I’ve come to believe that behind every young, fit, successful equestrian athlete is a suburban, middle-aged, underemployed, slightly bloated housewife with a light brown haircut and 125,000 miles on her odometer. Yes, there are Horse Show Moms that look fresh, happy, and fit, but that’s not what I was seeing in the mirror.
After years of taking our youngest daughter to the barn every day (and still trying to keep the rest of the family fed and stocked with clean socks and underwear), I was exhausted and I could see it. Something had to change.
For me, the change came when my husband sat me at the kitchen table and said, “I want my wife back.” She wasn’t sure if he was referring to the fact that she was never home or that she was no longer the slender, fun, and energetic girl he had married.
Anyway. . . Oh!
He then said, “If we are going to continue to foster our daughter’s addiction to horseback riding, we must include the needs of you, me, and the rest of the family. And we will do it before tax dollars, which means we will do it as a real deal.
“Since that day, I’ve learned that our conversation is not unique. It happens on kitchen tables and in horse stable parking lots across the country. It usually starts with something like,” Does that horse cost how much? Who do you think I am, Michael Bloomberg?
“The strategy we chose to comply with the ‘before tax dollar’ ruling was to purchase a small horse boarding facility near our home. Our trainer, Mariano Bedoya, helped guide us through the process and helped us recruit to our barn manager, Jorge Viton, from Wellington, Florida.
Owning a barn is a lot of work, but it has also become a place that the whole family can enjoy. Our youngest daughter is enjoying her walks more than ever, the older girls are promoting our facilities by taking lots of pictures and posting them on Facebook, the boys are willing to do household chores as long as they involve a tractor, an ATV or a tool. Electric and my husband even has an “office” filled with a new jump drill and a variety of fishing rods.
But the best part of our barn, for me, is the brand new Pilates Reformer Studio. When we bought our barn, I insisted that we include space for a small Pilates Reformer Studio. I was initially seduced by Pilates while recovering from knee surgery years before. It looked elegant, safe, and straightforward. Easy? Say ah! As the trainer guided my every move, I learned the beautiful and challenging nuances of proper and effective Pilates work. There were many days when I said, “There is absolutely no way I can do that move correctly”, but ended up blushing like a child in my first pony class when “I did it!” I transformed through Pilates. and I think it’s the perfect program in place for my daughter and the other serious equestrian athletes in our stable. With proper instruction and supervision, strengthening, lengthening, and balancing can be experienced without pain.
Pilates teaches you to calm down and listen to your body and respect the movement of the equipment. Can you imagine a more perfect training for cyclists? Our Pilates trainer has no specific experience in training equestrian athletes, so we rely on dressage and trainer Betsy Steiner to host regular, year-round clinics in our stable. Betsy helped coin the term “Equilates” and is the author of the book A Gymnastic Riding System – Using Mind, Body, & Spirit.
I will always love sitting in the observation room and watching our daughter train. It gives me real joy. But with a Pilates studio on site, I’m also looking forward to a more balanced and fit life for this horse show mom.
Six Principles of Pilates
Pilates is a series of thought-filled controlled movements typically performed on specially designed spring-resistant exercise equipment. It focuses on improving flexibility, core strength, and body awareness. In the book The Pilates Method of Physical and Mental Conditioning, six “Principles of Pilates” are described. The following list applies those principles to the unique challenges of the equestrian athlete.
1. Concentration!
Pilates trains the body and mind. Like riding a horse, one must habitually be “always present” in mind and body, to be successful and secure.
2. Control!
The original name of the Pilates exercise method was “Contrology”. The exercises are all about keeping your composure. In Pilates and horseback riding, one perfectly executed exercise is better than 100 poorly executed.
3. Centered!
All physical movements arise from our core. When the core is engaged, posture is better, the driver’s seat is deepened, and the possibility of injury is reduced.
4. Flow!
Pilates and horse riding are all about fluidity, grace, and ease. Pilates equipment and a horse are very good mirrors of fluency and concentration. If the flow is lost, the Pilates team starts pounding. The rider must match his movements with his horse to avoid collapsing, twisting or bouncing off the saddle.
5. Accuracy!
Correct Pilates training requires intense attention to detail that quickly becomes second nature. Adult Pilates students find that their new mindfulness changes their daily posture and some have a measurable increase in height. Better posture results in a more graceful ride.
6. Breathing!
Clean, deep and controlled breaths are part of maximizing Pilates movements. Deeper stretches, longer muscles, and oxygenated blood mean less cramping and tight muscles as you get on and off the chair.