Project Canter 2010.
When I was in Arizona all of a sudden it occurred to me that it was February. Winter is almost done. Normally this would be cause for celebration, but winter hasn't really bothered me this year. I kind of like it.
Also, winter = training season.
Winter = The time I have to get Cho ready to show TL.
Despite the fact that between my sister and I Cho has been getting worked 5-6 days a week, the canter still sucks. I feel like it's gotten WORSE, actually. Maybe it's been a little too warm for her (in the 20s) with her big winter coat and extra layer of...padding? Cantering is hard for her to begin with, but I guess if we're going to throw that in the mix that's why it could seem worse.
Anyway, I'm panicking about the whole situation and was all of a sudden like OMG NEED TO CANTER NOW.
Does anyone have any suggestions on working on her fitness for this?
My last 2 rides have been like this:
Ride for 40-45 minutes walk/trot, working on various stuff (leg yield, shoulder-in, turn on the forehand, my position, etc). The rides went really well. Saturday we were both SPOT ON and she was awesome. Yesterday she was a little stickier for the first half of the ride, but once she loosened up she was forward and light and nice.
Anyway, after both rides I clipped the longe line on and cantered her both directions. Since she's having some balance issues and it's been hard for her, I figured that's the easiest/most successful for both of us. I'm lucky if I get a full circle riding her and that's not really going to build the muscle :P
Anyway, ended up longeing for a total of ~15 minutes each time, however A LOT of that was walking and letting her catch her breath. Yesterday I did 2-3 trot/canter/trot transitions with the cantering being 1-2 circles per time. So she's really, REALLY not cantering a lot.
Do you guys have any other suggestions? I'll probably be longeing her first from now on, just because it's more convenient.
She could stand to lose a little weight, but she's not looking too bad right now. Also, her fitness level is pretty decent if we're just doing trot work...but no matter what, she's a sweaty mess if we work on the canter.
I just want a normal horse with 3 gaits already!
Also, winter = training season.
Winter = The time I have to get Cho ready to show TL.
Despite the fact that between my sister and I Cho has been getting worked 5-6 days a week, the canter still sucks. I feel like it's gotten WORSE, actually. Maybe it's been a little too warm for her (in the 20s) with her big winter coat and extra layer of...padding? Cantering is hard for her to begin with, but I guess if we're going to throw that in the mix that's why it could seem worse.
Anyway, I'm panicking about the whole situation and was all of a sudden like OMG NEED TO CANTER NOW.
Does anyone have any suggestions on working on her fitness for this?
My last 2 rides have been like this:
Ride for 40-45 minutes walk/trot, working on various stuff (leg yield, shoulder-in, turn on the forehand, my position, etc). The rides went really well. Saturday we were both SPOT ON and she was awesome. Yesterday she was a little stickier for the first half of the ride, but once she loosened up she was forward and light and nice.
Anyway, after both rides I clipped the longe line on and cantered her both directions. Since she's having some balance issues and it's been hard for her, I figured that's the easiest/most successful for both of us. I'm lucky if I get a full circle riding her and that's not really going to build the muscle :P
Anyway, ended up longeing for a total of ~15 minutes each time, however A LOT of that was walking and letting her catch her breath. Yesterday I did 2-3 trot/canter/trot transitions with the cantering being 1-2 circles per time. So she's really, REALLY not cantering a lot.
Do you guys have any other suggestions? I'll probably be longeing her first from now on, just because it's more convenient.
She could stand to lose a little weight, but she's not looking too bad right now. Also, her fitness level is pretty decent if we're just doing trot work...but no matter what, she's a sweaty mess if we work on the canter.
I just want a normal horse with 3 gaits already!