Re: Beth Glace/conditioning

[fmechelh@c-s-k.de]

thanks for the good article, Tom.

My question here is again: when a horse should be trained 280 km a week for maximum performance, what's with the idea that 30-50 km (5-6 sessions) per week is enough, and doing more results in overtraining ?
How can riding 30 km per week train the structural components like ligaments and tendons, and beware of fatigue after 3/4 of a hard 80 km race, or fading away because of glycogen deficit ?
I read this recommendation frequently, even from very successfull riders, but even this couldn't overcome my doubts. So do you have a clue ?
One obvious answer to this dilemma is, more training increases risk of (and likelihood for) injury. If this is the point, than the way out means no training at all. The other answer is that multiplying the KM by 6 means that every mistake is multiplied at least by 6 in it's effect, and therefore the trainer must be much more carefully. And since this is seldom reached, most riders have a bad oppinion of doing more work. It's the same what I read in your book about thoroughbred racing. These guys who think that a horse cantering 6 miles per day over the racetrack must drop dead.
In my environment a lot of people think that a horse that is ridden 100 or 120 km per week must drop dead. Even at a speed of 9-10 km/h (5-6 mph). Most of all is just hacking. Many people don't have enough time to ride such distances, and thats OK. But I'm quite sure at least my horses are fitter and happier on a  120 km schedule than go 30. In fact, they go 45 on sunday morning (maybe in 4-5 hours), then ask for a big lunch and looked and behaved like they could go the same distance in the afternoon!
just fresh riding, trot and canter, no real strenous work or intervall training here. This is reserved for shorter rides. Either long/slow, or fast/short. The horse must be trained to be ridden for many hours, with heartrates in the 120/140 area.
I personally would not like to ride 280 km per week. Even if I had the time for.  But when the horse is sound, I think it should be capable of. That's another issue: Many, if not most of performance horses are restricted in training mileage because of injuries. So we have to train them not at what it's best, but what they can stand to stay resonable fit and sound. That's OK also. We all know this type of horses, but it's not an ideal.
On a horse treck, 400 km per week, at slow speed, should be no problem. This also is a endurnace specific training.

once I get the TrailBlazer, I read all of your articles finally...

Thanks
Frank