Success In The Saddle

No, this will not be about my own riding abilities, since I haven't been on a horse at all since the 2012 Minnesota Horse Expo.

Success in the Saddle is a series of equestrian workout DVDs by Debbie Rodriguez. The back of the set of volumes 1, 2 and 3 says: "While Debbie Rodriquez is a 'S' dressage judge, eventing judge, certified personal trainer and USDF Gold Medalist, she is first and foremost a rider herself. Work with her through these no equipment, no excuse workouts and discover for yourself the value of core fitness to your own riding. This is functional fitness for riders of all disciplines!"

Each DVD has the exercises for two days on it. I had used it some time ago, but today was the first time since January that I started using it again. It was easier to get back into it than I thought it would be. There was only one exercise for which I needed to do fewer reps than were called for. There is a fourth volume, but I haven't even opened that one yet. The workouts on volume four are supposed to be more intense than the earlier DVDs. The first six workouts are challenging enough right now, so it'll take a while before I'm ready for volume four.

In each workout, Debbie tells the participants to check with their doctors before starting the workouts. She says if you feel any pain, to stop and not use the DVDs again until after you've checked with your doctor. She explains how each exercise is beneficial to riders. For example, shoulder exercises are helpful for dealing with shoulder injuries caused by landing on your shoulders when you fall off your horse. She always has two other women working out with her, one demonstrating an advanced version of the exercises and the other demonstrating an easier version of the exercises.

The DVDs are helpful and I plan to get back into the habit of using them on a daily basis. There are two changes I believe would have made the DVDs more useful.
1) Put the easiest workout as day one, not day six. The workouts should move from the easiest one on day one to the the hardest one on day six.
2) Do one demo rep of each exercise first. Sometimes it's hard to watch the DVD and do the exercise at the same time if the exercise is one I'm not familiar with. Although it wouldn't be that difficult to watch each day's workout before I do it, so that's just a matter of making an extra twenty minutes to watch it before I do it.

Besides the DVDs, I also try to do stretches recommended in Horseback Riding For Dummies. They're stretches meant to be done before riding, but I like doing them even without riding.

If - when - the opportunity becomes available to ride on a regular basis, I'll have been doing the exercises and stretches that will help make me physically ready to ride.