Abs of Steel

If you give a pony a cookie...

Yesterday Dino and I took a break from ring work and headed out to the field. It was really nice to get a mental break and just go forward; both of us found it very refreshing.

We ended up cantering around the field 7 times, which includes going both up and downhill as the whole thing is set on a slope. It was a lot of cantering. And hilling. Major workout for both of us!

As I get more confident with cantering downhill, I've really been working on figuring out the best way to balance both Dino and myself. Yesterday we both absolutely nailed it. I was able to go from a half-seat to a soft, following full seat, and use my core to help Dino bring his shoulders up and tuck his hind legs under so that we cantered down the hill in a balanced, compact manner. I could imagine being able to successfully jump a fence from the canter we had going, and when we reached the flat part of the field, I got back up in half seat and let Dino just roll on forward. It was a great feeling knowing that I had the ability to adjust Dino's pace and balance depending on the terrain.

But my abs. Oh my abs. By the end of the ride my entire core felt like jello and I was breathing like I just ran five miles.

Funny how these "fitness rides" that I intend to build fitness in my pony also reveal my own unfitness...