stretching - naturally improve your horses range of motion · stretching helps: to increase...
TRANSCRIPT
How many of you stretch your horse
before and/or after you ride? This
simple addition to your riding regime,
will drastically improve your horse’s muscle
tone, overall range-of-motion, plus it is impera-
tive for injury prevention. Stretching will help to
improve your horse’s performance and agility by
improving its stride, and natural movement. Most
athletes stretch before and after they exercise or
compete - why shouldn’t we ask, and insist, on
the same standards from our equine athletes?
Stretching helps: To increase range-of-motion
and flexibility; To prevent injury and muscle by
increasing agility; To improve stride and over-
all performance; To build and keep muscle tone
(especially over weak areas); To prevent muscle/
tendon injuries, by increasing flexibility of the
muscle fibers. By stretching your horse’s muscle
before you ride, you are automatically decreas-
ing the chance of torn or strained muscle or ten-
dons. Muscles are joined together by tendons.
If your horse’s muscle is tight, the tendons must
compensate by being over-stretched; in doing
this, your horse is more vulnerable to muscle and
tendon injuries. Also, by increasing your horse’s
muscle fibre, there will be less pressure on your
horse’s joints because the surrounding muscles
and tendons are more agile and flexible. Muscle
and tendon injuries are the most commonly seen
soft tissue injuries. If your horse’s muscles have
increased stress and force, it, in turn, is exerted
into the tendons and surrounding associated mus-
cles. Because stretching helps to reduce muscle
tension, by increasing each muscle fiber, it helps
prevent strain and improves your horse’s stride
and overall flexibility. We have discussed the im-
portance of stretching before you ride, now lets
examine the benefits of post-exercise stretches
Equine Sports TherapyStretching - Naturally improve your horses range of motionBy Kristen Giglio
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Kristen Giglio is a Certified Equine Therapist and Animal Health Veterinary Technician. She owns/operates Advanced
Connections Equine Therapy and offers such services as massage therapy, magnotherapy, trigger point therapy, applied
kinesiology, saddle fitting and acupressure. Contact Kristen at (250) 370-9951, or visit www.acetherapy.ca. Veterinarian
recommended. Available seven days a week.
and how they help to prevent pain and muscle-
fatigue. Along with a proper cool-down after rid-
ing, exercises help to increase muscle fibers and
helps aid in removing any toxins or fluid than
may be present in your horse’s muscle. It helps
to reduce muscle spasms by allowing the mus-
cles to stretch and cool-down properly, rather
than just putting your horse away. And because
many horses are stalled, a proper cool-down and
stretching allow the muscles to regain function
without the likeliness of muscle tightness and
pain from being worked. In doing this, you will
also notice the difference between your horse’s
range-of-motion pre and post workout. It also
allows you to detect if your horse seem painful
and muscle over-stretched. This will be an indi-
cation that your riding program may need some
adjusting or fine-tuning. Here are some very sim-
ple exercises that will benefit both you and your
horse. Horse hugs - as I’m sure we all love our
horse buddies and enjoy giving them attention.
This one is simple; Stand on the side of your
horse’s neck just before its shoulder and give it
a hug. Do the same on each side. This stretches
Horse Hugs Belly Lift
Retraction Muscle Stretches - Front Protraction Muscle Stretches - Frontwww.islandhorsemagazine.com�
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the muscle of your horse’s neck
- a hug to the right stretches the
left and a hug to the left stretch-
es the right. Belly lifts - scratch
your horse’s belly (right where
your girth would sit) and you
will notice its back round. This
stretches all the back muscles
along your horse’s topline and
helps to tone and build strength
to them. If your horse is unre-
sponsive, use the rounded end of
your hoof pick and run it along
your horse’s belly. Protraction
muscle stretches - stretches the
muscles that move your horse’s
limb forward. You achieve this
my moving your horse’s limb
backward. So if you want to
stretch the muscles that propel
the limb forward, you stretch
the limb back. Retraction
muscle stretches - stretches
the muscles that move your
horse’s limb backward. You
achieve this my moving your
horse’s limb forward. So if you
want to stretch the muscles that
propel the limb backward, you
stretch the limb forward. If you
incorporate these simple exer-
cises into your riding routine,
you will notice a marked dif-
ference in your horse’s overall
movement and muscle develop-
ment. I see it with every horse
that I treat, as I recommend ex-
ercises to help with any muscle
or body weakness or just as
strengthening and toning your
horse’s muscles. Protraction Muscle
Stretches - Hind
Belly LiftRetraction Muscle Stretches - Hind
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