Recent News for Conditioning
Article
Results of Poll on Wrapping Up the Summer Riding Season
September 10, 2008
Nearly 1,000 readers of TheHorse.com responded to a poll asking, "When do you start winding down from your summer riding levels?" <TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=5 width=210 align=right... Read More
Article
Cooling Systems Help Olympic Horses Beat the Heat
August 13, 2008
Years of in-depth preparation, planning, and some luck combinedto make cross-country at the 2008 Olympics a success, according to vets on the scene. "We were lucky with the weather," said Foreign Veterinary Delegate Leo Jeffcott, MA,... Read More
Article
Olympic Eventing: Cross-Country Wet, But a Bright Day for Sport
August 11, 2008
The good news is that the anxiously awaited eventing cross-country competition at the 2008 Olympic Games was a success, with careful planning and course design, the weather, and a dollop of luck combining to produce a four-hour contest with no... Read More
Article
Ohio State Veterinarian Faces Familiar Challenges at 2008 Olympics
August 01, 2008
Catherine Kohn, VMD, PhD, Dipl. ACVIM, professor in the Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences at The Ohio State University, will be part of a multinational team of veterinarians caring for horses competing at the 2008 Olympics.... Read More
Article
Olympic Equestrian Arrangements are Years in the Making
July 27, 2008
The decision to hold the equestrian competitions of the 2008 Beijing Olympics in Hong Kong continues to be a topic of interest and debate. The events were moved because competition organizers sought to minimize the risk o... Read More
Article
10 Principles of Exercise Physiology
June 01, 2008
Basic principles you can apply to your everyday training to boost your horse�s performance. Elite athletes are always looking for an edge over their competitors, and many times they find that edge by applying the science o... Read More
Article
Heart Murmurs: No Impact on Racing Performance in New Study
April 15, 2008
According to a group of researchers from the United Kingdom, heart murmurs are common in athletic horses, but do not negatively impact racing performance. "A high prevalence of heart murmurs is known to exist in horses," explained Lesley... Read More
Article
Risk Factors for Gastric Ulcers in Thoroughbreds
April 09, 2008
Up to 86% of Australian Thoroughbred racehorses have been reported to have gastric ulcers. Many factors can contribute to ulcers, and researchers at Murdoch University set out to determine which ones were the most significant for this population... Read More
Article
Summer Heat Too Hot to Handle? (Book Excerpt)
April 01, 2008
With the exception of the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, which began in September to allow for the southern hemisphere's "reversed" order of seasons--winter in Australia is summer in North America--the summer Olympic Games generally are held in just... Read More
Article
Detecting Latent Back Pain in Horses
March 19, 2008
Even if they can't tell you where it hurts, horses with back pain will soon be able to benefit from Scottish and Austrian research focusing on the long muscles of the equine back. In the article, which is slated for an upcoming edition of... Read More
Article
Spring Training: Getting Your Horse Ready to Ride
February 28, 2008
To prepare for warmer weather, you should start getting your horse ready by checking his feet.... Read More
Article
Early Exercise and Future Tendon Health
January 07, 2008
Tendon injuries are an important cause of wastage in athletic horses, particularly (when injuries occur in) energy storing tendons--such as the superficial digital flexor tendon (SDFT)--which act like springs to contribute to movement.... Read More
Article
Strength and Flexibility
October 01, 2007
There are a variety of ways to help your horse be stronger and less stiff. For an avid horse person, little takes the breath away like watching an athletic... Read More
Article
Winding Down
October 01, 2007
Giving your horse a break from training can result in a healthier, happier horse--if you do it correctly. ... Read More
Article
Coping With the Heat
August 01, 2007
During hot weather, heat dissipation is primarily dependent on evaporation of sweat on the skin surface. Horses are capable of producing large quantities of sweat--sweating rates of 10-15 liters/hour1,2 have been reported during exercise... Read More
Article
Health Problems of Young Horses in Training
August 01, 2007
Young horses in training are vulnerable to a wide variety of problems--everything from respiratory disease to training injuries. These horses are often taken off the farm where they grew up, transported to training facilities where they... Read More
Article
Derby Trainers Going Against Convention
April 28, 2007
Several entries will have had long layoffs, something that was once unheard of Four horses have run just two prep races. Four others are coming in off long layoffs. And some didn't even race as two-year-olds. Conventiona... Read More
Article
Warming Up to the Idea
February 01, 2007
Riders understand the importance of warming up as a way to ready the horse's mind and body for the challenges ahead, but there is more to a warm-up than simple preparation. Correctly done, prior exercise substantially benefits physical performance... Read More
Article
Idaho Endurance Rider, Horse Train for Another Marathon Ride
December 28, 2006
Lisa Benner and her horse are endurance athletes. They covered 100 miles across the Sierra Nevadas in less than 24 hours, and now they're training to do it again. "It's you against the clock," Benner said of the difficult... Read More
Article
Symposium Panel Addresses Question of Keeping Star Horses in Training
December 06, 2006
The loss of star racehorses in training and the negative effect it has on the sport was a hot topic during a panel discussion Dec. 5 at the 33rd Symposium on Racing & Gaming in Tucson, Ariz. A panel that included Eclipse Award-winnin... Read More
Article
Bulking Up, Not Adding On
December 03, 2006
Although training might make your yearling look like a bodybuilder, that physique doesn't guarantee athletic prowess. Evolutionary factors--not early speed or exercise programs--determine the amount of fast-twitch muscle horses have as adults.... Read More
Article
Atrial Fibrillation Affects General Performance
October 20, 2006
Horses with atrial fibrillation (AF, disorganized electrical conduction and pumping of the atria) can have a difficult time with exercise. Scientists have shown that the condition influences the properties and blood flow in horses during... Read More
Article
An Equine Athlete's Heart
September 14, 2006
Trainers, owners, and researchers have long pondered the effects of a large heart (one that is naturally occurring and not a result of disease), and have even attempted to use heart size as a predictor of athletic ability.... Read More
Article
Interval Training: A Better Option?
May 01, 2006
Musculoskeletal injury is the main cause of wastage in Thoroughbred racehorses worldwide, with nearly 30% of all fractures being pelvic and tibial stress fractures. California studies in the late 1990s suggested fast work increased the risk of... Read More
Article
Exercise Exhaustion (Book Excerpt)
April 19, 2006
Many exercise-induced problems could be avoided by applying common sense limits to performance stresses. If you plan to compete at eventing and endurance riding, make sure both you and your horse are appropriately prepared.... Read More
