Your Rider Assessment Results
Thanks for making the time to take the "What Element is Missing from Your Riding" Assessment.
I’m Nicola Smith, creator of the Dressage Rider Training System and program.
Over the past 10 years, I have helped literally thousands of riders around the world improve their riding and become the best versions of themselves, by doing ONE thing really well:
Focussing on you as a rider.
In our experience, so many riders focus on their horse’s training only, making them fitter, stronger, more supple, while forgetting it’s a partnership and neglecting their own side of the equation.
Any form of riding is a team sport. We work with our horse to train & perform beautiful dances together, creating a common language & forming an unbreakable team bond. Success in riding is to synchronize, to move as one with your horse. This coalescence, or unity, is the pinnacle we strive for.
And what we’ve found is this:
There is generally one element that is the missing piece of the puzzle… for YOU… that is stopping you from achieving this unity, and that when you fix it, will help unlock your riding ability and make all the difference in the world.
So what element may be missing from your riding?
Well, let’s get to your results :-)
Nicola Smith
- BPHED, University of Otago (Double major exercise prescription and sport science)
- Chek Holistic Nutrition And Lifestyle Coach 2
- Functional Diagnostic Nutrition Practitioner
Your Element to Improve is...
Based on what you've told me, the element that I recommend you focus on improving right now is...
"Sm"... which stands for Stamina.
Now, what does that mean exactly?
Let me begin by explaining the “Dressage Rider Training System” as a whole.
This is the Dressage Rider Training System...
At the center of the System is Coalescence, “to unite so as to form one entity”. This is what we are striving to achieve as horse and rider, the ultimate goal.
The 4 elements of Suppleness, Stability, Stamina, and Mindset all contribute towards this culmination of coalescence. Just like a rainbow needs the perfect conditions to magically appear, if any of these 4 elements are missing, coalescence or unity with your horse will not arise.
You will notice there are layers within the DRT System, like rings of a tree. Each layer you develop with time, gives you more strength and depth to each element, allowing you to achieve coalescence more consistently, and less fleetingly.
Let’s focus on the element prescribed to you that you need to work on the most right now:
Stamina
Notice each element contains 3 unique ingredients (or atoms that make up the element ;).
Stamina is achieved through a combination of Strength, Endurance, and Energy.
Let’s go through each in turn:
Strength
In dressage, or any form of riding, there is never a moment where any muscle in your body is fully relaxed. Your whole body is working together as a system. This requires full body functional strength, not just core strength.
You might already have a good base of strength if you are caring for your horse, working on the land or lifting feed bags around. However strength on its own is not helpful if you cannot sustain it for a weekend clinic or a day of competing. This is why you also need the Endurance element.
Endurance
Endurance is the ability of your cardiovascular system to sustain movement over an extended period of time. When you start breathing heavily, this is your body trying to get more oxygen into your muscles via your blood so they can keep going.
More blood goes to your muscles, and less blood goes to your head. This is why your thinking and reactions get slower as you tire.
The more efficient your body becomes at giving your muscles oxygen, the fitter you become, and the longer you can maintain your strength for riding.
Energy
Energy comes from the food that you eat, giving your body the fuel it needs to function properly. If you give your body poor nutrition, it won’t last as long as it could because it runs out of energy needed to keep your muscles moving.
If you feel tired or lethargic, it is likely you are not getting the energy you need through good nutrition.
It is this combination of strength, endurance and energy that creates the stamina you need for riding over an extended period of time.
Improving Your Stamina Allows You to:
Ride for longer & make the most of every ride or lesson
Maintain mental clarity & eliminate mistakes
Reduce your risks of falling from the saddle
Improve your reaction time
Preserve & enhance muscle mass & strong bones which become more important as you age
Enjoy your riding more
Don’t just take my word for it. Hear what other riders just like you have to say about how they have improved their Stamina within the Dressage Rider Training System, and the results they have seen…
Stamina Results Achieved by Others
"I’ve done HIIT training before, as well as yoga and weight-lifting, but not systematically and not with a complete end-to-end vision either. If you trust in the process of DRT then the results will come. I have received comments from my trainer and even people I hardly know about the improvements in my seat. Riding feels different, I feel quicker and I never get tired (I’m 52 and ride my 178cm warmblood six days a week)."
- Morgan Thomas-Tullinge, Sweden
"The ability to take on the workouts each week was very motivating. I feel much stronger. My trainer complimented me on improvements in strength and endurance in the saddle. And she does not hand those out very often. This whole program has provided me with more than just physical benefits but mental ones, too. I’ve gained confidence and calm focus through all aspects of my life."
- Terri Oliver-Guerneville, United States
"I have made huge improvements in my riding and physical fitness. I am now riding pain-free as my poor hips / lower back / core strength have improved tremendously. I’m riding sitting trot even better than I did years ago. My riding, my flexibility, strength, fitness and overall health (I’m type 2 diabetic) have improved enormously with DRT. Feeling pumped and proud!"
- Brenda Lofstrom, Alberta, Canada
How to Improve Your Stamina
Ok. You get it. You’re ready to improve your Stamina because you know it’s going to benefit you greatly in the saddle just like it’s helped these people. But how?
Read on, and I’ll show you how…
Getting Started Now - I have created some articles with exercises you can do to get started on improving your Stamina. They are listed below, do try them:
- The natural decline - Why maintaining strength is important
- Glute strengthening exercises for riders
- 7 exercises to improve your strength in the saddle
- Is running good for riders?
- 13 ways to build stronger bones & prevent injury
What To Do Next?
Maybe you’ve tried the exercises in the links above, but now you are ready to transform your riding for good! You want to work on your Stamina properly, taking no shortcuts. What’s the next step? Where do you go from here?
Well, I’ve got some good news for you that will make it incredibly easy…
Our Dressage Rider Training Program
*A Done For You Solution - It gives you the exact workouts that will improve your Stamina in the saddle. This program gives you everything you need to improve your riding, including the Suppleness, Stability and Mindset elements as well.
*MAKING IT EASY - It is as simple as pressing PLAY on the videos, following along with me, and I will take you through the workout like a group fitness class (I used to be an instructor in a prior life ;).
* PLANNED PERFECTLY FOR YOU - There is no need to think or stress about what to do, I have created this program specifically for your needs as a rider, giving you everything you need.
This program caters to YOUR fitness level, to YOUR abilities, to YOUR age bracket, and to YOUR focus as a rider.
I invite you to us for the Dressage Rider Training program.
It's a hugely popular program that we only run a few times throughout the year.
I wish you all the best with your riding, and hope you will join me on the program :).
Nicola. x
