Warmup Question - On the bit or loose rein?

[Saskatoonian]

BTDT with a regular and wonderful clinician we had at my old barn. Learned never to do a 2 day clinic with her - but got a lot out of 1 days, and gave the horse the day off afterward.

I see 2 independent questions in your post. How to warm up, and how concerned to be about the soreness. With the caveat that I warm my current horse up the way you described you usually do, it sounds like the horse went beautifully in the lesson, so it might be worth trying this system out to see if it’s what he likes.

I wouldn’t attribute the soreness to the warmup, but to the amount of work you did in the lesson. If he doesn’t have the muscling, you have to do less / take more breaks, etc, but that’s not to say don’t do the work. Just do an appropriate amount for his fitness level, which you know better than a clinician.

Not sure based on what you described that I’d throw the baby out with the bathwater.

[Gumby80]

Without even considering any training or schooling aspects, for the longevity and soundness of the horse, warm them up properly first. No two ways about it.

For me, that’s at least 5 mins walk on a long rein (forward, stretching down), and then most of them I start off trotting on a long rein too. If a particular horse wasn’t quiet enough for that or didn’t respond well, I’d tailor it differently. Maybe pick up a contact at the walk first (after walking on a long rein), or some even seem to prefer to go straight to canter (especially some of the older guys). If it’s a very new OTTB, then you do what you need to to stay safe, but you’re working towards getting them happy to start out on a long rein.

But getting on, picking up the contact straight away, and asking for work? Never ok in my book. The joints, tendons (and usually brain) need time to warm up. That’s just basic physiology.

[merrygoround]

Having worked with Olympic level riders, I would say that not all of them go to collected work immediately. Those I worked with preferred a strong forward trot on contact encouraging a swinging back, ditto with the canter, after a short or long walk, depending on whether the horse had just come in from turn out.

I too have met clinicians who thought immediate contact was the way to go. I didn’t.

[Saskatoonian]

But she didn’t say collected: she said on the bit, as opposed to on a loose rein. A horse can be on the bit and long and low / stretching.

[bornfreenowexpensive]

What I say when I pick up my current typically tense amped up OTTB and put them to work is NOT working on collection. It is just give him a job so that I CAN get him to stretch. For him, I don’t want him to run around hollow backed. I also do not ask for a ton of lateral work.

Ideally I’ve gone out on a 15-30 minute walking hack out of the ring. If that isn’t possible because of darkness or (ice)…I walk in the ring.

He does best if I canter VERY early in our warm up. I’m asking him for long and low pretty much the entire time.

Basically…my point is that words here in cyber space mean different things to different people. I’ve warmed up a LOT of tight TBs. I had one who was best if I trotted a few x-rails as his warm up…another who needed just a few minutes on a lunge line. Others who did best if you stayed up in two point to w/t/c around. And all whose warm up routines CHANGED as they developed more training. You have to be aware and willing to change depending on how they feel too.

[yellowbritches]

It can sometimes depend a lot on the day, too. Some days, Toby comes out like a noodle, ears floppy, totally relaxed and happy about everything. Some days he comes out breathing fire and seriously needing a job lest he take it upon himself to try and take over the world. He’s going to get very, very different rides depending on his attitude, because what will work when he’s noodly isn’t going to be terribly productive when he’s a ball of fire breathing tension that just needs to go FORWARD NOW.

Obviously, some horses come out more or less the same day in and day out, but I do think having flexibility and riding the horse that’s under you is always better than sticking like super glue to a predetermined warm up pattern. Because God knows, when Toby is pretty sure there are gremlins under every blade of grass, the least productive thing I can do is try and hack him!

[tbchick84]

Thanks for the input everyone. My guy is on the very sane side, so I’m usually able to give him a nice long rein for the initial walk for all but the coldest, most windy days. On those rare days, he is definitely more comfy “tucked in” with a more firm connection.

That is a good point about the cause of the soreness being the sheer degree of work over the method of warm up. We definitely did much more continuous hard work during the clinic over how I ride normally with frequent breaks. Next time I will excuse myself if I feel my horse start to fade. I am getting very good instruction from this clinician and do want to continue to participate.

[Dutchmare433]

Depends on the horse. Some need to go into a light contact from the start for one reason or another. I do always warm them up longer/lower than their current level of work.

One of my old mares, I’d get on and WTC around one the buckle for the first 10-15 minutes. She had to get loosened up and then do a stretchy trot/canter (in half seat) before being asked to come up to the bit. She also needed to go forward! I would pick up the contact in the canter first then throw in some lateral work in the trot. Then she was able to really sit and push up into the contact. She would be quite offended if asked to do all of that without her romp around on the buckle.