#1 Moving too fast back into work

• Circles, especially at faster gaits like trot and canter cause more strain on the tendons, ligaments and muscles. It is not the best option coming back into work OR for horses with joint problems.

• Instead do straight lines at a working walk that is creating a flow through the body loosening an warming up the muscles & tendons.

#2 Not having a systematic plan written on a calendar, no tracking system

A better way to bring a horse back that doesn’t have a high risk of set backs is to first understand the tissues in the body, the fascia, muscles, tendons, ligaments and the nervous system all have underwent a period of trauma and healing. This creates scar tissue, lack of flexibility altered biomechanics due to guarding the injury as well as a nervous system response that all effect the mobility and strength of the body as a whole. Understanding that patience and consistency with slow well thought out and tracked progress is key to bringing your horse back to work with the best outcome and little to no set backs. It is reasonable to expect some bumps in the road if your horse has been on lay up for some time but you can minimize the possibility by being mindful on the road to getting back to where things were or even better.

• Get a calendar of your weeks training schedule written up. This ensures you can track the days.

• Track the duration of your horses workouts. Set actual timers for each workout your horse does. This ensures your are not doing anything too long. It’s easy to lose track of time but having a stop watch not only ensures you stay within the time your horse gets the best movement out of the exercise and doesn’t overwork risking the possibility of inflammation or muscle soreness. In the beginning you want to keep all the fascia and muscles happy. Slow is key!

#3 Not incorporating bodywork & stretching

• There are simple massage techniques anyone can do that can help you identify changes in your horses muscles and help them relieve tension. A very important part of post training recovery.

• There are great exercises that can be done right in the crossties that target & strengthen postural muscles as well as stretches to help bringing back mobility and balance to your horses body.