Question by NaturalJumper: Body work exercises to release tension in pelvis and hips?
Thanks for any help…
Well it’s quite obvious.
If this were for me i would put it in the health section.
If for my horse in the horse section.
So yes, it is for my horse.
Best answer:
Answer by Twink247
Are these exercises for you or your horse?
Glad of the clarification, I had to ask as alot of people on this site dont know the front end from the back end.,
Anyhow back to your question, Tension Patterns are areas of tightness that exist in a horse’s body. They may be obvious and inhibit the natural movement of the animal to a greater or lesser degree or may be subtle and less easily detected. Either way they will have an effect on the way the horse functions on an emotional, mental and physical level. They can influence not only how the horse thinks, feels and learns but can hamper its ability to be trained, accept contact, cope with the farrier, travelling etc and adapt to new situations.
In my experience, there is always a reason for ‘unwanted’ behaviour and in cases where the horse reached a plateau in its training or rehabilitation, veterinary examination proved that there were often quite serious underlying physical causes. Tension Patterns can arise from poor training, inappropriate dental and hoof care, poor tack or rug fit, injury or disease, stress, or inappropriate management. Whilst conformation plays an important part, some horses are born with Tension Patterns that they inherit from their parents, which then influence how the horse is handled and trained in its early years. Tension and stress are necessary for all structures to maintain the ability to be supportive but the tension and stress must be as evenly distributed as possible to prevent uneven loading on one or more parts. When the tension in a horse is uneven, it has a knock on effect through the body and as posture and behaviour are so inextricably linked, unwanted behaviour patterns can arise.Exercises to help with tension is fairly straight forward, work the horse in a long and low outline for at least 4-6 weeks, in all gaits, walk, trot and canter, allow him to swing through his back and relax all his muscles and joints… The more lengthening of his body you can do the better, it takes time but you will have huge success with it in the long run. Suppleness training produces a greater range of motion. Suppling exercises fall into one of three categories, dynamic, passive, or natural. Dynamic suppling exercise include bending, lateral work, transitions forward and back and stretching or chewing the reins out of the hand. These cover both longitudinal suppleness and lateral suppleness. Passive suppling exercises can be done both prior to riding and after riding when the horse is already warm. Passive suppling of the shoulders, hips, back, neck and poll can all play an important role in symmetrical development, that is reducing the handedness of a horse. Some of the most effective exercises include: Hind leg forward and across the body under the widest part of the stomach, folding the foreleg and rotating the point of the shoulder up and forward, stretching the neck forward and down between the horses knees and to the side towards the girth area and belly lifts. These exercises should have a 20 to 30 second duration. Natural suppling exercises are the easiest for the horse and the rider to execute. Adequate turnout that allows the horse to perform these natural-suppling exercises is often the limiting factor. Rolling, grazing, scratching, and biting at flies are all part of the horses natural suppling routine. As horse owners we need to try to be aware that we may be taking to good of care of our horses. It has been shown that stalled horses lose bone density and thus are more susceptible to injury. Horses are made to be horses. After each exercise session take some arnica tincture and apply to the body, and lather, you only need a tiny amount, and it relaxes all the muscles, its great for stresses and strains.
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