How to Keep Your Horse Fit Without Riding

 Due to the unevenness of ground reaction forces on the horse’s limbs when circling, repetition of this practice leads to asymmetry in the horse’s back muscles, not to mention the stress to hoof structures. Given that our goal is to improve rather than detract from the horse’s locomotion, the use of circles is judicious. To avoid excessive repetitive circles, successful groundwork routines rely on handlers moving around and covering a fair amount of ground each session. I call this form of movement “controlled wandering” as the handler guides the horse along varying lines of travel.

These changing lines are not just about avoiding asymmetry and burning calories. Changing lines of travel frequently (from straight to circle, etc.) requires postural adjustments that make these sessions productive. For instance, you might choose to flow from walking a small circle to some leg-yield steps to a long straight line of slow jogging. You will find yourself moving all around your arena combining various figures and tasks without stopping in between or repeating anything ad nauseum. 

Range of Motion

Walk-only sessions can be quite engaging and lively; don’t let them become a slow shuffle or boredom-inducing affair. In addition to keeping the horse in that 40 percent of maximum heart rate zone, we want to keep his neuromuscular system awake. An easy way to heighten neuromotor activity and joint mobility is by changing speeds frequently, even within the walk. If a horse comes out and walks around with the same dull steps and speed daily, he is not going to make gains. 

Use a Clock

Walking for 30 minutes in the bitter cold can feel a lot longer than walking for the same length of time on a mild day with sunshine and birds chirping. In other words, estimations of time are often inaccurate. When it comes to your groundwork routines, set a timer rather than relying on your own guesswork. This will ensure you are making sufficient deposits in the consistency equation we discussed above. 

Groundwork workouts also avoid prolonged pauses, aiming to keep the body mostly in motion. Simple as it sounds, do not stand around. Keep moving. Brief sessions are only effective when they consolidate stimulus and avoid long pauses. This does not mean that stationary bodywork techniques, jaw flexions, or periods of standing quietly are not beneficial to the horse. These types of activities are all excellent additions to the day if you have extra time. Once you start the clock on your groundwork session, do your best to keep the body in motion.

Sample Fitness-Based Groundwork Routine

Below is a sample groundwork session that incorporates the principles above. It takes about 35 minutes to perform and can be performed pretty much anywhere with moderately level ground. Remember to avoid large pauses between each step; try to flow seamlessly through the tasks. This sample offers a template for creating your own sessions containing different exercises.

1. Walk for 10 minutes on straight lines making speed changes every 15 strides (slow, medium, fast).
2. Back the horse up 30 steps.
3. For 2 minutes do walk-to-stop transitions (every 10 steps).
4. Do 3 turns-on-the-forehand each direction (360-degrees).
5. For 2 minutes do easy jogging, straight lines, big circles.
6. Do 3 turns-on-the-haunches each direction (180-degrees).
7. For 2 minutes walk briskly on straight lines.
8. Repeat steps 4-6.
9. For 2 minutes walk tight serpentines.
10. For 30 seconds leg-yield each direction. Repeat twice.