And this always becomes personal. It’s all about you! That’s fine. And, I must be a jerk, because I am pointing out something that might be a hard thing to consider.
But, the question that I asked a while ago is this- why are we so intent on defending being heavy?
John Daly? Really? Babe Ruth? How fast did he run between bases? LOL Shaq? He was a whole lot more fit then. And, he’s like 7’ something. And, you’ve got ONE eventer? You don’t see any issues with that?
I taught a IHSA team, back in the day. We did have two heavier riders, and I put them on a couple of the bigger horses that I had. They were lovely people, and they worked hard at riding well. I am not taking that away from anyone.
Prolly cause folks are intent on persecuting us for it. Duh.
Why are you so intent on attacking any one you deem as heavy? Again, so much of this is subjective. The last trainer at our barn was a fit looking guy, round about 6’ I guess, weighed 220, which shocked me. He was starting a smaller warm blood for the owner, I heard many people say she was going to be to heavy for the mare, fun fact, she was lighter than the trainer.
He got comments saying he looked too tall, but her, to heavy!
I had to skip like ten posts just to echo that as someone said above, there can only ever be one winner, so regardless of fitness or weight, most thin riders are also losers 
Buwahahahaha
I wish I could heart your post ten times
I haven’t attacked anyone. I have given my opinion, because, you know, that’s what we do here.
I am just amazed that people can’t understand or address why weight could be an issue.
I didn’t realize you had again adjusted your meaning of “competing” to include not only having the ability to win, but now also having the ability to win at a particular level of sport.
By “national level” do you mean competing at a national championship? Or competing at a competition sanctioned by a national sports organization? Both still count as competing, BTW.
Did you miss the part of my earlier post where I said as athletes move up the level of their sport, fitness becomes more important and they are unlikely to become elite competitors without a high level of fitness? That doesn’t mean that those at the lower levels aren’t competitive in their divisions though, and aren’t winning. Your definition of “competing” is very confusing and I’m really not sure what point you’re trying to make that hasn’t already been made.
And I also made the comment about the atmosphere.
And I said the if you and your horse are happy…
But that doesn’t matter to you, does it?
Just the mere discussion about being overweight sets people off. After all of this discussion, I can only surmise that is because you know it, and for various reasons, many of which are valid issues, it is what is is.
I’m fascinated that the person who thinks everyone else is worked up seems to be the most worked up, about something that in no way impacts them. Weird.
It’s such a sign of the times, to be super confrontational about something wildly insignificant to your own existence
Am I correct in assuming that you have always been at a normal or thin weight for your height?
It seems to not matter to you whether people and their horses are happy - if the riders are overweight that seems to make you unhappy, particularly if those riders are competing at shows and winning.
What makes you think that people who enjoy sports at the lower levels are just there for the atmosphere and not to win? Winning a championship at your tennis or golf club is a very big deal for those competitors, even if you dismiss it as “backyard competition.” Winning at any horse show is a big deal for the competitors entered, whether that’s a schooling show or a CDI.
Should we assume that you have competed and won at national championships, since that’s how you define competition?
Literally everyone here has said that fitness is a key factor in performance, particularly at the upper levels of any sport. So if your goal is to compete at Grand Prix, you’re going to need a much higher level of fitness than when you were riding at Training Level. That’s a given and nobody is trying to have an argument about that here except you.
No. You aren’t. It’s been a fight for a long time. But that is me at Devon in my Avatar. Homebred, raised, and I broke, trained and showed her. Devon was her first and last show. She was Reserve Champion in 2007.
As uncomfortable as the conversation may be, I think it’s still an important one to have.
I’ll make the assumption that everyone here is conscious of how their weight and fitness level impacts the horses that they ride. As well as how it may impact their own safety.
Unfortunately not everyone is experienced enough to recognize the signs of an uncomfortable horse. And not everyone is willing to admit that they might part of the problem.
One of the boarders at our barn has gained a significant amount of weight throughout the pandemic. That, coupled with not riding as much with the lockdowns has really impacted her riding. She was falling a lot, almost weekly. Our trainer finally had to tell her that she wasn’t allowed to jump anymore for safety reasons. She still falls if her horse spooks, or does anything to affect her balance. The distribution of weight and lack of core strength has her up there like a clothespin, ready to pop off at any moment, and unable to wrap her leg around the horse.
And anytime she loses her balance she throws the horse off balance, lands on his back, etc. It can be hard to watch.
Now, she’s the exception. But she isn’t alone.
That isn’t what I stated. I guess that this is all about you. I said, and I will again, IF YOU AND YOUR HORSES ARE HAPPY, CARRY ON!
Would you like it in French? I’m fluent! 
I would like to point out that I know of several overweight riders that compete at the upper levels of dressage (including GP) and eventing. Compete successfully, I might add. Horses are quite happy, carrying the rider easily.
I’ve also seen overweight unfit riders on sturdy quarter horses where the horses were obviously uncomfortable and struggling. The difference isn’t the weight, it’s the fitness of rider (and probably horse too).
And it’s entirely appropriate for her trainer to tell her that. Anyone else? Not unless she asks for their opinion.
Well, first you stated that unfit people couldn’t compete in sports.
When it was pointed out that statement was false, you then said unfit people couldn’t win at the sports they were competing in.
When it was pointed out that statement was false, you said essentially competition didn’t count unless it was national level competition, and unfit people definitely couldn’t win at that level.
And then you jumped over to people “defending their right to be heavy” and somehow decided that overweight people don’t realize their athletic performance might improve if they lost weight. Quite a leap from talking about fitness to talking about weight. No wonder some of us are confused about what you’re actually trying to say…
It sounds like “As long as you and your horse are happy it’s fine but it isn’t actually fine if you’re overweight, and BTW none of your competitive success counts unless it’s at a level or a show which I feel to be acceptably competitive. And why are fat people getting so huffy when I helpfully point out that being fat is bad for them, anyway?”
Am I close?
When I was a size four and at my lightest adult weight, where nobody would’ve looked at me on a horse and said “wow she’s fat,” (other than me at the time) I was two pounds away from being overweight, or actually overweight depending on the time of day/month.
I mostly did cardio and body weight exercises then, and I got dumped a lot. Now, I’m heavier, and I am much stronger. I can stay on where I never would’ve been able to before. I can easily haul around hay, fence posts, bags of grain, etc. Hell, I can pick up my 230lb (also overweight, coincidentally, as a very fit man with a six pack) husband. Muscle is important too, and there are plenty of thin people who are extremely weak. I know more than a couple of people who have “perfect” bodies and would look gorgeous on an equitation horse with their long limbs who can’t lift a saddle off of a high rack or onto a tall horse.
Uh, I picked one person in each sport that I knew of off the top of my head that is/was overweight and elite at their chosen sport. I can’t (won’t) do all the research for you.
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