"Less is more"... that could be applied to a thousand different things. Whether it's salting your potatoes, or training your horse, finding the right amount can be difficult. So where can you find the sweet spot between too much and not enough?
Here are a few scenarios that can be difficult to find the perfect balance: training and conditioning, tack and feeding/nutrition just to name a few. So let's break these down a little.
Tack/ Equipment:
Endurance is a beautiful sport in that you can make it work with any kind of tack. You don't need fancy equipment or expensive gear. Whatever you have in the barn, that works for you and your horse is great! You don't have to go buy the top of the line endurance tack to be sucessful. Most our our tack came from garage sales and pre-loved.
However, if you have the choice to pick out some tack, Biothane works great! It doesn't break down with sweat, it cleans well and last forever. Oh, and it comes in fun colors. What's not to love?!
Some of our favorite Biothane tack includes:
When it comes to saddles, as long as it fits, it doesn't really matter what kind it is. That being said, every pound counts. You will often see the front runners going minimalist, with light saddles and light-weight tack.
How can you cut weight?
Here are a few scenarios to consider:
~ Can you train your horse in a heavier saddle, and use a lighter weighted saddle for competitions?
The few pounds less may give your horse a huge boost (except on BC scoring)
~ For flat rides, is a breast collar really necessary (expect for carrying your Easyboot)?
~ If your horse is well collected/ behaved do you really need a martingale?
~ If your horse is good with it (and it doesn't put you or other riders in danger) can you go without a bit?
~ Does your horse interfere, or are the boots just for looks? Unless they are needed for technical terrain or a horse that interferes, boots can just trap in heat and potentially lead to rubs and sores.
The Saddle Bag:
It might be good to reexamine what is in your saddle pack. Do you really need one?
If so, do you really need that extra pair of socks? Probably not. Sometimes just because we have a saddle bag, we feel the need to fill it. Might ibuprofen and electrolytes be a good idea to carry with us? More than likely.
Our personal saddle bags may be emptier than most, as generally we don't ride with saddle packs expect on Tevis and race loops longer than 15 miles. When we do carry a saddle bag on races, it is primarily for our electrolytes and an Easyboot - and drinking water in the canyons. Other key things to carry can include a zip-tie, knife, hoof-pick and vet wrap.
So I guess when it comes to tack I would like to mention, less is more, if you don't need it, it might just be getting in the way. If you want a fine example, take a look at Jeremy Reynolds at Tevis 2023. Sometimes all it takes is a saddle and a neck rope.:)
Nutrition/ Feeding:
One of the most asked questions we get is what and how to feed? Feeding can be a science, but it can also be over complicated and harder than it needs to be.
For an endurance horse that is in heavy training and burning a lot of calories, sometimes the challenge can be adding calories.
Free choice hay can be very healthy for your horse.
Endurance horses are athletes and as such are fueled by their food. Quality hay can go a long ways.
We like to avoid over processed grains and pellets... the simpler the better.
When adding calories through grains, be careful not to include too much sugar. Each horse is unique, but we have had great success with Cool Calories 100 and corn oil for increasing weight, as well as supplements to help coat the stomach such as Purina Outlast or Daily Gold.
Endurance horses are often plagued with ulcers. We pride ourselves with an ulcer free herd. The key is prevention. Free choice feed goes a long ways. Horse's stomachs are created to eat small portions throughout the day rather than "meals". Pasture/ foliage/ free choice hay are great options. (Even if you have an easy keeper - low quality filler hay can be a great option to talk with your vet about.)
When we walk into a feed store and see the assortment of supplements and vitamins, it can be a bit overwhelming to know where to start. With so many options, we don't want to feel left out by providing only the basics.
One of the best ways to determine what supplements are needed is to consult your vet and do a blood-panel to see where your horses mineral levels are to start with.
One of the most important supplements that should always be available to your horses is salt. Loose salt is great! Salt blocks can be hard on the horses tongue and loose salt can come with trace minerals.
Some other supplements that could be considered:
Vitamin E and Selenium - there are a lot of selenium deficient areas. Selenium is a crucial mineral.
Biotin - Plays a large part in hoof and hair/coat health
Hoseguard - is a great all around supplement for a healthy horse
Loose salt/minerals - Loose salt is a great and affordable option, preferably a high Mag version
Red Cell - High in vitamins, minerals and especially Iron
During competition it is important that they are eating. Sometimes horses enjoy eating food that might be considered a "treat" at home.
Training/ Conditioning:
It is often said that it's better to undertrain than over train. But how do you know if you are over training? Does training an endurance horse have to be a big undertaking or time commitment? You might be surprised by how fit you can get your horse with only a few rides a week.
~Make your miles count~
More is not always better when it comes to training. Rest and tapering are just as important as miles in the saddle! When talking with clients and friends about our training schedule, they are often surprised by how few miles we actually train in comparison to what is considered the "norm". It is less about the amount of miles as making those miles count and utilizing every mile.
It can be so easy to over train and that might be arguably one of the biggest training problems we see. So what is the sweet spot? Well... we don't want to give away our training secrets, lol so we will just say that in our typical training week, we are only conditioning 2 or 3 times a week.
One big way to measure your horse's training is through the use of a heart-rate monitor. CRIs after training rides can also be a great way to gauge you training and watch for signs of over training.
Also, monitoring your horse's attitude, weight and the "spring to his step" are key indicators of over training.
Thanks for reading! Please feel free to drop your thoughts and suggestions in the comment section.
We would love to hear from you!
What does your feeding program look like? What supplements does your horse get? How many days/miles a week are you training? Is there any piece of tack that you currently ride with, that you would like to try going without? What do you carry in your saddle bags?
Thanks for your continued support! As we get closer to the new ride season, please stay tuned for some surprise, unscheduled blog posts, electrolyte tips, and safety suggestions. We have a full blog schedule coming up over the next several moths so stay tuned:)
Happy Trails!
The Blakeleys