Last night, I pulled my standardbred out of the paddock, after getting the guilts from seeing his gorgeous pricked ears waiting eagerly at the gate.
I’ll admit, with summer’s heat in full-force, I’ve found it hard to get motivated lately.
Life’s been so crazy.
Of course, I always end up stuck waaay deep in a grumpy rut before I realise I’ve spent too much time away from my four-hooved friends.
I’m someone who needs disconnect from world around me and be completely drowned in dust and horse snot (gross, but true) to feel like myself.
There really is no therapy like horse therapy!
Feeling a little uninspired by the conditions, I decided to bring Joey out for a gentle walk on the arena.
Beforehand, I dragged some jump wings, poles, cones and a mounting block over and set up a working space.
We enjoyed some in-hand training time; something which has been a focus for us.
It was an incredible session, filled with many ‘breakthrough moments’.
In the end, Joey and I were communicating purely through our body language, moving as one and learning to read one another.
We played for around 20 minutes, including taking a stroll down the driveway to poke our noses in some scary ‘boogyman bushes’.
By the time I put him back in his paddock and clicked the gate latch closed, my happy meter was filled right up to overflowing.
I felt a sense of calmness that I hadn’t experienced in weeks.
It was a timely reminder of the importance of spending time with my boy, free from the burden of expectation.
As riders, we often find ourselves in a vacuum; bombarded by photos and updates about what our peers are achieving with their horses and often feeling like we’re failing by comparison.
Make no mistake, if you’re feeling like you’re falling short of the benchmark you’ve set for yourself, you are not alone!
My advice is simple:
remember why you got your standy in the first place….
Because you LOVE horses.
Because horsemanship offers a source of stress relief.
Because creating a special bond with your horse is an indescribable feeling.
Sometimes we really do forget that horsemanship is meant to be fun!
If you’ve found yourself feeling uninspired lately, please know it’s a-ok just to step back from your retraining journey and take a moment to breathe.
Trust me when I say that pushing on when you’re really stressed and not enjoying your horse time is a slippery slope to hanging up the boots altogether.
I’ve seen it happen time and time again and have even found myself in that scenario once or twice over the years.
It’s time to stop worrying about all the things you should be doing and just be (quit ‘should-ing’ your happiness away!)
Upturn a bucket and just hang out with your horse.
Watch how they interact with herdmates in the paddock.
Take a walk together.
Beat a boogyman.
Learn a new groundwork skill.
Invest some time in your own knowledge and development as a rider.
Surround yourself with people who will raise you up and support you.
Take the mental space you need to ‘find your happy’ again.
Then, only once you’re truly ready, you can hit the reset button and move forward in your standardbred journey.
If you’d like to learn more about strategies for reducing overwhelm whilst retraining your standardbred, please check out our blog post which introduces some practical activities you can try at home:
