Jump on a serpentine
Ramp up your schooling by adding in a jumping session.
“If you just concentrate on warming up, jumping, then cooling off, this can be a particularly short but energetic session,” explains Sam.
“Work on what you feel you need to improve — turns, skinnies or verticals, for instance — and plan ahead so you can get going straight away, maybe building the jumps the night before.”
Jumping allows your horse to fully use his body, while engaging his brain at the same time.
For Sam’s favourite combined jumping and fitness exercise, place three fences down the centre line (so that each jump is parallel to the long sides of the arena). Place one fence at each end (close to markers A and C — but leaving enough space to get around them) and the third fence in the middle of the arena over X.
“Make the fences as small as you need them to be and, if you’d rather jump a cross-pole than an upright, that’s fine,” says Sam. “Keeping the fences small is handy because it’s unlikely that you’ll need to keep getting off to rebuild them.”
Ride a three-loop serpentine in trot, going around the jumps first to check your horse is supple, balanced and listening. Now ride a serpentine again, but instead of going around the jumps, go over them — in trot is fine.
“The turns may seem tight at first, but by using your aids and bodyweight correctly your horse will soon get the message. If it proves too tricky for him, just use the first and last fence for the exercise initially, giving you and your horse more space and time.”
You can ride this exercise in canter if your horse is more established, using your bodyweight to change leg over the fence.