ridecamp@endurance.net: Re: Johnna's Conditioning Plan

Re: Johnna's Conditioning Plan

Truman Prevatt (truman.prevatt@netsrq.com)
Thu, 10 Apr 1997 11:06:45 -0400

I had about 400 miles on may mare when we bought some land near
Brooksville, FL on the boundry of a state forest. This area of FL consists
of sandy hills. The area I live in (two hour south) is flat and firm
footing. I could get speed, there but little else.

The greatest jump in the level of conditioning of my mare was when we
started training the the sand and on the hills. When I first started
training there, I could eaisly get her heart rate above 190 on the sandy up
hills without going so fast as to worry about the legs. As we trained
more there it came almost impossible to get the heart rate to this level.

The change was almost immediate. We started to train there in Oct. We won
our first ride in Dec, got our first BC (with a sub four hour 50 - over one
hour faster than I did the same course the year before) in Jan and did our
first 100 (6th place) in Feb. I do not believe that we could have done any
of this if not for the hills and sand.

If I understand what TI has been trying to say, the important thing is
getting the heart rate up in intervals not the speed necessary to do it.
If you use gravity as a substitute for speed you can get the desired effect
(elevated heart rate) without putting undue stress on the legs. Also flat
out sprinting speeds over uneven sandy woods trails is not risk free for
either horse or rider.

Truman

Truman Prevatt
Sarasota, FL

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