Ever since the pony club, we've been talking about your horse's back. But do you know why strengthening your horse's back is so important? The horse's spine can be seen as a bridge. It's an assembly of vertebrae spaced a few millimetres apart, supported by two "pillars", the forehand and the hindquarters. The main muscle of the back is the latissimus dorsi, located on either side of the vertebrae.

It is a locomotor muscle and not a carrier muscle. As the horse has no collarbone, the whole back structure is relatively weak.

Originally, horses were not designed to bear the weight of a rider on their backs. The back musculature is a fundamental zone, extremely fragile and very much in demand in sport horses. Conditioning is therefore essential if we are to preserve their health and make the most of their physical and mental potential. It's thanks to the proper functioning of the topline and its tonicity that the horse will be able to support the saddle and the rider's weight. It will also be able to propel itself with strength to walk, trot, canter, turn, jump...

When you get into the saddle, your weight acts on your horse's back and digs into it. This can cause pain in the long run. A bad position of the rider, an inappropriate saddle or a badly managed work can also increase these pains. The slightest weakness or blockage in the topline must be quickly taken into consideration by the rider. Teaching the rider to stretch the topline, use the back and contract the abdominal muscles when carrying you will improve comfort.

1. Focus on the consequences of an unsuitable saddle

The saddle distributes the rider's weight on the horse's back and absorbs shocks. Having a saddle adapted to the horse's morphology is crucial in order not to alter its locomotion and injure its top line. Imagine yourself jogging with shoes that are too small or too big. Every stride can be painful. The same goes for your horse. The same saddle is not suitable for Tornado, the big club pony with a short back and Venus, the frail Thoroughbred mare with a long, protruding back.

On the physical side, an ill-fitting saddle leads to repeated pressure points. This leads to a lack of circulation in the area concerned and atrophy of the back muscles. The consequences can also be felt in the long term in your horse's work. Reluctance to bend, to change gaits, to stand on the hand...

It should be noted that the way your horse is saddled can also affect the back muscles despite a suitable saddle. Far too many riders place their saddle either on the shoulders or on the withers, thus blocking their movement. As the back muscles are hindered by the weight of the rider, locomotion is hampered by a lack of impulse.

2. How can you strengthen your back?

During the workout, your horse's back will continually flex and its top line will change depending on the degree of gathering, curvature and height of the head carriage. The most important condition for a good functioning of the back is the freedom of the neck.

Here are some exercises to strengthen your mount's back. First of all, it is important to know that trotting is the ideal pace for this. In addition, in order to relieve the back of the latter, it is better to work at the trot removed.

➢ Neck elongation work

Stretching the neck, particularly during warm-up, is often recommended. The horse's neck should be lowered (not rounded) and the muzzle vertical, with the muzzle gradually raised to 30 cm from the ground.

This exercise stretches the top line from the tip of the nose to the tail and rounds the back. In this attitude, the horse will be able to build up muscles and release accumulated tension in the area along his spine. Stretching work can be done on a lunge or mounted, always taking care to work symmetrically.

It is good to note that when you work your horse downwards, it is not the back that you compress first but the abdominals. They are the ones that help the back to hold on and then strengthen. We talk about antagonistic muscles. As with humans, to have a good back, you need good abs.

➢ Bending work

Curving is a good way of mobilizing the back laterally. From a purely theoretical point of view, bending means bending the head-tail axis around the leg. A good bend helps to engage the inner hind leg, making the horse more muscular and supple, but only on one side. The important thing is to balance the work of both hands for harmonious muscular development. The ideal figure for working on curves is the circle. Serpents, figure eights and half-volts will also be your best allies.

➢ Work on a cavaletti device

The disposi犀利士 cavaletti are interesting for working the whole top line. They also allow you to work on your commitment to the beat. As with the other exercises, the most important thing is to work at the trot. Canter work is less profitable, but can be useful for certain jumping horses. Start with two or three cavaletti and work your way up to six. The system should be designed to limit rider intervention, leaving the horse as free as possible in its movements.

See you soon for a new article,

The Seaverteam