Training

Target training

Top tip No short cuts – plan it – prepare for it – train for it! Training should take you out of your comfort zones.

We have previously covered a good deal of the Fitness and Training Plan and this issue will focus on our Target Training and where we are going:

The event The ride The distance The speed The terrain Hills require muscle power, strength, dexterity, trust and the ability to pick up the speed and equally reduce the speed but maintaining the rhythm. The flat fast rides require balance, rhythm and an ability to stretch the muscles. Mistakenly, some riders think the horse will just canter on with ease but unless they are using themselves correctly and economically, they will be injured. Speed is dangerous unless ridden correctly and correctly prepared for. I also advise that no matter what the ride we are aimed at, a degree of both hill and flat training is critical.

So, let’s first look at canter work. A good steady canter should take you places and not stress the horse. It is often considered the “resting” pace, however for the canter to remain economical, the body needs to be warm and every fibre properly prepared to flow forward. Canter leads should be effortlessly even, using the ability to slow down and speed up and negotiating tricky ground or situations should almost be a thought rather than a “pull”. Working together as one should be your ultimate aim.

In an ideal world we should be able to do our canter work out and about but in reality there are too many people, dogs, pushchairs, bikes etc. We can train around them on our schooling hacks but a track or field margins are best. The most important thing is the warm up. As always, a slow steady warm up ensures every part of the body is flowing with oxygenated blood. This is different for every horse, so unless you are doing it the “scientific way” a longer slower one will be far more beneficial.

The warm up should consist of trot work, using changes of rising diagonal to influence balance and rythmn, some lateral work, shoulder in, leg yield, halts and half halts. This is all dependent on the horse and the aim - then adding in specific amounts of canter until reaching the point of long canter intervals. The degree of warm up and interval will of course

depend on the distance being trained for. Recording distances and recovery times on both reins can be invaluable, so factor a coaching session into this, or have a friend along to take a record.

Beaches are great for a canter work, but remember it is so easy to over-do it! You need to be sure of the surface, warm up correctly and take into account any water resistance. Hills can be used in so many ways, body building, strength, cardiovascular work and, as I said earlier, it is all about trust. You need to know you’ve given your horse the strength and ability to keep going or slow down and basically do the safe option no matter who is in front or behind in competition! You need to think about the ride and what you might need to tackle. Gates are always something that I think we underestimate, they truly break our rhythm – so training for that break should help (Golden Horse Shoe in mind).

A few exercises to give you an idea and get your minds thinking! Divide a hill into three:

Walk a third, halt count to 5 Trot a third, halt count to five Walk a third, halt count to five

The halts are important and represent your gate break. Play with the walk, the trot and add canter and add a training partner for fun. Use changes of rising diagonal or leg yields in the trot to ease back and push forward when tackling a long climb. A good steady canter is also worthwhile – not only for the HR but also for the soul.

On the way down is where the trust comes into play - having to hang on or hauling and praying is no good for anyone. The youngsters need to learn to be careful and the old need to be helped to keep them strong at the end of the day. We need to be able to maintain a pace going down as well as going up and that pace will differ from horse to horse and age to age. Build the partnership and let them lead the way when competition day comes.

Some good downhill exercises:

Start with a zigzag type movement Gradually turn the curve to a leg yield As confidence builds go from walk to trot Add halts and half halts – again these just make the discipline of waiting part of your game.

Clearly there is such a lot more to work on and look at, so please don’t hesitate to contact me if you need a little more help or clarification.

As always happy training but remember fun is also important for you both...

Maggie Pattinson

Try it

When counting your halts or paces – counting out loud to keeps you breathing and focused.

Top tip Using heart rate (HR) monitors is a great idea but you need to establish a true resting heart rate, followed by the base level in each zone (training zone), from there you can look at a programme. They are a very useful tool and can provide some great reference work if you are able to download the data. I also find it useful to use heart rate monitors on horses in rehab or that have issues such as switching off/spooking, but it is worth remembering it’s just a piece of electronic equipment – if your horse doesn’t feel right it probably isn’t.