Conditioning for Specific Sports This presentation has been produced by Ausintec Academy (OnlineHorseCollege .com) for purpose of Educational Training. It is not for sale and may not be used or reproduced without prior written permission from the Director of Ausintec Academy

Overview Dressage Show-jumping Eventing

Dressage The aerobic system is used primarily for energy in dressage horses. The difficulty of the movement (e.g., piaffe, tempi changes, shoulder in etc), speed (e.g., medium trot, collected walk, extended canter), mental state of the horse (e.g., excitement, nervous) influences heart rate. Transitions use a lot of energy because changing speed or direction requires the horse to overcome inertia. A dressage horse is required to work in a rounded outline which requires strength in back and abdominal muscles and this strength can take a few months to develop, especially with the added weight of a rider. To have enough energy to perform the required movements for dressage a horse needs to be fit enough to work in walk, trot and canter for an hour. The most effective method of building the cardiovascular system for this purpose is to introduce slow work over long distances (e.g., walk, trot and slow canter). Long slow distance work aids in improving the body’s ability to regulate temperature, fitness and encourages adaptive changes in the limbs. Initially work is low in intensity and duration and weekly increases of (i.e., day of harder work followed by a day of easier work) progressive loading builds either the intensity or duration of exercise. Upon the horse being fit enough to be worked for up to an hour a form of interval training can be used where by exercise is high intensity and short in duration followed by a rest interval to allow partial recovery. In higher levels of dressage many transitions and movements are required as such inertia drills will be beneficial for the more advanced horse. Collection demands a great deal of strength and endurance from muscles, again it takes a long time for a horse to develop the necessary strength to work in a collected outline for long periods of time. Work that encourages collection (lowering of the hind quarters and flexion of the hip, stifle and hock joints) such as gymnastic jumping, gently slopes, movement repetitions should start to be introduced with the aim of improving strength once the horse starts to work at medium level. It is important to ensure that if movement repetition is used that the movement is performed correctly. A dressage horse needs to be supple to be able to flex, bend and increase the range of motion through the vertebral column and joints. A supple horse will be able to maximise stride length, bend more and perform the crossing movements with the legs that are required in lateral movements. Passive suppling can be performed before and after exercise to increase the range of motion in the hips, shoulders and neck. Dynamic suppling exercises such as voltes, turns, circles, lateral movements and transitions (all of which can be found in many dressage tests) will encourage lateral bending and longitudinal flexibility

Show-Jumping In competition show jumping horses spend most of their time in canter (sometimes gallop) propelling themselves into the air over fences. Anaerobic (specifically the lactic energy system) and aerobic systems produce energy for the show jumping horse. How the interact with one another depends upon the fitness of the horse, speed, the distance that will be covered, size of the fences and number of fences. The energy levels of horses in lower levels of show jumping are usually met by the aerobic system because the jumping course is short and the fences fairly low. High levels tend to have more fences, set at higher heights requiring more energy. A large amount of energy is used to overcome inertia; a show jumping horse not only has to cope with the effects of speed and changes of direction but also in the effects of gravity. Inertia drills should be an important part of cardiovascular conditioning exercises such as gymnastic jumping, turning drills, accelerations sprints and high intensity speed play (or a combination of all 4) are beneficial. Long slow distance work will assist to build aerobic fitness levels to get the horse fit enough to work for 60 minute periods. As with dressage horses this can take a few months to develop and warmbloods respond and adapt more slowly than thoroughbreds. A form of interval training such as speed play (see previous workbook for more information on speed play) will also assist in cardiovascular conditioning. Horses competing at higher levels will benefit from an increased intensity of speed play by using uphill slopes, faster speeds or quicker transitions better acceleration and deceleration. Explosive power to propel over jumps has to be developed and as the horse progresses through to higher levels of jumping muscular strength will become increasingly important. Gymnastic jumping and bouncing up steep gradients are exercises which mimic the required movement and flexion of joints that is required for jumping at higher levels. Gymnastic jumping such as grids beneficial not only for educating horse and rider for how to approach and ride fences but also for developing and strengthening the muscles required for snapping up the front legs and propulsion over a jump. Suppleness in the neck and the back is important in jumpers are these structures are responsible to making adjustments to the centre of gravity and balance over a fence. Flexibility and quick movement in the shoulders are also of benefit so the horse can efficiently swing the shoulder forward to snap the front legs up for take off over a fence. Dynamic suppling exercises such as turns, circles, lateral work and gymnastic jumping are good for improving shoulder suppleness. The use of gymnastic jumping and steep hills are also of benefit to the hind legs in increasing flexibility of joints at the lumbrosacral and the hip. Passive suppling can be performed on the neck, shoulders and hips after exercise.

Eventing Eventing competitions run from 1 to 3 days in length, combining the disciplines of dressage, show-jumping and cross country. Due to the physiological demands eventing it is important to select a horse which has good aerobic capacity (in this sort of competition cardiovascular fitness can be a limiting factor for performance), no signs of unsoundness in the legs, no unsoundness in the respiratory system and can move easily to cover ground quickly. Cardiovascular conditioning is the most important part of conditioning an eventing horse for speed and endurance. In having good aerobic capacity the horse will rely less on the anaerobic system which means reduced lactic acid build up resulting in stiffness and soreness in the muscles. Initially long slow distance work is used to get the horse fit enough to work for an hour at speeds of 8km (this may take 6-12mths depending upon age and fitness levels prior to conditioning). Gentle slopes can be used to encourage propulsive muscles (uphill) and balance (downhill). At the end of the long slow distance phase the horse should be able to gallop for at speeds of 400 metres per minute for 2 minutes. Interval training can be introduced at this point so that the horse works at speed (e.g., gallop) for a couple of minutes and then is allowed partial recovery at a slower speed (e.g., trot) for slightly longer length of time than the faster speed. Initially short sprints can be incorporated however longer sprints should be left until a later stage of the program to ensure the leg bones have had time to strengthen and adjust to the work load. Inertia drills such as acceleration sprints are relevant for the conditioning of eventers. These can be performed on flat ground and slopes. For horses that become excited by acceleration sprints speed play exercises can be a more appropriate training method. Grids and slopes can be used to improve strength in eventers. Strength will be needed to traverse fences with multiple jumping efforts and steep slopes. A supple eventer is important for the dressage phase of competition, for flexible and quick movement of the shoulder (see previous chapter) and to adjust balance on uneven ground. Warming down of a horse should be just as important as the warming up phase and dynamic suppling exercises can assist in reducing muscular soreness. Raised trot poles in walk and trot achieves flexion and extension of limb joints, turns, circles and lateral work will help to supple the shoulders, hips and vertebrae column. Passive suppling should be left until after exercise so that the muscles are warm.

For more information see your course workbook