Rider Health & Wellbeing

Are you an overthinker? Here’s how to stop the overthinking...   In this blog, I’d like to give you two tried and tested techniques to stop overthinking, the destructive ‘what-ifs’ that plague so many of us. Overthinking something can be stopped, but we need to put the handbrake on and override the automatic thoughts. We need to take control.   Having continuous negative commentaries or movies dominating our thoughts not only impacts our ...

Wondering how you can solve the issue of competition nerves and how they impact your performance? Dr Tracey Cole touches on her top tips and advice for how to shed the nerves and take control of your mind when competing, or going about your daily life.

Do you find yourself saying you ‘should’ do something; there’s a lurching feeling of either dread or pressure to get it done. As riders, there are should about riding, ourselves as riders and carers for our horses. It may be time to re-evaluate when and how often you say ‘should’, it could be revealing more than you think about your mindset! Think about your own equestrian 'shoulds'... I should ride more   I should compete   I shoul...

Do your riding fears stop you thinking rationally? Your brain may be being hijacked! Sometimes, when we’re anxious, all rational and logical thought goes out of the window. You can’t think straight and all you can think about is your high state of alert and fear. There’s a good reason why this happens – part of your brain is being hijacked! How do you free yourself? Read on! Knowing a little bit about the brain and the mind helps us to put fears into perspective. ...

Hi everyone, Today, I want to do a little follow up to my previous article, ‘Equestrianism: Anxiety Within The Sport – You Are Not Alone’, published back in July of last year. If you are yet to read my original article and would like to do so, I will include a link at the bottom of this one for you. In this article, I will be covering my journey and feelings throughout the pandemic, as well as catching up with a few equestrian influencers, whom you are likely to recognise...

With swathes of people getting back to riding and competing after a time off, it’s natural to have a mindset hiccup and wonder how it will all go. Anxiety can become a habit – it’s learnt. The good news is that anything learnt can be unlearnt too. Where does the anxiety come from? Anxiety can be thought of as a very natural response to impending danger. It’s a good mechanism to have. The stress of a situation, or the anxiety beforehand, was always a fabulous alarm sys...

Do you ever feel like there just aren’t enough hours in the day? Juggling work, family, social life, horses and everything else life throws at us in between can be overwhelming at times. We leave the house at the crack of dawn and don’t get home till after dark, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Now, I know most of us wouldn’t change that for the world; we are dedicated to the sport and love our horses too much for that. But, when we are constantly on the go and rushing throug...

Whilst it’s not something that I like to talk about often, I have struggled in the past with my mental health and know firsthand how much it can suck the fun out of normally enjoyable activities and leave you struggling to know where to go or how to feel better. The one thing that has consistently kept me grounded and smiling is my lovely gang of horses in the paddock that I know I can go and see if I’m ever feeling anxious or upset. I have no doubt in my mind that horses have helped...

Now that the weather has made a turn for the worse, the nights are drawing in and typically, we are spending less time moving around outside, our cardiovascular fitness levels can drop very quickly unless we keep on top of it. Cardio is a bit like marmite; you either love it or hate it! From my experience, when you tell someone they need to improve their cardio, they instantly think they have to run for miles on end, and the thought of that isn't very pleasant, especially when it's dark, ...

Following on from my last post regarding attention to detail, I wanted to dive a little deeper into how you can make small changes in your daily routine with your horses, which will lead to big improvements overall. So let’s start at the very beginning, before you even get in the saddle, with a pre-ride stretch. Now, the majority of the time that I suggest this to riders, their first response is that they “don’t have time”. I fully appreciate that time is tight, esp...

It can take a lot to bully an equestrian. And it happens a lot. The unwanted, unhelpful comments made on a livery yard soon escalate. I’ve seen grown women pounce upon younger women and start the psychological games usually seen in school bullies. What starts this behaviour? And if you’re experiencing it now, what can you do? Bullying of any kind is a repeated action, whether direct to someone’s face, or indirect – the kind where a person may be excluded from events or...

In part one we looked at what we needed to do to get our butterflies to fly in formation by identifying the level of arousal that works best for you, positively viewing symptoms of anxiety and ways of increasing self confidence. In part two we’ll look at understanding how motivation and goal setting can be used on a day to day basis to reduce stress, and how to manage stress, anxiety and arousal on the day of a big event, presentation or competition. It is a commonly held belief that indiv...

Riding jitters. We all experience them at one time or another. That hostile flutter of butterflies in your tummy, the nauseous feeling at the back of your throat, the sweaty palms and the need for a nervous poo! We have all been there, whether it is related to competition day, jumping, trying something new or even just getting on board and riding our horses, we all feel the fear at some point. I know all of those feelings only too well, having spent several years battling my confidence demons...

Well, it’s been a little while since I wrote anything for Horsemart. I think I’ve settled into lockdown life a little too well. The slower pace of life has suited me. I think when I’m older, twice divorced and obviously, hugely wealthy, I should retire to somewhere relaxed like Lake Geneva. Somewhere I can sip cappuccinos and take pleasure in not getting out of bed unless it’s for something hugely important, like a restaurant reservation or possibly a facial. Anyway, ...

Most of us are fully aware that equestrianism is hugely dependent on a sound mindset. How else would we be able to ride several hundred kilos of semi-wild animal?? It’s that X-factor that can be the difference between succeeding, progressing, feeling happy with your riding or even having the edge over a competitor. Does riding follow the 80-20 rule: 80% mental and 20% physical effort? Sometimes it seems so! I’d say it was at least 60% mental and 40% physical, depending on your ...

‘Making the Butterflies Fly in Formation’ is the title of a research study published in The Sport Psychologist in 1999. Although a small study looking at the experiences of both elite and non-elite athletes, in this case swimmers, it demonstrated an interesting phenomenon. Both types of athlete experienced anxiety in some form or other, but the elite athletes viewed the effect of this anxiety differently to the non-elite athletes. In essence, the elite athletes believed their anxiety...

I’m often asked to help people feel good when cantering and to be confident in the knowledge that they can enjoy this beautiful pace. Cantering has to be one of the most popular issues I deal with and here, I’d like to consider what hypnosis can do to help. Let’s take a look at what hypnosis is, what it isn’t and how it could get you cantering (or any other form of riding) with ease. Hypnosis is just one way to reach the part of the mind that stores memories, habits and...

Hi Everyone. Today, I want to discuss something that is close to my heart, something that I feel people should discuss more. Anxiety. Throughout this article, I will be covering my own journey and feelings, as well as speaking with a few people from different areas and levels of the sport to get their take on it. We will be hearing from people who compete and are involved in Dressage, Eventing and Show Jumping, as well as speaking with a qualified Counsellor and BE/BD Judge to get their thoughts...

There’s no doubt that one of the biggest concerns for everyone, while the UK is in lockdown, is how to maintain fitness levels. With the new regulations meaning even tighter rules on our ability to go outside, and movement restricted to ‘essential’ travel, the unknown amount of time we will be spending at home is a daunting prospect, to say the least. Exercise plays a major role in our mental state, as well as our physical fitness, releasing positive hormones and reducing st...

I’m Liz, a 22-year-old student, I’ve been riding since well before I could walk and have adored everything horsey ever since! I am very much an amateur in this sport with just my two little horses at my own yard! We participate in low level competitions and get involved in as much riding club activities as we can! I have studied sports at university and therefore I am very passionate about certain issues including mental health, sport development and teaching! When I’m not ridi...