Riding a new kind of fitness
Today “the horse family” gets celebrities boom. Leading politicians and celebrities, and also simple citizens not only take a great interest in various kinds of equestrian sport, but also get their own horses. And it not simply fashion or whim!
Horse is unique “live training equipment” which tone up all muscles of the horseman. And about positive psychotherapeutic effect which this animal renders on a psycho emotional condition of the person, written the set of proceedings. Every magazine tells about horse therapy, about classical and nonconventional kinds of equestrian sport and about why centaurs are so nice and pleasant to us till now. So, gallop to perfection!
HORSE THERAPY
Even Hippocrates has noticed, that the soldiers injured in fight recovered faster, if continued to exploit. Today sanitary contact of the person and a horse has wide scientific base. Horse therapy is an individual form of rehabilitation at which gymnastic exercises on a horse are used. It’s nothing else but the form of physiotherapy exercises where horse used as a rehabilitation tool, process of riding and physical exercises during it are done by the person. Thanks to this unique therapy not only functions of vegetative systems improve, but also physical defects are corrected. This method is widely applied today all over the world, representing a psychotherapy and physiotherapy sides of exercises. Differently, the course of horse therapy has complex influence on a physical and psycho emotional condition of the patient. And what can be better?
TYPICAL DOUBTS
Certainly, horse therapy may seem, softly saying, the exotic offer (especially for those who considers, that some diseases have forever closed them road to an active life), therefore at once it is necessary to warn your possible objections.
- To pass a course horse therapy, skills of riding are not necessary.
- Horse therapy is all ages welcome.
- Horse therapy has no restrictions and can be recommended for rehabilitation at diseases of the various form and levels (even at physical inability).
HOW DOES IT LOOK LIKE?
In an ideal you should bring to Horse therapy center medical certificate. There you will be met by the expert who again will test you and will offer the INDIVIDUAL COURSE of therapy.
But, unlike riding, you will not operate a horse by yourself it will supervise horse master. Also nearby you will always be a horse therapist. A horse drive basically step. Therefore it is not necessary to worry about how you can master such huge animal. All horses participating in therapy are carefully selected by experts: only the kindest and quiet from these fine creations suppose to «improving activity», and they pass special training.
Jennifer Woods, horse therapist from Linden, NJ, assures, that for more than 15 year of practice she never heard about accidents connected with aggression of an animal. Besides, any horse therapist always acquaints the patient with a horse, allows it to stroke, feed, tells about features of its development, and soon between “patient” and “doctor” creates a strong positive emotional communication. Classes done without a saddle and stirrups to strengthen contact to a horse and to force your muscles to work more actively (the saddle and stirrups can already appear in medical riding). Sitting on a horse, you will do various exercises in unusual poses: lying on a back or across a horse, sitting on it backwards, standing on your knees touching various subjects, overcoming barriers.
Typical example: your leg has been broken how to restore its impellent activity? During walking on crutches the back and shoulders are stressed while muscles of the broken foot wither, and healthy one, vice versa, are exposed to non uniform loading. Because of that you often feel pain. In that case horse therapists will pick you the program that will promote a relaxation of basin and a humeral belt. And thanks to found feeling of symmetry of a muscle of a sick foot will become stronger and will come in a tone, and sheaves will get elasticity.
WHAT UNIQUENESS OF THE METHOD DIFFERS IT FROM ANY OTHER KIND OF HEALTH PHYSICAL THERAPY?
- Features of movement of a horse. The horse transfers to the patient 90 110 multidirectional impellent impulses a minute. I.e., while riding a horse, you feel three dimensional fluctuations: upwards downwards, to the right to the left, to the left to the right. Sitting on a horse, moving together with it, you instinctively try to keep balance trying not to fall, and by that induce to active work both healthy and the affected muscles, without noticing. ALL basic groups of muscles are in work. The horse the best training simulator! Body temperature of a horse on 1 1.5 degrees higher, than human body. And because classes are going without a saddle and stirrups, horses’ body will operate as warming up, stimulating and at the same time relaxation massage.
- Wide sphere of usage and absence of contra indications: for example, riding never causes in the horseman of infringements of heart activity (it use even for rehabilitation of patients after a myocardium heart attack).
- Classes are done at open air areas that also strengthen blood circulation.
- When the person comes to classes of horse therapy, he doesn’t see in front of him people in white gowns but the arena, horse and the instructor. Rehabilitation process is perceived by the patient like training skills of riding instead of “uncomfortable but useful» course of treatment.
- According to specificity of a course, you cannot skip classes. There is a special system of dialogue which renders powerful psychotherapeutic and intellectual influence. There is a constant contact: the patient, a horse, horse master and horse therapist (sometimes his assistants). During procedures you will be instinctively compelled to include all attention.
- Thanks to horse therapy many disable people began to do medical riding, and then professional riding and had an opportunity to participate in Paralympics games of equestrian sport. And for children with the limited possibilities it also has helped to integrate better into a society.
EQUESTRIAN SPORT
Despite the fact that what kind of sports you choose, you will spend approximately half a year (if you go to arena 1 3 times in a week) training to operate a horse.
Where?
Choose good club: read reviews about it at online forums, do your own mini research. Many clubs move out from the city to nearby farms, fields.
Clothing
It will not happen that you will be told right away to buy bridges and boots. For the first class it is quite possible to come in non narrow pants (wide trousers will gather in folds and rub skin) or in jeans and in footwear with a low platform (in sport shoes, for example, feet will fail in stirrups, and it is unsafe).
First time
They will give the horse for you at the base, but be prepared that if your hobby outgrows in love for all life, you should think about purchasing your own four legged friend. In the beginning you will seated on a horse and will be told, how it is necessary to sit, how correctly hold balance, shown some exercises (depending on a direction), focused on liberation of seating position and development of correct balance.
The horse will be supervised by the trainer. Most likely, first horse will be led by trainer, so you can simply get used to sensations.
Typical doubts
It is not required to have outstanding physical preparation. For riding there are no special contra indications. To the contrary, at certain problems with a backbone equestrian sport is very effective. The age does not matter there are masters of the international class who successfully participating at competitions at the age of 55.
What kind of sports to choose?
Show jumping overcoming of obstacles, of course, assumes more extreme relation to life. In dressage style there is something from training, therefore for such class more meditative patient character is required.
Personal experience of scientologist Kate Wonton: “The most important thing is learn to feel a horse (the analogy to “feeling of the car”). It is useful to learn how to clean and saddle a horse so the contact with animal amplifies. The first problem to learn to operate a horse on the go: to “send» be able to command to go, stop and turn. Right seating position: straightened back, hands bent in elbows, fists nearby on horse withers, lean on a hip inside, knees are not widely opened but pressed to sides of a horse. Complexity of control: to give to a horse an impulse, requires making lots of movements both hands, and feet, and the body frame. It also practiced during the training ».
CLASSICAL (OLYMPIC) KINDS OF EQUESTRIAN SPORT
- DRESSAGE – the riding high school. Sports kind in which the horseman should show: ability of a horse to correct movements on all paces, a correct rack; besiege (movement back), movements with lateral bending, difficult movements (pirouettes, foot change on gallop in 4 1 rate, a passage, Piaf Fe). At performance of these exercises the horse moves, keeping this or that position of the corresponding to style of the program. Actions of the equestrian should be almost invisible. the general view of a horse, its harmony and natural ability to elastic, beautiful movements are also estimated.
- SHOW JUMPING – (overcoming of obstacles) the most mass and popular kind of equestrian sport. The horseman should pass in this kind a route, overcoming the obstacles established on it consisting of separate wooden parts. (The route usually consists of 8 obstacles.) At the touch they easily collapse, thereby preserving participants from traumas and falling. The height of barriers depends on a class of competitions: in classical competition up to 30 inches, in competitions of high jumps from 40 inches and higher.
On the character of competition on show jumping are various. They can be done on in advance established route with certain sequence of jumps, and sometimes the ability to choose a route is given to the horseman. There are competitions, where they overcome only a part of obstacles (at the discretion of the horseman), relay races with participation of two sportsmen, and many more.
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