The FastDay Forum

Anyone else doing horse riding as exercise in here?

Would be lovely to hear about you and your horse(s) and what kind of riding you do.

I'm currently having a long distance relationship with my horse (he's been out on loan), but have booked a lorry for him so he will be here and living in my town within the month! I'm so excited!!!
He's a pony, and one of the main reasons I started to try and lose weight a few years ago. I was then 64 kg and felt way to heavy for him!

[Betsysgr8]

I don't have a horse but how exciting for you to be able to bring your horse closer to you.

I don't have a horse but I have lessons Just had my first one in a month yesterday and booked another for next week. Absolutely love it and it's bloody hard work, but body is so achy today!

So exciting that you'll have your horse near you soon! Bet you can't wait Losing weight does make riding a lot more comfortable, since exercising more my core muscles and balance are ten times better too

Argh! I wrote a really long answer and my computer ate it! How annoying.

I'm very excited yes! I've had my pony for 13 years, so the past two years have been very empty without him! But I just couldn't fit him into my life at the time, and I wanted him to be well looked after and get lots of attention. The loaners have been great, but I will never let him go again!

Horse riding is much harder work than people think! Some people seem to believe we just "sit there". They've clearly never ridden properly...
Very good for core strength and balance! And legs. And arms. All the mucking out and sweeping and grooming and carrying stuff... My yard is my gym!

How brill for you getting him back home. Our new pony is my reason for losing weight too, we've got 2 retired horses of nearly 17hh but fell in love with a portugese beautiful 2 1/2 year old last year & just hope he's going to make 15hh - that's a little small but he should be a weight carrier so it'll be ok & much better for forest riding thapan the big 'uns. However the lower my weight when we back him later this year the more he'll appreciate it !

We've had him 6 months now & are having the most FABULOUS time doing natural horsemanship with him

Some people seem to believe we just "sit there".

Well I have seen some riders where that certainly applies - tractor drivers are more active !

Anyone worn a heart rate monitor while riding to put a number on it ? I did see one that included a sensor for the horse

The thing is; the better you get and the better communication you get with the horse, the less you do. The horse and the rider communicate with their bodies, and if you know eachother, there is no point of "shouting" (I.e. doing a lot on their backs) if you can whisper.
Also; the better you get, the more control you have over your body, the stiller you sit.
But it is hard work! At least before you get there. It takes a bit of effort controlling a 500kg animal with just your seat and your abs
I ride 2-6hours a day and I still get sweaty sometimes.

Annie; that sounds so great! It's not always the height that matters in weight-carrying business We have a cob, only about 15.3, who takes much more weight than our 17hh warmblood.
I'm so glad you've found a nice youngster! At the end of the day; the horse will tell you if you're too heavy! If you're a balanced rider and you don't go out 3ä eventing it should probably be fine. I school a 12hh sometimes and he doesn't seem to mind (quite the opposite; LET'S GO!!!! ). It looks a bit funny though.

I've had horses nearly all of my life (48 of my 54 years) but sold my last horse 18 months ago for lots of reasons, time, money, energy, work and family commitments. I'm not in a position to have another, so have been very fortunate in picking up some riding on other people's horses, particularly a friends 17.3hh (I'm 5'3"!) medium dressage horse which I usually ride once or twice a week. However, the reason I am on 5:2 is because since selling up, and now I no longer have to muck out, poo pick, groom, carry numerous buckets of water and sacks of food, to say nothing of riding every day to a reasonably competitive level, I had put on one stone! So yes, people are surprised at how fit you are when keeping horses. I also miss the commitment of having to go outside every day for at least 2-3 hours, and had two colds this winter when I hadn't had one for years. However, on the plus side, with the amount of rain and cold weather we've had in the last 18 months, there have been numerous times when I've secretly been rather glad I don't have to do it any more.

Another rider here! I have a 16hh clydesdale x, a super horse for me, who carries me easily. I ride 5 times a week, mostly hacking for a couple of hours at a time, but we do a bit of jumping too. I want to lose weight for lots of reasons, but I am aware that at some point in the future, I will have to find another horse to ride, and at my current weight I am quite restricted in my choice. Riding hasn't really helped with my weight loss - I now have a core of big, heavy muscles, coated with a tick layer of fat, so weigh much more than other people who look the same size as me, but aren't fit

I also have a horse and that is partly the reason for me starting 5;2 as he is 14.2 and not getting any younger and my weight has been creeping up for the last 3 years so didn't want to become too heavy for him. Also I do less schooling with him than I used to and think this used to keep me fitter than just hacking.

So jealous of all of you that have horses! I love riding but have never owned my own horse

Im another horse rider! I have 5 (far too many) and I show jump competitively! So ride on average 2 a day

I have 2 showjumpers, 1 broodmare and 2 homebreds - a yearling and a 2 year old.

It's nice to know there are other riders on here!

Wish I rode for a living, for me it's always been just for pleasure ........ or maybe that's the way it should be ...?

Anyone else do Parelli ?

I don't own a horse, but there are stables nearby. I went riding for the first time for about a year yesterday. It was a gorgeous day and the woods were full of bluebells and the sea was deep blue. Stunning! (We had so few days like this last summer.)
I have a dodgy knee that complained a bit and I expect my thigh muscles to tighten up today, but it was well worth it!