Ann Aslett Equine Sports Massage & Rehabilitation Therapist

24/12/2024

TUESDAY TIP - Fitness 🐎

Well toned, supple muscles can stretch and contract freely. To avoid injury, it's important your horse is fit for the work he does.

✅ TRAIN REGULARLY. Shorter, more intense exercise several times a week increases muscular condtion more effectively than a longer period once a week.

✅ TRAIN APPROPRIATELY. For activities that require strength or power - such as jumping, few repetitions performed at higher intensity are effective. For disciplines that require less power but more stamina - such as dressage or endurance, less intense exercise, with a greater number of repetitions are appropriate.

✅ VARY HIS WORK. The same type of exercise shouldn't be done every day. Plan a varied exercise programme for your horse that includes hacking, schooling, hill work, pole work and fast work. This variety will activate more muscle groups and allows tissues time to recover.

22/12/2024

Wishing all my lovely clients a very Merry Christmas & look forward to seeing you all in 2025.
A massive THANK YOU for your support and trusting me to help your four legged friends 🥰🥰🐴🐴🐶🐶

11/12/2024

𝗪𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗸𝘆?

Spending plenty of time in walk, particularly at the beginning of a session, is really beneficial for loosening up the joints, back and muscles. This is particularly important at the moment if your horse's turnout is restricted and because it's turned so cold.❄️ ⛄️

Here are some simple things you can do in walk that have lots of benefits. 👇
1. To encourage relaxation and confidence ride lots of free and extended walk on a long rein.
2. Ride regular transitions between medium and free walk on a long rein.
3. Riding lateral work exercises such as leg-yield and shoulder-in will help to improve concentration and coordination.
4. Walking over poles will improve coordination and regularity.
5. Gradually introduce a few steps of collected walk once an even, consistent medium walk is established.

08/12/2024

😂😂 Seems very appropriate this weekend 😂😂

19/11/2024

Understanding the process of skeletal maturity in horses is crucial for appropriate management, training and care. Skeletal maturity refers to the point at which a horse’s bones have fully developed and growth plates have ossified. In this, the second part of our blog about young horses, we explor...

10/11/2024

08/10/2024

A good comparison of human to horse

Ever wondered how our anatomy compares to a horse’s? 🧐 Check out this colorful schematic of a human foot and a horse’s hind limb! Did you know that our heel is actually the equivalent of the point of the hock in a horse? 🦶➡️🐴

17/09/2024

Another great read & exercises to have a go at 😀😀

𝐓𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐓𝐢𝐩 - 𝐌𝐨𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐇𝐨𝐫𝐬𝐞'𝐬 𝐁𝐚𝐜𝐤 & 𝐈𝐦𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐖𝐚𝐥𝐤

Walk is an a effective way to mobilise the back - here are 4 ways to improve the walk and increase back rotation.

𝟏. 𝐖𝐚𝐥𝐤 𝐏𝐨𝐥𝐞𝐬
This can be a single pole or a series of poles. This is a great exercise to maintain mobility, improve core stability & posture. There are so many benefits.
Set up some poles on the way to the arena, or field so you can walk your horse over them everyday.

𝟐. 𝐖𝐚𝐥𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐰𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫
A similar effect to walking over poles, but your horse doesn't have to think about where he's putting his feet but still has to lift his legs.

𝟑. 𝐖𝐚𝐥𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐥
You can feel the rotation in your horse's back through your seat. If you can find a consistent slope - try walking your horse across the slope too.

𝟒. 𝐁𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐮𝐩
A great exercise that has lots of benefits. Aim for long steps with the head and neck low for maximum benefit. Start off with just a few steps and build up.

Discover more about the Biomechanics of Walk and how to improve this pace with our On Demand Webinar - the product is linked to the image.

16/09/2024

I will be taking a break from Friday 20th September and back to work Tuesday 24th September. Any messages will be answered upon my return.

See you on the other side 😀😀

10/09/2024

Another great exercise to try!

Tuesday Tip...trot-walk-trot transitions

Riding trot-walk-trot transitions are great for improving engagement of the hindquarters and the quality of the trot. They are also beneficial for calming and slowing an over-enthusiastic horse.

Try riding the transitions in the corners of your arena and gradually decrease the number of walk steps in each corner – as shown in the picture below.