Time Off = Improvement ?!?

[pintopiaffe]

As most of you know, I've been riding VERY sporadically the past month or so. (Six weeks?)  Twice or three times a week some weeks, not at all some others.  Combination of training for my new job (meaning no days off--and working DAYS at that) and absolute concrete hard footing because of the drought.

When I *have* ridden, however, most things have been TREMENDOUSLY improved.

Suddenly we have HI to the right.  At trot even.  HP both directions, and starting it at trot.  A soft, supple horse using his back well.

Now, he's working in a pelham at the moment, mostly.  He is *not* so great in the snaffle.  And transitioning back to the snaffle seems to be problematic to me right now.  The pelham has him relaxing his jaw and just being soooo much more supple, even when I've tied up the bottom rein entirely.

Obviously he's lost some condition as well.  

The big thing running through my mind, is that if time OFF improves him, there must be some soreness??  His back always feels great.  His legs can be iffy because of the persistant dew poisoning (mud fever, scratches, whatever) He got better after a course of antibiotics, then it came back.   He's been off his joint supp because of finances and lack of work.  

Or do you just think we both needed a break?   I realized fairly early on we were not going to make my goal of 2nd level by this fall.  But perhaps I was still schooling a bit to intensely? Or expecting too much?  I don't know.

Thought I'd throw it out there for ideas.  

[Funky MeerKAT]

When I *have* ridden, however, most things have been TREMENDOUSLY improved.  

Or do you just think we both needed a break?   I realized fairly early on we were not going to make my goal of 2nd level by this fall.  But perhaps I was still schooling a bit to intensely? Or expecting too much?  I don't know.

Thought I'd throw it out there for ideas.

Maybe it is the fact that you had such a set goal that you wanted to get to, this is a great article on goals, from the Zen point of veiw, just another way of looking at things.

"We fall too easily into dualistic thinking. If we're not good enough, then we're bad. Now or never. Correct or incorrect. If 3' 6" is the goal, then only 3' is failure. If you focus on what you want your horse to be in the future, you are not looking at the horse you have today. You may start focusing on negatives- not collected enough, not forward enough, not round enough. He's not good enough. I'm not good enough. We're not ready yet. We're not going to make it. Then you forget to praise the small achievements , because they are not good enough. You start drilling, pushing harder. You're not having fun anymore. Neither is your horse. He gets worse instead of better, starts getting gate sour, or tossing his head, or getting hard to catch. Will this help you reach your goal?"
http://www.classicaldressage.co.uk/ZenDres..._to_attain.html

It strikes me that this is perhaphs this is the hole you fell in, you were so focused on your goal that you weren't riding the horse you had 'now'. But now that you have thrown your goal away and are just taking each ride as it comes everything is falling into place. So maybe it is not the lack of work, but rather the frame of mind you are in.

[shoveltrash]

what a WONDERFUL post FMK!!!!

my gut instinct tells me she's right Pintopiaffe.....it could very well be a 'mental' thing.  for your horse as well.  

i too have 'laid off' for several weeks now - due mostly to a recent horrific heat wave (100F & 100% humidity!).  funny, because my horse(s) are going much better now - even the 'barefoot transitioning' horse is improved, doing his arena work sans hoof boots for the first time ever, moving nicely and offering the lateral work with only light aids (i struggle with 'working too hard').

it's a fine line....having goals & working rigorously to attain them, vs. recognizing the 'small victories' & celebrating them without so much work.
at least, for ME it is.

the hardest thing is balancing physical conditioning, and the mental part of training.  because i have found that my App gelding sours with too much work.....and flowers with very little!  weird.

sorry, i'm not much help!  (being in the same boat, per se) :lol:
Trish



 

[Funky MeerKAT]

Just to clarify, that is a quote from the website in my post above, I did not write it lol. (don't want to be stealing someone elses work).

[pintopiaffe]

I've definitely thought of that... obviously when you haven't been on for a week, you are expecting very little out of the ride.  

I also have *only* dressage schooled... as I'm NOT schooling daily,  I haven't worried about cross training.

But--where is the line then?  These shorter, lighter workouts, less frequently... You can't progress with that, and build the deep muscle necessary for the upper level work??  Where's the balance?

Wonderful quote there FMK.  B)   Interesting Trish you're seeing the same results at the moment.

I will say too that I was back to the Osteo and my hips were fixed... that could have a LOT to do with the lateral work coming together.  

[ginger]

Perhaps what has happened is that you have accidentally hit on to the right training schedule for your horse? Horses don't forget what they have learnt and if anything the time off may be enabling your horse to absorb what you have trained him to do at a deeper level and he more able to offer what you ask of him.

[Funky MeerKAT]

Perhaps what has happened is that you have accidentally hit on to the right training schedule for your horse? Horses don't forget what they have learnt and if anything the time off may be enabling your horse to absorb what you have trained him to do at a deeper level and he more able to offer what you ask of him.

You maybe right here, perhaps this is the amount of schooling that your horse needs and you could be taking him for hacks out etc for the rest of his work. Doing laps and hill work is a great way to build up fittness and muscle, which will built him up for dressage without drilling him.

[lunaeventer]

Just to add a light note of self mockery:

Have found this phenomenon myself - a break from an activity (not just riding) "makes" me better..........

have wonderd before if I should give up completely in order to become a brilliantly talented expert!!!!! :lol:  :lol:

Found the Zen quote very interesting - going to read full thing now.

[ginger]

Just to add a light note of self mockery:

Have found this phenomenon myself - a break from an activity (not just riding) "makes" me better..........

have wonderd before if I should give up completely in order to become a brilliantly talented expert!!!!! :lol:  :lol:

:lol: I've oftened wondered the same thing myself, with all the time I've had off over winter I should be able to take out the competition this summer

[Cloud_cirrus]

Someone (pretty sure it was Liz Morrison) told me once about a guy who was taken hostage for several years, whilst in captivity he spent all his time thinking about golf, when he was finally released his handicap had actually gone down, by about 5 I think.

I've also been taking swimming lessons, between my first and second lesson I injured my arm and was unable to practice, I spent the time thinking about the rythym of my breathing and the stroke I needed to produce and when I got back in the pool suddenly it was all there and the instructor thought I'd been practising like mad.

What I'm trying to say is don't under estimate the power that 'mental' learning can have both for you and your horse.

And give yourself a break sometime, you lead a hugely busy life, one I certainly couldn't cope with.

Tracey

[thecatsmother]

What I'm trying to say is don't under estimate the power that 'mental' learning can have both for you and your horse

Very true! Exercising the neural pathways "virtually" i.e. thinking about an activity, is of course not as effective as actually doing it, but it is proven to be significantly better than doing nothing.

There have been experiments done where a group of people were tested on their ability to shoot basketballs through a basket. Then for a month, the group was split into 3 smaller groups. One group spent an hour a day actually practising shooting baskets. One group spent an hour a day imagining/visualising shooting baskets, and one group thought nothing more about the matter.

After the month, the whole group was tested again. Of course the group that had practiced daily had improved most. But the group that had thought about it had also improved by a significant amount. The group who hadn't given it another thought, had no improvement.

In another experiment, people's quadriceps muscle strength was measured, then they spent a month regularly doing weighted leg extension exercises (i.e. to strengthen the quads) with one leg only. At the end of the month, the quadricep of the leg which had been doing the exercise was of course a lot stronger. But the other leg's quads strength had also improved, even though it had been doing no specific exercise.  It seems that training the neural pathways and resultant triggering of the growth of muscles for one side also results on the sending of a signal to the other side, meaning that the other muscles also grow, without receiving the training.

Perhaps Mac has been spending several weeks visualising his schooling, PP?  :lol:  

 

[karen thompson]

After sorrell had his accident I though I would never be able to ride him again, but thank the stars we got there and he is working beautifully again.

He is a bit like this though and he comes back fresher if he has some time off, - It's been unaviodable things this year like shoes falling off, the hot weather or just really busy with other things and he seems to have a better attitude to his schooling work and things from our Peter lessons have started to gel. I do vary stuff during the week though and don't school all week, going out for a hack is good for both of us. we can still try our leg yeilding and things on the bridle way, and concentrate of the regularity of paces etc. So I think the saying is right 'A break is as good as a rest' !!!!

Karen

[Marengo]

thecatsmother is right. There is a well known phenomenon within psychology called the "Latent Learning Effect". Learning continues when you're not actively engaging in an activity because your brain and neural circuitry is being given time to build and consolidate new structure so strengthening the learning right at its basic neural level. It's a bit like allowing the builders to finish off the old job before setting them off on a new one. It's also one of the reasons why "approach and retreat" works as a learning strategy - for horses and humans.