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This blog post is the second part of a two part series discussing the topline of the horse. We are very fortunate to have guest blogger, Rebekah Larimer, a European and Olympian-trained USDF Bronze medalist, who will discuss the top 3 riding tips and exercises every rider should do to improve their horse's topline. A Quick Reminder In case you missed last week's blog post, I discussed key topline basics and shared 3 DIY exercises and stretches contained in the Stretch Your Horse App that any rider could do to improve their horse’s topline from the ground. There are many factors that can affect a horse’s topline including conformation, feet issues, nutrition, saddle fit, age, exercise level and type, riding ability and pregnancy status. A healthy horse with a “good topline” will typically have excellent muscle tone and suppleness, move well, and display athleticism. That is why riders would like their horse to have a good topline (and why horses want one too! :) ) But remember…. Every horse is unique. Some may be older and have a sway back (large dip in the back.) Others may have conformational challenges. It is not about comparing your horse to the ideal topline, but rather helping your horse achieve the best topline they can have given the myriad factors affecting the topline mentioned above. Ok….. Drum roll and applause as I now introduce Rebekah Larimer! Horses Are Like Humans with A Backpack On Their Back Horses typically naturally move their best when we are not on them. We have all seen a gorgeous horse who is a stunning mover when loose out in the field. Put a saddle and rider on, and suddenly they do not move as well. Their head and neck may pop up and/or their back may drop blocking impulsion and forward energy which in turn prevents the hind legs from fully coming underneath them. This happens because our weight changes their balance and how they naturally carry themselves. (Saddle fit may be a factor as well, but that is whole separate topic.) Think of the human back as being similar to the topline of the horse (except it is vertical instead of horizontal). Most people unconsciously arch their back to carry the weight of a backpack instead of consciously engaging their core and retaining proper posture which is needed for optimal movement. This strains the back and changes the pelvis angle which in turn changes the leg stride. Arching the lower back also changes the upper back, shoulder and neck position and can cause soreness, pulled or torn muscles as well as spinal alignment issues. It is the same for horses. Since our horses allow us the privilege of riding them, it is our job to be their physical therapist and teach them how to properly carry themselves when we ride. This applies to all breeds and riding disciplines and whether you are riding with a bit, bitless bridle or without a bridle. Top 3 Riding Tips, Tests and Exercises to Improve Your Horse’s Topline Here are 3 riding tips, tests and exercies to help improve your horse’s topline, assuming you and your horse are healthy. Riding Tip #1: Determine Rider Balance I make an initial evaluation of all riders when they have their first lesson with me to establish a baseline and a plan. Here is a typical story. “Cindy” mounted her horse and warmed up at the walk. Initially, she seemed to be a competent rider. Once we started trotting, she was still doing pretty well, but there were a few subtle red flags. I asked her to ride on a long rein without holding onto the saddle or the horse. Cindy immediately lost her balance. Even though it was somewhat subtle, when her reins were short, she was balancing on her horse's mouth. This is a very common scenario. I was not surprised. Test #1: Determine Your Own Balance When Riding There are many things riders can do to improve their balance. The most important first step is to honestly evaluate it. In all gaits, are you able to repeatedly pick up and drop your reins without losing your balance, affecting your horse’s gait quality and tempo, or the horse tossing its head? Exercise #1: Finding Your Balance: Watch the Videos! If you did not pass Test #1, focus on yourself by riding with a long, loose rein on a safe horse. Learn how to move and flow with the horse in each gait. In order to appear relatively still and relaxed on a moving object, you have to move in harmony with the object. Here is a short video demonstrating this evaluation test and exercise at the posting and sitting trot. Please note my goal was to simply pick up and drop the reins. It was the horse’s choice to go into a nice position or not during this video. He sometimes did, and sometimes didn’t. I was not asking him to be perfect since that was not the goal. The goal in this exercise is to evaluate how smooth you, the rider is, in picking up and dropping the reins without interfering with your horse. If your horse changes tempo/gait or tosses their head, you know you have some work to do. Another way to evaluate and improve your balance is to take a lunge line lesson from time to time and tie up your reins. Ride at different gaits. While riding, with your arms, do the “backstroke,” some gentle twists from the core, put your arms in stick ‘em up, up over your head etc. Use your core but keep flowing with the horse’s motion. Be sure you do not overarch your back to stay balanced as that blocks the horse’s motion. Watch this short video of ideal rider balance. A great way to improve your balance and core strength off the horse is to balance while sitting on a yoga or horse ball with your feet off the ground! Taking a pilates or yoga class can help too! Why Do These Exercises Help Improve Your Horse’s Topline? Think: Independent Seat Often times riders unconsciously use the reins to balance, which means they are literally balancing or bracing on their horse’s mouth. This is one of the most common reasons horses do not want to “put their head down” and engage their core. Balancing on the mouth causes the horse’s head to stay up, which drops their back, and blocks their hind legs from coming underneath themselves. It also builds the wrong muscles in an undesirable pattern and can cause other muscles to atrophy. The extreme opposite is a horse that has its nose to its chest to avoid the rider’s hands. This is too extreme and builds undesirable muscles as well. By gaining proficiency with these exercises, you will gain an “independent seat” which will enable your horse to use the desired muscles unimpeded by you and start to build their topline.  Head and neck postures courtesy of www.horsetalk.co.nz Head and neck too rounded. Nose behind vertical. Riding Tip #2: Determine Your Horse’s Balance and Flexibility I commonly see horses constantly being ridden in the same frame which is detrimental to balance and flexibility and causes injury. Test #2: Determine Your Horse’s Balance and Flexibility Can your horse go smoothly back and forth between a collected and stretched frame in all gaits? The “stretch frame” is also called long and low or gently chewing the reins out of your fingers. Your horse should be reaching down with its neck while maintaining their nose on or slightly in front of the vertical while keeping or improving the gait quality and tempo. Exercise #2: Helping Your Horse Find Their Balance First, your horse needs to know how to put its head and neck down (aka collection or in a connected frame) on cue. There are many ways to accomplish this since each horse is an individual with their personal preferences. Here's one method. Hold one rein steady while the other rein is “playful” (like squeezing a sponge with your fingers). Stop "playing" with the rein as soon as your horse gives or puts its head down even a little. Give or soften with your hands as soon as you get a response even if it is not as low as you would like long term. Giving or softening is your horse’s biggest reward! But, be careful not to throw away the reins. A bob of the head is okay in the beginning since your horse may have no idea what you are asking them to do. Expect and allow them to briefly put their head up again for 3-4 strides. Then ask again. This way your horse learns the cue, realizing they are not being forced or held in position. They will want to be in that position since it feels better especially as they gain muscle strength and suppleness, and understand they are not being forced. Each horse learns this best at a different gait. Some horses learn this best at the halt, others at a trot. I typically do not train this at a walk in the beginning since walking is the hardest gait and easiest to mess up. Be happy with your horse learning this exercise one gait at a time and slowly build from there. And, when your horse’s get it right, be lavish with praise. Over time, you will “glue” the asking and giving pieces together. Your horse will appear seamless with their hind legs engaged, back lifted, and core/abdominals engaged and connected. Your horse will be light in your hands, relaxed, confident and working with you. Remember, it is our job to be their guide and their physical therapist and show them the way. This process can take a couple of years to achieve in all gaits for some horses, others are naturally more gifted. There should never be any holding, yanking, cranking, seesawing, or anything of the sort with your reins. Otherwise, you are going to have a stiff, braced horse who doesn’t understand what you want, will not trust you or your hands, and you will be building the wrong muscles and causing atrophy in others. You will also end up spending a lot of money on vet and bodyworker bills! Check out this quick video of a horse flowing between collection and stretching. Great stretches! Neck is gently rounded. Nose at or slightly in front of vertical. .Horses shown are in nice collected frames for their respective disciplines. Why Does This Improve Your Horse’s Topline?
Doing this exercise correctly means you are able to help your horse: a) Find their own balance; b) Become more flexible and adjustable; and c) Build more of the desired muscles Ilene discussed in part one of this blog series. This means your horse is using effectively using their whole body and the ring of muscles without bracing (as long as the rider isn’t braced), and stretching their muscles from nose to tail while under saddle. Also, you do not want have your horse to remain in one position or direction for more than 5 minutes, even on an advanced horse. Why?.... Imagine being at the gym doing a specific exercise. You maintain a certain position for 20 seconds and build from there. You could most likely do that, right? Now imagine if I told you to hold the same position no matter what for 10 minutes let alone 45 minutes, otherwise you will be in trouble. Do you see what I am getting at? Riders actually expect this from their horses when they expect them to be collected throughout the entire workout! It is our job to be our horse’s personal fitness trainer and physical therapist in order to avoid injury and pain. Please keep in mind while doing this exercise that placing or encouraging your horse’s nose to be close chest is way too extreme. Your goal is to always have your horse’s nose on or slightly in front of the vertical. (Just ask Ilene about how many horses she has to help put back together via bodywork because of extreme neck positions. That really gets her going!) Riding Tip #3: Hill Training This is one of Karin Doncker’s (6 Time Olympian for 3 Day Eventing) favorite exercises for optimizing the topline and one of mine too! Test #3: Determine Your Horse’s Strength Is your horse able to work in all gaits at a slight grade of 15-30 degrees in a stretch and collected frame while maintaining good balance, energy, and relaxation? Exercise #3: Systematically Strengthen The Muscles If not, start with a lot of walking, making sure your horse is straight (hind hooves directly behind front hooves) whether going up or down the hill switching from time to time from a stretch to collected frame. This means your horse's head is not up in the air which causes the back to hollow. Progress gently and slowly! Once this is easy, increase to trot sets with lots of walk breaks. Advance to canter sets on both leads only when your horse shows the physical strength to do this in a relaxed and balanced way. Do this no more than 2 times per week. Remember not to push your horse more than you would yourself in your own human exercise work outs. No pain, no gain does NOT apply! Why Does This Improve Your Horse’s Topline? This exercise helps your horse automatically use its hind end, whether it is going up or down a hill. The hind legs must come under their body toward their center of gravity, which means they need to lift their back, which lowers their head and neck. This builds the entire topline in one of the easiest manners for all horses and disciplines. The Bottom Line…. Well Actually the Topline! There are many different ways to help enhance and strengthen your horse’s topline. These are 3 progressive tests, tips and exercises riders can do to help accomplish this important goal regardless of riding discipline. What do you do to improve your horse’s topline? Do you have any questions or comments to share on this topic? Please post here or join the conversation on the Stretch Your Horse Facebook page.
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The topline of the horse is a term used to describe the area of the horse including the withers, back, loin and croup as pictured below. So, what’s all the hoopla about having a good topline…. and what is a good topline?  The withers, back, loin and croup comprise the topline of your horse. The shape of the topline varies greatly from horse to horse. There are many factors that can affect the topline including conformation, feet issues, nutrition, saddle fit, age, exercise level and type, riding ability and pregnancy status. A healthy horse with a “good topline” will typically have excellent muscle tone and suppleness, move well, and display athleticism. That is why riders would like their horse to have a good topline (and why horses want one too! :) ) What is a good topline? A picture is worth a thousand words.  Good topline. All areas are engaged, lifted and displaying good tone. Horse is relaxed and has good posture.
This blog post is part one of a two part series discussing 3 DIY exercises you can do from the ground to improve your horse’s topline regardless of your riding ability. All of the exercises assume you and your horse are healthy. Next week, we will have a guest blogger, European and Olympian-trained USDF Bronze medalist, Rebekah Larimer, discussing how you can improve your horse’s topline while riding. One final word before jumping into the exercises and stretches. Every horse is unique. Some horses may be older and have sway backs (back with a big dip.) Other horses may have conformational challenges. The good news is that assuming your horse is healthy, you can improve your horse’s topline by strengthening and stretching the topline muscles and your horse’s core or abdominal muscles supporting it. It is not about comparing your horse to the ideal topline, but rather helping your horse achieve the best topline they can have given the myriad factors affecting the topline mentioned above. A Quick Anatomy Primer Horses have a superficial and a deep layer of muscles just like humans. (Some anatomists characterize the muscles as superficial, intermediate and deep.) Improving the topline requires stretching and strengthening the muscles of the topline AND the core or abdominal muscles as well! The names and locations of the major muscles of the topline (and the horse in general) are depicted in the diagrams below. Please refer to the diagrams as we discuss the exercises and stretches. Think of them as horse pilates and horse yoga!   3 Topline Improvement Exercises & Stretches 1) Belly Lift aka horse sit ups! (# 9 in the Stretch Your Horse App) (The #s in parenthesis next to each muscle name below refer to the muscle charts above.) You may have heard of the belly lift which is both a stretch for the withers, back and loin muscles and a strengthening exercise for the core aka abdominal muscles. For anatomy geeks like me, the specific muscles of the topline stretched are the trapezius(#4), serratus ventralis (#30), spinalis (#31), longissimus dorsi (long back muscle) (#32), and the intercostal muscles of the ribs (#14). The abdominals (#15 and #16) and the pecs (#13) are also strengthened as they engage to create the lift of the topline. I have found that many riders are not doing the belly lift correctly, so their horse is not getting all the incredible benefits of this exercise. Many also give up as it can sometimes take 1-2 months for some horses to fully respond to the cues to do this exercise. It is important to stay with it! Success will come. And, as you and your horse get more experienced, eventually you may need to only touch your horse’s abs with one fingertip to signal your horse to do the belly lift. Here is a link to the Belly Lift stretch contained in the Stretch Your Horse App. This free sample link will only remain active for a short period of time, so be sure to watch it now! It explains the entire exercise and stretch step by step. It also provides some tricks for those of you with long fingernails so you can do the exercise without poking your horse!  Fingertips wiggle and press up on the abdominal groove, never moving more than 1/3 down the horse's abs. Starting position is with arm closest to the leg touching the horse's elbow. Do not move arms until lift is achieved in starting position. You are not playing the piano and moving fingertips up and down the groove. 2) Chin to Chest Stretch (#16 in the Stretch Your Horse App) (The #s in parenthesis next to each muscle name below refer to the muscle charts above.) The Chin to Chest stretch is an excellent stretch for the trapezius (# 3 and 4) cervical rhomboids (#22) and splenius (#1) muscles of the topline. Also, one the cool things about this stretch is that most horses will also engage and strengthen the muscles in the withers pocket and even some in the back itself when doing it. Also, once you and your horse are proficient doing this stretch, you can do variations such as chin between the knees to increase muscle suppleness and strength.  This stretch involves using a treat. Be sure to watch the Successful Treat Stretching Tips video included in the SYH App at no additional charge. Here is a link to the Chin to Chest stretch contained in the Stretch Your Horse App. This free sample link will also only remain active for a short period of time, so be sure to watch it now! It explains the entire stretch step by step. The Chin to Chest Stretch involves safely holding a treat and using it to gently guide (well ok, entice) your horse to move its chin to the center of their chest and stretch the neck, withers and back. Ensuring the chin stays in the center is key. If your horse has tight neck muscles on one side, for example, they may move their chin toward that side and lose the benefits of this stretch. 3) Tail Pull/ Tail Circles Stretch (#9 in the Stretch Your Horse App) (The #s in parenthesis next to each muscle name below refer to the muscle charts above.) This is both an exercise and stretch for almost every muscle in the horse’s topline. When done properly, the horse's tail is gently pulled back and the horse pulls it's body forward so the topline muscles are stretched and strengthened.  Rex loves the Tail Pull! He pulls slightly forward to increase the stretch and strengthen his entire topline. Be sure your body is aligned with the center of the horse's body, the horse is standing square and your arms are raised as if shooting a bow and arrow. Here is a link to the Tail Pull and Tail Semi-Circle stretch that is contained in the Stretch Your Horse App. This free sample link will also only remain active for a short period of time, so be sure to watch it now! It explains the entire exercise and stretch step by step.
Because this stretch involves pulling on the tail, if your horse clamps their tail or the tail is very tight, you may have to do to Tail Semi-Circles for a week or two to loosen up the tail. The video explains how to do Tail Semi-Circles. The Bottom Line…. Or Should I Say the Topline…. Every horse is special and unique. Any healthy horse can reap the benefits of an improved topline whether they are a competitive sport horse, a horse that is ridden on leisurely traiI rides or in an arena, or a retired horse playing in the pasture with their buddy! A strong and supple core and topline is really a combination of yoga and pilates which we all know are highly beneficial for everyone! Get Your Horse Stretch On! What do you do to improve your horse's topline? Join the conversation on the Stretch Your Horse Facebook page. The Stretch Your Horse App costs $2.99 and comes with 3 videos. Each additional instructional video costs only $1.99. Buy only the videos your horse needs at a fraction of the the price of one riding lesson, not to mention the cost of a vet or bodywork bill! And, once you download the videos, you can watch them as many times as you want right at your horse's side to be sure you are doing them correctly! No cell or wi-ci connection needed. There are many ways a saddle can cause back soreness, tight muscles, muscle spasms and even lameness in both the horse and rider. One often overlooked cause are saddle panels in need of reflocking or refoaming. If the saddle panels are not in good condition, the overall safety, fit and functionality of the saddle is compromised. Rider and horse back pain are often the result. What Is a Saddle Panel and Where Is It? In an English saddle, the panels are the part of the saddle that is underneath the seat and knee/thigh block area. The panels keep the tree (the "frame" of the saddle) off your horse's back and help absorb concussion. They are also an integral part of saddle fit and rider balance. If you flip your saddle over, the panels are the part of the saddle that have "stuffing" in them as seen in the picture below. The stuffing can be natural or synthetic wool, which is often referred to as flocking, or foam. A small number of saddles have a combination of both. Panels can also be filled with air. (Air panels will be discussed in a future blog post.) Unfortunately, unscrupulous saddle makers and reflockers sometimes put matches, wood chips, old carpet fibers and even tampons in the panels, often putting high quality wool at the entrance to the flocking ports (holes) to give the illusion that wool was used to flock the entire saddle.  What is Saddle Reflocking and Refoaming? How Do I Know If My Saddle Needs To Be Reflocked or Refoamed? There are two types of saddle reflocking. 1) Spot reflocking refers to making a small adjustment to the wool by adding or removing some of it to address a specific localized issue. 2) Full saddle reflocking is the process by which all the old wool (or other materials) inside the saddle panels is removed and new wool is placed inside the panels. This can be done via small slits in the saddle panels called “flocking ports” or by removing the panels from bottom of the saddle, opening them up and then restitching and re-attaching them. The picture below is a saddle panel that is detached from the top part of the saddle where the seat is. The panel has been cut open so you can see the wool inside the panel.  Regardless of whether your saddle needs spot or full reflocking, flocking irons (pictured below) are the tools used during the reflocking process to ensure the wool is uniformly placed throughout the panel or in the correct location in the case of spot reflocking.  Refoaming a panel usually involves making a new panel because the foam is attached to the panel via adhesives and felt. An entirely new piece of foam needs to be utilized in this process. There are a small number of fitters that will remove foam panels, open them up, and shave the foam, but this is somewhat risky due to the unforgiving nature of foam. Once it is shaved, it cannot be glued back on….and millimeters can make a difference. In either case, it is very important that reflocking and refoaming is done in a skilled manner so the panels are symmetrical side to side, the saddle remains balanced front to back and the panels are not too hard or too soft. If not, the rider may be pitched forward or backward or tip to one side. This will impair the horse’s ability to move correctly and freely resulting in back pain, soreness and possibly lameness for both horse and rider as well as riding difficulties. Whether your saddle panels contain wool or foam, eventually they will need to be reflocked or refoamed. This is an often overlooked cause of rider and horse back pain, even by many highly talented vets, human and equine bodyworkers and chiropractors. Key signs it is time to reflock or refoam include:
Will a Newly Refloocked or Refoamed Saddle Automatically Fit My Horse? Saddle reflocking or refoaming and saddle fit are two distinct but related items riders need to understand. Reflocking and refoaming the panels does not automatically guarantee saddle fit. Generally speaking, reflocking and refoaming restore the panels to their original shape. If a saddle fundamentally does not fit your horse, because, for example, the tree is curved and your horse’s back is straight, refoaming or reflocking will not make it fit. Additionally, if the panels on your saddle have become very thin, it is possible your saddle may be too narrow once the panels are restored to their normal size and shape. In that case, the saddle may need to be widened. Can Panels Be Flocked to Match the Shape of My Horse to Fit Better? One of the advantages of wool flocking is that the panels will mold, somewhat, to the shape of your horse’s back. Also, spot flocking can sometimes be used to account for small asymmetries or other issues. But, there are limitations on the use of spot flocking. If too much flocking is added, the panel can become hard and cause pain. Each situation should be carefully evaluated to determine if shims are a better option, which is often the case when larger areas need customization. Shims can be created in many different sizes, shapes, and thicknesses. For example, I have 15 different shoulder shims alone. Shims are also easier for the rider to maintain as they can easily be removed if no longer needed due to muscle development. The Bottom Line on Saddle Panels and Back Pain One important thing riders can do to help themselves and their horse stay pain-free and move to the best of their ability is to become educated about what is in their saddle panels, the condition of the panels, and the impact their saddle panels have on their horse and themselves. Work with a saddle fitter who is trained in both saddle fitting and saddle reflocking to help ensure your saddle panels are helping you and your horse enjoy every ride. How often do you check your saddle panels? Did you know this was necessary? Did you check them out after reading this blog and watching the video? What did you discover? Tell us your story! Share here or on our Facebook page. |
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AuthorIlene Nessenson, JD, Certified Equine Bodyworker, is the creator of the Stretch Your Horse App. She has been an equine bodyworker, saddle fitter, and saddle reflocker for over 11 years. Archives
June 2018
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