I have really started digging into second level work and my pony and I are really enjoying it. I did a ride-a-test the other day and after the actual test (2-1) I was gassed. I felt completely out of breath. The judge then came down and ran through some exercises, mostly centered around the medium trot. You guys, I was dying. It feels strange to me that I am struggling so much with the cardio required for this level - I’m not overweight, I exercise every day of the week (5 days a week I peloton for 30 minutes or more), etc. It was suggested to me that perhaps I’m not breathing properly when sitting the trot. Does anyone have any tips on breathing through the sitting trot, if this is indeed an issue people can have?
I also see people get out of breath after cantering for 5 minutes. I think I was feeling it last summer when I was doing canter sets on the trail in the heat but doesn’t seem like an issue right now. I do think horse effort doesn’t translate to other kinds of sports. Cycling is great for leg endurance but nothing out there really prepared for the amount of torso work we do in riding. Maybe Pilates? Now if there was such a thing as Speed Pilates, that’s what we all really need!
If you have good aerobic fitness in general maybe that big trot is knocking the wind out of you? Do you ride the trot at the same intensity and length of time at home? Try it at home and see how that goes.
It’s also possible you were holding your breath out of anxiety at the show?
Breathing is absolutely a problem! I have exercise induced asthma, and a brilliant instructor who can see breathing issues in tension my shoulders and makes me stop to regain my breathing has helped me become more aware of my breathing.
Typically when you have breathing issues, if it’s not nerves, it is because you are working harder than necessary - and causes you to work harder than necessary. By second level sitting the collected trot should be easy so you can influence your horse in the trot work, lateral work, etc. The medium can still be harder of course, but if just sitting collected trot winds you, there are things to look at for why.
In general, breathing and body tension are connected to each other. If you are gripping with any part of your legs, hips, etc., you will have more restricted breathing. If you tend to get wobbly head, midsection, or lower legs - this is a sign you have tension somewhere else.
Unrelated, but if your ride was in hotter weather than usual, your breathing probably sped up. Add that to the general tendency to work harder in a show situation, and you notice it when you wouldn’t have normally even if you don’t have breathing problems.
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Definitely think about whether or not you are breathing correctly but also…Look into core strength. If you are not strong enough in your core it will affect your ability to sit the medium trot AND your ability to breathe correctly while riding. If you have to think in order to engage your core muscles, then they are not strong enough yet and are causing you to have to work too hard with the rest of your body to attain stability.
The last time I had to stop due to lack of air was last year when I was still in the process of recovering core strength after breaking my back. I could literally feel my body trying to compensate for my lack of strength and it was truly exhausting. Now a year down the road, my core is like 80% of what it was and I can work much longer without tiring. I plank every other day and do push ups. I cannot do crunches anymore due to my injuries. I also walk 3 miles at a pace of at least 3.5mph (according to my phone) up and down hills to increase aerobic capacity. it’s the best I can do right now. oh yeah, I also ride my 2 horses.
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As an exercise, I would try posting trot, really focused on nasal breathing down into your diaphragm, and then go sitting with focus on maintaining the same breath pattern and rate. When you start to lose it, go posting again, re-establish the breathing, and try again. Once you can maintain breathing at a collected or working sitting trot, you can start adding in the mediums. My guess is that your body just needs to work out how to maintain the core stability while still breathing more deeply; it’s a muscle coordination thing, just not in the way we usually think about it.
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Moving from First to Second level was hands down, the hardest physical work I’ve ever done while riding. And when I did it, I was running regularly and training for half-marathons, so like you, its not like I was “out of shape”.
As has been said, the work changes to be intensely core-focused, which has its own type of fatigue. Certainly be sure you’re breathing properly, but also incorporate a lot of core strengthening into your workouts. You’ll get there, I promise, but it will take time!
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