I realized I had not been riding since October and it was July. I wanted to ride for my 60th birthday so I did! I have done enough work on my courage and soaked up enough courage pennies that I felt great about it. Michelle, my OTTB mare, seemed up for the first ride back in a while.
I know many of you have taken time off, whether to heal, financial, or just life, and would like some tips for getting back riding again.
Here are my 5 steps that I used for this ride:
• Begin with short, gentle rides - I didn't ride long or hard. I just got on and really felt myself in the saddle, felt Michelle under me, walked and did some turns and played with some poles on the ground. Nothing earth shattering from an outside perspective, but boy did it fill up my soul!
• Focus on your breathing - Before getting on, make sure your breathing is relaxed. This time, I used Ferris Wheel breathing mode which is my favorite! I have talked about that on one of my podcasts if you want to find out more. (Episode 1 has the Ferris Wheel Breathing)
• Practice mindfulness - mindfulness is so much fun to play with. This is really simple. It just means, pay attention to you, your horse, your tack, as you are getting ready to ride. Did your tack have any cracks? Was your pad clean? Did you horse have any sore parts as you groomed? Did the hooves look good? If you are really paying attention, you are not in your head with monkey brain, you are not going to miss a sign that you or your isn't ready to ride today.
• Set small, achievable goals - make it so you will feel accomplished. This is different for everyone. My first rides back are usually 4 steps. This last one, I did a few times at 50 feet. Some people may really laugh at that but for me, it was like climbing to base camp of Mt. Everest. Don't go the top, Set your goal for base camp. Whatever that is for you.
• Listen to your body - It was so hot the day I rode. I hosed her off before so she would be cool. I used my Frogg Toggs (if you don't know what one is, check it out here if you have heat, it works wonders!)
Enjoy your riding!!!!
I was going through finances and realized I had spent lots of MONEY for a horse to stand there and wait for me to show up. I had thrown that money away instead of using it for my passion and joy of riding.
Like many of you, as riders with a burning passion for riding, we've made the courageous decision to reclaim our confidence in the saddle. Despite the fears and excuses that have held us back, our heart knows that we were born to ride. Now, it's time to create a mental prep process that will help us overcome our anxieties and rediscover the freedom for riding our horses!
Here are 5 tips:
Acknowledge The Fear
The first step is to acknowledge the fears and thank them. They are trying to keep us safe. Write them down, speak them aloud, or share them with a trusted friend. By giving voice to your concerns, you're taking away some of their power over you. We are not going to stay focused here. We are going to leave them behind and plan our future!
Visualize Success
Spend time each day visualizing yourself confidently mounting your horse, riding with ease, and enjoying every moment in the saddle. This positive imagery can help rewire your brain and boost your confidence.
Develop a Pre-Ride Ritual
Create a calming pre-ride ritual that helps center your mind and prepare your body. This could include deep breathing exercises, gentle stretches, or a quiet moment of reflection with your horse. Check out my pre-ride checklists if you would like some ideas!
Start Small
Begin with short, manageable riding sessions. Set achievable goals for each ride, gradually increasing the duration and complexity as your confidence grows. Celebrate every small victory along the way.
Focus on the Joy
Remind yourself why you love riding. Keep a journal (or at least mental notes if you are like me and don't journal), of your positive experiences and refer to them when doubts creep in. Let the joy of your passion outweigh your fears.
By creating and following your own mental prep process, you're taking a significant step towards reclaiming your confidence in the saddle. Remember, you were born to ride – and with patience, self-compassion, and determination, you'll rediscover the freedom and joy that horseback riding brings to your life.
You can hear my thoughts on my podcast, Turn Riding Fear Around, Episode 19: Mental
Ride Prep Tips.
After my accident, I had more excuses than motivation to ride. I became so creative in these elaborate excuses about anything and everything. Then one day, I realized that was not living my dream. I learned about visualization.
Visualization became my favorite technique for getting my motivation back. My brain doesn't know the difference between reality and visualization, so my confidence really started to improve. Use all the senses, even taste if you can. The more senses you involve, the more vivid you make them, the more they will fill you up with courage.
Here is a sample of mine: I am riding down my favorite trail. There is a light breeze I can feel on my arms gently keeping us cool. The sunshine makes all the different greens and browns all around us shine. The leaves in the trees flicker in the breeze making the trail look magical. The flowers smell amazing and are all the colors of the rainbow. I can feel the rhythm of the horse below me as my body moves like with a dance partner, covering the ground together. My horse and I are breathing together as one as we have one of the loveliest rides I have ever had. I can taste the different pine pollens that are being carried on the breeze.
Now, here are the steps to start creating your visualization:
1. Be specific about what you want to achieve. Is it a trail ride, a competition, a discipline, whatever it is for you.
2. Find a quiet space: Really focus on your visualization.
3. Take deep breaths to calm your mind and body.
4. Engage all senses: Imagine not just what you see, but also what you hear, feel, smell, and taste.
5. Make it vivid: Include as many details as possible to make the experience feel real.
6. Practice regularly: Consistency is key. Set aside time each day for visualization.
7. Believe: Know that your vision will become reality.
Visualization is a powerful tool, but it only works when you use it to find your motivation and take action.
If you would like to hear my thoughts, it is on my Turn Riding Fear Around Podcast on most platforms or you watch it on Rumble or Youtube! Watch here!
If you read the Harry Potter Books or saw the movies, there is a great representation of this concept! Turning Boggarts into something funny. Your greatest fear into something to laugh about. The spell, Riddikulus, all by itself makes me laugh as it reduces fear into hysterics!!!!
My Boggart is a horse rearing and falling over on me. My spell is for ACME's Wile-E-Coyote and the trap he has set to get the Road Runner. It is a horse wearing ballet slippers that can dance like the wind to make the Road Runner stop and the horse flips onto the Road Runner catching him. I am Wile-E-Coyote and of course I get squished by the horse but then pop right back up to do it all over again. This makes me laugh about my accident! RIDDIKULUS!!!!!!
When we share some of our most terrifying memories with friends, as they did that day in Hogwarts, the fear loses it's edge, often dissolving into laughter. There's a powerful reason for this, and it's the secret sauce behind my latest podcast episode, "Laughing Your Way Out of Fear."
Fear has a way of paralyzing us, keeping us from fully enjoying life or pursuing our dreams. But what if we could transform those fear-inducing memories into something less threatening, even funny? That's where the magic of cartooning comes in.
Picture this: Your biggest fear, that moment that makes your palms sweat just thinking about it, reimagined as a silly cartoon. Suddenly, that menacing shadow becomes a bumbling character with oversized feet. The thunderous voice that once terrified you? Now it's coming from a tiny mouse with a megaphone. That feeling of fear bubbles up as a good old fashioned belly laugh.
By visualizing our fears in this exaggerated, cartoon-like manner, we're actually rewiring our brain's response to these memories. We're taking control of the narrative, turning ourselves from victims into the directors of our own mental comedy show.
Remember, laughter isn't just about entertainment – it's a powerful tool for healing and growth. By finding the humor in our fears, we're not dismissing them, but rather disarming them. We're saying, "I see you, fear, and I choose to rewrite this story." I give you permission to rewrite your memories! Rem
So, are you ready to turn your fear memories into cartoons and laugh your way to a braver, more confident you? Just remember, RIDDIKULUS!!!!!
If you would like to hear my thoughts, it is on my Turn Riding Fear Around Podcast on most platforms or you watch it on Rumble or Youtube! Watch here!
One of my favorite quotes, from my Hypnosis Instructor Ali Campbell, "We are not afraid of what we think we are afraid of, we are afraid of what we think!" is powerful. You can't just rush through reading it. Especially with fear around horses.
I thought I was a afraid of a horse rearing and falling over on top of me. I believed that. When a horse would lift it head, I would get off, FAST. After hearing Ali, and really sitting with it, I realized he is 100% right. I was not afraid of a horse falling on me. I was afraid of my thoughts of a horse falling on me. It only happened once in reality. I have ridden thousands of hours. I have jumped hundreds of jumps. I was afraid of my thoughts, not the horses. The horses brought me joy.
Take a moment and really think about your fear and the thoughts about your fear. Then look at your thoughts versus reality, in this moment. To make it simple in my example, fear of rearing was my fear. But reality, it was my thoughts about "what if" the horse reared that I was afraid of. The horse wasn't even rearing. Heck, I could be sitting on the couch and think about the rearing and get sweaty palms. That is a fear of my thoughts, not a fear of the horse rearing.
The great news is that now we have awareness. Once we are aware, we can take action to resolve.
Here are three things that can help us overcome the fear of our thoughts. For me, this feels a lot less scary now that I know I am just afraid of my thoughts.
- Journaling exercises. Put pen to paper. Write how you want to feel, what you want to be thinking about, the thoughts about wonderful rides.
- Mindfulness. This is one of my favorites. If we are keeping our thoughts in the present moment, unless we are in the middle of some disaster, we can dissolve the fear. Stay present, in this moment. It is all we really have.
- Visualization techniques for positive riding experiences. Put all your senses into visualizing your best rides. What are you seeing? What are you feeling? What are you hearing? What are you smelling? Describe your best ride in all the detail you can put into it.
I talk about my feelings around this quote in my latest podcast which you can watch on Rumble here:
