Ideally, “play” your video twice a day, first thing in the morning and last thing at night. With time and practice, you’ll be able to call up the images from your video while you’re riding whenever you need to replace nervousness with confidence and enthusiasm.
Bonus benefit: Once you’ve mastered self-talk and visualization to bolster your confidence, you can use these same tools to improve all aspects of your horsemanship, ease pre-show nerves, and perform your best in competition.
Fear Buster #5: Get physical, using strength and flexibility training.
How it works: By improving your strength, flexibility, and balance, you’ll up your security in the saddle, which will bolster your confidence in your ability to stay safe.
“There’s a direct correlation between balance and strength,” says Terry Orcutt, a sports physiologist who was Team Horse & Rider member and reiner Al Dunning’s personal trainer for seven years. “Moreover, a strong, fit rider is an efficient rider; she can relax and still be in control. A weak rider must use more muscles, has a slower response time, and sometimes over-responds to compensate.
“Plus, horses can sense strength, power, and control,” he adds. “They know intuitively that a strong, fit rider means business. As a bonus, physically fit riders worry less about falling, because they know they’re less likely to injure themselves if they do fall.”
How to do it: Start small and build. If you begin by making abdominal crunches an every-other-day routine, you’ll quickly notice a marked increase in your “body confidence” while riding.
“In the saddle,” explains Terry, “your balance comes from your core muscles–your abdominals. If your abs are weak, your balance is compromised, which can lead you to be constantly over-correcting your position. Your horse can feel this subtle uncertainty in your posture, and he’ll respond with uncertainty of his own.”
Once you’ve made crunches a part of your life, add push-ups and gentle stretches. Then, you can expand your repertoire to include other strength-enhancing moves, using weights, resistance bands and/or exercise balls.
Your best bet is to work with a personal trainer for a few months to learn proper technique and develop a routine that matches your needs. But if that’s not possible, plunge ahead anyway. There are countless books, DVDs, and Web sites to guide you. (Find many equestrian-fitness books and DVDs at HorseBooksEtc.com.)
Bonus benefit: Strong, fit riders are better riders–period. For one thing, their cues are more precise and effective. “It’s the same as for any athlete,” says Terry. “I once heard it said of a football player, ‘He has very soft hands–because his hands are so strong.’ It’s identical for riders–strength enhances finesse.”
Hi Tiffany,
This is one of the BEST articles on fear while riding I have ever read, and I’ve read a lot of them. Thank you. I know this will help a lot of riders.
Hugh
Thank you so much for this article. I was thrown earlier this summer by a horse which I was told was bomb proof. My horse was being trained and we had bought this one for our granddaughter sight unseen. Yes I know that was our first mistake trusting someone we had bought a horse from earlier. I still have severe pain in my back but am determined to ride again. I get in the saddle but then I panic and make excuses to get off of my horse. btw My quarter horse, Blondie, is gentle, she isn’t the problem I am. It seems at 56 I know how very much more I can be hurt than when I first started riding at 10. The ground also seems harder and farther away. lol I am going to practice what you suggested in your article. Holly McCarren
This is a great article. I’ve struggled with fear for many years, but it has gotten better. The things you mention definitely help but there are some others I would add. First, do a risk assessment. Honestly evaluate if this horse and this situation are actually safe. Sometimes they’re not. Second, I would add that people need to build their skills. The best way to do that is to take lessons from a knowledgeable instructor who knows how to deal with students who have fear. So many times people say “Just don’t be nervous” and that just absolutely does NOT work. The instructor has to help figure out what it is the student is afraid of and then build the skills to help deal with that, or even prevent it. Last but not least, the horse has to build his skills too. If that means getting a trainer to ride him, then you have to do that. So many times fear results from an inexperienced rider having a bad experience on an inexperienced horse and that is a recipe for disaster. At least ONE of the pair needs skills, if not both! If your own horse needs training, maybe you can ride one of the trainer’s horses to build your skills while you wait for your horse to do the same. Sometimes a horse and rider get into a rut and feed off each other, so riding other horses and getting other riders on your horse can be a giant help.