The Simply Fit board is supposed to tone ads, legs and entire core. I’m wondering if this would help with sitting trot?
It look like fun too! Has anyone tried it and is it worth the money? $40
I just ordered one. I think it will work out for me with the lack of space, etc in my home for an exercise room. I figured it is worth a shot for working on the core. I did get mine through ebay for $40 with free shipping, but was shocked at how high they are mostly on ebay and Amazon, way over the price plus shipping on their own web site!
Will it hold up?
Bed, Bath & Beyond has it for $40 with a coupon of $5 off = $35. I’m wondering if it will hold up with a lot of use.
I’m thinking that for my students who only have one horse to ride, that it might help to strengthen and maintain core muscles.
I’ve been using the Ab Dolly. It’s more expensive but I can say that it works
Ooh I’m definitely following this.
Interesting. I haven’t heard of this, but over December, I was working at home with a standing desk situation and spent a lot of time standing on the flat side of my Bosu ball. I find the Bosu very useful for riding fitness. However, I’ll be going back to my usual cubicle situation next month and I’m getting a standing desk where the Bosu would add too much height, so was planning on purchasing a Fluidstance board.
I think these types of devices are very useful for keeping the hips and glutes engaged, and those muscles are frequently ignored, vs. abs and back muscles. With the desk-bound lifestyle many of us lead, anything that reminds the glutes to stay engaged is helpful.
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The gluteals are not terribly useful muscles in riding. Tensing them will have you sproinging out of the saddle. Abductors as useful, but not if kept continually tight. Their use varies from intense to not at all.
Core muscles keep the upper body stable, but I’ve never found them particularly useful in sitting the trot.,only when lengthening and shortening the trot stride are they engaged.
I agree that tensed gluteal muscles can be counterproductive in riding, but strengthening the posterior chain (incl. gluteals) is pretty important for a lot of us desk-bound day jobbers who want to be able to ride with a balanced leg and not fight constantly against tight hip flexors and quads. I suspect a good fraction of the people out there fighting the chair seat would find some extra posterior muscle helpful in balancing their position and getting comfortable with a more open, moving hip.
As for core, moving with my particular horse in the sitting trot is quite a core workout, so I’d tend to disagree that the core doesn’t actually engage for the sitting trot, at least for some riders on some horses. If I sat my horse’s trot without noticeably contracting certain core muscles in certain phases of the stride I would either bounce off or kill my horse’s implusion. My core is what moves me with my horse, allows my pelvis to follow my horse’s, and allows my seat to be independent. It is also there as a rebalancing aid, but to me that is not just for lengthening and shortening, but for stride-to-stride riding.
I’ll be curious to hear what dressage-oriented workouts people end up doing with this Simply Fit board and what sort of impacts it seems to have on riding! Would also love to hear from standing desk users – I haven’t been able to make the switch because my feet get tired and my bad hips don’t like being in any position for prolonged periods, so I’m curious whether the motion allowed by a device like this would help make standing more of the day more tenable…
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I use a Varidesk, which is extremely easy to adjust up and down. I go back and forth between sitting and standing multiple times during the day. I also have a bad hip and can’t tolerate staying in the same position for long periods of time. I also swap back and forth between a regular chair and a saddle chair, like this one:
https://www.amazon.com/Ergonomic-Chair-BetterPosture-Saddle-F1465-BK/dp/B003BWS8GC
My hip likes the saddle chair, but my back is not so fond, although I’m sure if I would just tough it out and build the required muscles, it wouldn’t be an issue.
I’ve been thinking of getting one of these ever since the Canadian price dropped down from $70.
Even with shipping and taxes that price is cheaper than in stores.
Guess it’s time to get one 
While I think this tool could be fun and certainly a good test to see if your core is strong, it’s probably not enough on its own.
Some of the best core exercises are planks, supermans (don’t forget that your back is part of your core), sit-ups, med ball sit ups, mountain climbers, flutter kicks, bicycles, and v-ups to name a few. Almost all of these require no equipment and can be done anytime, anywhere.
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I would say the Simply Fit board sounds like a good option for us Joe Shmoes that aren’t motivated to do things like your above mentioned exercises.
Also - I had a gym membership for .2 seconds where they taught HOW to do these exercises, and if they are done incorrectly a lot of them can cause serious spine injury.
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UPDATE: I managed to get my employer to buy me a Fluidstance board, and feel that it has improved my posture. I really like it, and it improves my focus at work as well. I’m not convinced that it improves my core fitness, but it is good for balance/proprioception. After trying mine, several other people in my office ordered them. I also have a Balimo chair and feel that it engages my core and back more than the Fluidstance board, so I try to alternate between the two options (and still do core work at the gym).
What kind of fitness level does a Joe Shmoe expect the horse to maintain? Doesn’t the horse then have to do extra work to carry the rider who isn’t motivated to be physically prepared?
Riding correctly is a very physical demanding sport.
For those who have Simply fit boards how many times a day, and for how long, do you use them?
Kind of what I’m thinking.
And to the comment that the exercises I suggested can cause “spinal injury”. It’s unfortunate that the gym employed such scare tactics. Yes, if done incorrectly, you can strain your muscles, but spinal injury is really extremely rare. There is a world of information out there as to how to execute them safely and correctly. I highly recommend following Girls Gone Strong on Facebook as an example.
Just because someone doesn’t do sit ups, planks etc doesn’t mean they are not physically fit. I also find that most horses put in as much as you do. If you have a weak core, the sitting trot is going to be hell for you not only because you won’t be able to maintain activating the core, but also because you won’t be able to ask the horse to engage his core.
Other than having a strong core to support your upper body wouldn’t flexible hips be more important in the sitting trot?
Bought this because of this post! I have been doing pilates, kettle bells and exercise ball routines and thought this looked like something I could add to the mix. I love it! Very fun and it seems to be a really good workout. It seems to “up the intensity” of some basic exercises like planks, mountain climbers, and squats. I found it very easy to get the hang of it and plan to use it a lot! I think it might work the leg muscles that I use when I am in two-point (for jumping) most of all–but you can also tell it works the core and your balance.
