Stretching before exercise

4m 21secs
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Posted: 29/09/2008

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Library > Health & Well-Being > Horse Health

Most riders stretch their horses before flat work or jumping once they are mounted, by doing lots of walking and working long and low. However, holistic therapist, Sam Mackay, shows us how to maximise riding time by stretching our horses on the ground first. Warning! You do need a horse that's a carrot addict to do these exercises well! Presented by Fiona Price, who lends us her eventer, Norris.

Comments

Fiona Price 7 Mar 2011 I think you can do it before and after. If you stretch cold, you have to be very careful and not ask for full stretches, just get as much as you can safely. I rowed to international level and always stretched cold before doing anything to avoid injury, and still do now before running. I would apply the same principle to a horse, though granted you get a better stretch afterwards!

Ad Hoc 7 Mar 2011 I've always stretched my horses as a routine after exercise, but stretching cold muscles? That doesn't sound like a good idea to me. Maybe you said it and I missed it, but don't you recommand doing some light warm-up, then stretch before doing the final ridden work-out?

Anja 26 May 2010 Thanks for making this video. I have been doing these excercises for 4 weeks now and my 4 year old gelding is getting more and more supple to each side and down between his forelegs. But he does not want to lift his head high. He is 165 cm, I don't have to stretch my arm high. In the beginning he got irritated. Now he is just not interested in trying to "catch" the carrot. He is so far not ridden much, only worked loose in lunge and walked out. I see this video is not new, but I hope you can answer. I am wandering if something is wrong and where the tension might be located.

Fidodido 9 Mar 2010 Re the abdominal stretches at the end. I noticed that the last one you did, Norris didn't scrunch his bum under as much as the first two times. When i do this with my horse the first time he really scrunches his bum and this gets less on the next two times i do it. I just wonder if this is normal? I always do the carrot stretches first which he is very good at. He is currently being lunged in just a cavesson (he is very good at stretching and relaxing on the lunge) and a couple of times over poles as he has been out of work due to allergies and myself having a back problem.

Sam MacKay 16 Sep 2009 What work are the horses doing that are not responding? I am the Bowen therapist in the video.