16/07/2024
Letโs Spill some tea ๐ธโ๏ธ
๐๐จ๐ญ ๐๐๐ฅ๐ค๐๐ซ๐ฌ/๐
๐ซ๐๐ ๐
๐ฅ๐จ๐ฐ ๐๐๐ฅ๐ค๐๐ซ๐ฌ : ๐๐๐ฅ๐ฉ ๐จ๐ซ ๐๐ฎ๐ซ๐ญ ๐๐๐ซ๐๐จ๐ซ๐ฆ๐๐ง๐๐?
This topic has come up a lot here recently in my life and it made me realize a few things, I don't talk about my free flow walker very often in conversation, show when horses are on it, or my protocol for use at Caliente Therapy LLC. If I'm being honest with you, it's my least used piece of equipment in my rehab - I donโt put rehab cases on the walker, my fitness horses donโt always like it/ are broke to it, sometimes it shows me compensation patterns, but I also wouldn't want to be without it. Walkers are a double edged sword. They can create as many problems as they can conveniences. So hereโs the tea.
There are 2 types of walkers:
๐ฏ๐๐ ๐พ๐๐๐๐๐๐ - where the horses are tied to the arms
๐ญ๐๐๐ ๐ญ๐๐๐ ๐พ๐๐๐๐๐๐ - where the horses move freely between hanging gates
For a walker to be considered appropriate for therapy use, it must be at least a 60 ft circle. Anything smaller puts added strain of soft tissue according to the vets, mentors, & rehab therapist I talked to when doing my original research. So for information on this post assume I'm talking about this size or bigger.
Walkers have been used on racetracks forever and are commonly seen at most training barns. There's a nice convenience to being able to put a young green c**t out there and let them get out their energy before you swing into the saddle. It sure beats taking chances with a cold backed one. They also provide a warm up and cool down period for horses before and after work. BUT the industry has changed.
20+ years ago a c**t breaker or trainer took 5 head of outside horses, rode pastures during the day, worked in the arena, and then hauled to jackpots during the weekend for exposure. The breaking process was allowed to be much slower. Now owners have paid a fortune on the horse, incentives, futurities, etc. and they want that c**t ready to compete as soon as it gets back home. Trainers have to take more horses to make a living, so you have to find some shortcuts along the way to get through 10 or 15 head or more, a day.
Look at the average horse owner. They work a 9 to 5 job, probably have a family, and life is always crazy-busy. Back in the day (coming from my grandparents), trainers were hauling 3-4 horses. Now theyโre hauling 7 at least. Today it's typical to see the average owner unload 3 off the trailer at a local barrel race. They're still working that full time job, so againโฆ You have to find a shortcut along the way to get everything done in a day.
This is where the issues start to happen. It's not the equipment that's the problem. It's the choices we make while using it. Operator Error.
๐ญ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ - let's talk about how a horse moves in a circle. The hind end muscles and core engage which lets the back round and stay relaxed. At a walk the spine is the most mobilized and has the most movement. Walking can help correct tension, muscle weakness, postural issues, and alignment issues. It gives the horse time to extend the head and neck down and out which stretches the spine and soft tissue (the red line in the picture which is the Superficial Dorsal Line). Working up to a short trot (not a long/fast trot) requires more core strength and also helps mobilize the hips and SI region.
Power for the turn comes from the outside hind and moves throughout the horse. The front leg can only extend as far as the hind leg can reach up under the body. This is true collection and allows a horse to maintain the correct leads at lope.
To encourage better posture, I added ground poles in our walker. It also breaks the habit of them dragging their back toes and causing weak SIs.
If you have a Tie-In walker, the horse doesn't have the option to lower their head and stretch the spine.
๐บ๐๐๐๐๐
๐๐๐๐๐ - Repetitive motion leads to increased inflammation and added fatigue. Fatigued/tense muscles are not getting enough oxygen, so they start to lose their strength. Since the horse can't tell you they are tired... Especially if you "set it and forget it" and aren't out there watching your horse work... yikes๐ตโ๐ซ... The body will create compensation patterns to continue working. Which leads to the thing we all try to avoid -> injuries.
โก๏ธ Tสส แดสษชs :
Pull in your belly, engage your core, squeeze your glutes (not your psoas or hip flexors, donโt be a cheater), and speed walk around for ten minutes without stopping or slowing down. Keep the exact same pace. Try it, for real... I bet you couldn't do it could you? Did you get short of breathe when your body started to compensate? Most of us can't hold our posture long enough to take a picture with our besties, let alone hold up that intensity for continuous exercise. Most athletes can't hold correct engagement that long, so why do you expect your horse to? This is why one constant speed doesn't work unless it's a walk or light trot where they have a chance to relax a minute, disengage or take a deep breath.
When a horse can't "escape" a task that's too hard, they compensate to keep doing what you ask. The head comes up, which hollows out the back. That slack created in the spine allows the vertebrae to dip which puts the tops (spinous processes) in a position to hit or "kiss," which over time causes damage to the vertebrae. Hence kissing spine ๐ซข. Back soreness is usually accompanied by tight hamstrings, sacral alignment issues and will lead to hock and stifle pain (which can then work its way up into the head). These issues lead to the horse wanting to brace and travel extremely stiff in the rib cage. Each rib is attached to its partner vertebrae, so if you have restriction in one you will have restriction in the other. The hip, shoulder, and jaw work as a team, so when there's limited mobility in one -> You guessed it, thereโs limited mobility in the other. What a concept right?
So now, what started as simple fatigued muscle has created compensation patterns that will cause your horse to be stiff, high headed, pulling on the bridle and not wanting to use their hind end. You just created a barrel hitter/blower and you'll be in the Facebook groups later asking for drills and what bit to use to stop this. ๐ซฃ
And the answer isn't to bit up your horse. False collection and getting behind the bridle causes the same situation and will usually result in them starting the elevate the front end.
Older more original walkers didn't have a ton of speed or power, unless you were my papaw who built one out of a 6 speed motor and then well thatโs a story๐. Today you can literally have a horse almost at a run on one. It's not like loping circles where you can put pressure on and urge that horse to move up into your bridle and then back off when you feel them strain or get fatigued. That motor applies the same intensity continuously and if you walk off from it, you have no idea how fatigued your horse is getting or how quickly. Your horse is at the mercy of hoping you don't get distracted or just trying to survive the programed settings on some units. The cardio aspect is great, but muscle tension will also lead to shortened, shallow breathing. You have to build stabilizing muscle first before you are concerned with cardio. If fatigued muscles are burning through oxygen faster than the body can provide it, you're fighting a losing battle anyway.
I have talked to MULTIPLE vets that have said barns that trot and lope a bunch on free flows have more soft tissue injuries on average. I believe it's a combination of muscle tension and change in hoof wear patterns.
โก๏ธ ๐ญ๐๐๐๐๐๐ also makes a HUGE difference. Working in sand increases the difficulty of exercise by 50%. In turn, your horse will fatigue 50% faster. I'm all for using different terrains, but they have to condition up to that workload. My walker is set up with light sand on 1/4 of the circle, 1/4 regular ground so they have a slight pull but immediately have a release from it, a slight incline on another 1/4 of the circle, & 1/4 regular ground with ground poles.
Sand and rehabbing injuries doesn't work very well. I don't put any of the active rehabs on my walker and even our fitness horses don't go more than a short trot if that. My goal is to correct compensation patterns and as much as I love my job as a bodyworker, I'm not trying to make more work for myself by creating more muscle tension.
I do love letting them walk and stretch on there and have the chance to feel how their body frees up with correct exercise (as long as they stay calm ๐
). I also like using the ProSix balance system during a workout to encourage correct movement.
If you made it this far, Iโm glad I could spill some tea on walkers ๐๐ผโโ๏ธ๐ธโ๏ธ
There is no BAD equipment... But lack of knowledge, improper use and taking shortcuts will cost you a lot of vet bills in the long run.
โ๐ผ๐จ- redraw by yours truly
๐๐- Equus Soma & Superior Therapy - muscular rehab course
