Oak Hammock Farms

09/15/2021

Thank you and well spoken.

09/11/2021

07/10/2021

Yes, walk

An in between strategy is the vigorous walk

One way to avoid over-stress and the heightened chance of injury, without abandoning going forward in the conditioning process, is by taking your horse walking.

Before you poo-poo the walk as a fitness substitute, do this---You take YOURSELF on a vigorous one hour hike. Walk as though you mean it. Stride up those hills. Push it. See how YOU feel when you get home, see if you feel as though you have had a workout.

The old saying goes like this---"It is hard to hurt a horse at a walk.”

You CAN hurt a horse at a walk, sure. You can give him a saddle sore, a girth rub. He can step on a sharp stone, stumble and hurt his knee, nothing is totally safe. But those speed related injuries are not going to happen. And unless you are in seriously steep terrain, he won’t have his heart racing through the roof, won’t be gasping for air.

But he WILL be working, especially if you have trained him to hike right along, not lollygag like a lethargic sloth. In distance riding, it’s called the “get home in time for supper” walk, a walk with purpose.

Go for an hour---an hour and a half---Your horse will be ahead of the game for it, and you can be confident that you have avoided much risk.