Process Essay: The Benefits Of Horse Riding

Imagine riding a horse on white sandy beach with crystal blue waters, or a cowboy in the dusty deserts of the Wild West. Although riding a horse along a tropical island and cowboys do exist, horseback riding is recognized as a sport. Most do not realize but horsemanship can be added as a part of an exercise routine and have similar benefits of going to the gym. In addition, there are psychological gains of horse riding.

There are a lot of misconceptions surrounding the sport of riding horses, including that the horse is doing all of the work. Contrary to popular belief this is false. The rider needs to guide and support all the horse does. The use of abdominal muscles keeps the rider balanced and stabilized. Coordination also plays a major part in horsemanship. To get the horse to do what you want like stop or speed up, a lot of different cues given synchronously to keep the horse from wondering off on its own. Hamstrings, glutes, and quads all work to support yourself upright in the saddle and used as cues to get the horse to turn and move forward. “Straddling a large powerful animal with a mind and agenda of its own is a full body workout that will engage your muscles

you didn’t know existed.”(Bennett, 2013). The use of all these muscles while riding expends large amounts of energy. In the United Kingdom recreation horse riding is classified as moderate intensity exercise. Riding in a posting trot for one hour, three times a week meets the recommended amounts of exercise also in the UK. (The British Horse Society, 2010).
Horsemanship can be done by a wide range of riders. Dissimilar too other sports where the age of a competitor can be effected on a person’s ability, however, in equestrian it does not hold true. In the 2012 Olympics the average age of a dressage rider was 38.2 compared to the average age of a gymnast which was 18.7. On average by the time a gymnast reaches the age of 18 their career is over, their bodies begin to show signs of aging and they become coaches. Hiroshi Hoketsu was 70 years old when she competed in the 2012 Olympics as a dressage rider. (Wyile, 2012).
The full effect of horsemanship can be experienced by people with a wide range of body types and even some physical disabilities. People with long standing disabilities such as Lyme disease, arthritis, dislocated shoulders, and mild multiple sclerosis have self-reported that they experience the same level of physical activity as someone without. “I had Lyme Disease for nine years which caused pain/fatigue/stress. I am now 98 percent recovered, but riding takes away ALL my aches and pains! My long illnesses made me understand how important riding for the disabled is!” (British Horse Society, 2010).
Additional mechanisms that are involved with horsemanship other than riding are equine related activities.

This would include tacking up, feedings, cleaning stalls and other miscellaneous barn work. Not only is this all physical activity, but it teaches the rider responsibility, displace, and patience. In a study looking at the effects of Therapeutic Horseback Riding with Military Veterans by Leslie LaFleur spoke of horsemanship teaching the participate “transferable skills”. “Participants commented that the horsemanship lessons “paralleled to all aspects of your life” in ways that allowed the riders to make their own connections to how each lesson applied to their life and recovery process. These transferable skills created “ripple effects” in emotional, cognitive, physical, and social

domains.”
Points often over looked in equine are the value that riding have on a person’s psyche