Two Strides Forward Equestrian

07/08/2025

The struggle to fit Keagan’s entire face into a selfie continues….

07/04/2025

Let your time with horses be a journey.

The moment we decide we know enough, or we know it all, we become stagnant. New information is coming out constantly, and only by being open to it, analyzing it with a critical mind, feeling how it sits with us, and maybe even trying it on for size with our horses can we know if it is right for us. If we are not open to knew ideas then we get stuck in old traditions that no longer serve us, and most tragically, we miss the lessons our horses have for us every day.

Don’t be afraid of where you are now.

Maybe you are just starting out, and you have found one method or trainer to follow while you slowly build up your knowledge and feel. Maybe you are far enough down the path that you are able to take a little technique from here, a little advice from there, and put them together to make something uniquely your own. Maybe you thought you had it all figured out, but then you discovered a trainer or method that completely shifted everything you though you knew, and you feel like you are starting all over again. There is beauty in starting something new and being open and curious, and ready for new knowledge just as there is beauty in true mastery of a skill.

Don’t get so focused on the destination that you forget to enjoy getting there.

It can be so easy to be so laser focused on the end goal, that we lose sight of the richness that is the process of getting there. Maybe you just started working with a new horse and are working on getting him to a certain level in competition. Or maybe you just switched disciplines and are trying to claw your way back to the same comfort level you had in your previous world. Maybe you don’t have a clear vision of what that destination is, but you are pretty sure it isn’t where you are now. While it can be important to have goals to work towards, it can also be easy to get so lost in those goals that we end up rushing or getting frustrated with the process. Don’t forget to pause and take a moment to appreciate where you are today. If you take the time to notice where you are, you will likely find that things are changing faster than you think.

Remember to look backwards, but don’t get stuck there.

There is a popular quote “don’t look back, you aren’t going that way”. I think though that it is important to be able to look back and reflect on our past actions and methods, otherwise how can we learn from them? What good is it to only blindly look forwards if we are oblivious to a path of chaos in our wake? Look back, even when it’s uncomfortable to do so. If it’s uncomfortable because you wouldn’t do things now the way you did then, that’s a good thing, because it means you’ve grown! Try not to be too hard on your past self, as you were only doing your best with the knowledge, skill, or capacity which you had at the time.

Try not to compare your journey to anyone else’s.

Your journey is uniquely your own, and while it doesn’t hurt to emulate other equestrians who you look up to, comparing your progress to someone else’s either because you think you are further behind or ahead than them, will inevitably lead to malcontent. Focus on your own growth, be true to your feelings and your intuition, treat horses and humans the way you believe they should be treated, and like-minded people will find you. You will find a balance of supporting yourself, supporting others, and letting them support you.

Remember that growth can be painful, and progress is rarely linear. Sometimes it is two strides forward, one stride back. Wherever you are in your journey, you are progressing in a direction, and that is a scary, wonderful, amazing, organic and beautiful thing. We are so lucky to be able to do it alongside such amazing creatures as horses.

07/02/2025

The benefit of working with a pony at liberty:

In short, it shifts things from doing something TO the pony, to doing something WITH the pony.

Here we are grooming Anna at liberty in the paddock. It was her choice to come over and engage with us at all, and she is free to leave whenever she wants. This gives us motivation to make sure we are listening to her, and that she is enjoying the session. It also gives her the voice to actively participate. For example by choosing which brushes she would like or by indicating which part of her body she would appreciate being groomed.
Are there times when we need to restrain ponies while they are working with kids? Of course. But why not give it a try when we are able?

And for the safety police, a few things:

One, we have established a safe container by checking the environment for anything which might startle Anna, including locking the rest of the herd out of the space we are working in and turning off the electric fence.
Two, because we are incorporating listening to her in everything we are doing, we are likely to notice her becoming uncomfortable in any way very early on, and can safely move away or help her regulate in plenty of time as appropriate.
Thirdly and perhaps most importantly, a pony who feels safe, and like they have choice and voice in the process, is far less likely to exhibit most of the behaviours that would warrant restraint in the first place. A pony who feels heard does not feel the need to resort to biting, kicking, abruptly leaving, dragging, squashing or menacing children. A pony who feels safe is less likely to startle. And a pony who is not shut-down has a far lower chance of exhibiting sudden explosive behaviour out of nowhere.
This young client was rewarded for this gentle approach by Anna being fully engaged in the session, and gently nuzzling him back in a friendly display of mutual grooming. 💗

06/29/2025

Great reminder from Free to Be Equine Services!
As equine professionals, we got into this industry because we love horses. But when our hobbies are too close to our jobs, the lines between work and play can become very blurred. This is definitely one of the driving factors behind the high level of burnout in this industry.
This especially speaks to me, because with a chronic illness, the down-time activities are the first thing to get pushed to the side when energy levels are low. But there are work-arounds. For example today I don’t have the energy for crafting, but I am bingeing Best in Miniature on Netflix (I especially love crafting tiny things!)
Horse professionals, what non-horsey pursuits do you make time for?

Cross training is not just for horses, and it's not purely physical. Most of us know the importance of cross training our horses, which means incorporating different types of activities into their routine to increase fitness, improve performance, and reduce chances of injury. Fewer of us cross train ourselves - pursuing physical activities outside of riding in order to improve our riding. Barn chores are certainly physical, so don't discount those, but non-horse-related activities are helpful and necessary too. Even fewer of us appreciate the necessity of cross training our brains and our nervous systems, and that is what I wanted to touch on in this post.

I have hyperfixated on horses for most of my life, especially on equine health care topics. Of course I've had other interests and hobbies, but they always took a backseat to my horsey pursuits, as it happens with most horse people. After I began training as an equine bodyworker, over a decade ago now, the intensity of my hyperfixation increased considerably. There have been many years during which I exclusively focused on things that related directly to my bodywork career. I only read books, watched videos, took courses, and listened to podcasts that were about equine anatomy/physiology/bodywork - even in my off hours. Most of my friendships were with colleagues, and horses and our work dominated our conversations. I was fully immersed in the world, and had very little time or interest for much else.

I learned a lot during those years, there is no doubt. I am very grateful for the knowledge and skills that I developed during that time. But it wasn't until I experienced burnout from that hyperfixation, and began cross training my brain, that I really started to experience the level of success that I was seeking. Now, a disclaimer - my idea of success may look different than yours. I did not feel like I was succeeding when I was booked out 5-6 days per week, 6-8 weeks in advance, like I was during that phase. I feel much more successful now that I see fewer clients, work fewer days, and spend a lot of time doing things that have nothing to do with horses. I feel more successful because:

- I have the capacity to connect so much more deeply with both my equine clients and their human partners.
- I have the time to support my clients beyond their appointments, and in ways that go beyond bodywork.
- I have the flexibility and resilience in my nervous system to ground and co-regulate easily and consistently.
- I have intention and mindset around support, care, and empathy, not fixing or agendas.
- I attract clients who align with this way of thinking and being with their horses.
- I have developed my ability to zoom out, to see the bigger picture, to connect the dots, in ways that I never could when I hyperfixated.

These are markers of success to me, much more so than the bursting schedule and the constant intake of information and external validation. And so I will continue to cross train. I leave intentional time in my schedule for time spent by the sea, for tidepooling, for reading fiction (so, so much reading), for playing with watercolours, for creating with clay, for reading about marine mammals and intertidal creatures, for oracle and tarot cards, for photography, for learning about mushrooms and native wildflowers, for gardening. For doing whatever I feel like doing, even if it's sometimes nothing at all.
And even better - all of those activities are cheap or free.

Thank you Two Strides Forward Equestrian for the photo! 😍

06/27/2025

✨ What does it mean to be a trauma-informed trainer? ✨

In the follow-up to yesterday’s post on what it means to be a trauma-informed coach as it pertains to the human clients, here is the other side of the picture: what does it mean for the equines.

First, what is trauma in horses? If we remember the definition from yesterday’s post, trauma is any event or ongoing situation that is beyond the system’s ability to cope.
These single events or lasting circumstances cause significant changes in the wiring and operations of the brain and nervous system.

Of course there are the more obvious situations that we think of as possibly being traumatic for a horse, for example falling in a trailer or going through an extremely harsh and abusive training session. These would be examples of one-off events that may be beyond the horse’s ability to cope.
But I think we need to take a closer look at the ongoing circumstance examples, because they are far more common, and often far more damaging than we may realize.
Perhaps the most significant insidious one is simply basic needs not being met. If we think of a severe neglect situation, it seems obvious that this could cause lasting traumatic changes for a horse’s system. But what about if it’s at a less extreme example? Horses who aren’t able to engage in natural behaviours in their day to day life. Who aren’t able to spend their days moving, foraging, and socializing with friends. Horses who experience ongoing social, forage, or movement deprivation are less able to regulate their stress levels. Over time this may be exacerbated by the addition of chronic pain due to ulcers caused by inappropriate feeding practices, or overall pain and stiffness causes by insufficient movement and muscle wasting, or other issues. This compounds the stress levels and causes further disregulation, which causes further stress, which causes more disregulation….. When the allostatic load - the overall stresses in the horse’s life- become too high, the horses system cannot cope, and traumatic changes begin to occur.

Being a trauma- informed trainer entails recognizing when the horse may be experiencing trauma, whether it has been caused by a single event or an ongoing situation. It means educating and working with the client to ensure that the horse’s lifestyle and training practices are not causing re-traumatization.

It means being knowledgeable about the way horse’s brains and nervous systems operate, and being able to recognize when a horse is experiencing a traumatic reaction, whether it is a more obvious and dramatic activation, or a more subtle sign of shutdown. It is also important to understand what level of stress is acceptable and optimal for learning, and at what stage a horse is ready to learn.
It means having a wide variety of tools and methods for creating safety, establishing clear and effective boundaries, and developing new skills. And most importantly it means never using techniques that will cause trauma to the horse.
If we have this knowledge and these skills, we can help horses navigate their way through the healing process.
Whether I am working with a robust and happy horse, and simply looking to avoid causing trauma through inappropriate training practices, or whether I am helping a traumatized horse recover, the trauma-informed lens is something that I bring to every session with a horse.

06/26/2025

✨ What does it mean to be a trauma-informed coach? ✨

I have been seeing the label “trauma-informed” pop up more and more lately in many different contexts. As with so many good things, once it becomes a buzzword it can get used out of context so much that it loses its meaning. As I have seen this happening with this particular term, I’ve considered taking it off of my website and marketing. But instead I decided to do a post on what being a trauma-informed coach means to ME.

This is going to be a two-parter, as I believe we can’t be truly trauma-informed unless we are considering what this means for both the horses and humans that we work with, and I think both of these areas deserve their own post.

So Part 1: What does it mean to be a trauma-informed coach for humans?

Firstly, what is trauma? Simply put, trauma occurs when a situation, whether a one-off major event, or an ongoing circumstance, is beyond the system’s ability to cope.
A stressful situation is one where we may experience short-term distress in the moment, but we are able to recover fairly quickly.
A traumatic situation causes lasting changes to body and mind that we are not able to simply shake off after enough time has passed.

With that definition in mind, I’d like to be clear on what being a trauma-informed coach DOESN’T mean.
It does not mean that I am a therapist, counsellor, or mental health professional. I do not enter into the practice of therapy.

All of my training DOES, however, give me a much better understanding of exactly where my scope of practice ends, how to safely divert if things are going too close to therapy territory, and how and when to refer to appropriate professionals.
It also gives me a good understanding of the prevalence of trauma -most of us are carrying baggage from one or more traumatic events or situations. This means that as equestrian coaches, we are bound to be working with traumatized individuals, whether we know it or not. This does not mean that it is our job to help an individual work through their trauma. That would be irresponsible and dangerous as unqualified professionals. But to me it does mean that I understand how not to further traumatize a person, as well as understanding the signs that someone may be experiencing a symptom of trauma. It means being gentle and holding space, while keeping a safe container for students to learn and thrive in. It means having some good nervous-system regulation tools in my toolkit, which includes knowing when a certain technique is not appropriate to use. This approach applies across all of my certifications and programs, whether working with clients with diverse abilities in a therapeutic context, working with adults in a recreational session, or working with youth in a sport-development program. The trauma-informed lens applies to it all.
I also carry training which allows me to safely work alongside a qualified mental health professional in an equine facilitated wellness context.
So what training do I have to support the label of “trauma- informed”?
In addition to holding a basic 8-hour certificate, I have easily another 100+ hours of various courses, webinars, podcasts, books and mentoring sessions on the subject. Plus an EFW certification.

And perhaps most importantly, I have done (and continue to do) an immense amount of personal growth and counseling to work through my own trauma. We cannot effectively hold space safely for clients if we as coaches are unaware of our own wounds, or are being triggered by the people we work with.
In my opinion it is irresponsible to be working with clients, particularly vulnerable populations, if we have not done any personal work. I have seen far too many instances of unhealed people causing various degrees of damage, often unintentionally, through their behaviour. And that, I think, is the opposite of trauma-informed.

Stay tuned for part two, on what it means to be a trauma-informed trainer when working with horses.

06/24/2025

It can be hard to wait when we are impatient to get our youngsters going under saddle. But waiting a little longer in the beginning can buy years of soundness later on in our horse’s career.
In the meantime there are so many things we can do with our young ones before they are ready for real under saddle work.

Many of us have been conditioned by industry that once a horse hits 4, they're an adult and should be ridden. Some industry practices dictate that horses should be started as young as 18 months - 2 years old and many breeds have been selectively bred to look more mature at a younger age.

But maturity on the outside doesn't indicate maturity on the inside -

A horse’s skeletal development depends on growth plates — areas of cartilage at the ends of bones that allow them to grow longer. Once a bone reaches its full length, the growth plate turns to bone and fuses. Until then, it remains a weak point within the bone.

We need to remember that not all bones mature at the same time -

The bones in the legs fuse earlier - between 6 months and 3.5 years. This gives your horse their height - a red herring that they've finished growing because "look how tall they are!"

But the spine - the bit we literally sit on - doesn't finish fusing until much later - between 5 and 6 years approximately, though depending on height and s*x, it can be as late at 7 or 8.

And equally, the pelvis - an area which receives the forces from the hindlimbs and transfers it to the spine, is formed of multiple pieces which don't finish fusing until the horse is approximately 4.

With all of this in mind, it’s worth asking:

Should we really be sitting on horses whose growth plates are still developing?

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"Should I be riding my horse right now?"

Join Integrative Equine Podiatrist, Beccy Smith, and I as we discuss this topic through a variety of lenses: combining evidence-informed practice and research to give you practical skills to assess your own horse's wellbeing so you can answer the question for yourself.

30.06.2025 19:00 BST

Recording available if you can't make the live ❤️✨️

https://www.yasminstuartequinephysio.com/webinar-should-i-be-riding-my-horse-right-now

06/21/2025

Why I don’t harass riders about forcing their heels down:

If you could think of one riding instruction off the top of your head, there’s a high chance it would be “heels down”. And while it’s true having a long and anchored lower leg is very important for riding, particularly for stability in our half seat or when jumping, there’s a reason why I don’t harp on and on about it to riders.
Especially beginners.

In the beginning I like to prioritize working on a stable, fluid seat, and riding from our centre. Not only does this allow for development of independent and following hands, but it also allows for freedom of movement through our horse’s back.

As perfectly demonstrated by this young lady in the video, when we put too much focus on pushing our heels down, it causes our seat to block the horse’s movement. This effect is exaggerated even more when we haven’t yet developed a strong stack of ear over shoulder over hip over heel. Or if we have tight calves, ankles or hips. Or if we tend to take instructions very literally (as kids so often do!)

We can slowly develop some heel depth through targeted exercises both on and off the horse that promote length down our lower leg posterior chain, and develop dorsiflexion and a strong, stable and mobile lower leg.

And remember: when fixing positional flaws, it’s important to fix medial problems before distal problems. Chances are addressing the medial issue will magically fix the distal issue. For example if the high heels are being caused by an anterior pelvic tilt, no amount of repeating “heels down” is ever going to solve the issue. But fixing the balance of the pelvis will likely fix the heels. (But more on that rabbit hole another time!)

So often we see school ponies going around with contracted top lines and choppy gaits, struggling to move in a forward fashion. I think a huge factor in this is prioritizing “heels down” over following seats and independent hands. And whatever we can do to keep our beloved schoolies moving a little more sound and comfy, I believe we should attempt to do!

As demonstrated in the video, even kids can start to develop riding that not only helps out the horse, but also sets them up to be lifelong strong, mobile, feeling and lovely riders.
Keep up the good work kiddo!

06/20/2025

EDIT: Small student found. Thanks to everyone who reached out

🌟 CALLING ALL PONY RIDERS! 🌟

Rare opportunity to lesson with me if you don’t own your own pony:
I am looking for a small (under 100 lbs) human who would like to take a weekly lesson on a lovely and safe client-owned pony.
Ideally over age 7, or with enough previous riding experience that the pony will be able to get some exercise in walk and trot.
Depending on experience level and ability to groom/tack up, there is a possibility to join another young student for a semi-private lesson.
Must be available Thursday afternoons, and have horse council BC membership.
Lessons include learning about horse communication and behaviour, developing good solid basics that serve both horse and rider, and riding in a way that benefits the pony mentally, emotionally and physically. May also include groundwork and horsemanship.

Located in Mill Bay.

Contact me for more information and feel free to share with any keen young pony enthusiasts.

06/20/2025

First trot back under saddle ✅
I’ve got some lengthening and strengthening homework to do so I don’t get so tight (no-stirrup sitting trot on a forward 17.3HH Clyde after not riding more than a handful of times in three years definitely brings out the “yikes” grip response like no other 😂), but Keags was the bestest boy. 🦄