High Performance Equestrian

What is Mobility? And what about Flexibility? Mobility is one of the key ingredients to moving with the horse. Fiona discusses how significantly it affects riding, the important body parts you really need to be able to move through an efficient and correct range of motion, how mobility may be affected by other activities, and also strategies to improve mobility. 

Fiona discusses muscular strength and endurance and why equestrian athletes need to consider this in their training, as they do for their horse! She also outlines principles of training such as specificity, progressive overload and recovery and how they shape an athlete into a performer over time with careful programming. Learn about why strength is the key to having energy and is the real fountain of youth! 

Should riders focus on cardiovascular fitness?What is the difference between aerobic and anaerobic fitness and what should I be doing?Fiona guides riders though considering how training for more energy can increase rider performance by considering the demands of the sport and aligning what is expected of the rider with what is expected from the horse in the six-legged athlete team.

What is periodisation? How does is apply in equestrian sports and how can it help athletes peak at just the right time for competitions?Periodisation means your training has strategy to achieve progression and purpose, it also prevents burnout and injury. It applies to horses and riders both separately and together, is essential for serious competitors yet also applicable to recreational athletes to help them achieve riding goals.In this podcast, Fiona covers the main phases and sub-phases of periodisation, a key principle of athletic training, and how to use this principle to peak for success. 

Have you ever wondered how top riders are so good? Is it talent, is it skill? Have you got what it takes? How can you get what it takes to be a top rider?Podcast episode 5 examines skill acquisition and the elements that can help any riders progress… as well as what inhibits acquiring skill to top levels. I discuss characteristics of skilled performers and how they are developed through their characteristics as skilled learners, as well as what promotes and diminishes learning. I also considering skill versus talent and what it really takes to excel as an athlete. 

What do riders need to do in training to make sure they perform at peak when it counts?Fiona provides a sports science analysis of the various aspects of skill and biomechanics riders can consider to improve performance as equestrian athletes.

Isn't riding enough to keep me fit? This episode explores the concepts of riding fitness versus rider fitness, match or game fitness, the various definitions of fitness in the context of what equestrians do every day and in terms of striving for enhancing performance. What do you think? Do you think riding alone is enough to really keep you fit as an equestrian athlete? As fit as it keeps your horse for whom the training is actually designed?

Considering the concept of the the six-legged athlete; Is your horse the real athlete on the team? What about the rider?  We put so much focus, time and money shaping our horses into fine athletes, are there things we can do differently to match their performance as their rider? Fiona considers these questions and also discusses the types of health, wellness, fitness trainers that can help equestrian athletes.

This episode is a welcome to High Performance Equestrian and outlines the content of the podcast and introduces the host, Fiona Hargraves. The podcast will include information on sports and nutrition science, exercise, fitness, strength and conditioning for equestrians, health and wellness, health behaviour change and lifestyle all geared at enhancing rider performance.Host, Fiona Hargraves, is a qualified exercise physiologist, sports scientist and nutritionist, currently completing a PhD in lifestyle medicine and behavioural psychology, specialising in exercise science, health behaviour change, digital technology and mental health.  She has over three decades of experience in all facets of fitness, wellness and sports industry, clinical research and academia as a university lecturer. https://www.highperformanceequestrian.com/https://www.fionathomashargraves.com/