Welcome to You Got This Equestrian Confidence Series by Hayley at Red Bear Equestrian.
This week I am sharing some things you can try now to improve you confidence with your horse or pony.
Horse rider confidence and equestrian confidence needs to be spoken about more, I am excited to bring you, You Got This Equestrian where we discuss real topics and give real tips that work for real riders.
Join me every week for more inspirational stories, hints and tips to support your equestrian confidence journey.
Confident rider, confident horse.
Horse rider confidence and equestrian confidence needs to be spoken about more, I am excited to bring you, You Got This Equestrian where we discuss real topics and give real tips that work for real riders.
Join me every week for more inspirational stories, hints and tips to support your equestrian confidence journey.
Welcome to You Got This Equestrian Confidence Series by Hayley at Red Bear Equestrian.
When it comes to equestrian confidence and horse rider confidence, it is something which is so easily dented, after it has taken so long to build.
Yet we often don’t appreciate how long this takes and expect too much, too soon.
It doesn’t matter if you are the most experienced rider or a total novice, confidence issues can strike anyone at any time. In fact some of the top riders have spoken over the last two years about their confidence issues.
Lack of confidence is no fun and can be super frustrating.
I want to share 8 top tips that you can start using now, so how can you start to build your rider confidence:
1 Get the basics right.Make sure you are comfortable and have a safe hat, body pro, and footwear that all meet safety standards. Plus tack which is checked regularly and is comfortable for both you and your horse. This makes a difference to how confident you feel while riding.
2 Improve your fitness and balance. Building up your stamina, flexibility and core will help you feel more in control and aligned when riding. When you can communicate your aids properly and confidently you will feel in control and more confident.
3 Get the bond back. Going back to basics can really help click here to check out a blog I wrote with some great tips on this.
4Remember it’s your journey and no one else’s. Also remember to stop using comparisons to not get started. They wouldn’t do this, they will judge me, what will they say, they will be watching……………does it really matter? Will they really? Or is it just in your head? We create stories in our head that we believe but often they are not reality.
5 Just get started. All too often we can talk ourselves out of even starting, just taking that first step. We can come up with a million reasons. Often as they say the first step is the hardest but equally after taking it you often won’t look back, no matter how small you will have achieved something. Just take small steps forward each day.
6 Get off and take a break. There is nothing wrong with stopping and getting off. We can sometimes make a situation worse with our own energy, as we get anxious and worried, we project this onto our horses. Making situations worse. By getting off and being able to take a breather, walk, whatever you need, then get back on when you are ready. It breaks the cycle.
7Celebrate your success. Keep a record of your rides, it could be written, videos or photos. Our minds create a perspective and situation that we perceive as real. However it isn’t always. We can create how we think our rides went. Those huge bucks (that weren’t), the bad jump (that wasn’t), the dressage test that you messed up (but did not really). Having that record helps you see the reality. Plus it allows you to celebrate what went well rather than what went wrong. We often concentrate on the negatives despite there being so many positives, so find a way to focus more on your positives.
8 Get help. Asking for help can be hard but it can be a huge benefit. No matter if it is an instructor or a friend for moral support, having the help, advice, listening ear, even just someone to keep you accountable is the thing you need. Someone else’s perspective often helps realign our own.
Horse rider confidence and equestrian confidence needs to be spoken about more, I am excited to bring you, You Got This Equestrian where we discuss real topics and give real tips that work for real riders.
Join me every week for more inspirational stories, hints and tips to support your equestrian confidence journey.
Confident rider, confident horse. Horse rider confidence and equestrian confidence needs to be spoken about more, I am excited to bring you, You Got This Equestrian where we discuss real topics and give real tips that work for real riders.
Join me every week for more inspirational stories, hints and tips to support your equestrian confidence journey.
Welcome to You Got This Equestrian Confidence Series by Hayley at Red Bear Equestrian.
This week I am sharing a tip you can try this weekend.
Horse rider confidence and equestrian confidence needs to be spoken about more, I am excited to bring you, You Got This Equestrian where we discuss real topics and give real tips that work for real riders.
Join me every week for more inspirational stories, hints and tips to support your equestrian confidence journey.
Confident rider, confident horse. Horse rider confidence and equestrian confidence needs to be spoken about more, I am excited to bring you, You Got This Equestrian where we discuss real topics and give real tips that work for real riders.
Join me every week for more inspirational stories, hints and tips to support your equestrian confidence journey.
This week I wanted to share with you a blog I wrote last summer, however one that gets visited time and time again especially this time of year.
With Summer Holidays in full swing it can be hard to think of ideas to keep riding fun and focused (and safe) when they are riding more than normal.
Ponies suddenly get so much more love and attention, I think ours are ready to pack their bags and escape, haha.
With this in mind I have pulled together our top 7 mounted games to play while horse riding, as schooling can get boring, hacking is not always possible and as much as my daughter has decided cantering and jumping are great fun there is only so much her pony can do and with how dry it is this year her favourite activity of cantering through stubble fields is not an option. We need to care for their joints and jumping daily or work on hard ground is not great for their joints.
So here goes, they are all easy to set up and most importantly fun.
1 – Bending – Super simple but races round bending poles or cones in different gaits. I often use a timer or spots on the floor which need to be hit and there is a prize at the end (an ice lolly usually works well).
2 – Simon Says – Just like the unmounted versions but I use a mix of horsey tasks for example touch your ponies bum, touch your toes, ride one handed, stop, ride to the fence, trot to the cone, round the world, trot, touch ponies ears, touch your head, etc.
3 – Sponge and Buckets – Set up two buckets either on small tables or hung on fences, fill one with water. Give your child a sponge and get them to use the sponge to move the water from one bucket to another. They can do this against the clock or against a friend or just to see how much water they can move.
4 – Red and Green – Great game for if they have another friend who is also riding with them. Green means go, Red means stop. When you shout Red the last one to stop is out.
5 – Fetch – Set up some items attached to a fence, on cones etc and when you shout an item the child has to ride to it, pick it up and then ride to an empty bucket or basket and place it in there. This can be timed or against someone else.
6 – Egg and Spoon – Just like a traditional egg and spoon race but on horse back, however you can adapt this and use a shallow basket or bowl with a ball for younger children or a cup of water for older ones, you can even ask them to trot, making it harder to not spill the water.
7 – £5 Challenge – I loved this as a child. Place £5 under your bum/thigh/knee and try keep it there while you walk/trot or canter. Keep it there and you get to keep it. This is also a lot of fun (and a lot harder) bareback.
I hope you have the most amazing summer of riding fun, make sure you tag us in some of your pictures @redbearequestrian we may even pick our favourite and send them and their pony a special treat.
Horse rider confidence and equestrian confidence needs to be spoken about more, I am excited to bring you, You Got This Equestrian where we discuss real topics and give real tips that work for real riders.
Join me every week for more inspirational stories, hints and tips to support your equestrian confidence journey.
Safety is so important when it comes to riding activities. You know your child’s ability best so adapt the activity to them and ensure they don’t get too excited and start pulling on the ponies mouth or kicking a bit to hard. It is easy to get excited and competitive but these games should be fun for the ponies too. Also ensure that all safety equipment is worn and is checked prior to being worn, hats, body protectors, gloves and boots are all essential kit for our safety and should be checked for signs of wear, damage and also for a good fit.
Join us while we they share the best parts of being an equestrian and their top tips.
Horse rider confidence and equestrian confidence needs to be spoken about more, I am excited to bring you, You Got This Equestrian where we discuss real topics and give real tips that work for real riders.
Join me every week for more inspirational stories, hints and tips to support your equestrian confidence journey.
Join us while we talk equestrian and rider confidence and our journeys.
Horse rider confidence and equestrian confidence needs to be spoken about more, I am excited to bring you, You Got This Equestrian where we discuss real topics and give real tips that work for real riders.
Join me every week for more inspirational stories, hints and tips to support your equestrian confidence journey.
One thing I have learnt over my time recording interviews and chatting with a variety of equestrians for this video/blog series is we are all at the mercy of our own mindset and our own perception is usually different to the reality.
Take my daughter for instance, last weekend my (very naughty) fell pony decided that he was so excited at going in the big fields (where he had been daily all easter holidays!) that the only way to deal with it was to bounce and semi rear down one side of the field.
Being on the ground my reaction was to tell her to ride through it as he was just excited and would soon calm.
Her reaction being on his back was that she would ride him but felt he was doing huge rears and was very bouncy.
Luckily we had his excitable moment on video.
Both our perceptions were different to the video.
Videoing lessons is something I used to do a lot so I could reflect but not something I do often now.
I tried it in my riding this week. I turned my video on and headed out.
In my mind he was on edge but I couldn’t understand why. Once I watched the video back I could see why.
It was the same point on every circle he tensed up, why?
It was excitement as that’s where my daughter usually lets him canter. Its funny how they come to expect a set routine even in their ridden work.
If I didn’t have the video, I would probably have blown it up in my own mind.
We do that with so much stuff, create our own version of reality, thinking our ride was awful, hitting that pole was caused by a huge error, the buck was massive, we rode terribly.
We create our own narrative. Video combats that as it shows us the reality.
So….now I am busy looking at Pivo’s. Does anyone have one? What do you think? Do you have an alternative?
As I find that my video on my phone only captures half my ride and even then I need to zoom in.
We can be our best and worst critics but we can also be our best teachers if we just allow ourselves to change the story we tell ourselves about the rider we are.
So I challenge you this weekend, get your camera out, film your riding and see how much potential you and your horse really have and how far you have both come.
You have probably seen that our new equestrian confidence series has now arrived. If you want to know more you can check out episode one here.
Each week we are releasing either a blog or interview/video around an aspect of being an equestrian and especially around equestrian confidence.
This week I wanted to share something that is one of those subjects that everyone has an opinion on.
Body protectors.
Currently they are only mandatory in FEI Eventing. They have carried a stigma for years.
I have spoken to so many riders creating this series and they all have opinions, I also found lots of gaps within generations of riders where you can see how body protectors have been perceived.
I don’t think I ever wore one growing up, I had non horsey parents so they didn’t know and one one ever said.
It was only as I became an adult that I started to think about the pros and cons. Up until recently they were never the comfiest item. So yes I had one, no I never really wore it.
Yet as a parent, my kids had body protectors and wore them.
Hypocritical I know.
However in 2012 my opinion changed.
I was trialing a horse we were looking at buying, I shared the story in video one (click here to watch) of this series.
As soon as I got on the horse it was a bad idea but I brushed it off. Before I rode though something made me go back the car and get my body protector, despite that I rarely wore and had only taken to pacify my husband, I felt I should wear it.
Little did I know the impact that decision would make.
My body protector is the reason that I am not in a wheelchair. I would have been paralised without it.
That was when I realised the importantce.
No they don’t stop every injury but they decrease the chance of sever injury.
We have all heard that you are not a real rider until you fall off 7 times, 10 times, 15 times….we all know its nonsense but riding is risky so why wouldn’t you protect yourself. A study carried out by the British Medial Journal showed that using a body protector decreased the risk of injury during cross country by 56% regardless of the riders experience! 56%!
Body Protectors are now at the top of my shopping list, I spend money on getting properly fitted and ensuring they meet safety standards. I champion others wearing them, and am first to say when someone isn’t wearing one. We all love our horses but we shouldn’t be in a culture where we risk our safety for our hobby.
They are the marmite of the equestrian world. Everyone has an opinion.
One of those things that you don’t see the value and benefit from until its too late.
We put our safety into the hooves of half a tonne of flight animal on a regular basis, a body protector might seem irritating and not look great but you cannot predict how your horse will react on each ride as they are flight animals. You wouldn’t go jumping or hack out with no helmet to protect your head, so shouldn’t you be protecting your back, pelvis and vital organs in the same way?
My kids have recently discovered Champion titanium body protectors and love them, and that is the next one I am going for.
I would love to know what you think, do you love them or hate them?
Hayley x
Disclaimer
When purchasing always make sure you take advice on the safety regulations and fit from a qualified professional.
The designs are all passed by my kids who are the most amazing inspiration, as well as being amazing critics, to ensure everything is the best it can be.
Our new puppy seems to have his own fan club, with our followers regularly asking after him (he is definitely using that against the other dogs and fame is going to his head).
We are now starting to bring others into the team and thank you for supporting us so we can do that.
There are so many plans for over the next 12 months I cannot wait to share them with you.
Our birthday week is going to be amazing and our first birthday on 10th June is going to be filled with fun, so keep looking out for more on this.
I know I have said it before but Red Bear Equestrian would not exist of it wasn’t for you, so thank you for all of your comments about our ranges, votes in my polls (I know there are lots), purchase, shares on social media and general support.
You are all amazing and are helping our dreams come true.
Summer holidays seem to have got here quickly and with another seven weeks off this means a lot of time for riding.
In our house the boys seem to have plenty planned however my daughters only plans are riding, her poor pony is getting ready to pack its bags and escape I think, it has never had so much love and attention.
With this in mind I have pulled together our top 7 mounted games to play while horse riding, as schooling can get boring, hacking is not always possible and as much as my daughter has decided cantering and jumping are great fun there is only so much her pony can do of this each week as we need to care for their joints and jumping daily is not good for them.
So here goes, they are all easy to set up and most importantly fun.
1 – Bending – Super simple but races round bending poles or cones in different gaits. I often use a timer or spots on the floor which need to be hit and there is a prize at the end (an ice lolly usually works well).
2 – Simon Says – Just like the unmounted versions but I use a mix of horsey tasks for example touch your ponies bum, touch your toes, ride one handed, stop, ride to the fence, trot to the cone, round the world, trot, touch ponies ears, touch your head, etc.
3 – Sponge and Buckets – Set up two buckets either on small tables or hung on fences, fill one with water. Give your child a sponge and get them to use the sponge to move the water from one bucket to another. They can do this against the clock or against a friend or just to see how much water they can move.
4 – Red and Green – Great game for if they have another friend who is also riding with them. Green means go, Red means stop. When you shout Red the last one to stop is out.
5 – Fetch – Set up some items attached to a fence, on cones etc and when you shout an item the child has to ride to it, pick it up and then ride to an empty bucket or basket and place it in there. This can be timed or against someone else.
6 – Egg and Spoon – Just like a traditional egg and spoon race but on horse back, however you can adapt this and use a shallow basket or bowl with a ball for younger children or a cup of water for older ones, you can even ask them to trot, making it harder to not spill the water.
7 – £5 Challenge – I loved this as a child. Place £5 under your bum/thigh/knee and try keep it there while you walk/trot or canter. Keep it there and you get to keep it. This is also a lot of fun (and a lot harder) bareback.
I hope you have the most amazing summer of riding fun, make sure you tag us in some of your pictures @redbearequestrian we may even pick our favourite and send them and their pony a special treat.
A note about safety
Safety is so important when it comes to riding activities. You know your child’s ability best so adapt the activity to them and ensure they don’t get to excite and start pulling on the ponies mouth or kicking a bit to hard. It is easy to get excited and competitive but these games should be fun for the ponies too.
