to remain in compliance with WADA anti-doping rules, while taking medications they need for their health. But it is vital to go about seeking a TUE in the correct way.

British Equestrian has advice at britishequestrian.org.uk/competitors/human-anti-doping

And for international competitors, the FEI has a comprehensive guide here inside.fei.org/fei/cleansport/humans/tues

Other handy menopause links

Diane Danzebrink founded Menopause Support, a not for profit community interest company, to provide access to factual, evidence-based information and support. It provides private telephone and video consultations, as well as support and training for businesses, therapists and wellbeing professionals. Visit: menopausesupport.co.uk

Podcasts recommended by riders H&H spoke to included:

• The Happy Menopause
• Dr Louise Newson podcast
• Liz Earle Wellbeing Show

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Lack of information on menopause symptoms directly affecting riders: women speak out to empower others

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Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits. 

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Jockeys who follow the right nutrition and exercise programme can stay hydrated and eat more frequently, while improving body composition and increasing metabolism.

These are the findings of a “pivotal” study on jockeys’ welfare, conducted by George Wilson of Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU) with a five-year funding commitment from the Racing Foundation. The research was published in the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism.

The study involved 23 adult male Flat jockeys. Their body composition, resting metabolic rate, hydration status and dietary habits were assessed as a baseline, after which they were given “educational resources as part of a personalised exercise and nutritional programme”.

Annual testing showed the riders “significantly reduced their body fat, maintained lean muscle mass, significantly improved hydration, and significantly increased resting metabolic rate – all while increasing the frequency of daily meals and snacks”.

The jockeys were advised to eat a diet high in protein, fibre and healthy fats and reduce processed and high-energy foods. They were encouraged to eat five times a day and run daily.

Jockey Franny Norton, 51, said: “Even though I didn’t have a weight issue, I wanted to take part in George’s study so I could perform better.

“If you’d asked me a few years ago, I’d have said that horse racing is 10 years behind in nutrition and exercise science. But this work at LJMU has fast-tracked our understanding, meaning racing is starting to catch up with other sports. It’s been fantastic for us jockeys, as the weighing-room mentality towards making weight is changing and jockeys are starting to understand their bodies better.

“Since I started on the programme, I have had my best years of riding – I rode over 100 winners in a year since following the programme.

“I’m 51 now and still going strong. I feel being part of Dr Wilson’s programme has helped with more than just nutrition – it’s the mental benefits as well. I not only have more energy and am riding better, but I also feel mentally sharp.”

Dr Wilson said he was proud the study was accepted for publication as he feels its findings are very important for jockeys’ welfare.

“Importantly, this study demonstrates that jockeys can improve body composition and maintain these improvements over a five-year period for making race weight, and can do so in free-living conditions where appropriate educational guidance on diet and exercise has been provided,” he said.

“Moreover, these findings may also prove beneficial to the wider populations in helping with weight management.”

Racing Foundation CEO Rob Hezel said the charity was proud to have funded the research and encouraged all jockeys keen to improve performance to visit Dr Wilson at the university.

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Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

While it’s always recommended to mount your horse from a sturdy mounting block in order to reduce the forces that research has shown are applied to a horse’s back when a rider gets on, most riders will occasionally find themselves in situations when they need to get on their horse from the ground during their riding life.

While teaching the horse to stand on request alongside a gate, log, stump or simply on slightly lower ground than the rider is, can certainly help, having the appropriate skills, strength and flexibility to mount successfully from a less than ideal position while having as small an impact on your horse as possible has to be positive too.

“For a lot of us, trying to mount a horse from the ground can cause pain or discomfort,” says Katie Bleekman, a rider-specific fitness coach on episode 87 of The Horse & Hound Podcast. She adds that this inability isn’t just inconvenient but has an important safety element to it. If you’re out hacking or hunting and have to get off, or have a fall, you’ll need to be able to remount swiftly and safely, without causing damage to your horse’s back.

Luckily, though, it’s something that can become easier for the vast majority of riders if they put the time and effort in – and the benefits will go beyond just being able to get into the saddle.

Flexibility, mobility and strength needed to get on a horse from the ground

“The main problem for riders is a lack of flexibility and strength,” explains Katie. “Obviously it will depend on the size of your horse as well. But we all want to be able to get on a horse from the ground, wherever we are, whatever our age, without hurting the horse.

“Hip tightness is one of the biggest things affecting your ability to mount from the ground, to lift your foot to the stirrup, and this can often lead to pain as well. If you are spending a lot of time seated, whether that’s riding, driving or sitting at a desk, the front of your body will become shorter and weaker, and that will also affect your ability to hold a nice, deep seat in the saddle.”

So, what’s the solution? Working on flexibility, hip mobility and strength, in that order of priority, according to Katie.

Try introducing the following stretches into your warm-up or fitness routine, holding each for 30-40 seconds, and working on controlling your breathing throughout.

• Lie on your back, and hug both knees into your chest, or one at a time.
• Sit on the floor with your legs outstretched, as wide as possible. Use a foam roller or a water bottle to place your hands on in front of you and gradually roll them away from your body to increase the stretch.
• From standing, slowly roll your body down, starting with your head, then vertebrae by vertebrae through your back to get as close as you can to touching your toes
• Sit on the floor and bring one heel in towards you groin, and drop your knee out in external rotation

“It’s really important when stretching to work with your range of motion, and not to over stretch until you’re in pain,” says Katie. “Doing stretches consistently over time will help them feel more comfortable, and make things like getting on from the ground easier.”

Next, add five minutes of hip mobility into your warm-up before riding, with the following exercises – that can all be done standing.

• Take one knee out to the side and draw circles with your knee. Aim for 8-10 on each side
• Hold onto a stable door for support as you swing one leg forward and back, moving from the hip. Aim for 8-10 on each side
• Roll down slowly from standing to touch your toes (if you can), then roll back up to standing.

“If you go through these exercises three times before riding, you’ll feel warmer and more agile by the time you come to get on,” says Katie.

To find out more about Katie and her services, check out eventriderfitness.com. 

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Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits. 

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

This article and video features exercises to improve core stability, flexibility, strength and fitness for riding from Dee Holdsworth of Dynamic Sports Therapy

A rider’s lack of flexibility, strength and fitness can severely limit their ability to perform, but by following the exercises in these videos, a relatively small investment in time can have far reaching positive effects on your performance as a rider. Here, we provide advice on how to improve horse rider core stability.

You should warm up your muscles by taking a brisk walk, or similar, after riding before performing any of these exercises. If you suffer any ongoing physical issues, we recommend you speak to a health professional before you start.

Each exercise is shown at three different levels of difficulty, so you can choose the version that is most suitable to your current physical condition and then progress through the levels as you improve.

How to improve horse rider core stability

These exercises are ideal for riders who struggle with tightness in the back and/or a weak seat. They can also help improve lower leg stability.

Exercise one: hip extensions

Improves flexibility of the hip and strength of the gluteals, particularly useful when riding half passes and flying changes.

• Don’t have an exercise ball for level 3? Try this one from amazon.co.uk

Exercise two: hip flexor strength and improve core stability

Increases the rider’s depth of seat and control of the pelvis while allowing the spine, upper body and thigh to move with the horse.

Exercise three: lower body control

Improves the strength and flexibility of the adductors. This is particularly helpful for improving the stability of a rider’s lower leg while going across country.

About Dee Holdsworth

Dee is the founder of Dynamic Sports Therapy. A keen rider, she has competed at national level and was part of the small stables team at the London 2012 Olympics. Dee works with some of the world’s leading horse and rider combinations, including some of those on track for Rio 2016.

Dee is an equestrian sports science graduate from Hartpury College and went on to complete the International Therapy Examination Council Diploma in equine sports massage, delivered by veterinary chartered physiotherapist Mary Bromiley, and now stands as the ESMA Chairman.

Dee is a level four sports massage therapist with the Sports Massage Association. She also holds certificates in human and equine kinesiology taping and muscle energy techniques, as well as using deep oscillation therapy.

This video is brought to you in association with fitnesstroop.co.uk (Katie Brighton-Jones), shadowplay.co.uk (Philip E James) and performbetter.co.uk.

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Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits. 

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

There are a myriad of exercise videos circulating online, but horse riders require a certain type of fitness and flexibility. In the first part of this series, chartered physio Sarah Claridge suggests three exercises to help riders improve their flexibility, cardio fitness, plus strength and endurance

It can be hard to stay motivated in the winter, but January is the start of “get fit” season and there’s no reason why equestrians can’t be part of this too with a few fitness exercises for horse riders. Keeping fit is not only good for our physical and mental health, but it will enable us to hit the ground running when the days are longer and the seasons start.

This series will feature three rider-focused exercises, in stretch, cardio and strength/endurance, to boost your fitness regime. There are various grades within the exercises, so start gradually and work up to a level at which you are comfortable.

Take care: With any new form of exercise, your body needs to build up gradually to avoid strain. Please seek the advice of a chartered physiotherapist or your GP if you are unsure about whether you should do any exercises due to underlying health conditions.

Particular caution should be taken if you have any cartilage (meniscal tears) injuries in your knees or joint replacements in your hips or knees.

Avoid the cardiovascular exercises if you have any unstable cardiac health problems, acute disc bulges/prolapses or referred leg pain, pins and needles, numbness, rheumatoid arthritis or osteoporosis – or if you are undergoing cancer treatment, pregnant or have any gynaecological conditions.

Stretching exercises for horse riders

Child pose

• 30 secs, 4 reps

You will need: an exercise mat. Don’t have one? Here are our favourites.

Get on to your hands and knees, and drop your buttocks to your heels. Stretch your hands forwards, dropping your head between your shoulders to the floor. You should feel the stretch through your back and upper arms.

Child pose with a twist

• 30 secs, 4 reps

You will need: an exercise mat. Don’t have one? Here are our favourites.

Kneel on the floor and sit on your heels. You can place cushions directly underneath your hips if you need to. Stretch your arms out in front of you, and walk your hands over to one side. Keeping your hips over your heels, turn your outer palm to face up, and place the other hand on top. Arch your outer side up as you reach to the side to increase the stretch.

Sarah says: “A lovely stretch to encourage length through your back. Try to breathe out as you stretch down, relaxing into the length of your back to improve suppleness to help you move with your horse’s stride. You can try to hold it for longer than 30 to 40 seconds, which is often nice at the end of the day.”

Cardio exercises for horse riders

Lateral bunny jumps

• 30 secs, 1 rep, 3 sets

You will need: an exercise mat. Don’t have one? Here are our favourites.

Stand up straight with a line on the floor to your side. Jump sideways over the line, landing lightly on your feet as you regain your balance. Try to land as quietly as you can, absorbing the impact with your hips and knees as if landing from a showjump. You may use your arms to swing to help with this explosive movement.

Next, jump back over the line and regain your balance. To make this lower impact, step from side to side rather than jump, still lifting and lowering your arms with each step.

To make this harder, do not rest between jumps; keep the jumps a continuous flow of movement.

Sarah says: “This is a great exercise to help build cardiovascular fitness, key for event riders in the cross-country phase and showjumpers over the more challenging courses, or if you are riding multiple horses per day.”

Strength and endurance exercises for horse riders

Criss cross level 1

• 10 reps, 3 sets

You will need: an exercise mat. Don’t have one? Here are our favourites.

Lie on your back, with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Find your neutral pelvis by arching and flattening the small of your back; rest in the middle point.

Interlace your hands behind your head. Engage your pelvic floor and core muscles gently on a breath out and maintain throughout the exercise. Exhaling, lift your head and chest off the mat. As you exhale, rotate your trunk to the side with your elbow reaching to the opposite knee. As you inhale, move back to the centre.

Switch sides, rotating through the centre and pulling your abdominals inwards all the time. Keep your pelvis stable throughout.

Keep your elbows wide open and rotate your upper body as one unit. Ensure your stomach does not peak in the centre line, it should remain engaged and flat throughout.

Criss cross level 2

• 10 reps, 3 sets

You will need: an exercise mat. Don’t have one? Here are our favourites.

Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet on the floor. Find your neutral pelvis and engage your pelvic floor and core gently on a breath out and maintain throughout the exercise.

Place your hands lightly behind your head and curl your upper body up into a crunch position. Holding the crunch, lift one knee in towards you, then lower it back down before lifting the other knee.

Criss cross level 3

• 10 reps, 3 sets

You will need: an exercise mat. Don’t have one? Here are our favourites.

Lie on your back, find your neutral pelvis and engage your pelvic floor and core muscles gently. Come into “double table top” position with your legs one at a time and with your shins parallel to the floor.

Interlace your hands behind your head. Exhaling, lift your head and chest.

As you exhale, rotate your trunk to the side with your elbow reaching to the opposite bent knee and straighten out your other leg. As you inhale, move back to the centre, changing your legs.

Alternate sides, rotating through the centre and pulling your abdominals inwards. Continue switching legs and ensure your feet remain at the same level throughout.

Keep your elbows wide open and rotate your upper body as one unit. Ensure your stomach does not peak in the centre line, it should remain engaged and flat throughout. Maintain your breathing and do not hold your breath during the exercise.

Sarah says: “This exercise engages and tones the abdominal muscles, which form part of the anterior oblique sling. These are key riding muscles as they work in conjunction with our inside thigh muscles. We need to be strong on both sides to be able to work on our rider straightness. This is key for helping stabilise us for our leg aids.

“Start with three sets of 10 reps, building up to three sets of 30 seconds, with 30-second rest break between sets. Increase to three sets of 40 seconds with a 20-second rest break between sets.”

About Sarah

Chartered physiotherapist Sarah Claridge runs Meadow Physio & Pilates, specialising in rider strength and fitness. Visit meadowphysioandpilates.com for online classes and one-to-one sessions to help improve your body’s optimal performance. Follow Meadow Physio & Pilates on Instagram and Facebook

Exercise mats

When choosing which exercise or yoga mat to go for, there are two key elements to consider – grip and thickness.

Grip is a combination of the materials the mat is made from and the surface design, such as bumps or ridges. Polyurethane is known for providing a particularly good grip, so look out for those made of this or have a polyurethane top layer. But most mats will offer a sufficient grip for the majority of activities.

Thickness is important as a thick mat provides cushioning for your knees, elbows, hips, your tailbone and other potentially painful areas. Yoga mats usually range from 1–6mm, but general exercise mats can come thicker. You should opt for a thicker mat if you find harder floors to be uncomfortable on your knees or hips, while you should go for a thinner mat if you work out on carpet as thicker mats on carpet can make it difficult to balance.

Here are some exercise mats worth considering

Nyamba Comfort Fitness floor mat

RRP: £24.99

This mat is 15mm thick – thicker than your average mat – so it will offer plenty of cushioning on a hard floor.

View now at decathlon.co.uk

Sporteon TPE Eco yoga mat

RRP: £11.99

This anti-tear, non-slip mat is eco-friendly, antibacterial and sweatproof.

View now at amazon.co.uk

Yogamatters Eco Rise yoga mat

RRP: £45

Made from sustainably harvested natural tree rubber, this mat has a super grip.

View now at amazon.co.uk

Yoga-Mad Warrior Plus mat

RRP: £29.99

This lightweight mat is 6mm thick and suitable for all sorts of home exercise.

View now at amazon.co.uk

You might also be interested in:

H&H’s 12 days of fitness: Improve your flexibility plus hip and pelvis control

H&H’s 12 days of fitness: Hone your riding muscles through dynamic power

Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits. 

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Talking about menopause is vital to help those who will be directly and indirectly affected by symptoms, and to support women to continue to do the sports they love.

The message came from campaigner Diane Danzebrink, who spoke to H&H for a news investigation into the impact menopause can have on some riders.

Diane Danzebrink started Menopause Support and the #MakeMenopauseMatter campaign after her experience of going into surgical menopause – which is where menopause is brought on instantly as a result of certain operations – with no information of what that could mean.

She experienced severe symptoms that seriously affected her mental health.

“I remember saying to my husband one day, ‘if I ever feel like me again, I’m going to make damn sure I do something to change this. I don’t want anybody to ever experience what I’ve experienced’,” said Diane, a professional therapist, who started the Menopause Support website and had been counselling women one-on-one before launching #MakeMenopauseMatter out of “pure frustration”.

“I was just so devastated by the amount of dreadful emails that I was receiving on a regular basis, and I thought we need a national campaign.”

Its aims are to introduce menopause into the school curriculum (achieved in England in 2020), improve menopause education among GPs, raise awareness of it within the workplace and for all employers to have support guidelines in place.

“The media has taken a huge interest over the last few years and that’s brilliant,” she said.

“The first time I spoke publicly on television about my experience was in 2015 and it was a really lonely place at the time, because even then, lots of people didn’t want to say the word ‘menopause’ out loud. But now we’ve got celebrities and high-profile people talking about their experiences, and obviously, that all helps with conversation.”

She added that it is “absolutely vital we talk about it”.

“It’s going to affect half of the population directly. But it’s going to have an effect on the other half of the population because whether it’s your partner, your mother, your sister, your aunt, whether it’s your friend, your colleague, at some point, we’re all going to know somebody who’s going through menopause,” she said.

“It can have effects on relationships, on careers, on friendships, on things that we love to do.”

She added that she has counselled “so many women who have given up horse riding or cycling” as a result of symptoms, such as anxiety, loss of confidence and pain.

“When people have given up the thing that brings joy to their life, the thing that they’ve probably done since they were little, we really do need to get these messages out. It’s so important that they have the information before it comes along, so that they can make those informed decisions,” she said.

“For one in four women, they won’t experience any symptoms at all. They’ll barely know it’s happening.

“You might be the lucky one in four that doesn’t experience any symptoms whatsoever. But if you’re not, if you’re somebody who does experience symptoms, there are things that you can do about it.

“You don’t have to suffer in silence. You don’t have to give up the thing that you love in your life.”

You might also be interested in:

Lack of information on menopause symptoms directly affecting riders: women speak out to empower others

Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Top rider urges ‘treat yourself as an athlete’ after low blood sugar may have contributed to fall *H&H Plus*

The Horse & Hound Podcast 94: Italian eventer Vittoria Panizzon | How bitting has changed | News round-up

Why prioritising sleep could boost your results (and how to get more of it)

The well-being of our equine athletes might be our number one 
priority, but the power of a rider’s sleep for

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits. 

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

The physical demands of a sport often dictate the dimensions of the athletes who are most successful at it. Olympic swimmers have long arms. Marathon runners are smaller than 800m runners. Rowers are tall and strong. But top riders rarely come from the same mould.

We asked riders from across the disciplines to tell us what body shape challenges they face.

Eventer Izzy Taylor, 5ft 4inChallenge: long thighs from hip to knee.“Compared with the rest of my short body, my thigh is quite long, but it enables me to ride both ponies and horses.”The solution: “Rather than it being a problem, having a short body and longer legs enable me to be more secure in the saddle.”Whose body (part) would she rather have? “I always looked up to Ginny Elliot because she is little, too, but I also admire Andrew Nicholson’s position and physique.”

Dressage rider Steph Croxford, 5ft 4½in (it’s very important we mention the ½!)Challenge: short arms and legs.“I was designed for rugby, not dressage, but like [her former top ride] Mr President was, I am a freak of nature and get by.”The solution: “It’s life and what you live with. I sit as deep as I can in the saddle when we’re doing extended trot, hang on and pray that I get to the end in some sort of shape.”Whose body (part) would she rather have? “Pretty much any dressage rider, because they all have long legs and slim bodies.”

Showjumper Laura Renwick, 5ft 8inChallenge: long torso and weak back.“I tend to tip forward and find it hard sitting up quickly enough after a fence. I feel like my back is quite weak, too.”The solution: “I did a lot of Pilates after I broke my collarbone and it really helped to strengthen my back and my core. It’s always on my mind to keep my body upright.”Whose body (part) would she rather have? “French rider Penelope Leprovost has the perfect physique and position and always looks like she is part of the horse when she is riding.”

Eventer Louise Skelton, 5ft 1in — and a bitChallenge: short torso.“I am quite petite, which makes me slightly less strong than other riders when riding bigger horses. It’s difficult for me to look tidy when I am jumping bigger horses, too, because they throw me around.”The solution: “I train my horses so that they are responsive and don’t pull me about or get too strong.”Whose body (part) would she rather have? “Lucy Jackson is taller than me and looks tidy on a horse.”

Eventer Laura Collett, 5ft 2inChallenge: short legs.“I have to work with it because you can’t do anything about it. I suppose longer legs help with you stickability in the saddle because you can wrap your legs around the horse and cling on.”The solution: “I ride with my stirrups at a length that makes me feel secure.”Whose body (part) would she rather have? “William Fox-Pitt has VERY long legs!”

You might also be interested in:

Rider fitness: what do we really mean by ‘core’ and how does it work?

Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

In an age when social media is awash with snaps of leafy lunches and breakfast bowls, healthy living is on everyone’s radar – whether you currently participate or not. Riders are known for not fuelling themselves as well as they could – living on coffee and quick snacks at the yard – but there are a few simple steps you can take to improve your lifestyle and find the micro gains that will improve your performance in the saddle. Here we provide you with some horse rider health tips…

1. Think of yourself as an athlete

Take your own nutrition and exercise as seriously as you take your horse’s – after all, you’re a 50:50 partnership. Riding and managing horses is tough, physical work and if you want to perform well in your discipline you need to realise your body plays a key role in making this happen.

2. Increase your water intake

Nothing is more crucial to our horse rider health tips and athletic performance than water. Without sufficient water you will become dehydrated, which will affect your ability to think straight and react quickly. Always have a bottle with you to sip from at home and at a competition – try a bottle with time targets on to help you stay on track.

3. Eat little and often

Professional and working riders’ busy lifestyles make it tempting to skip regular meals and then reach for high-fat, high-sugar pick-me-ups. To avoid peaks and troughs in your blood sugar levels and the resulting mood swings and fatigue, take a leaf out of your horse’s book and try to “graze” on low-fat and low-sugar foods throughout the day.

4. Adopt an exercise routine to meet your needs

Equestrians don’t need to be gym fit, they need to be riding fit. Try a few sessions with a physio or personal trainer to identify which areas of your body you need to strengthen to minimise injury and increase strength, endurance and flexibility.

5. Get some sleep

This is easy to say but tricky to do when you’re facing a 3.30am start on a competition day and are juggling a full-time job with riding. That said, your mind needs to switch off and your body has to rest, recover and repair itself from the day’s hard work. Aim for an average of six to eight hours per night.

6. Avoid processed foods as far as possible

The convenience factor means we’re unlikely to avoid ready meals altogether, but cutting down and eating more foods as close to their natural state as possible will give you a boost.

You might also be interested in:

Three simple exercises to get you started on your riding fitness journey

Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits. 

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

If your body is aching and tired after your day in the saddle, take a look at Equestrian Pilates’ Sue Gould-Wright’s key Pilates exercises for horse riders to keep you riding fit.

Even a few hours in the saddle can leave your body tired and aching – the leg muscles work hard, the lower back can ache if your core isn’t working correctly and if you have a strong horse you can end up feeling like you have wrestled a rhino by the time you get back to the yard. Pilates can help ensure your body is working correctly, preventing the ache in the first place.

Pilates for horse riders: some exercises to try

Engage your core

To get your core muscles working correctly think of pulling your tummy in gently, as if you were trying to pull the area behind the zip of your breeches inwards to the back waistband of your breeches. That will stop you overusing other stomach muscles higher up that act to tip forwards. Check as you are doing it that you don’t clench your bottom muscles.

Related: check out these exercises to improve your core stability.

Loosen your legs

The legs are your shock absorbers as you travel across country on your horse so you need to keep them supple. Ideally you should do these before and after you ride but just when you remember is better than nothing.

For the back of your legs: Stand at arm’s length facing a wall or door, put your hands on the wall and then step back with your right leg, keep the right leg straight as you press the heel to the floor bending the left knee at the same time; you should feel a stretch all the way up the right leg. You should have a line from your ear, shoulder, hip and ankle — avoid arching your back and sticking your bottom in the air. The larger the step back, the greater the stretch but remember, it should be a stretch not a screaming pain. Repeat on the other side.

For the front of your legs: Stand side-on to a table or stable surface using the hand nearest the table to support yourself if you feel unbalanced. Bend your outside knee taking the heel up towards your backside. Hold onto the foot (or whatever you can reach) and, keeping nice and upright, try to push the outside leg backwards until you feel a stretch in the front of the thigh. Repeat on the other side.

Balance

At some point when you’re out on a ride you might need to dismount – or your horse may decide that you need to – and getting on from a gate or a log as elegantly as possible is the name of the game. So practise standing on one leg whenever you get a chance — boiling the kettle, waiting for water buckets to fill or brushing your teeth… the possibilities are endless. Make sure you work on both legs as you never know when you might have to mount from the ‘wrong’ side. Once you can balance perfectly, try bending and straightening the leg you are balancing on to strengthen it even more, but do ensure you are keeping your pelvis and upper body upright throughout — it should just be the knee, hip and ankle moving.

Related: check out these exercises to improve your balance.

Whoa there!

If you find yourself cantering along a tad faster than you would like, hanging on with the arms and shoulders will make them ache for days and isn’t particularly effective – you need to get the bigger muscles of your back involved. Engage your core (this will support your lower back) and then think of drawing your underarm down towards your waist. This does take practice so do it off the horse first, it has the added benefit of correcting rounded shoulders and making you look great too. Once you and your horse have tried this, you can use it as your half-halt, too, as it is a much smoother, less ‘argumentative’ feeling for the horse.

Pass the flask

Most horses will move from a change of weight in the saddle so when turning to someone behind you it’s best to keep your pelvis still, only rotating through the body. Start the movement from the base of the skull — imagine you are trying to take a sneaky look someone’s new horse – turn ever so slightly through the neck, looking behind you out of the corner of your eye. Now nosiness has got the better of you so you turn fully through the neck, then allowing the shoulders to turn and then keep turning, one bone at time. Try not to lean back as you do this as this may put pressure on the lower back.

Bums of steel!

When you are riding up out of the saddle for long periods the muscles in the backside are working as hard as those in the legs. You need to keep these muscles from becoming overly tight as they can be responsible for lower back pain and sciatic-type pains; the best way to do this is to find yourself a tennis ball and a wall or bolted stable door. With your back to the wall, put the tennis ball between your butt and the wall, roughly where the top of your back pocket would be and then gently lean into the ball. Rub your backside with the ball like your horse would scratch his bottom on tree or post – there will be areas that are tight and sore, just keep the pressure bearable and it should ease the longer you do it. Repeat on the other buttock.

Article photographs courtesy of J.A. Allen from Equestrian Pilates – Schooling for the Rider by Sue Gould-Wright.

You might also be interested in:

Improve your core stability to help improve your riding in 2023

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Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits. 

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

A rider’s lack of flexibility, strength and fitness can severely limit their ability to perform, but by following the exercises in our videos, a relatively small investment in time can have far reaching positive effects on your performance as a rider. Here’s how to improve your horse rider abdominal strength, thanks to some expert advice…

You should warm up your muscles by taking a brisk walk, or similar, after riding before performing any of these exercises. If you suffer any ongoing physical issues, we recommend you speak to a health professional before you start.

Each exercise is shown at different levels of difficulty, so you can choose the version that is most suitable to your current physical condition and then progress through the levels as you improve.

How to improve your horse rider abdominal strength

Your abdominal muscles are key to maintaining your position in the saddle, enabling you to be an effective rider. The following exercises will benefit riders of all standards. You can also test and work on improving the strength of your abdominals in the saddle by working without stirrups, particularly by going from rising to sitting trot and by riding canter to trot transitions.

Exercise one: pullover

This exercise works to stabilise your shoulder blades and improve abdominal strength, allowing your to improve your posture and seat in the saddle.

Exercise two: V sits

This exercise will help you improve the strength of your hip flexors while working your abdominals and core muscles to improve your body awareness and control of your hips and lower back. Ultimately this will work to reduce unnecessary movement or bouncing in the saddle.

Exercise three: rollout on ball

This exercise works to strengthen your core combined with extension of the hips allowing you to work on controlling your lower back. The combination of back strength with activation of the glutes will improve your seat and ability to lengthen your leg in the saddle.

• Don’t have an exercise ball? Try this one from amazon.co.uk

About Dee Holdsworth

Dee is the founder of Dynamic Sports Therapy. A keen rider, she has competed at national level and was part of the small stables team at the London 2012 Olympics. Dee works with some of the world’s leading horse and rider combinations, including some of those on track for Rio 2016.

Dee is an equestrian sports science graduate from Hartpury College and went on to complete the International Therapy Examination Council Diploma in equine sports massage, delivered by veterinary chartered physiotherapist Mary Bromiley, and now stands as the ESMA Chairman.

Dee is a level four sports massage therapist with the Sports Massage Association. She also holds certificates in human and equine kinesiology taping and muscle energy techniques, as well as using deep oscillation therapy.

This video is brought to you in association with fitnesstroop.co.uk (Katie Brighton-Jones), shadowplay.co.uk (Philip E James) and performbetter.co.uk.

You might also be interested in:

Three simple exercises to get you started on your riding fitness journey

How to improve your balance to help boost your riding skills

Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits. 

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

In our 85th weekly episode of The Horse & Hound Podcast, H&H’s Pippa Roome talks to the event rider, Lauren Innes, Pikeur Amateur Rider of the Year at the 2021 Horse & Hound Awards. Lauren shares her insight on juggling a demanding job with riding at the top level. H&H’s Polly Bryan then catches up with the H&H news team to discuss the latest news in the equestrian world. Finally, we’re kicking off a new advice series with personal trainer Katie Bleekman, who will talk about getting your exercise programme back on track after the festive break. We hope you’ll enjoy listening.

Episode 85 of The Horse & Hound Podcast, our popular audio service available every Thursday morning for our H&H digital subscribers, is now live.

Each episode is available for all H&H fans to listen to via your favourite podcast app 24hrs after its early release to our H&H digital subscribers. Search for “The Horse & Hound Podcast” in your preferred podcast app and click subscribe to be notified about each new episode. This will allow more listeners to make The Horse & Hound Podcast an essential part of their week on Friday morning.

• View all episodes of The Horse & Hound Podcast

In our 85th weekly episode of The Horse & Hound Podcast, H&H’s Pippa Roome talks to the event rider, Lauren Innes (pictured), Pikeur Amateur Rider of the Year at the 2021 Horse & Hound Awards. Lauren shares her insight on juggling a demanding job with riding at the top level.

H&H’s Polly Bryan then catches up with the H&H news team to discuss the latest news in the equestrian world.

Finally, we’re kicking off a new advice series with personal trainer Katie Bleekman, who will talk about getting your exercise programme back on track after the festive break.

• We would love to hear your feedback on all our podcasts, so please do send your thoughts to pippa.roome@futurenet.com

H&H Plus podcast: episode 85

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Listen now to other recent episodes of The Horse & Hound Podcast…

The Horse & Hound Podcast 84: Olympic gold medallist Ben Maher

The Horse & Hound Podcast 83: 2021 review featuring Tom McEwen, Lottie Fry, Ben Maher and more

The Horse & Hound Podcast 82: Top rider Christmas quiz

The Horse & Hound Podcast 81: Vicki Casey on riding at the London International Horse Show | Introducing young horses to riders | News round-up

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

A rider’s lack of flexibility, strength and fitness can severely limit their ability to perform, but by following the exercises in our videos, a relatively small investment in time can have far reaching positive effects on your performance as a rider. Here’s how to improve your horse riding lower leg strength, thanks to some expert advice…

You should warm up your muscles by taking a brisk walk, or similar, after riding before performing any of these exercises. If you suffer any ongoing physical issues, we recommend you speak to a health professional before you start.

Each exercise is shown at three different levels of difficulty, so you can choose the version that is most suitable to your current physical condition and then progress through the levels as you improve.

How to improve horse riding lower leg strength

Control and strength of your lower leg is key to being an effective rider. The following exercises will benefit riders of all standards as they will help you to become more symmetrical in your leg strength. If you are weaker in one leg you will typically find that leg feels tighter on the horse as you are lacking stability.

Exercise one: hip extension on the ball

This helps you to build strength in your glutes and lower back in conjunction with the hamstrings. This will improve your ability to extend your leg from the hip while keeping the lower spine stabilised.

• Don’t have an exercise ball? Try this one from amazon.co.uk

Exercise two: wall squats

These exercises will increase strength in your quads and glutes, which are vital when jumping and riding cross-country at speed.

Exercise three: banded clam

This exercise focuses on the flexibility of your outer hip to increase strength and stability of the pelvis. This will improve control of your leg, particularly while riding shapes and lateral work in the school.

• Want to have a go using a bosu balance board? Try this one from amazon.co.uk

About Dee Holdsworth

Dee is the founder of Dynamic Sports Therapy. A keen rider, she has competed at national level and was part of the small stables team at the London 2012 Olympics. Dee works with some of the world’s leading horse and rider combinations, including some of those on track for Rio 2016.

Dee is an equestrian sports science graduate from Hartpury College and went on to complete the International Therapy Examination Council Diploma in equine sports massage, delivered by veterinary chartered physiotherapist Mary Bromiley, and now stands as the ESMA Chairman.

Dee is a level four sports massage therapist with the Sports Massage Association. She also holds certificates in human and equine kinesiology taping and muscle energy techniques, as well as using deep oscillation therapy.

This video is brought to you in association with fitnesstroop.co.uk (Katie Brighton-Jones), shadowplay.co.uk (Philip E James) and performbetter.co.uk.

You might also be interested in:

Three simple exercises to get you started on your riding fitness journey

H&H’s 12 days of fitness: improve your flexibility

Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits. 

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

A rider’s lack of flexibility, strength and fitness can severely limit their ability to perform, but by following the exercises in our fitness videos, a relatively small investment in time can have far reaching positive effects on your performance as a rider. Here’s how to improve your horse riding upper body position, thanks to some expert advice…

You should warm up your muscles by taking a brisk walk, or similar, after riding before performing any of these exercises. If you suffer any ongoing physical issues, we recommend you speak to a health professional before you start.

Each exercise is shown at three different levels of difficulty, so you can choose the version that is most suitable to your current physical condition and then progress through the levels as you improve.

How to improve your horse riding upper body position

Being able to maintain your upper body position during transitions, both between and within the pace, is key to enable your horse to perform at their best. These exercises are designed to strengthen your rhomboids, trapezius and deltoids, which are the key muscles needed for upper body strength and stability when riding.

Exercise one: chin tucks

A series of stretches to strengthen your deep neck flexors, enabling you to position your head correctly and consistently, leading to better weight distribution in the saddle. A poor head position from the rider can unbalance the horse.

Exercise two: TYI

By strengthening your shoulders and upper back, you can develop a more open chest and avoid those dreaded rounded shoulders. This will improve your posture and your ability to control your upper body while in the saddle.

• Don’t have a resistance band with handles? Try this one from amazon.co.uk

Exercise three: swan dive

Free up any tightness in the upper back with these thoracic extension exercises to stablise the spine, trapezius and rhomboids. This will serve to improve your posture and weight distribution while riding.

About Dee Holdsworth

Dee is the founder of Dynamic Sports Therapy. A keen rider, she has competed at national level and was part of the small stables team at the London 2012 Olympics. Dee works with some of the world’s leading horse and rider combinations, including some of those on track for Rio 2016.

Dee is an equestrian sports science graduate from Hartpury College and went on to complete the International Therapy Examination Council Diploma in equine sports massage, delivered by veterinary chartered physiotherapist Mary Bromiley, and now stands as the ESMA Chairman.

Dee is a level four sports massage therapist with the Sports Massage Association. She also holds certificates in human and equine kinesiology taping and muscle energy techniques, as well as using deep oscillation therapy.

This video is brought to you in association with fitnesstroop.co.uk (Katie Brighton-Jones), shadowplay.co.uk (Philip E James) and performbetter.co.uk.

You might also be interested in:

Three simple exercises to get you started on your riding fitness journey

H&H’s 12 days of fitness: improve your leg strength

Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits. 

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

A rider’s lack of flexibility, strength and fitness can severely limit their ability to perform, but by following the exercises in our series of fitness videos, a relatively small investment in time can have far reaching positive effects on your performance as a rider. Here we explain how to improve horse rider flexibility…

You should warm up your muscles by taking a brisk walk, or similar, after riding before performing any of these exercises. If you suffer any ongoing physical issues, we recommend you speak to a health professional before you start.

Each exercise is shown at three different levels of difficulty, so you can choose the version that is most suitable to your current physical condition and then progress through the levels as you improve.

How to improve horse rider flexibility

Exercise one: upper back and shoulders release

A series of stretches to reduce rounding of your shoulders and upper back, which will improve your posture and balance in the saddle.

• Don’t have a foam roller for level 3? Try this one from amazon.co.uk

Exercise two: hip flexor release

Stretching the hip flexors can help reduce lower back pain, allow your pelvis to follow your horse’s back movements more closely and improve control of your seat.

Exercise three: lower back stretch

Free up any tightness in the lower back and avoid excessive curvature of this area, leading to improved distribution of the rider’s weight through the seat.

• Don’t have a resistance band? Try this set from amazon.co.uk

About Dee Holdsworth

Dee is the founder of Dynamic Sports Therapy. A keen rider, she has competed at national level and was part of the small stables team at the London 2012 Olympics. Dee works with some of the world’s leading horse and rider combinations, including some of those on track for Rio 2016.

Dee is an equestrian sports science graduate from Hartpury College and went on to complete the International Therapy Examination Council Diploma in equine sports massage, delivered by veterinary chartered physiotherapist Mary Bromiley, and now stands as the ESMA Chairman.

Dee is a level four sports massage therapist with the Sports Massage Association. She also holds certificates in human and equine kinesiology taping and muscle energy techniques, as well as using deep oscillation therapy.

This video is brought to you in association with fitnesstroop.co.uk (Katie Brighton-Jones), shadowplay.co.uk (Philip E James) and performbetter.co.uk.

You might also be interested in:

Three simple exercises to get you started on your riding fitness journey

Improve your core stability to help improve your riding in 2023

Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits. 

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

In the last of this five-part fitness series, chartered physio Sarah Claridge suggests a variety-packed fitness routine, with a demanding plank exercise to round it off...

This week’s fitness focus is plank exercises for horse riders. The side plank is key for working those crucial muscles that help your lateral work, controlling green horses and general yard chores. If you regularly try different planking exercises, you could be ready for the advanced exercise, while others may have to start planking from scratch. Whatever your fitness levels, it’s not too late to start now.

Take care: With any new form of exercise, your body needs to build up gradually to avoid strain. Seek the advice of a chartered physiotherapist if you are unsure if you should do any exercises due to underlying health conditions. Particular caution applies if you have any cartilage injuries in your knees or joint replacements; avoid the cardiovascular exercises if you have any unstable cardiac health problems, acute disc bulges/prolapses or referred leg pain, pins and needles, numbness, rheumatoid arthritis, osteoporosis, gynaecological conditions – or if you are pregnant or undergoing cancer treatment.

Stretching

Piriformis stretch in sitting

• 45 secs, 2 reps

You will need: a chair

Start in a seated position. Cross one leg to rest your ankle on the opposite knee. Apply gentle pressure to the knee as you lean forward, increasing the depth of the stretch. Hold this position, you should feel a comfortable tension with no pain.

Sleeping pigeon pose

• 45 secs, 2 reps

You will need: an exercise mat. Don’t have one? Here are our favourites.

Start on your hands and knees. Bring your right knee forward and get as much external rotation in your hip as you can. Lie your leg down on the mat and lower your chest down to the floor as far as you can.

Sarah says: “The piriformis exercise stretches the buttock muscles while the pigeon pose is an advanced stretch for the gluteal and hip flexor muscles in the hips.

“Both exercises should be comfortable to hold for 30-45 secs. These muscles can get tight when worked hard or if they are over-dominant. Stretches should help improve hip mobility and consequently your body’s ability to move with your horse in sync.”

*Do not do this if you have a hip replacement or are very hypermobile in your hips. 

Cardio

Running

• 40 secs, 3 sets

Consult with your therapist or GP on how long you can run and at what interval you can continue.

Sarah says: “This could be a fast walk, moderate jog or fast sprint start with 30sec work, 30sec rest, building up to 40 sec work and 20 sec rest. It helps build cardiovascular fitness, increase chest and lung expansion, and boost the feel-good hormones, which are key to a healthy body and mind.”

Strength – plank exercises for horse riders

Basic level – Side plank on knees

• 10 secs, 6 reps, 3 sets

You will need: an exercise mat. Don’t have one? Here are our favourites.

Lie on your side and prop yourself up on your elbow, positioned under your shoulder. Bend your knees and lift your hips off the mat until you have a straight line from your knees to the top of your head. Progress the hold time to 30-40 secs, 20 secs rest, three sets for further progression.

Intermediate level – Side star

• 10 secs, 6 reps, 3 sets

You will need: an exercise mat. Don’t have one? Here are our favourites.

Lie on your side and prop yourself up on your elbow, positioned under your shoulder. Bend your knees and lift your hips off the mat until you have a straight line from your knees to the top of your head. Holding this position, straighten your top leg, and lift it directly up towards the ceiling. Ensure this leg does not travel forwards. Control the movement as you lower the leg back down and then repeat. Progress the hold time to 30-40 secs, 20 secs rest, three sets for further progression.

Advanced level – Side plank high elevation hip adduction

• 10 secs, 6 reps, 3 sets

You will need: a chair and an exercise mat. Don’t have one? Here are our favourites.

This is a hard exercise and should be built up to gradually. Lie on your side with your top foot elevated on a chair. Your lower foot will be positioned on the floor. Place your lower forearm on the floor with your elbow under your shoulder. Lift your hips off the floor until you have a straight line from your head to your ankles. Holding this position, lift the lower leg up and hold. Lower this leg back to the floor and repeat. Progress the hold time to 30-40 secs, 20 secs rest, three sets for further progression.

Sarah says: “These three exercises, at different difficulty levels, help build strength and stability in the shoulder, abdominals and hip/pelvis. These are key for taking rugs and saddles on/off, lateral work, and keeping green horses on the straight.”

About Sarah: Chartered physiotherapist Sarah Claridge runs Meadow Physio and Pilates, specialising in rider strength and fitness. Visit meadowphysioandpilates.com for online classes and one-to-one sessions to help improve your body’s optimal performance. Follow on Instagram.

Exercise mats

When choosing which exercise or yoga mat to go for, there are two key elements to consider – grip and thickness.

Grip is a combination of the materials the mat is made from and the surface design, such as bumps or ridges. Polyurethane is known for providing a particularly good grip, so look out for those made of this or have a polyurethane top layer. But most mats will offer a sufficient grip for the majority of activities.

Thickness is important as a thick mat provides cushioning for your knees, elbows, hips, your tailbone and other potentially painful areas. Yoga mats usually range from 1–6mm, but general exercise mats can come thicker. You should opt for a thicker mat if you find harder floors to be uncomfortable on your knees or hips, while you should go for a thinner mat if you work out on carpet as thicker mats on carpet can make it difficult to balance.

Here are some exercise mats worth considering

Nyamba Comfort Fitness floor mat

RRP: £24.99 |

This mat is 15mm thick – thicker than your average mat – so it will offer plenty of cushioning on a hard floor.

View now at decathlon.co.uk

Sporteon TPE Eco yoga mat

RRP: £11.99 |

This anti-tear, non-slip mat is eco-friendly, antibacterial and sweatproof.

View now at amazon.co.uk

Yogamatters Eco Rise yoga mat

RRP: £45 |

Made from sustainably harvested natural tree rubber, this mat has a super grip.

View now at amazon.co.uk

Yoga-Mad Warrior Plus mat

RRP: £29.99 |

This lightweight mat is 6mm thick and suitable for all sorts of home exercise.

View now at amazon.co.uk

You might also be interested in:

Three simple exercises to get you started on your riding fitness journey

H&H’s 12 days of fitness: Improve your flexibility plus hip and pelvis control

H&H’s 12 days of fitness: Hone your riding muscles through dynamic power

Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits. 

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Whether you’re doing yard chores or gearing up to compete again, chartered physio Sarah Claridge recommends these strength and conditioning exercises to improve your fitness levels

Here are some strength and conditioning exercises for horse riders. You can do them all at home, on the yard or in your garden – specialist equipment isn’t essential, so what are you waiting for?

• Looking for some starter exercises? Check out these exercises for riders

Take care: With any new form of exercise, your body needs to build up gradually to avoid strain. Seek the advice of a chartered physiotherapist if you are unsure if you should do any exercises due to underlying health conditions. Particular caution applies if you have any cartilage injuries in your knees or joint replacements; avoid the cardiovascular exercises if you have any unstable cardiac health problems, acute disc bulges/prolapses or referred leg pain, pins and needles, numbness, rheumatoid arthritis, osteoporosis, gynaecological conditions – or if you are pregnant or undergoing cancer treatment.

Stretching

Squat to hamstring stretch

• 10 secs, 6 reps, 3 sets

Stand tall with your feet wider than hip-width apart. Bend forward at the waist to grab your toes with your hands. Drop down into a deep squat, keeping your arms straight, elbows inside your knees, back flat, and chest up. While holding your toes, raise your hips back and straighten your knees until you feel a good stretch in the back of your legs. Reverse the movement pattern and return to the starting position.

Sarah says: “This stretch increases flexibility for the back, hips and hamstrings. It’s a nice mobilisation and stretch for the hamstrings, to aid your ability to lengthen your leg down around your horse’s sides. Never force, only gently stretch. Do not go too low if you have had a hip replacement.”

Cardio

High knee & arm hops

• 30 reps, 3 sets

Stand up straight. Bring one knee up as high as you can in front of you while you hop forward on your standing leg. Simultaneously raise your opposite arm. Hop forward on your standing leg once more, landing with both feet.

Upon landing, instantly repeat, leading with your other arm and leg. Continue to travel forward for the desired distance. Keep your torso upright and avoid twisting. Start with 30 seconds of high knee hops with a 20-second rest between sets. Then build up to 40 seconds skipping with a 20-second recovery break, three sets in total.

Sarah says: “It helps build our cardiovascular fitness, chest and lung expansion, but also explosive power in the legs and arms is key for competitive riders. The single leg hop helps increase ankle stability and strength, which is useful for shorter stirrups in showjumping, as a jockey and in two-point seat canter.”

Strength

Bicep curl to overhead press

• 12 reps, 3 sets

You will need: 2kg hand weights or suitable substitute.

Stand with the weights in both hands. Keep your elbows close to your side as you bend the elbow, bringing the weights towards your shoulders.

Continue this movement reaching the weights up to the ceiling in an overhead press. Reverse the movements to bring it back down to the start position. Notice how your hands rotate as you curl up.

Sarah says: “Upper body strength is important for putting on tack, rugs and grooming our horses, alongside all the yard duties.

“This is a simple exercise you can make harder by going heavier with the weights to suit your level of fitness. Make sure you engage your core during the exercise so as not to arch or lean back while performing the overhead press section.

“To increase the difficulty, go up to 6-8kg weights in each arm, 6-8 reps, three sets. As the weight gets heavier the reps should get lower, as a general rule of thumb.”

About Sarah: Chartered physiotherapist Sarah Claridge runs Meadow Physio and Pilates, specialising in rider strength and fitness. Visit meadowphysioandpilates.com for online classes and one-to-one sessions to help improve your body’s optimal performance. Follow on Instagram.

You might also be interested in:

Three simple exercises to get you started on your riding fitness journey

H&H’s 12 days of fitness: Improve your flexibility plus hip and pelvis control

H&H’s 12 days of fitness: Hone your riding muscles through dynamic power

Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits. 

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Dynamic power is the focus of this fitness session with chartered physio Sarah Claridge – to hone your muscles for rising trot, the two-point canter and landing after a fence

Here are some exercises to strengthen horse riding muscles – stretching, cardio and dynamic power – to hone your muscles and target those areas riders typically need to work on.

Simply keeping fit is a good baseline, but riders have very different requirements from other athletes, from hip and spine flexibility to enable you to absorb your horse’s stride, to working the key muscles that give you stability around the hips and pelvis for lateral work.

Take care: With any new form of exercise, your body needs to build up gradually to avoid strain. Seek the advice of a chartered physiotherapist if you are unsure if you should do any exercises due to underlying health conditions. Particular caution applies if you have any cartilage injuries in your knees or joint replacements; avoid the cardiovascular exercises if you have any unstable cardiac health problems, acute disc bulges/prolapses or referred leg pain, pins and needles, numbness, rheumatoid arthritis, osteoporosis, gynaecological conditions – or if you are pregnant or undergoing cancer treatment.

Cardio exercises to strengthen horse riding muscles

Skipping

• 40 secs, 3 sets

You will need: a skipping rope

Stand upright with your feet shoulder-width apart. Hold the skipping rope handles in each hand. Extend the hands and forearms at least one foot away from the body, at a 45º angle, to create a larger arc to jump through.

Step over the rope. The rope should hang behind you and just touch the back of the feet. Use the hands and wrists to swing the rope up and over your head. Do not move the arms when swinging the rope; keep the motion limited to the wrists.

When the rope is coming around towards the front of the feet, hop over it by standing on the tiptoes, and push off with the balls of the feet. Try to keep this motion in the ankles. Maintain a fluid circular motion coordinating the wrists and feet and continue at a steady rhythmic pace.

Sarah says: “If you don’t have a skipping rope, you could even use a long lead rope or lunge line! Start with 30 seconds of skipping and a 20-second rest between sets, building up to 40 seconds skipping with a 20-second rest, doing three sets in total. Building up cardiovascular fitness is key for those riding multiple horses per day or competing.”

Stretching

W stretch

• 10 secs, 6 reps, 3 sets

You will need: an exercise mat. Don’t have one? Here are our favourites.

Adopt a sitting position with your back straight, legs out wide and knees bent.

Drop both knees to one side under control until you are in 90/90 position (both of your knees are bent at 90º). Return to the start position and repeat on the opposite side.

Sarah says: “This is a lovely opener for the hips to encourage flexibility – key for absorbing your horse’s natural strides.”

*You should not do this exercise if you have a hip replacement or excessive hip movement/hypermobility.

Dynamic power

Beginner level: step-up on to a chair

• 30 reps, 3 sets

You will need: a chair, box or step

Stand about two feet away from a chair or box. Step up on to the chair in a powerful movement, one leg at a time. Carefully step back down and repeat with the other leg leading.

Aim to keep the kneecap in line with the middle two toes on the front leg. Make sure you do not “dish” the lower leg as you step upwards.

Intermediate level: Pre-ride activation

• 14 rep, 1 set

You will need: a chair, box or step, and a 1–2kg weight

Stand up straight facing a step. Place one leg on the step and hold a weight in the hand on the same side.

Bend your elbow so the weight rests just in front of your shoulder. Ensuring your knee travels directly forwards over your toes, step up while simultaneously straightening the arm with the weight directly up towards the ceiling.

Bend your elevated leg through, bringing your knee up in front. Keep your gaze ahead and your abdominals strong throughout.

Control the movement as you lower back down to the floor, leaving the same leg on the step. Repeat this movement on the other side.

Advanced level: box jumps

• 1 rep, 1 set

You will need: a sturdy bench, box or step

Stand facing a box with your feet slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.

Keeping your chest up, squat down and immediately jump on to the box, extending through your hips. Land softly in a squat position, stand and reset to the starting position.

Sarah says: “For all of these dynamic power exercises, for your box you could use a sturdy mounting block or some bales of bedding if secured safely so as not to tip over. I’d suggest choosing the height according to your level of fitness, from 12in high up to 75in for advanced.

These three exercises use a large number of key riding muscles, such as the posterior oblique sling, which are responsible for your rising trot, two-point canter seat and anti‑gravity muscles, which are used on landing from a showjumping position. They help us to lift our wheelbarrows of muck and hay through our legs and our saddles on our horses.

Using a single leg at a time and alternating the legs aids the stability around the hip and pelvis, which is key for lateral work and aids.

Start with 30 seconds exercise, 30 seconds rest and build towards 40 seconds work, 20 seconds rest.

About Sarah: Chartered physiotherapist Sarah Claridge runs Meadow Physio and Pilates, specialising in rider strength and fitness. Visit meadowphysioandpilates.com for online classes and one-to-one sessions to help improve your body’s optimal performance. Follow Meadow Physio & Pilates on Instagram and Facebook

Exercise mats

When choosing which exercise or yoga mat to go for, there are two key elements to consider – grip and thickness.

Grip is a combination of the materials the mat is made from and the surface design, such as bumps or ridges. Polyurethane is known for providing a particularly good grip, so look out for those made of this or have a polyurethane top layer. But most mats will offer a sufficient grip for the majority of activities.

Thickness is important as a thick mat provides cushioning for your knees, elbows, hips, your tailbone and other potentially painful areas. Yoga mats usually range from 1–6mm, but general exercise mats can come thicker. You should opt for a thicker mat if you find harder floors to be uncomfortable on your knees or hips, while you should go for a thinner mat if you work out on carpet as thicker mats on carpet can make it difficult to balance.

Here are some exercise mats worth considering

Nyamba Comfort Fitness floor mat

RRP: £24.99 |

This mat is 15mm thick – thicker than your average mat – so it will offer plenty of cushioning on a hard floor.

View now at decathlon.co.uk

Sporteon TPE Eco yoga mat

RRP: £11.99 |

This anti-tear, non-slip mat is eco-friendly, antibacterial and sweatproof.

View now at amazon.co.uk

Yogamatters Eco Rise yoga mat

RRP: £45 |

Made from sustainably harvested natural tree rubber, this mat has a super grip.

View now at amazon.co.uk

Yoga-Mad Warrior Plus mat

RRP: £29.99 |

This lightweight mat is 6mm thick and suitable for all sorts of home exercise.

View now at amazon.co.uk

You might also be interested in:

Three simple exercises to get you started on your riding fitness journey

H&H’s 12 days of fitness: Improve your flexibility plus hip and pelvis control

9 things to check before you get back in the saddle as lockdown regulations ease

Before you get back on board, here are some things to consider so that you can enjoy your horse safely...

4 fitness exercises to do at home that could improve your riding

Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits. 

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

In the second of this five-part fitness series, chartered physio Sarah Claridge targets flexibility to help you bend with your horse on a circle, and build control of your hips and pelvis

In the second of this five-part rider fitness series, we focus on rider flexibility – here are three more rider-focused exercises for stretching, cardio and strength/endurance to help keep those riding muscles in gear. Remember to start at a level you feel comfortable with before moving up to more advanced techniques.

• Missed day one? Check out the previous exercises for horse riders.

Take care: With any new form of exercise, your body needs to build up gradually to avoid strain. Seek the advice of a chartered physiotherapist if you are unsure if you should do any exercises due to underlying health conditions.

Particular caution applies if you have any cartilage injuries in your knees or joint replacements; avoid the cardiovascular exercises if you have any unstable cardiac health problems, acute disc bulges/prolapses or referred leg pain, pins and needles, numbness, rheumatoid arthritis, osteoporosis, gynaecological conditions – or if you are pregnant or undergoing cancer treatment.

Stretching for rider flexibility

Arm openers

• 10 secs, 6 reps 3 sets

You will need: an exercise mat. Don’t have one? Here are our favourites.

Lie on your side with your head supported on a pillow and your knees bent at a 90-degree angle. Reach your arms out in front of you, with your hands together.

Rotate the upper arm upwards and outwards from your trunk. Try to rotate as far as you can, without forcing the shoulder. Hold in the maximum position. You can adjust the level at which you rotate by adjusting the angle of your knees.

Trunk rotation in crook, upper-leg extension

• 10 secs, 6 reps, 3 sets

You will need: an exercise mat. Don’t have one? Here are our favourites.

Lie on your back with your legs bent and feet flat on the floor. Rest your arms gently out to the side.

Drop both your knees over to one side, aiming to keep your shoulders on the floor. When your legs are as far as they can go, straighten the knee on your top leg to increase the stretch in your back. Hold this position, ensuring you breathe steadily throughout.

Sarah says: “These stretches encourage rotational flexibility through your shoulder, ribcage and back. It should help your ability to isolate different parts of your body while riding, such as on a serpentine or circle. Being flexible through your body will help you absorb your horse’s movements and energy so you can move more in sync.

“Try to breathe out as you stretch, relaxing into the length of your back. You can always hold this for longer than 30 to 40 seconds, which is nice to do at the end of the day.”

Cardio

Jumping Jacks

Stand upright with your feet together. Jump upwards and open your legs outwards, and at the same time bring your arms upwards so you are making a star pattern.

Land gently using your knees and hips to cushion the landing and then immediately spring back to the start position, and bring your arms down by your sides. Continue this movement in a fluid and controlled manner.

To make this lower impact, step from side to side instead of jumping, still lifting and lowering your arms with each step. To make this harder, your arms can be raised above your head to clap your hands instead of stopping at shoulder height.

Start with six sets of 10 reps and build up to three sets of 30 seconds with a 20-second rest between sets. Move on to 40 seconds with a 20-second rest break between each of the three sets.

Sarah says: “This is a great exercise to help build our cardiovascular fitness, which is especially key if you are riding multiple horses per day or competing.

Strength and endurance for rider flexibility

Hip skates level 1 (beginner)

• 20 reps, 3 sets

Stand on one leg as you slide the other foot along the floor, back and up. Hold onto something if required for light support and balance. Make sure your knee on the supporting leg does not bend beyond your toes. Aim to keep the kneecap over the middle two toes.

Hip skates level 2 (moderate)

• 20 reps, 3 sets

Stand on one leg, lift and lower one knee, skating the leg out to the side and back. Stay on one leg until you start to feel the muscles in the thigh and bottom/hip on the leg you are standing on – this may take 10 to 30 repetitions. Then change legs/sides.

Hip skates level 3 (challenging)

• 20 reps, 3 sets

Add arms into the exercise by raising them as you slide the foot outwards and lower as you bring the leg back in again.

Add a little single-leg squat on the stance leg as you skate the other leg out for increased difficulty. Then swap legs. Further progression would be to add a manageable weight into the hands.

Take a 10 to 15-second break in between sets, and build up to three sets of 30 seconds with a 20-second rest break between sets. Move on to 40 seconds with a 20-second rest break.

Sarah says: “This exercise helps build up the control and endurance of the hip and pelvis, which are key for canter aids and any lateral work, flying changes and to improve rider straightness.”

About Sarah: Chartered physiotherapist Sarah Claridge runs Meadow Physio and Pilates, specialising in rider strength and fitness. Visit meadowphysioandpilates.com for online classes and one-to-one sessions to help improve your body’s optimal performance. Follow on Instagram.

Exercise mats

When choosing which exercise or yoga mat to go for, there are two key elements to consider – grip and thickness.

Grip is a combination of the materials the mat is made from and the surface design, such as bumps or ridges. Polyurethane is known for providing a particularly good grip, so look out for those made of this or have a polyurethane top layer. But most mats will offer a sufficient grip for the majority of activities.

Thickness is important as a thick mat provides cushioning for your knees, elbows, hips, your tailbone and other potentially painful areas. Yoga mats usually range from 1–6mm, but general exercise mats can come thicker. You should opt for a thicker mat if you find harder floors to be uncomfortable on your knees or hips, while you should go for a thinner mat if you work out on carpet as thicker mats on carpet can make it difficult to balance.

Here are some exercise mats worth considering

Nyamba Comfort Fitness floor mat

RRP: £24.99 |

This mat is 15mm thick – thicker than your average mat – so it will offer plenty of cushioning on a hard floor.

View now at decathlon.co.uk

Sporteon TPE Eco yoga mat

RRP: £11.99 |

This anti-tear, non-slip mat is eco-friendly, antibacterial and sweatproof.

View now at amazon.co.uk

Yogamatters Eco Rise yoga mat

RRP: £45 |

Made from sustainably harvested natural tree rubber, this mat has a super grip.

View now at amazon.co.uk

Yoga-Mad Warrior Plus mat

RRP: £29.99 |

This lightweight mat is 6mm thick and suitable for all sorts of home exercise.

View now at amazon.co.uk

You might also be interested in:

Three simple exercises to get you started on your riding fitness journey

H&H’s 12 days of fitness: Hone your riding muscles through dynamic power

Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits. 

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

“Ah, it’s all right, I’m going to the yard later,” you think, happily tucking into roast beef with all the trimmings, followed by apple crumble with (it would be rude not to) a generous dollop of custard on top.

“I’ll work it all off doing the stables,” you think, as one chocolate biscuit turns into two, three and — oh. Is the packet empty?

Mucking out, walking courses and heaving bales of hay about, not to mention riding itself, all counts as exercise, helps build fitness and muscle and burns off some calories, although maybe not as many as you’d hope.

Thanks to a fitness tracker and its workout setting, H&H has been able to calculate approximate values for the number of calories burned carrying out various horsey tasks, perfect to give you an idea of how you can burn off any Christmas excess around the yard.

Of course these will vary owing to factors such as your weight, age and level of fitness, not to mention the distances involved in different yards, whether your horse is forthcoming or not and just how energetic your muckheap-forking is.

But added to your basal metabolic rate, the number of calories you would burn if you lay in bed all day, it all adds up to a respectable total.

Calories burnt during equestrian tasks

• Mucking out two full straw beds, including sweeping, emptying wheelbarrows and one new bale of straw: 175 kcal
• Mucking out two full shavings beds, including sweeping and emptying wheelbarrow: 168 kcal
• Forking back/tidying the muckheap for 15 minutes: 99 kcal
• Digging out the corners/sides of a sand and rubber 20x40m school before harrowing (16 minutes): 88kcal
• Walking a showjumping course (single phase, 12 fences): 42 kcal
• Warming up and jumping a single-phase showjumping course, as above: 148kcal
• Half an hour’s riding on the flat: 205 kcal
• Walking a cross-country course (45 minutes): 195 kcal

Is it time for another HobNob?

• To stay up to date with all the breaking news throughout major shows, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

You may also be interested in:

Rider fitness: what do we really mean by ‘core’ and how does it work?

Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

In our 67th weekly episode of The Horse & Hound Podcast, H&H dressage editor Polly Byan talks to Sir Lee Pearson about winning three gold medals at the Tokyo Paralympics on a home-bred horse, and what the future may hold for the para dressage legend, who become a foster father last year. In a sport-packed episode H&H’s podcast host Pippa Roome chats to Catherine Austen about Bicton five-star, before catching up with H&H’s news writer Becky Murray to discuss the European Showjumping Championships as well as other topical news. Finally, in this week’s advice section, we welcome back personal trainer Katie Bleekman for the final episode in her mini series to talk about the type of fitness needed for different equestrian sports. We hope you will find this useful.

Episode 67 of The Horse & Hound Podcast, our popular audio service available every Thursday morning for our H&H digital subscribers is now live.

Each episode is available for all H&H fans to listen to via your favourite podcast app 24hrs after its early release to our H&H digital subscribers. Search for “The Horse & Hound Podcast” in your preferred podcast app and click subscribe to be notified about each new episode. This will allow more listeners to make The Horse & Hound Podcast an essential part of their week on Friday morning.

• View all episodes of The Horse & Hound Podcast

In our 67th weekly episode of The Horse & Hound Podcast, H&H dressage editor Polly Bryan talks to the truly inspirational Sir Lee Pearson about his Tokyo Paralympics, how it feels to win three gold medals on a home-bred horse, and why he was moved to speak out about the importance of love and acceptance for all, regardless of their sexuality or disability, while at the Games. She also quizzes Lee on his plans for the future – after six Paralympics, is the para dressage legend and foster father preparing to hang up his boots? Not a chance. He’s planning for Paris, and beyond, with a host of exciting new home-bred young horses coming through, and he also intends to ride at grand prix before he even thinks about hanging up his boots.

Moving on to the week’s elite sport, H&H’s podcast host Pippa Roome chats to Catherine Austen about all the action at Bicton five-star, which saw Gemma Tattersall win her first five-star title (and get engaged), before catching up with H&H’s news writer Becky Murray about the European Showjumping Championships as well as other topical news.

In this week’s advice section, we welcome back personal trainer Katie Bleekman for the final part of her rider fitness mini series, which focuses on the particular types of fitness needed for the various equestrian sports.

• We would love to hear your feedback on all our podcasts, so please do send your thoughts to pippa.roome@futurenet.com

H&H Plus podcast: episode 67

Listen now to other recent episodes of The Horse & Hound Podcast…

The Horse & Hound Podcast 66: Ros Canter | Paralympic dressage | Core strength | News round-up

The Horse & Hound Podcast 65: Working hunter producer Katy Green | Aerobic fitness | News round-up

The Horse & Hound Podcast 64: Ben Maher | Laura Kraut | Riders returning from injury | News round-up

The Horse & Hound Podcast 63: Tom McEwen | Back pain in riders | News round-up

How to listen to the Horse & Hound Podcast: a beginner’s guide to podcasts

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Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Eventer Imogen Murray believes low blood sugar may have been a factor in a cross-country fall in which she suffered concussion. H&H speaks to Imogen and a nutrition expert to find out how we should be fuelling ourselves for competition

A FIVE-STAR eventer who suffered concussion in an innocuous fall is encouraging riders to treat themselves as athletes and take nutrition seriously.

Imogen Murray, who has top-10 finishes at Badminton and Burghley, strongly suspects a lack of rider fuel was a “contributing factor” to her fall from Strandhill Boy in a novice section at Little Downham X (22 May).

She has since taken a serious look at her nutrition and has shared her story to show others how important this is for performance – and the safety risks associated with not taking it seriously.

“The horse didn’t do anything hugely wrong, he caught a knee and twisted a bit in the air, but it was nothing drastic,” Imogen told H&H.

She added that she has watched the video and it wasn’t something that would normally result in her falling, but her reactions did not look as sharp as normal.

“I didn’t appear to make much effort to stay on,” she said.

She added that she wondered whether this was blood sugar-related, given how much she had done that day and whether she had eaten enough and the right foods to support that.

“I’d ridden five horses that day, he was my fourth cross-country round and all the [15] phases were within about four hours, which is a lot to do in a not very long period of time,” she said, adding that she had had breakfast, but it was perhaps not enough.

“We are classed as athletes and when you look at athletes in other sports, their diet and nutrition to prepare for games and matches is a big part of that.

“I would like to say I can ride my first horse around the cross-country and be just as on top of my game for my fourth or fifth horse and not be letting them down. We put a lot of time, effort and money into this sport, to then do something silly like fall off because you haven’t eaten enough.”

She has since passed the concussion assessment required by British Eventing and has been signed back on to compete, and has also taken a hard look at when and what she eats both at home and on competition days.

While Imogen was speaking from the perspective of a professional with multiple rides in a short timeframe, the message of being properly fuelled applies to all.

Performance nutritionist Daniel Martin, a chartered sport and exercise scientist and director at Combine Performance Limited who works across multiple sports including equestrianism, told H&H it is great to hear a rider raising awareness.

“Riders pay a lot of attention to treating our horses like athletes, but it is a partnership at the end of the day, and the horse is only going to be as good as you are performing. And if you are not fuelled, you are going to be letting your horse down,” he said.

He added that although falls can have many variables, there is scientific evidence on the links between performance and what people are putting into their bodies.

Dr Martin said studies from Liverpool John Moores University, where he is a postdoctoral researcher, involving jockeys showed that by being just 2% dehydrated can lead to a measurable decrease in performance, as can not being properly fuelled, all of which have been shown to affect strength, reaction times and decision-making.

“We can borrow a lot of practices from other sports – in most other sports, athletes do most of the fuelling the day before and equestrian athletes can learn a lot from those. My advice would be, whether you’re an amateur or a five-star eventer, is to do your fuelling the day before with a carb-rich diet. A general rule of thumb is between 6–8g of carbohydrates for every kilogram you weigh.

“On competition day itself, it is just about topping up the energy from what you did yesterday. Comfort is king on competition days, so not necessarily vast quantities but instead a carb-rich breakfast followed by small intakes of foods that you enjoy, are familiar with and are going to feel comfortable in your stomach around your rides.”

He added that it is easy for people to be persuaded by so-called “quick fixes”, but for those looking for professional, evidence-based advice, he would recommend consulting a professional registered with the Sport and Exercise Nutrition Register.

You might also be interested in…

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Take a look at this remarkable video

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

If fitness levels for you and your horse have been on the back burner, hit the ground running with these exercise plans, advises Andrea Oakes

After a year of stop-start activity on the competition front, we’re again getting the green light to go. But to what extent has a triple whammy of lockdown, bad weather and Brexit border chaos derailed preparation? When the starting bell sounds, will we be ready?

Without the certainty of a show schedule, dressage riders have been wondering whether to keep their top horses at full fitness or bubbling under.

“We had a plan with the international horses and built them up, then everything stopped and we let them down a bit,” says Team GBR dressage rider Gareth Hughes. “The experienced ones do develop greater endurance over the years and tend to come back to fitness a bit quicker, but those who’ve not done much at top level or travelled abroad take longer to recuperate. In a grand prix, the last centre line can seem so far away.”

At all levels, he explains, it is difficult to replicate the intensity of a real test.

“At home, you can always do a circle or a transition,” says Gareth. “Competing is very different, mentally and physically. You do get rusty and even a bit anxious when you haven’t competed for a while, so you can’t go straight out to a big show. You need something smaller first.”

International dressage rider Lara Butler agrees that both sides of the partnership can lose momentum.

“We’re training at home, but we’re out of the competition rhythm,” she says, explaining that shows sharpen both fitness and reactions. “But our horses are still where we need them to be. The younger ones should catch up very quickly, if events restart and run regularly, although it may be a bit of a shock to their system.”

While some showjumpers travelled south to tours in mainland Europe earlier this year, amateur rider Sarah Lewis was dissuaded by the border issues.

“We did go to Vilamoura in October and then felt ahead of the game at Pyecombe in December – the only show we’ve done since,” says Sarah. “We’ve kept the horses working with lots of hacking, which has been good for their heads, along with some gridwork and flatwork for suppleness and rideability.

“They don’t need to jump and jump, especially the ones jumping big fences, and I don’t like drilling them as it can make them tired, sore and cross,” she adds. “The fitness is there. After a couple of training shows, I think they’ll be away.”

For many event riders, the usual pre-season build-up has been affected.

“This lockdown has not come without its struggles,” admits five-star eventer Tom McEwen, whose Tokyo prospect Toledo De Kerser spearheads his Gatcombe-based team. “We’ve been battling the weather, so less turnout has been available, and we’ve been limited to schooling in my arenas as opposed to being able to use the park.

“With amazing facilities and hilly, off-road hacking, however, the horses’ fitness has not been compromised,” adds Tom, who has used a small selection of cross-country fences to focus his horses’ minds before their first event. “They’ve not become bored and sour towards work; in fact, they’re ready and raring to go. They must be wondering what the hold-up is.”

Irish eventer Padraig McCarthy would ordinarily kick off the season at the Barroca International Horse Trials in Portugal, in early March, but the event was shelved due to the recent equine herpes virus outbreak.

“We don’t have gallop facilities and we’ve not been able to box up and travel to any,” says Padraig. “But fitness requirements depend on your goals. The cancellation of Badminton, the early five-star, takes the pressure off, and the seasoned campaigners are easier to bring up to speed.

“It does take some match practice, though,” he adds, explaining that both horse and rider benefit from the pressure of competition. “With Tokyo still on the cards, we need those runs.”

As high-profile events have been scrubbed off the calendar, top eventers have been faced with a training dilemma.

“Some who were going to Badminton have backed off a bit, because you can’t sustain that level indefinitely,” says eventing coach Caroline Moore FBHS. “Once you’ve taken a horse down to short-format fitness, it takes six weeks to bring him back for long-format.”

According to Caroline, fitness is a concern across the levels.

“We’d normally use grassland or gallops for fitness work, but it is tricky when you can’t travel,” she says. “On top of that, bad weather and poor ground conditions in many areas have limited hacking.

“To build stamina, I advise fartlek training [Swedish for “speed play”; a form of interval training] – long, slow periods with some sprint work, or jumping with a bit of sprint work on a circuit,” says Caroline. “This is possible in a reasonably sized arena. The aim is to push up the horse’s heart and respiratory rates, so another option is to work slowly on a steep gradient. Nicola Wilson would do that with [her multiple Team GBR medallist] Opposition Buzz, walking him up and down embankments to make him really puff.

“Some riders may try to select flatter, less punishing courses for the first few events and use these as part of a fitness regime,” she adds. “But they will have to be aware of any fitness deficit at the start of the season and not go out all guns blazing.”

If your personal fitness plans have fizzled out during the mid-winter lockdown, you’re not alone.

“Many of us have been more sedentary, sitting in front of a computer,” says Ashleigh Wallace, head of athlete health and lead physiotherapist for British Equestrian, who laments the fact that gyms – a lifeline for many in the dark months – have been forced to close. “It is really hard to stay motivated and committed when it’s raining and muddy.

“Riders are generally pretty active and usually retain strength, but what drops first is cardiovascular fitness,” she adds. “The competition restart is a good target to work towards. What’s important is to focus on exercise that will make the biggest difference before then.”

Ashleigh recommends a varied strength and conditioning programme.

“High-intensity work that raises your heart rate is really effective in kick-starting your cardiovascular system,” she explains. “The key is to push yourself, within safe limits, and to intersperse these timed sprint bursts with low-intensity periods or rest.

“This interval training can be done by cycling, running or skipping, or in circuits,” adds Ashleigh. “Cycling is especially relevant for riders as it targets the leg muscles and lumbar spine, so spinning sessions are ideal. Even better, take your mountain bike out – bouncing about, with frequent changes of direction, carries over well to riding.

“Hill running develops the calves and glutes, which are important for riding, and will have a big impact on cardiovascular fitness,” she says. “Or try eight fast walks up a steep hill, recovering each time on the way down. With three to four days’ training a week, you should notice a difference within a fortnight – and feel real changes within another month.”

In addition, strength exercises that work multiple muscles at once will deliver superior results for the time you put in.

“Whole-body exercises beneficial for riders include squats, lunges, deadlifts, push-ups and pull-ups,” explains Ashleigh. “Two weekly circuit sessions combining these exercises will have a beneficial effect in just four to six weeks.

“But rest days are vital, along with sensible nutrition,” she adds, pointing out that riding is a weight-sensitive sport. “Protein builds and repairs muscle and also satiates us, keeping us fuller for longer, while low-GI carbohydrates such as oats provide a slower release of energy.

“Include good fats – avocado, seeds, olive oil and nuts – for their anti-inflammatory properties, and eat fruit and vegetables in a rainbow of colours. Importantly, rehydrate with two to three litres of water per day.

“The better fuelled and hydrated you are, the more impactful your exercise regime will be.”

Is he fit enough?

Check out your horse’s fitness status, with Caroline Moore’s at-a-glance guide…

Dressage — medium level

Requirements: ability to work for sessions of up to one hour, with up to three-minute canter periods within this, plus two short warm-ups.

Training: 10 circuits of a 20x60m arena equates to one mile. An average workout at this level comprises five miles in walk, trot and canter, with some fairly muscle-strenuous exercise. If hacking on gradients, complete less mileage.

Tip: a circuit-training session with a range of exercises will allow the horse to rest a certain muscle group while using another – small circles, for example, then lateral work, moving on to raised poles and then simple transitions.

Showjumping — three Discovery rounds

Requirements: ability to work for up to one-and-half to two hours in sporadic sessions, performing in one- to two-minute bursts of power – almost a sprint-type effort.

Training: slow hill work for strength and stamina, with long, slow canter periods and short bursts of work at a faster pace to challenge the cardiovascular system – either on the gallops or within jumping work.

Tip: after a round, when the horse wants to stop, keep cantering for two minutes to improve his stamina.

Eventing — BE100/novice

Requirements: ability to perform three warm-up sessions, amounting to approx 1hr, plus a 4min dressage test, a showjumping round of approx 14 fences and a cross-country round at 520m/min for up to five-and-a-half minutes.

Training: a varied schedule. Fitness work should include twice-weekly sessions in jumping tack, comprising flatwork, strenuous transition work, some longer canter periods (up to six to seven minutes) in collected, working and medium canters, plus polework and an occasional quick-reaction sprint.

Tip: when you do get to the gallops or cross-country training, increase the length of work before the speed. Use a stopwatch to time faster work and chart progress.

Across all disciplines, signs that a horse is not coping include uncharacteristically poor performance, a lack of forward intention, a general reluctance to put effort in and coming out stiff the following day.

After faster work, an increased respiration rate should drop within the first minute of walk and return to normal after five minutes. Delayed recovery or a deterioration in performance might warrant adjustment of the programme or a vet check.

This feature was first published in Horse & Hound magazine, out Thursday 25 March 2021

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Interest in rider fitness has grown over the past few years as riders become more aware of the importance of physical preparation out of the saddle to enhance performance in it. But what does rider fitness mean when it comes to the most physically demanding phase of eventing, cross-country?

Whether cross-country schooling or competing at the highest level, a series of physical events are triggered in the body when riding across country, similar to those that happen when cycling or running. These responses clearly indicate that riders, whether they recognise it or not, are athletes.

Riders must control their bodies by contracting muscle groups, such as those in their core, shifting their bodyweight in response to the horse’s movement to ensure they remain in balance. They must also make constant cognitive decisions.

These characteristics mean riding is a complex skill. When a rider’s muscles contract, for example during rising trot, the body responds by increasing heart and breathing rates which enable more oxygen to be transported to the working leg muscles. This reaction is similar to when a person runs up a flight of stairs as both heart and breathing rates increase.

How effectively the body responds to physical exertion will depend on the person’s fitness. A fitter rider with a well-developed cardio-respiratory system will have a larger, stronger heart that is able to pump more oxygenated blood to the working muscles.

Those who ride at least one horse daily will gain a level of fitness through the body adapting to this exercise stimulus. However, academic research has shown that riding alone is not enough to improve a rider’s fitness.

The correct physical preparation in and out of the saddle will enhance fitness levels and could provide riders with a competitive edge. In contrast, being unfit could lead to a decreased performance and increased risk of injury.

How fit does a rider need to be for cross-country?

Cross-country is the most physically demanding part of eventing for horse and rider for numerous reasons, including its intensity and duration. Riders must maintain a fast canter or gallop for most of the round. To work in harmony with the horse and allow it to move as freely as possible underneath them, riders assume a half-seat squat position.

In doing so, they demonstrate high levels of muscular endurance throughout their body, but particularly in their leg and core muscles. At five-star events, this position must be maintained for up to 12 minutes, all while balancing and recovering after every jumping effort.

Research shows that to meet the high-intensity demands of a cross-country round, a rider’s heart rate must average 184 beats per minute. An arbitrary gauge of a human’s maximum heart rate is 220 minus the individuals’ age.

This means that riders’ hearts can beat at 96% of their maximum during cross-country. This is comparable to 800m and 1500m runners and illustrates why riders should treat themselves as athletes.

In other sporting contexts, National Hunt racing jockeys or alpine skiers have reported heart rates of 184 and 169 beats per minute during competition. Both must assume a similar squat position to riders cross-country and control their bodies at speeds of up to 29 to 35mph for jockeys or 80mph for skiers.

Riders would never contemplate entering an unfit horse into a competition due to the likely risk of poor performance or injury. If riders themselves are not fit enough, they are at a similar disadvantage. A lack of fitness could increase reaction time, hinder performance and ultimately increase risk of injury.

Sport scientists regularly use the phrase “being fatigued” to describe being unable to complete exercise and feeling tired or exhausted. People might associate physical fatigue with muscles cramping or feeling heavy and tired. Fatigue is multifactorial in nature, the most commonly understood cause being a build-up of lactic acid which inhibits muscular contraction.

Mental fatigue can also present itself when a rider is not sufficiently fit. This results in reaction times increasing, as well as an inability to process information and make decisions, both necessities for successful cross-country rounds.

Any athlete who pushes themselves to their physical limits is likely to experience physical fatigue, but it takes longer to reach this boundary when the body is fitter.

Therefore, with targeted physical preparation, a fit rider will be able to optimise performance, avoiding both physical and psychological fatigue. This brings us to the question, “Is riding alone enough to get riders ‘fit’?”

Riders’ heart rate responses during cross-country suggest that riders are as much athletes as their equine counterparts.

Top-level athletes across all sports will complete some form of additional physical preparation either in the gym targeting muscular development, on-pitch targeting their cardiovascular fitness or usually a combination of the two.

Rugby players would never solely rely on playing rugby to ensure their fitness, nor would an alpine skier or 800m runner rely entirely on skiing or track running to get fit, so why should equestrian sports be any different?

There is no one-size-fits-all approach for increasing physical fitness, as everyone’s physiology, training background and riding level will vary. But all event riders should aim to do at least three active sessions out of the saddle a week.

Two of these sessions should have a cardiovascular focus, meaning they increase heart rate above a resting level. Someone new to this should complete a brisk walk for 30 minutes twice a week before progressively introducing short running intervals. A rider who is already completing additional exercise may opt for a 5km run or 10km bike ride.

Irrespective of a rider’s starting fitness level, these sessions will enhance the body’s ability to transport oxygen to working muscles by increasing the efficiency of the cardio-respiratory system.

The third session should focus on developing muscular strength and endurance to allow riders to maintain riding positions. This can be achieved by completing bodyweight strength exercises.

There are several ways of achieving this goal dependent on the rider’s starting fitness level. Pilates is popular among riders and is a great way of introducing whole body flexibility and muscular strength development. It is also easily accessed at home through online platforms and requires little equipment.

However, if riders have a more experienced training background, then completing a more intense whole-body workout in the form of high intensity interval training (HIIT) may have greater challenge and appeal.

HIIT increases both cardio-respiratory and muscular fitness without needing to commit hours to exercise. It is used by jockeys during their initial training.

A basic HIIT training session would involve a circuit of whole-body exercises, such as a plank, squat, triceps dips and star jumps. Each activity is completed over a set time, usually 40 seconds, with a 20-second break between each exercise. These combined activities create one circuit and are repeated three times altogether. If new to HIIT training, riders may opt to take a minute of rest between circuits.

Varying the duration and intensity of exercises will alter the body’s physiological response and subsequent adaptation.

Before completing any additional exercise, it is important riders consider their health and fitness. Those new to additional exercise should progressively increase intensity and duration to build baseline fitness before completing a higher intensity workout.

Whatever additional exercise riders choose, they should view riding and physical preparation out of the saddle as complementary. By taking a combined approach to exercise, riders will give themselves the biggest opportunity to excel during competitions.

A basic high intensity interval training (HIIT) circuit

Each activity for 40 seconds, 20-second break between them. Repeat the circuit three times

Plank

Squat

Triceps dip

Star jump

About the author

Rosa Dakin is a sport scientist at the University of Birmingham, supporting elite scholar athletes on their sporting journeys. She graduated with an MSc in exercise physiology from Loughborough University in 2019, where her thesis focused on the physiological responses of event riders during cross-country competition. Rosa runs equestriansportscience.co.uk, a website and social media platform dedicated to supporting equestrian athletes.

Also published in H&H 11 March 2021

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Who needs a gym membership when you have a horse? You can improve your cardio and strength without even leaving the yard. Elements of this little routine might sound familiar…

Warm-up

We know we have to warm up our horses before asking them to do any strenuous work, and the same applies to ourselves. Exercising with cold muscles can result in paralysis, or death, or something. So go out to the field and attempt to catch your horse. By the time he’s run round their field several times, with you chasing after him yelling: ‘I’ve got treats! I’m just bringing you in for a feed, not for riding’, you’ll be nicely warmed-up and ready for the next stage of the workout. Hopefully at some point you will have also managed to catch your horse.

Cardio

It’s time to get that heart rate up and the blood pumping round your body! (This sounds awful, but it’s a good thing, apparently. It produces feel-good hormones and we could all do with those, especially at 5am on a show day). Some people say that riding doesn’t count as a cardio-vascular workout, as the horse does all the work. Those people have never sat on a horse.

Mount and take your horse into the arena or field. Proceed as follows: trot a figure of eight, kicking frantically with your inside leg as your horse falls in through the shoulder and your outside leg as he swings his quarters towards the gate. Repeat on the opposite rein. Move into canter; depending on your horse, you will either work your calves and glutes trying to get him forward, or your triceps, quadriceps and abs trying to slow him down.

Put up a course of jumps. Point horse at jumps. Get off horse and demonstrate to him how to jump the course of jumps, on foot. Get back on horse, ride horse over jumps. Repeat a few times. Get off, try to regain breath. Drink some water. You’ve burnt 6,429 calories during your cardio session. Have a Twix to celebrate, you deserve it.

Strength and conditioning

Squats: Fill your horse’s two 20-litre water buckets, bend your knees and — lifting from the legs and not the waist — carry them to his stable without stopping. If this proves a challenge too far, tip some water out and try again. If it’s too easy, add some more water back in. Come on, this is a hardcore workout, not a relaxing day at the seaside. Get on with it!

Tricep and bicep lifts: The fight against arm flab is an ongoing battle for many of us, but your horse can help tone up those bingo wings. Well, your horse stuff can, anyway. Make sure you keep all your rugs, head collars, lead ropes and numnahs on a high shelf in the tack room. Now, raise your arms above your head, reach up to remove them and carefully lift them down. If you stand on tip toe to reach, you’ll experience a calf stretch at the same time. But don’t ever try this with heavy stuff, folks. Leave your grooming box on the ground. Concussion is a serious set-back for any exercise routine and best avoided.

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Cool down

Finally, it’s time to cool down. Sit down and tuck into a chocolate bar. Crunchies are nice, but you really can’t go wrong with a packet of Maltesers.

* NB: This routine is definitely not approved by any trainer, physio, or sports-related person whatsoever.

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade to access our H&H Plus online service which brings you breaking news as it happens as well as other benefits.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

The recent BBC Elite British Sportswomen survey highlighted challenges and areas of concern for female athletes as they juggle their personal health and plans to start a family with their career. H&H spoke to top British-based riders from the Olympic disciplines, as well as experts from racing and British Equestrian, to find out how horse sport in the UK shapes up...

Equestrian sports have the opportunity to lead on discussing taboo topics, it is thought, as elite female athletes’ concerns over starting families and personal health have been highlighted in a study.

The BBC Elite British Sportswomen survey covered topics including whether sportswomen felt supported by governing bodies to have a baby and continue to compete, if they had delayed starting a family because of their career, whether their performance had been affected by their period, and if they felt comfortable discussing their period with coaches.

The survey included responses from a range of sports including racing, but no responses were received from equestrianism, so H&H decided to canvas opinion from some top British-based riders.

Olympic gold medal-winning dressage rider and mother of three Laura Tomlinson, 35, told H&H concerns around taking a break from competing to have a baby are present in equestrianism “more than most sports.”

“In some sports people might compete when they’re younger than an age where they may want to be having children, whereas in our sport because of the longevity, it does overlap. If you’re a woman who wants to have children, it would still probably be well within your career time,” she said.

“When I was pregnant with my first child in 2014, my top horse had retired and I didn’t have another at the same level yet so I had a different pressure because I was coming back from pregnancy and trying to find the next horse to come back to that level.”

Laura added that dressage is getting better at supporting women owing to the FEI’s freezing of world ranking points while riders take time out to have a baby, but said there are many variables in returning to top level.

“Time doesn’t stand still – things carry on when you’re out of action. You might become less relevant and other combinations will have kept competing and improved. It’s hard for governing bodies to cater for that in a sense because you can’t hinder people who are carrying on and doing well,” she said.

“It’s becoming more talked about but it’s not as simple as maternity leave at a nine-to-five job where they have to give you the job back.”

Kiwi eventer Jonelle Price, who won Badminton in 2018 nine months after giving birth, told H&H she delayed starting a family owing to her career.

“After London 2012 I was 32 and it probably would have been the appropriate time but I had just got a bit of momentum and that was the last thing on my mind so we delayed it until after Rio 2016,” she said.

Jonelle added she believes women should be able to raise concerns around starting a family if they want to.

“Often women don’t because it’s not always easy to talk, everyone has different abilities to get pregnant so it’s a sensitive subject but I don’t think there should be any reason not for it to be spoken about publicly if people are happy to,” she said.

European team bronze medallist Holly Smith, 31, who had her daughter, now 10, early in her showjumping career, told H&H the topic of taking time out can be difficult for riders to approach with their owners.

“You don’t want to put into someone’s head that you’re not serious or committed enough. It’s not something I’ve been through personally, but I can imagine people moving horses because riders have become pregnant and then horses not coming back,” she said.

“Hopefully some owners would be very supportive, but after you have the child, with showjumping you have to travel so much abroad so it’s whether you can afford a full-time nanny or you have a partner who doesn’t work so much.

“You’ve got to look at it from the owners’ side too; people don’t want their horses out of action for no reason. Horses don’t last forever and costs are high so I see the dilemma.

“With the FEI system your points are frozen if you’re off having a child so that’s a positive, and I feel you would be supported by the World Class Programme, but it’s just whether your horses are still with you.”

Women in Racing chairman Tallulah Lewis told H&H the organisation has been studying becoming mothers and mothers in the industry via its project Racing Home, the results of which will be released later this year.

“There is an overall support of women in racing but there are definitely areas that need to be looked at that could be more flexible. I would never say the sport is not welcoming for mothers returning or having children then coming back to work in the sport, but as a society careers and women having children is always an interesting topic,” she said.

“Taking a break to start a family is quite a taboo subject and we want to make it not taboo. Equestrian sport and racing having an opportunity to be a leader in looking at it differently; as a sport we are quite forward-thinking in terms of how we’re trying to be more engaging with people in the sport and how we looking at doing things. I hope when our findings come out we can be setting things in place for other sports to follow.”

Ms Lewis added that surveys on topics such as women’s health and pregnancy encourage conversations.

“You have to allow people to ask a silly question or questions they’re not comfortable with, because otherwise education doesn’t happen,” she said. “If you’re not bringing it up it’s harder for someone else to raise it than whether you raise it yourself.”

Laura agreed conversations need to be kept open.

“Women have periods and give birth and why shouldn’t we talk about that?” she said. “I coach with Belgian trainer Carl Cuypers and I can talk to him – if he says, ‘Sit up,’ I can say, ‘It’s my time of the month, I’m not very comfortable and might be a bit weaker in my seat’ – and that’s fine.

“It would help men be more receptive if we weren’t so quick to damn them for saying the wrong thing. Men who are receptive to hearing this side of the story can feel terrified or attacked – it just shuts the conversation.”

Holly said on the British Equestrian World Class Programme she feels supported to discuss matters of personal health.

“We get supported by a team of sports psychologists and a doctor,” she said. “It probably helps that my sports psychologist and doctor are women. If there was a problem it wouldn’t stop me talking to them [if they were men] but I think it does help,” she said.

British Equestrian chief medical officer Pippa Bennett told H&H the World Class Programme supports riders going through pregnancy and with personal health concerns.

“We put a bespoke programme around the rider pre- and post-partum to help them in the run-up to birth and to help them back to peak performance,” she said.

“For menstruation we try to ensure each rider has the opportunity to speak openly about any issues, for example pain or heavy flow. If required, riders can be referred to gynaecologists specialising with elite athletes.”

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After research has shown rider asymmetry can have a negative impact on a horse’s movement, riders are being encouraged to seek advice from expert practitioners working as a team to resolve any imbalance in their position. H&H speaks to biomechanics specialist Dr MacKechnie-Guire and coach Brigid Grant to find out more...

Research that found uneven stirrups can have a negative effect on equine movement emphasises the importance of teamwork in approaching rider asymmetry issues, its author believes.

Russell MacKechnie-Guire led a team looking at the effects of induced rider asymmetry, as part of a study published in the Journal of Equine Veterinary Science.

Dr MacKechnie-Guire told H&H the team used experienced riders, who were assessed by a physio to ensure they had no inherent asymmetry, and saddle fit was checked.

Advanced technology was used to assess rider position and the horses’ locomotion, then one of each rider’s stirrups was shortened by 5cm (two holes) to induce rider asymmetry. After a period of acclimatisation, the measurements were taken again.

It was found that if the left stirrup was shortened, the rider’s hips moved to the right, and the upper body leaned left.

“In the horses, the equine spine altered its range of motion with the asymmetric rider,” Dr Mackechnie-Guire said. “We know from research that spinal stability is desirable, to transfer propulsive forces from the hind limb. Therefore, based on this data an asymmetric rider caused instability.”

Joint markers also showed that load increased on both of the horse’s front and hind limbs on the opposite side to the shortened stirrup.

“Horses will seek a locomotor strategy to compensate for discomfort or imbalance. This can lead to long-term asymmetry, that could then lead to loss of performance and possible injury over time,” Dr Mackechnie-Guire said.

He added that rider symmetry is “essential”, and riders need to be aware of the impact their position can have on equine locomotion. While people should not panic, he said, it is important to seek physio, therapy or biomechanics-based solutions assessing the whole body, preferably from a practitioner who understands a rider’s needs, as well as considering exercises to help improve symmetry.

He added that coaches are also important, as they see riders regularly and that if they notice asymmetry, they should refer the rider to a practitioner.

“Of course, horses can be asymmetrical too, which is why it’s essential to work as a team – coach, saddle-fitter, vet, rider and horse physios – to assess where the asymmetry is coming from,” he said. “If the rider has developed a strategy to cope with horse and/or saddle asymmetry, and the rider gets treated, after a short period of time, the asymmetry will recur –we must work together to evaluate the horse, saddle and rider interaction.”

Coach Brigid Grant, who has trained Olympic-level eventers, told H&H she recently had a client whose horse would not bend to the left, but worked well on the right rein.

“I looked at the rider and saw it was as if her whole body was twisted to the right, while she was asking the horse to bend left,” she said. “I advised her not to work the horse properly until she’d gone to a physio.

“I think it’s super-important for the rider to be as aware of incorrectness as possible. I liken it to standing up with someone on your shoulders; if they put all their weight on one side, or lean forward or back, it’s almost impossible to walk in a straight line, or go where you’re supposed to. That’s where I start from to help the rider be aware of the effect they have on what the horse is able to do.

“I think Pilates is best as it works on equalness – left-right and front-back – as an uneven person will greatly upset the horse’s balance.”

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Each equestrian sport can benefit from the specialist expertise of another. Catherine Austen investigates the advantages of interaction between eventing and racing

If you placed racing and eventing in a Venn diagram, there would be some obvious shared characteristics: adrenaline, physical risk, equine athleticism. But the sports, despite descending from a shared heritage, are often poles apart – and that distance is increasing. Sam Watson, the Irish international event rider and co-founder of data company EquiRatings, thinks they would both benefit from learning from the other.

He is in a position to judge; not only does his work with EquiRatings mean that he looks at equestrianism, in all its forms, in an analytical way, but he is also a big racing fan and has worked with horses – and riders – at some of the biggest yards in Ireland.

“Look at the improvement in performance in human athletics in the past few decades, and then at horse race times, which have stayed fairly static,” Sam says.

“Some people believe that racehorses have evolved as far as they can; I don’t think so. Human athletics has placed significant emphasis on strength and conditioning – racing hasn’t, really, and that’s where I think improvement in that sport could come from.”

Something racing does brilliantly, he says, is getting horses fit, maintaining that fitness and managing performance, using stress and rest – knowing when to push and when to back off – and eventing could learn a lot from the way trainers do that.

“But what equestrian sports do really well is making horses strong and symmetrical, which gives them straightness, which makes them powerful and effective. Every day I watch races in which horses are hanging in a finish; if they were straighter through their bodies, they wouldn’t do that. I don’t think a lot of racehorses are as strong and supple as they could be.”

The intrinsic difference is that eventers train their horses from the saddle, and trainers (usually) from the ground. They have many more horses in their charge, and employ staff to exercise and work them. No one is saying that staff within the racing industry can’t ride – many of them are outstanding horsemen – but the skills generally required are different to those developed by people who event.

From 2015 to 2017 Sam coached the multiple champion National Hunt trainer Willie Mullins’ staff in flatwork.

“I was terrified the first time I turned up at Closutton [Willie’s yard in Co Carlow],” remembers Sam. “It was Willie’s idea, spurred on by his wife Jackie, who used to be an event rider. There were 40 horses cantering round a big sand arena. I asked which of them were going to be doing flatwork. He said all of them! Imagine teaching 40 people on 40 horses. Your communication has to be very clear and direct.

“We did 45-minute sessions, and I needed to keep it simple and target what matters – symmetry. Most horses will lean out through one shoulder or another, which is what makes them stronger on one rein than the other. If you can train people to be aware of that, it’s a good start.”

He praises the quality of rider Willie employs, particularly those who ride his top horses.

“It’s very notable – they are skilled horsemen,” Sam says. “And to give Willie credit, he really champions them.”

Sam worked on the riders’ seats and balance, making sure they weren’t sitting as though they were in a chair and making the horse beneath them hollow.

“And they know how to keep a horse on the bridle and connected in canter, so it was about getting them to do it in walk and trot as well,” he adds.

Riding skills

Ben Pauling trains National Hunt horses in the Cotswolds and grew up doing Pony Club, eventing and hunting.

“I’m a stickler for making sure horses are ridden properly,” he says. “Every day, our horses go into the outdoor school and are walked and then trotted on either rein to check soundness and to see how they are moving. Some horses in racing aren’t the best movers – that’s much more important in eventing than it is in racing – but I want to see that they are moving as well as they can. Ours never slop along with their heads on the floor. The second a horse of ours isn’t moving well, we’d want to find out why.”

He emphasises the difference in the generally required riding skills, though.

“Judgement of pace and the ability to hold very strong horses are important in racing – a lot of people who work in eventing wouldn’t be able to do that – but my riders, good as they are, would struggle to keep a horse in what is considered a correct outline,” he says.

He did bring in eventer Charlotte Agnew a few years ago to work with his staff on flatwork.

“For some of the older staff, she may as well have been talking Japanese,” he admits. “They didn’t get it. Now we have younger people who want to improve – they are very able to ride, but aren’t educated in that manner.

“The racing schools do an amazing job to turn out good staff in nine weeks, but there isn’t time to teach them the horsemanship skills you learn from Pony Clubbing and hunting, riding from your leg to your hand.

“That’s down to us [as trainers], I suppose, but time is a major factor, and it’s probably a dream, not reality.”

He believes strongly in the benefits of flatwork, however, and he and jockey Nico de Boinville, considered an outstanding and educated horseman, do polework and gridwork with the horses every Monday morning.

“And I’ve been sending horses to [local eventers] Lucy Jackson and Laura Collett a lot this season to get them to use themselves better,” he says.

He gives the example of a horse called The Macon Lugnatic, who won his bumper at Newbury in January 2019.

“He schooled beautifully over hurdles at home, but in his first race over them in December he kept diving right and got very low at them. We got his back looked at, but it turned out to be a problem in his shoulder. Lucy did a huge amount of flatwork with him and got him supple and straight, and he has since won both of his races over hurdles very nicely,” says Ben.

“But you can’t ignore the fact that plenty of trainers do none of that, and their horses jump brilliantly and win a lot of races.”

Sam often has racehorses sent to him for schooling.

“Often I get a horse which has run and shown a lot of potential, but possibly didn’t see out its race for a physical reason,” he says. “And I’ve had some very nice unraced ones.”

He is discreet about names, but he has worked with some very famous horses.

“Of the top 10 equine athletes I have worked with, eight have been racehorses and two have been event horses,” he says. “Sizing John came to us, for example, the summer after his Cheltenham Gold Cup win for Jessie Harrington. A friend from the UK saw me riding him in the school and thought I had a new secret eventing weapon – he’s gorgeous, a beautiful mover and has a great attitude. He really wanted to please.”

The newer generation

What about the other side of the coin? “I do think a lot of eventers, particularly the newer generation, don’t work horses enough early enough in their careers,” Sam says. “I’m not saying we need to run our two-year-olds flat-out over a mile, but a lot of sport horses aren’t broken in until they are four. Yes, usually their bodies are pristine, but we also need them to be real athletes, and ‘stress’ shouldn’t be seen as a bad word.”

If people saw Sam’s three- and four-year-olds, he says they would probably think he was pre-training point-to-pointers, not starting event horses.

“I want them to go forwards,” he says. “Heart and lung and aerobic fitness is important at this time; strengthening comes later and keeps developing all the way through a horse’s life.”

Load needs to be considered when riding very young horses – after all, the people who break in Flat yearlings and who ride two-year-olds are very light – but he thinks that simple work at an early stage helps condition their bodies and lay the foundations for fitness.

It doesn’t even need a rider in the saddle.

Sam says: “Loose-jumping horses as three-year-olds can be great, but not necessarily the type you see at sales, where they make a high, big shape over a big oxer. I like little fences and bits of gradient, where they get their footwork and coordination sorted out – think of kids playing football – and it is good for their lungs to have a bit of a blow.

“Longevity in a horse’s career is a great part of eventing and I am not advocating that we ‘use’ our horses early so there is less in the tank later on, but by doing a little bit more, earlier, they will be sounder for longer and it will be easier to get them properly fit. Take Andrew Nicholson – a high proportion of his horses make it to five-star, and people need to look at why that is.

“You can do so much in eventing without having a horse that fit, and I think that’s the case for a lot of people who don’t do long-format three-day eventing. Be careful with that – don’t leave it too late to get a horse to have a proper blow and to extend his stride.”

Perhaps, in this time of a forced break from both very busy sports, a few participants may have the time – and the inclination – to study what the sports around them excel at and use those traits to their advantage.

Henrietta Knight’s view…

As a former top-level event rider and British eventing team selector, as well as a highly successful National Hunt trainer, Henrietta Knight is very well placed to compare eventing and racing.

She says: “I have always taught young racehorses to carry themselves properly and to go in a balanced way. Topline is very important; all the power comes from behind and they need muscle on either side of their spines.

“Trainer Aidan O’Brien does a tremendous amount of work in the early part of the year using bungees and running reins to make his [Flat] horses use themselves and develop topline.

“But there’s no point making it too complicated. If a horse is comfortable and going in a nice outline, you’re halfway there. Racehorses don’t need to be able to canter a 10m circle.

“So many event horses aren’t fit enough now, and I’ve seen some terrible riding and unfit riders. In both sports riders lack balance; in eventing they never ride without stirrups and rely on their hands, while in the racing world they perch on top and bump about.

“In terms of times of races not having improved, I think that is probably down to poorer, overraced surfaces on racecourses, but I think the standard of competition now is as high as it has ever been.”

Ref Horse & Hound; 28 May 2020

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Research into how the design of knee blocks on a dressage saddle can impact on the horse’s movement by influencing the rider’s position is due to be presented at the BEVA annual congress next year, while a new system has been developed to track every aspect of the rider’s position in 3D. H&H finds out more...

The importance of rider biomechanics to horse and rider movement and welfare has come into the spotlight with a groundbreaking recent study, and a separate system based on crustacean vision.

Russell MacKechnie-Guire told H&H of his new researches into the effect of knee block design, while in an entirely separate project, Ilse Daly spoke of how investigating mantis shrimp led to her setting up Blackdog Biomechanics, a rider training system.

Dr MacKechnie-Guire explained his research, accepted for presentation at the British Equine Veterinary Association’s annual congress next year, shows that the design of the knee block plays a “crucial role” in allowing the rider’s pelvis to stay in the neutral position, which benefits the horse’s movement.

The researchers used three-dimensional motion-capture devices under the saddle to record spinal movement, pressure mats under the saddle and rider’s seat, and markers on the rider to record movement patterns – and on the horse to analyse gait. They compared elite-level dressage riders in a standard knee block and one with multiple layers, including shock-absorbing material, that allowed the knee more freedom.

They found the restriction caused by the standard block pushed the riders’ pelvis back, the seat bones moving from the lowest part of the saddle to the rise of the cantle.

“With the knee jammed into a big block, the rider is pushed back, hollowing their back as a result,” Dr MacKechnie-Guire said, adding that with the altered blocks, there was a 15% decrease in spinal rotation in the key T13 area of the horse’s back; increased rotation has been shown in studies to be related to spinal instability.

“The restriction destabilises the horse’s back, which makes sense, as the rider’s centre of mass isn’t aligned with the horse’s.”

The researchers also found increased lateral movement, or suppleness, of the back behind the saddle, which they believe allows better transfer of power from the hindlegs.

The riders all reported feeling more “in sync” with their horses in the altered blocks, which fitted with the fact their centres of mass were found each to be more aligned with their horses’.

Dr MacKechnie-Guire said: “Riders and trainers have always known that a rider with a neutral pelvis and evenly balanced seat is easier for the horse to carry, and this study shows there is indeed a significant effect on equine locomotion. Gait analysis showed an increased range of knee, elbow and hock flexion in the modified saddle.”

He added that while riders should not feel they must rush to buy new saddles or knee rolls, they should be aware of the issue when next having a saddle fitting or upgrade.

And he said the study shows once again the importance of biomechanics.

“It’s essential riders at all levels consider all factors,” he said. “I’m for ever talking about how horses will develop locomotor strategies to compensate for any pain or discomfort; they can feel a fly.

“If you’re out of balance, you create an asymmetric rotation around the horse’s central axis, it develops a strategy to compensate and that becomes normal. Then you may lose one bend – and pull the rein to try to manufacture it, but your steering wheel is turning your horse the other way.

“People need to work with their teams; vet, saddler, physio, coach, and consider every aspect.”

Tracking the rider in 3D

Dr Daly explained that her speciality is animal vision and that to study that of the mantis shrimp, whose eyes are on stalks and move in all directions, she conceived a system that would track vision in 3D. At the time, she was keeping her horse at a yard with no arena mirrors and could not afford training, but felt her upper body position needed improvement. She realised she could adapt her shrimp techniques to track her position.

After a great deal of work, she created a system of chessboard markers, worn by the rider, from which software can track every aspect of the rider’s position in 3D. A report is then generated on the spot, on what the issues are and how severe, and the rider can see herself as a 3D stick figure, to visualise her issues.

“It’s not intended to replace coaches, but to give riders more feedback and coaches help to see more,” Dr Daly said, adding that the programme identified an issue she had with one hip. Once corrected, she noticed freer movement in her horse.

“Positional issues can have such a huge impact,” she said. “What you do with your head, shoulders and hips makes massive changes; even a small shift in position can mean you’re not giving your horse the aids it needs.”

Dr Daly added that she is building a network of human and equine physios, so any issues can be referred to them and their feedback incorporated.

“I think we lag behind some sports in not being as joined-up, or using technology as much as we could,” she said. “I think technology can start to play more of a role in the equestrian world and I’m really excited about being part of that.”

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Looking after horses is physical work — and whatever age you are, aches and pains are all too familiar. Physiotherapist Nikki Robinson gives her expert advice on how to reduce any tension and pain

Do you struggle to straighten up after picking out your horse’s hooves?

Pain and stiffness in your lower back is often caused by your psoas muscle. It is one of your core muscles and you have one on each side; from the front of your hips, through your pelvis and attaching to the front of your lower spine. Its main action is hip flexion but it also helps to stabilise the base of your spine.

When psoas muscles are tight, they put a lot of strain on the whole area, increasing pain and tightness in other muscles and making it difficult for you to stand or lie straight. They tighten up in response to trauma — for example falls, or irritation from using your back incorrectly, like when mucking out.

If the muscles around your pelvis are tight they will gradually pull your pelvic bones out of alignment, making you feel like one leg is longer than the other or that you can’t sit with your weight evenly distributed. If you are told that you sit to one side when you are riding, or if your stirrup leathers are different lengths, the chances are that your pelvis is rotated.

Four ways to help yourself

1. Listen to your body

Muscles usually tighten up before they get painful, so use it as a warning that your body is not happy. This may be difficult if you normally live with pain and tension, but if you can tune in and follow your body, it will be much easier to prevent injury.

2. Stretch

This is the best way of reducing tension that has built up and you can use it whenever you need to, wherever you are. The simple rules to follow are:

• Never stretch into pain — stop when you feel resistance
• Gently hold the stretch at your barrier until you feel it soften or lengthen
• Follow your body to find the next point of resistance

3. Ask for help

I know that everyone on the yard is trying to get their own jobs done as quickly as possible. But in a recent survey of horse riders 100% of respondents said they have pain, so what if you could team up with someone else and help each other with the heavy jobs?

4. Get treated

Treatment to realign your pelvis and release your muscles will allow you to do more with less pain. This may be hands-on therapy such as myofascial release, or exercises like yoga or pilates.

Continued below…

5 top tips for improving your riding fitness (while you’re in the office)

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The expert

Nikki Robinson is a horse owner and specialist physiotherapist. She qualified as a physiotherapist in 1993 and founded her myofascial release practice, Holisticare in 2006. Find out more at holisticare.co.uk

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Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

If you work full time in an office and can’t ride before or after work in the week, there are ways to exercise at your desk to help with your riding fitness.

Working in an office not only restricts physical exercise, making it difficult to stay fit, it can also have a negative effect on your posture.

“Poor posture can have a massive impact on rider fitness,” says personal trainer Jacqueline Bosworth.

“Sitting at desks [working] on computers tends to pull our shoulders forward, weaken our upper back muscles and can also mean core muscles are switched off — [and] these are essential for a good riding seat.”

So, what can be done?

5 ways to exercise at work

1. Every time you make a cup of tea, do a set of 15 squats, and 20 lunges (alternate legs) to strengthen the legs and glutes for riding, as well as raising your heart rate.

2. Go for a run or brisk walk up the stairs or round the office floors, walk to work or park the car a short walk away from the office.

3. While sitting down, slouch for a second, then sit up using your transverse abdominals (deep core), as opposed to your back muscles, lift the shoulders up, back and then relax them down slightly. Now put a dot in your direct line of sight, and every 30min, reset yourself so you are still in line with the dot.

4. When sitting on a chair or Swiss ball, locate your seat bones and put your pelvis in neutral and then think of stacking your ribs on top, stretching up through your abdominals, lifting your chest and balancing your head on top of your shoulders. Ideally hold the core position while you work and repeat as many times as you can.

5. Download an app that focuses on short workouts, such as the J&J 7 minute workout app, which you can follow from your computer or smartphone. This still leaves plenty of time to grab a bite to eat and unwind during your break.

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Hi all and welcome back!

As the rain pours outside, I’ve sat down to write a different type of blog. As with everything I write, it is all my own opinion and views.

I have a question for you all: how physically fit and strong do you ‘have’ to be to do dressage?

Personally, I don’t believe you have to be physically strong to do dressage and I think there are a lot of people who would benefit from going to the gym less, rather than more.

My reasoning behind this is that dressage is fundamentally about skill, harmony and classical training. Not who can pull the hardest because they spend their spare time deadlifting in the gym. Of course this is a very blunt statement, but I believe it needs to be said.

When I was a seven-year-old child, my mum could plonk me on Lusitano stallion Diabo and I could make him piaffe, passage, skip, bow — anything I asked, he would do. Aged seven, was I strong and fit? No, but Diabo was so well schooled that he didn’t need physical force to make him perform, just a light touch and the correct aid. So why is the new fashion trend to spend as much time in the gym as in the saddle?

I’m lucky enough to get to ride several high-powered, big-moving horses a day. This alone keeps me in shape and ‘riding fit.’ Once a week I do a pilates session with my cousin Lauren, who is a body control pilates instructor. I love pilates, mainly the mat work, but recently I tried the reformer which was super. I think pilates is the closest you can get to replicating the muscles used when riding. I have done several gym sessions in the past with personal trainers, who were super in their field of expertise, but that field was not the dressage arena, so really, they have no idea what it takes to ride a grand prix test. Lauren is a rider so she understands the requirements needed, like stretching, being soft and supple, flexible yet stable. We work on being able to isolate and move individual muscles while keeping full core control. Which, when you think about it, is just like what you do on the horse, isn’t it? You keep still and soft through your body and gently move an ankle, or a seatbone to create your desired aid. You don’t have to throw your bodyweight from side to side to make one-time tempi-changes for example, if your training has been correct you need but the slightest movement of your heel. So why do we need to all be made of muscle to achieve this?

Of course, the flip side of the argument is that with scores getting ever higher and medals won by a fraction of a percentage, riders are working towards perfection and trying to make marginal gains in tests. Perhaps if they do more squats and are stronger through the gluteal muscles they will have a 0.5% increase in the passage mark? Maybe they will. But shouldn’t we as a collective whole be aiming to get that 0.5% mark through the gentle harmony with our horses instead?

Here at Turville Valley Stud, we all stick to the training methods that originate from the likes of Nuno Oliveira and Luis Valencia — classical masters of dressage — as my mum learnt from them out in Portugal. We aim to incorporate these historical methods into the modern day competiton arena. My mum always says to me that “you should hold the reins in the same way that you would hold a small child’s hand while walking down the high street. Not hard enough to crush their delicate fingers, nor loose enough that they can slip through your own fingers and run off into on coming traffic. Make it soft enough that they want to keep holding onto you, but if they want to veer off into the sweet shop you can give them a tiny squeeze to keep them on the right path.”

With this in mind, the strength needed to achieve this is but that of the strength needed to tap away on a keyboard, for example. The pull to stop the child going into the sweet shop (aka the pull on the reins to perform a rein half halt) is made with the fingers, not the force of your arms. The consistent contact doesn’t need to be any more than the pulling force of a five-year-old child. I think we can all agree that anyone has the physical strength to do this; as in its entirety it requires no physical strength.

So why do I keep seeing dressage riders in the gym, pumping weights to get the arms and back stronger, when it isn’t needed? Frankly, if your horse is so strong that you feel you need to get stronger to hold them together and on the bridle, I suggest making your training methods better, rather than cheating and using physical strength to achieve it. This is dancing with your horse, not SAS Who Dares Wins!

Another thing that in my experience is not beneficial to riders is running to keep up fitness. Running jars the hips with every step, compressing the top of the thighs and making everything tight around the lower body. To move with the movement of the horse, you need to have soft open hip flexors and legs that sit light and loose — so the opposite to running. Maybe running will help with overall fitness and help support a strong cardio vascualar health, but don’t mistake it for helping boost your dressage score — I don’t believe that the two have any correlelation, but if anyone can prove me wrong then please do!

However, I do believe that you should be the correct weight for your horse. But this also goes with that you can ride heavy or light. An 8st person can ride like a sack of potatoes while a 16st person can carry their own weight. Honestly I could write about this all day long!

Continued below…

Joanna Thurman-Baker’s dressage blog: ‘no horse is perfect and it’s about time we stood up and admitted it’

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I might also add that this isn’t me saying you should slack off any kind of physical exercise and just eat cake and gin all day. Staying fit is an essential part of overall being a successful and healthy human being. But consider what type of rider you want to be before your hit the gym — do you want to teach your horse through your own strength, or through the cleverness of your mind? Through force or through careful training methods and being at one with your horse’s mind?

That’s it from me for now… hopefully I have given enough food for thought. Until next time,

Joanna x

Do you share Joanna’s views about time spent in the gym? Or do you have an alternative viewpoint you would like to share with us? Email hhletters@ti-media.com with your name and nearest town for the chance to be featured in the letters page a future issue of Horse & Hound magazine…

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Gone are the days when supplementing your riding with a gentle jog merited praise. Riders have cranked up their own fitness regimes to get the best results in the saddle, and the latest craze is the American import CrossFit.

The concept was the brainchild of Greg Glassman and Lauren Jenai back in 2000, with the original CrossFit gym opening in California. But over the past five years, UK CrossFit has more than doubled in size from 250 affiliated gyms to over 500, with Instagram awash with people sweating their way through the WOD (workout of the day).

What is CrossFit?

“CrossFit is varied, functional movements, performed at high intensity,” explains Adam Dobie, director and head coach at WhiteHorse Marlborough CrossFit, which has seen a flurry of top riders hitting the gym floor including five-star eventers Jonelle and Tim Price, Flora Harris, Jesse Campbell, Georgie Strang and Rebecca Howard. “The fitness programme targets those who wish to train safely, effectively and with sound nutrition. It works for all individuals, from high-level to everyday folk and beginners — there is always an option, no matter what your ability is. You just have to show up to class.”

Why does it work so well for riders?

“The use of functional movements such as squats, deadlifts and presses require midline stability (core strength in common terms) in order to perform them with sound mechanics,” says Adam. “It needs balance and coordination of the body, becoming aware of where to distribute your centre of gravity while moving, which is why the programme is so effective for riders.”

“It’s really opened up my eyes to a different way of training,” says 2018 Badminton winner Jonelle Price, who has been going to Whitehorse Marlborough CrossFit since it opened last September, having done CrossFit with its founder Adam for over a year before that. “I’d always enjoyed a circuit type of workout but this has got me training a bit harder and smarter. There really is no typical session. It changes every day, but you’re basically focusing on strength. We do a lot of gymnastic-type movements like handstand push-ups or handstands, as well as conditioning work. It’s a very well-balanced workout.

“I found that I could easily run 10km, but I very much stayed in my comfort zone,” adds Jonelle, who goes to the classes at 6 or 7am before she starts her riding day. “And with CrossFit it’s more about working the heart rate. The sessions are only an hour so it probably makes me work harder than I would [if I was working out for longer].

“I worked out throughout my whole pregnancy, right up until the last two weeks. So much of the work can be modified to a pregnant lady or anybody’s level of ability, strength or fitness,” she says, crediting the programme for helping her get back in the saddle just 10 days after having her son Otis in August 2017, and going on to win Badminton just nine months later.

“In our group there might be anything from five to 10 of us, so it’s quite motivational and naturally being a competitor, you put yourself against the others. It keeps you focused.”

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No time? No problem: the 4-minute workout to help riders stay on top of their game

In the second part of a new series, Connor Clennan (pictured), a qualified nutritionist and a strength and conditioning coach

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How can you get involved?

Find your nearest affiliated CrossFit gym at map.crossfit.com. Sessions vary in price, but the average is around £80 a month for unlimited classes, or £10 for a drop-in session.

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Convenience goes hand-in-hand with the lack of time we discussed in my last article — when you’re so stuck for time and as busy as you riders are, both at home and at shows, finding the opportunity to have a workout isn’t the only issue. In fact, that was probably low down on your priority list until we discussed it last week.

When you don’t sit down or stop all day, meal times become an afterthought where you just smash and grab whatever is on offer (unless you have a personal chef, in which case let me talk to you about my five-star one-to-one coaching services!). This means meals tend to get skipped, or they are often easy to eat zero-preparation foods like sandwiches, crisps, chocolate, pop – and if you’re feeling ‘good’, a piece of fruit.

I’m not going to tell you that you need to prepare your meals, be organised, or completely remove any of the things you normally have, mainly because YOU DON’T NEED TO, but also because that’s not going to help you with this obstacle of convenience — it does the opposite, meaning you only end up failing.

What I want to tell you is that sandwiches, fruit, even the occasional bit of so-called junk food, has its place in a healthy diet. But there are some other options too — you just need to re-think your approach.

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6 obstacles riders think stop them from improving their fitness and nutrition

In the first of a new series, Connor Clennan, a qualified nutritionist and a strength and conditioning coach to professional

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Here are some easy-to-prepare or grab-and-go breakfast and lunch options that could help you feel energised, healthier, can aid in losing weight and just make life easier, both at home and on the road — which ultimately is the goal behind a lot of the content in the showjumping blueprint.

For more similar articles and tips on how to overcome your fitness and nutrition obstacles as a rider, keep an eye out for our upcoming articles in Horse & Hound and follow Integrum Nutrition and #ShowJumpingBluePrint on social media.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

In the second part of a new series, Connor Clennan (pictured below), a qualified nutritionist and a strength and conditioning coach to professional sportspeople and private clients explains why time is our biggest enemy

Time — our biggest enemy. This can certainly seem the case in terms of nutrition and fitness. When putting together the ShowJumping Blueprint we spoke to a lot of riders and they all say one thing — they don’t have the time.

Truthfully, this isn’t exclusive to riders; the world we live in is so fast-paced and demanding that time is precious and at a premium. We are always chasing the next goal, the next target, the next job and often, before we get there, another is thrown our way.

This is definitely true for anybody who owns even one horse, let alone if you own/care for multiple horses. You start your days ridiculously early, mucking out and turning out and often that pretty much starts a day of mucking out, riding, bathing, feeding, bringing in from the field etc. Not to mention if you’ve got a day job/school to squeeze in among all of that!

Exercise?! Healthy eating?! Where on earth are you supposed to find time for that?

I totally empathise, and a lot of people believe that you need lots of spare time to train and stay fit. If you had to get changed, travel to a gym, be there for an hour and travel back for example, there just wouldn’t be enough time in the day with everything else, and as a rider and lover of animals, it’s understandable that your horses are made a priority over yourself.

I’m here to tell you that this isn’t necessary! You can have a great workout in four minutes, from your horsebox, yard, stable or even your feed room.

Here’s a four-minute workout you can do anywhere which will help improve your fitness, your performance riding and in the long-term get you into great shape too when combined with the right nutrition habits, which we promote in the blueprint:

• 20 seconds of squat jumps
• 10 seconds of rest
• 20 seconds of lunges
• 10 seconds of rest
• 20 seconds of mountain climbers
• 10 seconds of rest
• 20 seconds of squat hold
• 10 seconds of rest

Repeat from the beginning twice through.

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6 obstacles riders think stop them from improving their fitness and nutrition

In the first of a new series, Connor Clennan, a qualified nutritionist and a strength and conditioning coach to professional

Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Please note:

• The 20-second work stations must be done to the maximum of your ability for this to be effective — remember it is only 20 seconds at a time and less than three minutes of exercises in total — you can do it!
• Do not perform these exercises if you have any health issues or injuries which make it unsafe.

For more similar workouts and tips on how to overcome your obstacles keep an eye out for our upcoming articles in the Horse & Hound and follow Integrum Nutrition and #ShowJumpingBluePrint on social media.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

In the first of a new series, Connor Clennan (pictured below), a qualified nutritionist and a strength and conditioning coach to professional sportspeople and private clients maps out what he believes prevents riders from treating themselves as athletes

I am a qualified nutritionist and a strength and conditioning coach to professional sportspeople and private clients all over the world working with people who just want to lose fat and be healthy to those who want to take their careers and performance to the very highest level, all of which are huge and sometimes difficult achievements.

I’m no rider myself, but I am married to one and over the past year I have been working closely with Guy Williams, Kirstie Leightley and Lily Attwood at Team Williams to create the “Showjumping BluePrint” — a complete nutrition and fitness solution for showjumpers and riders who want to improve their performance, get fitter, stronger, healthier or just look better in their breeches.

This time, working with elite riders has allowed me to gain a complete understanding of the physical and nutritional demands of the sport and we have also recognised some key factors which make life much harder for riders than other athletes and sportspeople.

We have termed these “obstacles” and the key obstacles fall into the following categories:

• Lack of time
• Lack of energy
• Life on the road
• Only having convenience and fast food available
• Alcohol consumption and the social side of the sport
• A lack of understanding or importance on the riders’ health and fitness

You would be forgiven for thinking that you are really up against it and I’d even forgive you for wondering if it’s even possible to make a big difference with all these obstacles. The reason you have been led to believe this previously is because of some of the toxic myths in the health and fitness industry. Once we start to learn the truth and bust some of these myths, then we can start to overcome all these obstacles and take not only your performance, but also your body to exactly where you want it to be.

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For instance, life on the road could seem a massive problem if you thought that you need lots of fancy workout equipment and space to build strength, flexibility, core stability and power. Also, if you were told that you need lots of time to prepare healthy meals and follow a strict diet every single day even when travelling and living out of your horsebox at shows, then you would never stand a chance — I honestly believe that this is why showjumping hasn’t adopted a more serious and professional approach to rider fitness and nutrition like almost every other sport.

However, luckily, neither of those things are true!

You CAN build strength, eat healthy, manage your weight, improve your fitness; all from the comfort of your horsebox.

Follow the #ShowJumpingBluePrint on social media to find out more about how you can optimise both your performance and your well-being and stay tuned to the Horse & Hound website for more information on rider fitness and nutritional advice from Connor

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now