There are so many ways to keep fit that it can sometimes feel a little overwhelming. For a way to stay healthy and have some fun too, why not consider giving horseback riding a try?
Horseback riding is great for your physical and mental health. Here are a few more benefits you’ll enjoy when you start to ride!
1. Strengthens Your Core
Horseback riding is an excellent workout for your entire body, and it mainly helps to strengthen your core. Once you start, your abs, back, and pelvic muscles will all thank you. To stay balanced on your horse, you’ll need to engage your core correctly.
2. Improves Co-ordination
When riding a horse, there are several things to do at once to stay on the animal and guide it appropriately. By learning to control your horse’s speed and direction, you’ll develop valuable skills that will help you in other sports and your daily life.
3. Boosts Mental Health
If you’re hoping to reduce anxiety and stress, horseback riding is something to consider.
The combination of physical exercise, being outside, and interacting with animals is a winner — horseback riding has even been proven to have positive effects on military veterans living with post-traumatic stress disorder. Try horseback riding with friends too, and get some socializing done!
4. Burns Calories
As you may expect, horseback riding does indeed burn calories. Riding for 45 minutes at a walk, trot, or canter can burn up to 200 calories, while this can increase by up to seven extra calories per minute if you improve the pace. If you’re not a fan of running or other cardio exercises, you may decide to give riding a go.
5. Improves Posture and Balance
With the right horseback riding equipment, like the boots in this article from countryandstable.com, the sport will encourage you to improve your posture and balance. Because it targets core muscles, it helps you to promote your posture and balance, too — being off-balance when riding a horse can be dangerous.
6. Develops Muscle
It’s not just your core that benefits when you try It. To improve muscle tone and strength throughout your body, get on that horse!
Even when you aren’t riding, you’ll develop your ‘stable strength’ as you work hard, grooming horses and mucking out stalls. It’s a tough job, but you’ll soon see the benefits!
7. Gets Your Brain Working
As well as being great for your mental health, it also keeps your brain active!
Horseback riding improves your cognitive ability as the vibrations the horses produce trigger the sympathetic nervous system, but it’ll help you develop problem-solving skills. You can’t switch off when you’re riding a horse!
Give Horseback Riding a Try
With all these great benefits to horseback riding, why not give it a go? Even if you’re a complete beginner, everyone has to start somewhere, so there’s no harm in starting from scratch. Get started today!
If you’re looking for more advice on living a healthier lifestyle, check out some of our other posts.