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Keeping Motivated When You’re Out Of The Saddle

Keeping motivated when you’re out of the saddle
 
Early December, my dork, sorry, I mean my horse, Zeus, decided it would be fun to gallop head on into a tree. This was his first day in the herd paddock of a new place we’d moved to. He hit it so hard that he broke the branch after deciding to go for a hoon with the other OTTB.  
After a surprise pre-Christmas $350 vet bill, we found out that due to the massive bruising on his head, left eye and the jarring in his left shoulder, that our amazing progression of late was coming to a grinding halt for the next four weeks.  
Then, when he is good to go, we’ve had nothing but 35-40 degree temps in Canberra most of January.  
So, I was faced with the problem of keeping the motivation and momentum going while I couldn’t ride.  
Those who know me, know I ride with fear, which I am slowly beating, one ride after another—I was pretty worried that with having this downtime, my fear would increase again.  
I made the decision to keep up my motivation during this time and I’d love to share my tips with you!
Get reading, listening and watching
The first thing I did was contact my instructor to ask her for a reading list and then bought the books right away. It was fantastic to get reading and learn some awesome tips from the dressage masters.
There is also a number of fantastic YouTube channels and Podcasts that you can watch for ideas and motivation. I’ve started listening to podcasts in the car to and from work and wow, have I got some ideas now we’re back in the saddle—poor Zeus!
Make some goals
I also spent some time trying to understand my fear, what pushed me to fear, and how to find my brave. It involved writing a list, and reading a book plus watching some videos to understand how other riders tamed their fear.  
This helped me to move onto my goals for 2019. More on this in my next blog post.  
Get fit
The time out of the saddle has been a great opportunity to work on my fitness. I’ve seen the physio about my plantar fasciitis that I’ve ignored for two years, and am on the way to becoming a fitter stronger self and to be being a better, more balanced rider for Zeus.  
Do those chores you’ve been putting off
Clean your gear, sort through all of your horse stuff to sell, take the time to complete those annoying tasks, meaning you have more time in the saddle when you can ride.
Just be with your horse
This is something I love, just hanging out. No need to ride, or lunge, or do more than give him a brush and crack open a bottle of wine with my horsey friends. He still needs you and loves the time you spend with him.  
 
Have you got some fantastic tips to keep up the motivation when you’re out of the saddle? We’d love to hear them