Hi! Adult rider returning to the sport after 7+ years away. Due to time and distance limitations, I’m only riding once a week at the moment. Curious what some other once-a-weekers are doing to stay riding ready throughout the week - I can’t handle being this sore every time! 
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I have been a once a weeker in the past. General fitness and cardio will go a long way to helping your riding, as will core strengthening work.
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I was a once a week rider! Find a good Pilates studio and yoga are so helpful.
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One of my once a week students has had quite a bit of success with watching helmet camera videos to help with counting down to a distance.
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A re-rider, too, I’m anywhere from 1x/week to 3x, depending on finances.
I’m horrible with gyms. I walk and especially try to walk a lot of hills (myself, hills aren’t just for horses!)… wall sits … heel stretches on stairs. My trainer is a big advocate of using exercise balls.
Mentally, I can’t recommend livestreams/videos enough. I watch as much as I can… ClipMyHorse … the freebies on the WEF site. Try visualization, too. I think it was in a Noelle Floyd sports psychology course that I heard about a study in which visualization actually physically helped laid-up athletes who were recovering from injuries.
Welcome back!
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It’s been almost 5 years, but I started as a once-a-weeker during Covid. General fitness, lots of reading, and deep dices on COTH are your friend!
Welcome back! I also started back during Covid as a once-a-weeker and agree with all the advice you’ve gotten so far–pilates, yoga, and basic cardio will get you where you need to go. Even with a solid level of base fitness, I was pretty sore after lessons for the first couple of weeks, but my body got with the program before too long.
I watched a lot of YouTube and listened to podcasts too, before I ended up here. I like Elphick Event Ponies on YT (not H/J but I find Meg really relatable as an amateur rider who’s had some ups and downs, and clearly does her absolute best for her horses); for podcasts Equestrian Voices and Horse Person are both really good, the host is a very thoughtful interviewer.
I hope you’re having fun getting back in the saddle!
Orangetheory, Soulcycle, Cyclebar, or a bootcamp works great.
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Thanks everyone! Definitely need to find a stretching routine, get into pilates, and dust off the tennis shoes and get walking!
Finally just stopped feeling sore from my last ride and about to ride tomorrow! 
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Yoga for core strength. I think my instructor does Hatha. I was doing twice a week
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I do a program called Resilient Rider from StableBody PT. It’s exercises targeted to what riders need to stay riding fit. It’s the only exercise program I’ve ever been able to stick with.
I was playing tennis 3x a week when I became a once a week rerider but I was still sore at first. Pilates is awesome whether you ride or not, its my favorite activity. Eventually I gave up tennis, as horses just kind of take over your life! 
Re, helmet camera video, great idea. Besides YouTube, where else can I find them? Thanks.
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I’m not sure; I see them pop up on my Facebook reels or on TikTok.
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Hi I’m someone who can vary between 6 horses a day to 1 horse every two months. Work demands and the fluidity of being able to visit my trainer across the country can be maddening for riding fitness. What I have discovered is gym fitness =/= riding fitness, and riding fitness =/= gym fitness, but they sure do help each other quite a bit.
Bottom line up front, I do a variation of pilates with some running and dabble a little in some yoga.
I’m military, have deployed 3 times and spend occasional months here and there away from my horses. Here are my observations regarding how I have maintained (or not) my riding fitness:
-My first deployment, I worked out very little. I ran a mile or two here and there. It was a high op-tempo deployment and I didn’t have time for much else besides the job. It took me about a year to get my fitness back, especially my legs.
-My second deployment, I mostly just ran. I ran 6-8 miles a day, did variations of hills, sprints, etc. It took me a month to get my fitness back and pretty much couldn’t walk for the first 2 weeks (I dove straight in to riding 4-6 per day). But the results were much better than the previous government all-expenses paid trip to the desert.
-The most recent trip to the other side of the earth, I ran about 1 1/2 miles a day (to get to and from the gym) and did a pilates HIIT routine 6-7 days a week. When I returned, I didn’t really have much catching up to do. My legs were a bit sore for the first 2 weeks or so, but tolerable. And my overall fitness level made riding several horses a day manageable.
So I would say a combination of cardio and your choice of full body work out would likely help. I’m sure traditional pilates-goers hate it but I follow Cassey Ho’s Blogilates routine. Her videos are free on the website or youtube, easy to follow along with, and you have options from 3 minute isolation work outs, to 30 minute routines that even after a few years, I still can’t get all the way through, and everything in between. I personally prefer a mixture of her HIIT work outs and short isolation work on whatever area I’m working out that day. Along with some variations of running, and some yoga for flexibility, I can fit it all in an hour and it keeps me from dying when I climb on a greeny after having not ridden in a month+
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Found some beginner friendly pilates videos and it’s actually been fun!
My second ride only a week after my first was already better! Also a lot less sore after it! 
Have had to shop a bit for some new clothes which is always fun. Loving all the new tech fabric, particularly the KL Select Gabrielle breeches. Tall boot shopping (I’m tired of dealing with half chaps) has NOT been fun though.
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