First off.... sorry no pictures.... yeah I know that totally sucks. I agree lol. We've had horrible weather and internet problems on top of that, so I kind of disappeared for a while. Don't worry though, I've still been doing Chrome's workouts even though I haven't been posting. We're done with week three, so .... seven weeks to go LOL! He's doing really well though. Today his stifle seemed sore (I've been asking him to yield his hindquarters a lot, so I may have overdone it a little) and the weather was (finally!) gorgeous so I decided to skip the longeing and ride him instead (so I could keep him on straight lines). I'm still counting it toward his work out for the Couch To 5k, since even though he didn't trot for a full seven minutes straight he was carrying my butt around. I figure that evens it out somehow LOL!
I only rode for fifteen minutes. We warmed up at the walk and practiced steering. He's doing sooo much better. The first thing I noticed is that his "walk on" and "whoa" are soooooooo much better!!!!!! I was getting perfect walk transitions and halts with a teeny bit of leg and the voice cue. I didn't have to use a whip, rope, my heels or anything. Just a gentle squeeze. :D Maybe the slug is finally going to lose his lazy bone lol.
After warming up I took him into the back of his five acre pasture where it's flat and there are no trees. I turned him back to Faran (and the barn) and asked him to trot. Once again a mere squeeze of my legs, saying trot on and giving a cluck and he immediately started trotting!! In fact his trot transition is so big I have to grab mane! I was bareback during all of this by the way lol. The really cool thing is that he trotted a perfectly straight line at a consistent tempo (instead of the speeding up, slowing down and weaving he did the first time we worked on trotting) and he stopped perfectly when I asked him to!!!!!! I was so proud of him!
We worked on trot, walk and whoa for around seven minutes or so. He did so well. His trot is actually really comfortable to sit bareback (well once I got used to grabbing mane for his powerful upward trot transition lol!). I'm pleased. Oh did I mention this was all bareback, loose in a five acre pasture AND our first ride alone?? Literally there was no one out there with me until right at the end when my husband got home from work and I showed him what we were working on. So yay me I finally conquered my fear (more like anxiety) of riding alone and had fun! Now I just have to get over riding on the road/trail alone. :)
I really noticed the difference in Chrome's responsiveness, strength, tempo and endurance since his last ride before we started longeing for his Couch to 5k. The difference in three weeks is great. I can't wait to see how he is after the full ten weeks. I'm finally getting rid of his couch potato tendencies.... now to work on me.... lol!
Anyway I'm rambling and my husband and I have a date, so I have to go!
This post makes me so happy! Congrats!
ReplyDeleteAnd I'm with you on the anxiety of riding on the trail/road (mostly around the property away from the barn). It's my goal after the wedding (two weeks!).
Keep up the good work...it's inspiring me too! :)
I am so glad you were finally able to ride by yourself and not only have confidence while doing it but having such a good ride! Congrats, am looking forward to reading about your next ride
ReplyDeleteFantastic! And that's great you had the confidence to ride out alone! I've been doing that with Chance too, she needs to start getting over some of her fears. She's also really lazy. She really goes at first then kinda dies out on me. Oh well! I don't need a hot horse, I already have one of those!
ReplyDeleteThanks guys!! Julie, the wedding is in two weeks? So exciting!!!! :D I don't have anxiety about trail riding in general because that's what I grew up doing. I love being on the trail. I just have anxiety about trail riding on a green horse alone lol. I'm a twin so I've basically never ridden horses alone. I always had her with me, but since she moved away I'm on my own now lol.
ReplyDeleteYou and I can cheer each other on. I bet by the end of summer we will both be trail riding confidently! We just have to trust our boys and ourselves. :D
Paint Girl, yes I'm very happy Chrome is not a hot horse too lol!! :D I look forward to reading more about your solo rides on Chance. That's one of the things I love about blogging is that we can share with people who are working on the same things. So fun!
A big milestone. Yay! I've found that my biggest motivator to get me over my anxiety about riding alone is running into trouble when other people are around. Ha ha! There have been so many times when I've ridden out on the trails with my trainer only to have her do something to make my horse more agitated or nervous, and I couldn't help but think what a nice ride it would have been if she weren't there. But that's her job. She's always testing the horses.
ReplyDeleteNuz, I'm with you on that one!! I wouldn't like it at all if someone was doing things to test my horses while I'm riding. I'm all for desensitization, but that would just make me tense lol. Have you asked her to warn you before she does something? If you don't react I would think that would help the horse to not overreact, whereas if she is startling you too that would cause a chain reaction. I don't know. That's why I'm not a trainer I guess lol. I'm glad she's done so much to help you out with your guys though. :D I'll come over to your blog to get caught up as soon as possible. :)
ReplyDeleteI am so glad you are at a place where you have feel comfortable riding alone. It seems like this has been a great move for you. You have both made some big strides since the move.
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