Strides for Success

Tag: taking action

  • The Right Type of Consistency in Your Riding & Training

    The Right Type of Consistency in Your Riding & Training

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    What would happen if you went ‘all in’ on one specific area of training or developing with your horse for the next 90 or so days?  If you laser focus every interaction to support and strengthen the thing you want to improve or make happen? As I’m writing this, there are about 90 days left in the year, which ties in nicely with goals, etc.

    However, whenever you’re reading or listening to this, I want to encourage you today to begin your own 90-day journey with your horse… Starting today.

    Two things are absolutely essential for successfully training and developing horses and riders; time and consistency. 

    90 days is the timeframe for this particular focus or intention. Consistency is how you show up and the actions you take, over and over again. And if consistency is a challenge for you, remember that you are almost certain to be consistent with things. It’s just the wrong things or actions that you’re being consistent with!

    But You Struggle to be Consistent!

    Is this something you believe about yourself? I did too, however, I was wrong. Let me explain… Lately, I’ve noticed that I have been telling myself more and more that what I am lacking is consistency and discipline in my daily routines and life. ‘But I’m just not the type of person who enjoys consistency’ is something I regularly hear coming out of my own mouth during conversations! And I honestly believed this. For YEARS! Until I began to tear it apart… Was this true?

    What I discovered is that I actually am fairly consistent. I do tend to do the same things and think the same thoughts.  My challenge is not consistency – my challenge is being consistent with the ‘right’ things. 

    And I’m wondering if you’re a little the same? When I looked back over the past 3 or so months, I can definitely see there has been a lot of consistency in my actions, words, and thoughts. It’s just that most of those things do not, in any shape, way or form, help me to get closer to what I actually want. Now, obviously, this is not the easiest thing to admit publically.

    But I feel that just realizing this about myself now gives me the power to change it. And I’m hoping that it will help you too…

    Is it the Right Action?

    Once this new truth dawned on me, I began to get really clear about what I wanted. To be honest, my vision had not changed much. It was just my actions to get there that had. So, I began thinking about what I could ‘swap out’ regarding my actions, words, and thoughts that would get me there faster. Staying in bed until the very last minute each morning was one of them (I think I may have gotten consistent with this one while we were at home in Ireland recently!).

    If I really want to start my day off in a way that would set me up for a great day – right now, that will involve getting out of bed BEFORE everyone else. And being consistent about it. 

    When I think of my horses, if I really want to make riding on the beach once a week with my horse a reality, I am going to have to take action to bring the horses to THIS farm. Not driving 45 minutes to go to them at the other farm. And if I want to work on my mare’s learned habit (she was used in the riding school for the year I was in Ireland) of rushing at poles and fences, I am going to have to clean up the arena here and start retraining.

    I can bet that you already know exactly what you need to swap when it comes to what you’re being consistent with and how it’s impacting your riding and training with your horse… 

    Be Consistent This Week

    So once you are clear on what you want and you have begun to notice your current consistent actions; change them. I want you to focus on something you can change THIS WEEK that will start you off in the right direction. Maybe it’s booking a lesson with a trainer so that you have to turn up and ride. Or it could be organizing a babysitter so that you can spend an extra hour with your horse without feeling rushed. It could be focusing on your straightness, posture, and position in the arena, instead of hammering on your horse all of the time…

    The key here is to identify something you’re doing consistently that is not serving you and then intentionally change it to something more aligned with what you actually want as a rider. 

    And the magic is that once you notice the first thing, thought, or action that needs to change, others will begin to show up! Trust me, transforming your riding and your horse’s training comes down to doing a few basic things well and consistently.  You just need to figure out what has to be tweaked for both of you to get going on your journey.

    Prove Your Consistency

    I’m hoping that you’re on board with giving this a go in your riding. If so, I suggest writing all of this down in your riding journal. Write what you previously had been doing and what you’re planning on swapping that out for. Then use your riding journal to track yourself.

    Begin proving to yourself that you’re not only consistent, but you’re consistent in the ‘right’ things. The actions, thoughts, and words that move you and your horse where you want to go in your training together. 

    Think along the lines of “Previously had been spending 60+ minutes grooming and tacking up with only 10 minutes riding. Will work on being groomed and tacked up in 40 minutes so I have 30 minutes of riding. (I know lots of riders who are guilty of this one, hence me including it here!). 

    When you begin to see an actual written ‘log’ of you doing the right thing, it begins to develop your discipline in doing it more often. You’ll begin to see yourself as a consistent rider. And, hopefully, because these actions are aligned with your goals, the results will speak for themselves.

    Use Personal Voice Notes

    My final bit of advice when it comes to knocking it out of the park with a single goal for the coming 90 days or 12 weeks is to support yourself! I use voice notes for this purpose, so I’m encouraging you to do the same. I have begun using them again for a whole host of different things. Especially things that there is a good chance I’ll either become distracted, get sidetracked, or feel too tired to actually get around to doing.

    If you struggle with consistency in your riding or training, use voice notes! Simply record a voice note that lays out, step by step, what you want to accomplish with your horse for that session. 

    Do it BEFORE you work with your horse and go into as much detail as you can.  What’s amazing about this is that, as you are then later working with your horse, you’ve created the ‘map’ of that session already. Meaning that as soon as you begin to go ‘off track’, you’ll notice. And can then take consistent actions to bring everything back to where you want it.

    Your personal voice notes to yourself will help to train you to become more consistent with your riding and your work with your horse… And they are 100% private. Delete them after if you want :) 

    90 Days From Now…

    So, are you willing to go all in with one thing for your riding during the coming 90 days? Remember successful training requires time and consistency. Use the 90 days and find the few actions, thoughts, and words that you can use consistently to transform you and your horse.

    And if you would like more help with this, make sure you join Daily Strides Premium. It could just be the best $22 you spend on you and your horse ;)

    Happy Riding
    Lorna

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  • How to Become a Better Rider in 90 Days

    How to Become a Better Rider in 90 Days

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    It’s probably safe to assume that you want to improve as a rider, right? That, if becoming a better rider in 90 days was guaranteed, you’d probably follow the plan and do the work?  Well, the good news is that, regardless of where you are in your riding right now, you can indeed improve over the coming 90 days (or 3 months).  However, it will involve a little planning, preparation, and commitment in order to make it all happen.

    Using the previous 90 days in your riding to create a plan to improve over the coming 90 days is a fantastic way to continue to make progress as a rider.

    However, it will require a little work upfront in both reviewing and planning.  Looking back at what happened and then using that information to make better decisions and take better actions going forward is where it all begins.  So that being said… Let’s dive into your past 90 days and see what you can learn that will kickstart the coming 90 and help you become a better rider.

    Reviewing Your Previous 90 Days

    How deep you go here is entirely up to yourself.  Many riders simply state the facts.  I am a big fan of doing this, initially.  And initially is a keyword in that sentence. Having numbers is a great place to start, however, if you want to really power into the coming 90 days in your riding, I feel it’s important to go deeper.

    Why are those the numbers you have in front of you? What circumstances, situations, and happenings led to them being there? And, most importantly, are you happy with them?

    Now, you’re probably thinking ‘what numbers?’.  Good question, let’s begin there.

        • How many days did you ride?
        • What was the average length of each ride?
        • How long did you, on average, spend tacking up and cooling down?
        • And, from that, how long on average did you spend actually working your horse?
        • How many of those interactions or sessions were intentional with a specific focus or plan?
        • And, how many were groundwork related (groundwork, lunging, long lining)
        • How many were just riding-related?
        • What was the number you actually wanted to reach regarding days working with your horse?

    Okay, once you’ve got all of your ‘numbers’, let’s go a little deeper into how you feel about all these numbers.

    What You Wanted Versus What You Got

    We all have an idea of what we want the outcome to be when starting something.  Otherwise, why bother starting? The challenge for many riders is that, over time, that ‘ideal desired outcome’ becomes lost in what their day-to-day reality looks like. And without that vision or goal to work towards, the day-to-day becomes a monotonous, never-ending cycle of just ‘riding’.

    It is so important to keep working towards something in your riding. It will help you to regain inspiration when things feel tough – and help keep the relationship between you and your horse developing and deepening. 

        • So, with all that being said and done; what was your ideal outcome for the previous 90 days?
        • Was that outcome in alignment with where you are in your life right now (was it doable)?
        • What parts of it, looking back, were clearly make-believe?
        • And, what parts of it were possible for you to make happen from your current situation?
        • What needs to be changed/dropped/postponed?
        • And, from what’s left, is that what you truly want in your riding?

    It can be hard to let go of dreams and ambitions.  Yet, if your current life and situation have clearly shown you that those things are not realistic right now, surely making a change would allow you to feel less tension and frustration?

    What ideal goal or desire could you work towards in the coming 90 days that’s both in alignment with your current situation and inspires you? That is probably something to begin working towards… 

    Creating a Plan for the Coming 90 Days

    Once you have your ideal desired outcome or goal, I feel that the best place to start is by working backward from it. Imagine it is 90 days from now (roughly 3 months from today’s date).  Imagine you are at the barn or yard, with your horse, and you have achieved the goal or outcome.

    Ask yourself, what did I have to do or change in order to make this possible?  Ask the question from the place of already having achieved the outcome (looking back) rather than from where you are now – looking forwards. 

    By asking this question from the place of already having achieved what it is you want, the differences become a lot more clear.  These differences are the obstacles you need to overcome to get from ‘here to there’.

    Be Realistic About Your Riding Skills

    Many riders, at this point, will begin to feel uncomfortable.  All of the differences can seem overwhelming.  And, maybe, this is the time to either make a longer timeline for your goal or to adjust the goal slightly to better suit where you are riding now in your life. However, having come this far, don’t give up!

    Remember that each of the things you need to change/remove/upgrade is now the actual focus points for your work with your horse going forward. 

    Meaning that, by putting these things into order of what needs to happen first, second, third, and so on, you have created the actual roadmap to get you to where you want to go in your riding. You can clearly see what needs to be worked on when you are planning out the days, hours, minutes of training, and interactions together.

    So assuming you were realistic about your current situation, your skills and resources, and the divide between where you are and where you want to be; congratulations – you’ve just figured out your plan going forward :)

    Deciding on a Timeline that Works for You

    From here, simply begin filling in your calendar.  What days can you ride this month? And, on each of those days, what will you commit to working on with your horse?  When you know what you are working on, you will know what you need to do in advance.  For some riders, this may look like learning a little more or improving their knowledge of the subject.  For others, it may be setting up exercises, riding spaces, or sourcing equipment.

    I am a great believer in building ‘wiggle room’ into your plan.  Suppleness is a real thing when it comes to working with horses – both in planning and in riding!

    Remember to build fun, partnership, and training into each week.  The ratios will vary depending on your goal or desired outcome and the season in your riding.  But all three are important to build into and touch on when it comes to really round out and deepening your relationship with your horse.  (You can find links to all of these below).

    From here, simply follow your plan!  If you are diligent and committed, you will see results in 90 days.  How exciting!

    Happy Riding
    Lorna

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  • Taking Action on What You Learn in Your Riding

    Taking Action on What You Learn in Your Riding

    Learning is great. As a rider or equestrian, there is a never-ending stream of knowledge out there just waiting for you to dive into and begin exploring. However, learning can sometimes be the very thing that holds riders back from making progress in their riding.

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    You see, learning is only really useful if you go and then implement what you learn. And it is the implementation that riders fall short. They fail to take action on what they learn. All their newly gained knowledge just remains in their heads, never to be acted upon in the arena.

    I create a lot of free training for riders to use to help them make shifts and progress in their riding. Things like the 5 Days to Clarity Mini-Course or the Equestrian Fitness Challenge. What I see, over and over, is riders watching, listening or reading the training but then failing to take the next step.

    The vitally important step of implementing what they have learned.

    It’s a bit like the story about the dog lying on the nail; the nail is uncomfortable, but not enough for the dog to actually get up and move. He will rather lie on the nail and simply complain about how uncomfortable it is to lie there!

    I also see this happening with my paid programs. People invest money and then fail to take the required action… Lunging to Riding and the Clarity & Confidence Riding Program are just two examples of this.

    The What, When, How and Why of Riding…

    When you are learning to ride, knowing the above will make your life easier. it will also, usually, make your horse’s life more pleasant as well! I am not saying not the learn the above. In fact, I believe that all of the above are vitally important, especially the ‘Why’ behind whatever it is you are learning to do.

    Time and again, I see riders know what, when and how, but they completely miss the bit about the why. The ‘why’ is what allows you to take your knowledge and apply it to different situations.

    For example, knowing what, when and how when it comes to a transition is useful. Knowing why will allow you to then dig a little deeper when you are riding the horse who is not responding. Knowing why allows you to take the knowledge and use it in other situations and scenarios.

    Things Usually Get Messier Before They Get Tidier…

    Think back to the last time you did a big tidy up and clean out of an area or space. Maybe it was a room or a filing cabinet. It could have been bookshelf or cupboard. Whatever it was, I can bet that things got a whole lot more chaotic and messy before they began to ‘come right’.

    Riding is no different. When we are learning new things and then taking action on those things, there will be missteps along the way. A lot of missteps!

    It is almost like having to break things down and then mindfully and carefully choosing what parts of your knowledge you are going to use to build things back up again.

    Upgrading Can Make You Feel Nervous…

    A lot of riders will turn back when things begin to ‘messy’ for them in their riding. They shy away from the uncomfortable feelings of things ‘not working’. It’s often a case of ‘leave well enough alone. And this is a huge pity as, very often, continuing on through the mess is what is needed to actually clean things up and begin seeing progress again.

    There are things you are doing right now in your riding that are no longer serving you.

    Take ‘stopping’ or ‘halting’ for example. I can bet you that the way you learned to stop the very first horse you ever rode looks very different from how you will ask your horse to stop today. Was the first ‘stopping’ wrong? No, it was what you needed to learn back then and it was the adequate back then for you and your riding. However, now, that way of stopping is not serving you and your horse on the journey forward.

    As a rider, you will regularly have to leave beliefs, habits and specific ways of doing certain things behind. Upgrading the tools you are using is essential if you’re to move forward on your riding journey.

    Mistakes are Par for the Course

    So many riders fail to take action because they are afraid of making mistakes. If this is you, I have news… Mistakes are an ESSENTIAL part of becoming a better rider. Your mistakes are how you learn.

    Look for mistakes. Play the game of figuring out what caused it and how you can ‘course correct’ the next time you try.

    If you find that the same mistake keeps showing up over and over and over again, explore the possibility that it might be a symptom of something else, rather than the issue itself. Find the real cause and you will automatically eradicate the symptom.

    The great thing about this is that usually when something is causing one symptom, there will be a few more symptoms that magically clear up when the big cause is dealt with!

    Timely Corrections are What Count

    Once you notice something is off or wrong, correct it. You know that consistency is key when it comes to riding. This is absolutely true when it comes to making corrections in your riding. You need to be willing to jump in and correct either yourself or your horse immediately.

    Keep in mind that one correction is rarely enough. Sometimes we have to repeat the correction over and over again.

    This is where it is tempting to just ‘do it myself’ and try to control everything, particularly if it is your horse that has to be corrected repeatedly. However, I am going to strongly suggest that you rather stick with the correction.

    In order for your horse to make progress, he must also learn to take responsibility for his actions. Correct then allow. Then simply repeat, correct and allow. Over and over. He will soon no longer need to be corrected and will learn to do it by himself.

    Take Action on What You Learn

    It all boils down to being willing to try out what you are learning. Testing it in real life, when you’re in the saddle with your horse. Taking action on the things you are learning. Often riders are just not willing to take action. Sometimes they genuinely can’t, but other times they simply won’t.

    If you are struggling to take action on what you are learning, begin exploring why that is…

    Are you truly learning what you need right now in your riding? Is this piece of information the logical ‘next step’ for you and your horse? Or have you jumped on a bit and now the distance between where you actually are and what you have learned is simply too great?

    When you do begin taking action, I suggest recording your results.  Write things down. This will help you to see what works and what doesn’t for you and your horse.

    Happy Riding
    Lorna

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