There are many factors that should be considered when looking at a horse’s fitness regime and some will not work with every horse the regime should be adapted to suit the racehorse in training. When training a racehorse you train for strength, fitness, a healthy and happy horse, to educate the horse so they become confident, routine and an individual programme for each horse.
Heart rate monitor
Horse fitness can be measured using a heart rate monitor and knowing how long it takes for a horse to recover to normal heart rate after exercise. When using a heart rate monitor to see how fit the horse is becoming it is very important to keep records this will indicate over a period of time if the horse’s fitness regime needs to be changed. Using a heart rate monitor will show how the
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A treadmill encourages the horse to work straight and do not have the weight of a rider on their back this is good as the will not be twisting their back to allow them to work with the weight of a rider on their back. On some treadmills the treadmill can be inclined so the horse thinks they are working uphill but the treadmill should be adjusted to suit the horse. The surface on a treadmill can be very hard which could cause concussion with some horse but the surface on the treadmill is consistent. Treadmill can be used when the horse is known to have back problems. The trainer can control the speed, incline and time that the horse spends on a treadmill. A treadmill helps the horse with overall fitness, balance and helps maintain the muscle within the horses hind legs. A treadmills allows the trainer to assess fully the horses way of going and fitness level. When using a treadmill training aids can be used to ensure that the horse has engaged its hind quarters and is working into the