Two Minute Training Tips – Moods & ‘Tudes

You drive white knuckled to the barn after work and let out a heavy sigh when you park the car. Your horse is out in the pasture and has spent a great deal of time ensuring every hair is covered with mud. Sigh. You’re so darn tired and really this is supposed to be you’re ‘me time’. You go out to the pasture and your usually ready to come and get the treat horse turns tail and runs to the back of the pasture and hides. You put your head down and determinedly march to the far corner and halter your muddy beast. This is your ‘barn time’. It doesn’t matter if you didn’t sleep well last night or that you’ve been so slammed all day your mind is just foggy. This is your horse time and the horse must be ridden. You. Are. Going. To. Ride. And, you say to yourself with gritted teeth – I will enjoy the ride. You’ve groomed a path for your tack and are about to get on but decide to take a quick look at your training plan to review what you planned for the week. You take a look and there is not much written except for the comment – Check the moods and ‘Tudes . (Attitudes). You smile. Your mood is sour and tired. Your horse was running from you when you went to get him out of the pasture. You flip back to last week and see again – midweek you were so tired that you decided to hand walk your horse and poultice his legs instead of riding. The week before you noted that you rode but it was a trail ride type ride – you walked around and looked at weird and possibly horse-killing things like the cars, the farm tractor or that sinister tent. What is it about the mid week that wipes you out? You’re heavy schedule at work? You are getting up extra early to get the kids to 0 Dark Thirty AM sports practice before school starts? Whatever it is in the middle of the week you’)re not so sharp and energetic when you get to the barn. If you go back in your memory before you starting tracking you and your horses’ moods and “Tudes in your riding plan you fight with your horse every Wednesday and have a pretty crummy ride that sometimes takes a day or two to recover from. This might be a different day of the week for you or a different time of the day. I’m amazed to this day I’ve learned to ride at all since most of my lessons are usually between 4 – 7 PM and after some self analysis of my energy rhythms that’s the part of day when my energy is lowest and my brain is mush. I ended up trying to hardly ever schedule a lesson on Fridays because I just couldn’t get my brain to work let along pilot a horse successfully. In part of my training plan I have a section where I make a note of moods and ‘Tudes for me and my horse have so I can get the best ride at the best time and when things are not optimal I give myself permission to do what we need and not what I think is required. My horse is happier for it, I’m happier and I have a longer string of enjoyable and successful rides. It also helps you to figure out how to combat the energy ebbs. For me I have a cup of green tea around 4 to help perk me up for my riding after work. Maybe a nap in your car at lunch or a brisk 10 min walk at the barn before you ride might help! Its easier to enjoy the ride if you’re not sleep walking through it! J

Stay tuned for next week’s Two-minute Training Tip! If you need help building a training plan you can always reach out to me with questions at revelationfarm1911@gmail.com or check out our YouTube channel, revelationfarm.com for upcoming events. Like us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/RevelationFm!

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