So, are you still on track? As I write this we’re officially one month into the new year, the new decade, and I am wondering if you are still on track with any goals you set for yourself four or five weeks ago. If you are, give yourself a pat on the back! I’m impressed.
However, if you’re not, don’t panic. Firstly you’re not alone and secondly, my goal is to inspire you to take some action in the coming 48 hours that will get you moving where your riding journey is concerned.
In my experience, so many people get caught up in all the energy surrounding the new year. They plan and create goals. They choose new habits they want to form and get specific on the ones they want to change or let go of.
But, after all the planning is done and dusted; and when time marches on – as time will always do – they find themselves with lots of plans, but nothing to show for it. They fail to take action.
5 Actions to Your Better Version
In episode 1129 of the Daily Strides Podcast, I explained how you can choose 5 actions that will help you show up as ‘Your Better Version’ where your horse and riding are concerned. If you have not already listened to, and then took appropriate action, I suggest you begin there today.
Once you have your 5 actions, you can then begin looking at what you are doing now in order to really make this goal or ‘better version’ a reality. It probably won’t happen overnight. However, the only way that you can hope to one day seeing this ‘version’ of you in the saddle is by getting started.
Be Willing to ‘Tweak’
So why are you failing to take action on the things that you identified as being important for you and your riding? One of the reasons I see many riders struggle with this is because they failed to set the right goals, to begin with. If this is you, you need to rein things in a little bit. That’s not to say you need to scrap all your plans and goals, but rather that you may need to tweak them slightly.
Try to make it more realistic for your current situation. This is probably going to look a lot different to what you would LIKE your current situation to be!
An important question to ask yourself is; “After all the hype of the holidays if I’m being honest with myself, do I REALLY want those things?”. Maybe you really wanted them a few years or months ago. But now, if you’re honest with yourself, circumstances might have changed or you’ve changed. This usually results in what you really want to make happen to change as well.
So check in with yourself and think about if that is indeed what you still want.
Creating Fun Actions
From there, I suggest making things a little more fun and exciting in your riding than what they are currently. Because if things were really fun and exciting, you would be getting those 5 things done wouldn’t you?
So how could you add a bit more fun and excitement to your riding?
Exciting can mean different things for different people. I want you to think about what’s exciting for YOU. For you, this could be trotting without stirrups. Or Cantering across an open field. It doesn’t matter if your ‘fun’ thing is not that exciting for another rider. I want you to focus on what you enjoy. On what’s exciting for you!
My idea of ‘fun’ has changed a lot throughout the years, but when I’m thinking about what I find fun, I think about what I’d most like to do with my horse if there were no restrictions.
And then I try to incorporate this activity into my day-to-day at the barn. For me (now go ahead and have a little giggle to yourself), I find detangling tails to be so much fun at the moment. I’m not quite sure why, but I find it so satisfying. I’m beginning to think that it could be because life has been a little ‘frazzled’ the past few years with bringing 2 new people into the world and moving continents, twice!
Another thing that I really enjoy is lunging, I love it! I love the connection with the horse and seeing how far you can take it with your more subtle aids. That’s my fun. For you it could be jumping, perhaps ground poles? What is fun for YOU?
Being Mindful of Your Day to Day Experience
I think that this one ’tweak’ has the potential to change a lot for you and your horse. Being mindful means that you are focused on what you are doing, and making adjustments so that you are really enjoying the experience. Every minute of that experience… I know, pressure right?!
Let me clarify a little. What I really mean when I say ‘mindful’ is that you’re not thinking about the house that’s a mess, a project at work, the children’s vaccines, or any of the other one thousand and ten things that are inevitably going on right now in your life.
When you’re with your horse, you should be thinking about your horse
At the time of writing this post, I am also busy creating content for our Groundwork for Riding Program. A big part of the program is mindfulness. Just 10 minutes of being really focused, present and mindful about the little things that we tend to take for granted. In this case, how we are communicating with our horse. If done right, and when you really get into the nitty-gritty, 10 minutes can actually feel quite long!
Stay Inspired
I strongly suggest for you to keep circling back to ‘Fun and Excitement’ when it comes to your horse. Couple this with simply enjoying your time with your horse. By going back to basics and simply enjoying the whole conversation with your horse and how that feels, you are opening the door for so much more inspiration.
This is really an investment of your time, and certainly not a waste of it. Spending time being present with your horse (even if it’s only 10 minutes!) and making time to do the things you really enjoy, will pay off in the future. It will spark ideas and help you understand what you really enjoy and what you really want in terms of your riding. And that can be great!
Also, keep in mind that you can always change paths if you want to, in order to better align with the rider you are right now. Pay attention to what you enjoy and what inspires you to take action, and then simply make a point of doing more of it in your day to day riding.
Finally, Simply Go & Take Some Action!
So, if you have been feeling like the handbrake was never really released for you in your riding, I am going to challenge you today. I want you to make a commitment to yourself to get into the saddle within the next 48 hours.
Remember, once you take action, momentum begins to build and it becomes a lot easier to keep moving forward. My suggestion for getting you out of this stationary state, and into action is to simply do something.
Even if this ’something’ is not truly aligned with the goals and plans that you have made, do it anyway. This is simply to get into the saddle! From there, look for what you enjoy and let that lead you to create goals, and from those plans, that will have you keen to take the next step.
So I’m going to challenge you to commit to yourself to get into the saddle within the next 48 hours. 2 days, can you do it?! Let me know inside of my free group HERE
Happy Riding,
Lorna
