how can i prepare my horse for competition?

As the lockdown is lifting and competitions are starting up again, I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to share my top tips on how to prepare your horse for competition. 

Tip 1: Tapering your exercise

• Reducing the exercise intensity of your horses workload at least one week prior to the intense competition can help to restore glycogen stores in the muscle and allow for full muscle tissue repair (Marlin et al., 2013) before the competition. The benefits are hugely recognised in human sports and can be a useful tool to implement into your horses training programme.
• This can be done by including only light schooling, hacking and/or lunge work in the week prior to the competition. 

Tip 2: Full body massage and treatment should be booked in at least a week prior to the competition to relieve any discomfort. 

Tip 3: Pre-event massages 3-5 hours prior to competitions.

• Relax the muscles, improve muscle tone and prepare the body for exercise to maximise performance. 

Tip 4: Arrive at least one hour before the competition and hand walk your horse once you arrive at the venue.

• Transporting your horse in a lorry or trailer can put a lot of stress and fatigue on the musculoskeletal system as the horse uses isometric and eccentric muscle contractions to stabilise themselves and to brace against the movements.
• Travelling can also be a stressful experience for most horses and heart rate is reported to remain elevated for up to 30 minutes after unloading (Tateo et al., 2012) especially with those with less travelling experience (Padalino, 2015).
• Did you know that approximately 1 hour in the trailer/horse box is reflective of 20 minutes of trotting in terms of muscular effort?
• Hand walking for 5/10 minutes once you arrive at the venue can help the horse to relax and loosen up the muscles that have been supporting them in the trailer and arriving an hour prior to the test will give them enough time to rest before being asked to work and perform their best for you.
• Any journey over 3 hours would require at least 2 hours (or overnight) of recovery as a result of minimal muscle damage and for elevated muscle enzymes to return to normal (Tateo et al., 2012).

Tip 5: Massage within the 24 hours post competition.

• Aid muscle recovery, lactic acid removal and prevent muscle soreness

Muscle soreness and stiffness, commonly referred to as Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS), can occur between 12-72 hours post exercise. This is caused by: 

• Mechanical stress placed on muscle and tissue (esp. during eccentric action) resulting in micro-tears within muscle fibres that causes disarrangement of sarcomeres.
• Triggers immune response releasing histamine and prostaglandins.
• Also causes oedema (accumulation of fluid), inflammation inside muscle compartment, and increase pain sensations.

Good luck to all of my clients and to anybody who is starting to compete with their horses again and I hope these tips are helpful. 

You've got this! 

References: 

Marlin, D., and Nankervis, K. (2013) Equine Exercise Physiology. USA: Blackwell Publishing. 
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Padalino, B. (2015). Effects of the different transport phases on equine health status, behavior, and welfare: A review. Journal of Veterinary Behavior: Clinical Applications and Research. 10(3), 272-282.

​Tateo, A. Padalino, B., Boccaccio, M., Maggiolino, A., and Centoducati, P. (2012) Transport stress in horses: Effects of two different distances. Journal of Veterinary Behaviour: Clinical Applications and Research. 7, 33-42.