While the word “dressage” means
training, fitness is important and
should be incorporated in to your
horse's schedule. Many dressage
riders feel that schooling is not as
important as fitness, but competition
results at the highest levels will show
you that horses that are kept fit by
eventer like fitness programs perform their upper level movements
much better.
Here is a look at a sample dressage
fitness program, be sure to tailor your
fitness plan based on your horse's
age, breed, health, and training level.
Weeks one to three
Start off by walking your horse in
week one, building from half an hour
the first day, to up to one hour by the
end of the week, up to two hours the
following week. This is seen as critical
to the long-term health and soundness of the horse.
Even though this part may seem a
bit mundane, it is important to build
the foundation of your horse's fitness
and overall strength. Doing road
work for the first three weeks is the
best way to tighten and strengthen
tendons and ligaments while building bone density. After the second
week, trotting your horse up hills
will help build more hindquarter
strength and endurance.
is about sweat. If your horse is not
sweating a bit, he isn't doing enough
work and will not get fit.
Weeks six and seven
Now you build on canter work and
start more intensive schooling and
some jumping for cross training. The
best way, unless your horse is trained
to jump, is to use ground poles and
cross rails incorporated in to your
schooling session.
During these two weeks is a good
time to bring in counter-canter and
shoulder-in to stretch and work different muscle groups.
Depending on your horse's fitness
and training, week seven is a good
time to introduce short gallops.
These will help bring up your horse's
fitness another notch, help blow off
some steam, and open your horse's
lungs to build stamina. Many top international competitors gallop their
dressage horses regularly to help
keep them fit and strong.
Week eight and beyond
and to be in more intense schooling.
Your horse should also be fit enough
now to go to shows. For top level
competitors, the horses may need
another week or two to become fit
for the big shows.
Your horse should be able to complete: 1 hour of walk, 30 minutes
of trot, and two 10-minute canter
bursts with three minutes of walk in
between.
A note on schooling time. A lower
level horse should only need to
spend 30 minutes schooling in the
arena. Upper level horses, between
45 minutes and an hour. Other riding
time should be spent devoted to
fitness and keeping the horse's mind
fresh outside of the arena.
Fitness work, other than schooling,
should not be done in the arena.
This allows for the horse's mind to
relax and to work at faster paces than
you can in an arena. Also, during the
initial weeks of road work, riding your
horse on a harder surface will help
with lower leg strength, reducing
injuries later on in training.
At this point, your horse should be
ready to continue his fitness work
By the end of week three, your goal
should be a combined total of 1 hour
of walk and 30 minutes of trot each
day, with the trot done in intervals
with walking to allow the horse catch
his breath.
Weeks four and five
As the horse becomes more fit, it is
time to build up the periods of trot
and introduce canter and school
work.
Canter is viewed as more beneficial in
ma