To ride dressage is to dance with your horse, equal partners in the delicate and sometimes difficult work of creating harmony and beauty.

Wednesday, February 7, 2018

Moving forward while letting go

Lance continues to feel lackluster: breathing harder than is optimal, coughing occasionally, no get-up-and-go. He also seems to have some knots on the top of his left haunch. I'm still riding often, with no more than two days off, but I must admit the motivation is gone. He is bright and responsive in his stall, eats well, and isn't unhappy about getting tacked up, but his lack of energy makes riding him seem like a chore at best and borderline abusive at worst. So why do it at all? Because I am convinced that moving is better for him that standing around doing nothing. 
For now, that is going to have to be motivation enough for this goal-oriented, work-up-through-the-levels dressage rider.

1 comment:

Terry said...

I'm sympathetic! While Tonka has been convalescing, I've been setting (and achieving) my goals using a walking app. As long as we move 2 miles a day, I feel like we've accomplished our goal.