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Re: Hills and Heart Rate



Heather asked:

>I am a novice rider and have been training with a Heart Rate Monitor.  My mare
>is 5 yrs old and has very good recovery rates. 

>Her basic efficient trot Heart rate was between 120-140 on basically level
>ground.  Going Up hill (steep) however her pulse would go  up to 170-190.  We
>walked/trotted (half and half) the steep hills. I gave in to her wanting to go
>faster when fighting her would raise HR anyway.  I am worried that we went too
>fast. However she looks great and recovery HR was excellent. In fact we won
>the ride! This was our first win.  I'm concerned that I let her HR get too
>high on the hills.  What is normal? Any comments or advise are appreciated.

The recovery heart rate is your indicator of what is too much.
As long as the mare has good recoveries, you are not pushing too much.
Going up hill, a range of 170-190 is pretty normal.  If the mare wanted
to slow down, then you should slow down till her heart rate was in the
140-150 range, then push on.  But, since your mare still had go in her,
you did just fine.  At the top of the hill, or going down, she should
drop back to her 120-140 range in a couple of minutes or less.  If
you see a heart rate that stays up in the 170 range, then you know
you have pushed too hard.

On your training rides, you actually want to push the heart rate to
about 160 and hold it there for several minutes before letting the
heart rate drop back to 130 range. For the youngsters, your biggest
concern is not heart rate, but bones and tendons.  If you screw up
on the bones and tendons, the heart rate will go up as an indication
of pain and stress, and the heart rate will stay up.  But just pushing
the heart rate is not a bad thing, if you protect the legs.

When I am pushing Drake up a hill (Samm would call them mountains I think),
I can get his rate up to 200 as long as he is moving fast.  As soon as I
stop, the rate drops like a rock down the cliff.  Drake is 8.  

For your 5 year old, you want progressive stresses in training.
Each week or month, you increase the stress level on heart and
bones and such.  You give a period of recovery (a couple of days),
and then stress again.  By building the stress level, the horse 
is more prepared for the increased demands you are placing on her.
So, for the 25 that you just completed, your mare told you that
your training was paying off, you had trained her to a level where
she was ready for the extra hill work of the ride.

Good job.
--
Wendy

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 Wendy Milner                     HPDesk:   wendy_milner@hp4000
 Hewlett-Packard Company          e-mail:   wendy@fc.hp.com
 Mail Stop A2-5UB3                Telnet:   898-2182 
 3404 E. Harmony Rd.              AT&T:     (970) 898-2182
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