So… you’re stuck at home. 

Maybe you’re lucky and you have your horse in your backyard. Fantastic; lucky you! Maybe you’re not so lucky and your barn has shut down to all but essential personnel. Maybe you don’t own a horse, but lease a horse or ride lesson horses and again can’t because your lesson program is closed to again, all but essential personnel.

From someone who IS essential personnel at a barn similar to which you board at- thank you for staying home and letting us there stay safe. Trust me. It's way harder to disinfect a barn than you’d think- buckets, brushes, doors, gates, chains, feed scoops, feed buckets, tractors, trucks…. Not to mention halters, lead ropes, blankets…. Anyways, I digress. 

Regardless of your situation… This post is for you.

If you’re anything like I am and while safely ensconced at your abode without your horse, all you can think of is your horse. And how nice the weather is.. And how you should be riding your horse in this weather getting ready for the show season… And thus, you’re boring your family, children, and/or significant other silly with even more talk about horses than they usually have to deal with. Trust me, ask my poor partner and I GET to go see the horses daily. 

So to help you out in this time of equine withdrawal, I started to brainstorm ways for us to get our equine fix and to maybe practice some good self-care during this time period.

Binge watch horse movies and TV Series. 

Hello all 13 seasons of Heartland! Trust me, the drama that happens on Heartland will make staying home and in quarantine away from your horse seem not only realistic, but doable. Binge watch this with some friends via Facebook, or Facetime or message each other about the ridiculousness of it and it will make for a very entertaining evening with your beverage of choice.

There’s also a list on The Chronicle of the Horse that’s pretty exhaustive- Check it out: https://www.chronofhorse.com/article/from-sylvester-to-the-black-stallion-our-favorite-horse-films-for-self-quarantine 

Workouts! 

This time away from your horse and your usual work routine can be a GREAT opportunity to start those workouts you’ve been wanting to. Getting fitter and stronger is a great thing for both you and your equine partner. It helps them out when we can basically hold and carry our own weight, and gives them a chance to be the best athlete they can, which in the end allows them to do a better job of keeping us safe up there on their backs. 

I’ve spent a lot of time working with Coach Daniel Stewart and helping to coach mental health and sports psychology at his equestrian camps at the Olympic Training center focuses on developing ourselves as better athletes and partners for our 4 legged counterparts. 

Daniel Stewart has a fantastic book- Fit and Focused in 52 which has  week by week exercises to help riders get into shape. He also offers Bootcamp workouts to help get your heart rate up! 

Check out his website to sign up for weekly workouts and other inspirations at: https://pressureproofacademy.com  

There’s also some pretty amazing online yoga studios. My personal favorite is YogaGlo. They have a bunch of classes you can pick and choose from, whether it’s a teacher you like, a style you like, or something specific that you are looking for. Yoga helps us stretch and can help get our core stronger, which as we all know is important for riding. 

Develop a training schedule for your horse

Coming up with a training schedule for your horse can be challenging! Especially when you’re also juggling work and life. However, now that we’re all working from home, trying to plan out a schedule of work for your horse can give you some structure for your days. Having a plan can be super helpful for staying motivated and upbeat about your goals for both yourself and your horse. Stumped? Or Struggling to come up with a schedule? Reach out to your trainer about this. One of the things that we’re offering online these days is customized programs and schedules for clients and their horses. Interested in this? Feel free to reach out! Disclaimer- having something like a training schedule is a great template, but also be aware that it can sometimes drastically change depending on your horse, weather and the way life ends up working.  

Plan out your season

Along with coming up with a schedule for training for your horse, looking ahead and planning your competition season can be beneficial. It gives you something to work towards and plan backwards from for your training schedule. Again, if feeling overwhelmed or not sure where to start, talk to friends and your trainer. Planning your season doesn't have to be overwhelming or anything huge. It can be something as simple as attending a single schooling show, attending a clinic, or simply enjoying your horse out on the trails as much as possible. The key thing to do is to be excited about the goals you have for you and your horse together.

Talk to a trainer

In this day and age with being quarantined, we are not able to access lessons the same way we all used to be. Working with a trainer during this time can be hugely beneficial. One thing we are offering is for clients to lesson by video. Find people you're interested in lessoning with, or interested in learning from and see if they’ll do virtual lessons. Send out videos; We’re offering this as a way to help people continue their education while also staying safe. You’ll never know what you can take away from their suggestions for you and your horse.  

Design your own dream horse

Remember being young and dreaming about the horse you would have when you grew up? All the things you wanted or hoped for? Well, this is a fun time to browse fancy expensive horses and to compile your dream list of qualities and characteristics of that perfect unicorn. I find that doing this can help me keep in mind my non negotiables for what I look for in future equine partners. Plus, it gives me an excuse to online horse shop. I highly recommend checking out the horses listed on www.Equivont.com or www.Sporthorsenation.com to pursue some of the AMAZING horses listed for sale.

Design your own dream barn

Ok, this goes along with dreaming about your unicorn above. Maybe you’re lucky and you have the barn you always wanted. Or, if you’re like me, it’s a nice distraction from the real world to lose myself in the black hole that Pintrist can be browsing images for what my dream barn would be if I could design it. Again, remember how you used to do this as a kid? And the Joy it brought you? Try it again and see if it gives you a much needed pause from the depressing reality of the news these days. 

Read education horse books

I am a self-proclaimed bibliophile. I adore books. I love to read. And during this time. You can totally bet that I am taking the time to reread a lot of my horse training books. With all this downtime, it can be great to read a chapter here and there from some of the great trainers. Jim Wofford, William Steinkraus, Sally O’Connor, Denny Emerson. They all have books out there that can be super helpful when trying to come up with new ideas for yourself and your horse. Don’t have access to a horse? They have great nuggets of information in them that will make you pause and think and be able to remember when you are back in the saddle again. Stuck on ideas? Reach out to me, my list is far to exhaustive to post here.  Not a big reader? That's ok; see below.

Podcasts

If reading isn’t quite your cup of tea, check out some equine related podcasts. My personal favorites are the USEA’s channel and EquiRatings. I love listening to Jim Wofford talk about the history (and subsequently the future of) Eventing. Because I’m also a huge Harry Potter fan, I also listen to Swish and Flick quite a bit-in case you're getting tired of just horse-related things. 

Member of USEF? 

The USEF has a whole learning center with videos ranging from discipline-specific, to vet care, to pasture care, to breeds. Free with your membership!

Follow horse people on instagram

There’s A LOT of us out there! You can start to build an online community of other horse crazy people who are going crazy away from the barn! Follow them, like their posts, comment on them; You'll stop feeling so alone and isolated if you can find other people who have similar interests to you and you can share your experiences with them. Plus engaging with posts will also show support for them in this crazy time. 

As a therapist, I talk a lot about “self-care” with people. Disclaimer, I really dislike the phrase “self-care” since it's become a buzz word about spa days, massages, and buying things. But the concept behind, what are you doing to take care of yourself each day is important at this time. Some of these things above are silly. But we all need a bit of levity to bring joy to our days. Your mental health is important. It's also important to have some compassion for yourself right now. Things are scary in the world, and while needing to stay informed and aware, you can take a break from the uncertainty and give your brain a break. Anxiety, stress, and living in uncertain times are all things that our reptilian brain processes as immediate threats to life and cause our fight/flight responses to kick in. Our cortisol levels start to immediately rise, (Stress hormone) which makes us even more likely to be anxious, not sleep, on edge, unproductive, fatigued, and more susceptible to illness due to compromised immune systems. If you’re also like me, the barn is usually my happy place where I go to feel better and to cope. 

There is actually a lot of scientific evidence on why this is the case.. I won’t go into that here, but check back for THAT post…  These things listed above, while some can be seen as silly, give us the ability and time to take a “pause” in this feedback loop and allow us a reset for a moment (instead of going to the barn). 

Here are some other things you can do to help your mental health that are maybe not specifically related to getting your equine fix, but will also increase your levels of serotonin, dopamine, and oxytocin (those feel good neurotransmitters and hormones you get from being at the barn)

1. Plant a garden. Whether flowers or vegetables, getting your hands in dirt and outside in the comfort of your own backyard will boost your immune system, as well as release those feel good hormones. Getting outside in the sun will also get you some much needed Vitamin D! If you don’t have space to plant a garden, use containers for your porch or patio. Depending where you are and the weather in your area, you can start seeds outside or even put some pretty flowers in the ground/containers. Trust me having something pretty to brighten up your day and be outside a bit will help with the feelings of confinement. 

2. Go for a run or a long walk per your area’s recommended guidelines. Yes, this goes along with getting in better shape for your horse and helping you become a better equine partner and athlete for your horse

3. Drink good coffee. Or tea. Your preference. Life is too short to drink bad coffee (or tea). Even having some nice small morning ritual can set you up for a better mental health day. You might be more productive, or just have a more positive outlook on it. Try to start your morning off drinking coffee, while doing something that feels nourishing; reading a book, looking outside at your pretty plants, scrolling through instagram, or simply just sitting and ENJOYING your coffee fully.

4. Talk to your loved ones. Just some FaceTime interaction can help; call up that friend that can make you laugh. Laughter is the best medicine right now.

5. Reach out to a mental health professional. Again, mental health matters. This is a great time to reach out and find a support network that is outside your immediate circle who can hold space and support you through this time. Psychology Today can be a great resource to see who is available in your area, or ask friends or your doctor for a good referral.  Right now, mental health professionals are all available via telehealth. 

At the end of the day, remember that these restrictions are about keeping not only yourself safe, but your whole community and those that your life just peripherally touches safe. Being away from our horses and our barn community is really challenging for everyone. Be assured, your barn staff and your people miss you. But staying away from the barn will actually be helpful and doing your part to help flatten the curve. 

Wash your hands and stay safe out there!