Introduce yourself and your horse!

Asphaltcowgirlx

You totally don't have to own a horse to join! Maybe you take lessons or you lease a horse? That's okay too! Maybe you consistently ride a friends horse- that works! :]

Anywho- My name is Chelsea. I'm 25 years old and have been overweight my entire life. I used to be in better in shape back in high school - which now seems like many moons ago because I was pretty active in sports and Irish dance. I danced for 10 years of my life. I was on and off with horses until 2008 when I got my first horse. An Arabian mare. She was my world but I had to rehome her due to financial reasons. I now own a 17 hand 13 year old black and white tobiano TWH. He's my first gaited horse and I love him to pieces. I really want to get in shape for not only myself but for him as well. I want to have more balance and to become a better rider. His registered name is Pushers Hi Entensity you can look him up on Allbreedpedigree. I'm kind of obsessed with that site. So if your horse is registered feel free to post a picture and the name- I'd love to look them up. I'm a nerd that way.



I'm posting this GOD AWFUL picture as motivation that I will never ever look that bad in a picture again. To the right is my beautiful bestie on her horse Cowboy. A chestnut Frame overo Paint....and too the left....Skyy and I. He looks pretty good but I look like a giant blob. See sweatshirt tummy roll. LOL Anyways great motivation because I cringe whenever I look at this picture.

19jam85

Hi Chelsea and the Group

My name is Jaimee, I am 27. I live in Auckland New Zealand.
I have been riding since I was 12 ( Lessons at a Riding School), and when I was 19 purchased my own horse. His name was Mate 15.2hh Anglo Arab, Chestnut with lots of bling. Sadly in 2007 he was PTS as after badly injuring himself in a fence, he gave up and became very depressed, and over all was not his usual cheeky self.

I use to be fitter (Swam, and played Netball as well as Horse riding) - Just like you Chelsea! But now have piled on the pounds eek.

I now own Kaz, a Thoroughbred X Appaloosa, solid bay with a blaze and one hind sock. I have had him just over a year, and we are working on his flat work. He has some separation issues, but I do want to take him out to compete him eventually...

I want to lose weight, because I feel so cruel that Kaz has to carry my weight around! Plus, become fitter for myself so I can ride better!

Feel free to add me.

epiphany29

Hi,

I am Vicki and Willow is my 7 year old TB mare that I bought 2 years ago as my present for losing 100 lbs. Since owning her I have lost an additional 35 lbs.

She is really the only form of exercise I get...and today she gave me a work out. She wasn't listening to me at all so I had to chase her around the arena to engage her brain.

We do some pleasure and low level dressage. She enjoys trails and being lazy (well except when she does the wonderful TB overreact). I love how much she has taught me and am grateful that I finally have an exercise program I can stick to.

Vicki

Hayley_2012

Hi everyone,

Im so glad ive found this group - I didnt think anybody else who was into horses was overweight apart from me! I started riding when I was about 10 then stopped when I went away to uni and piled on the pounds.....and here I am, 10 years later -still carrying the extra weight and too scared to go back riding incase I exceed riding school weight limits! But im making changes now and will hopefully be back in the saddle in the next couple of months....fingers crossed )

Lovely to meet you all!

x

lyric1uk

Hello!

I'm in the UK so hope it's ok to join.. I'm also not overweight now but it was because of my horses that i lost the weight!!

I have 3... my old Arab boy Khattim who is 21. My 15 yr old ex show/event horse Fly...she is a Part bred Arab coloured mare & was amazing at everything she did but got injured back in 2007. After a year off she still wasn't right so we put her in foal to a Trahkener & I now have her 4yr old son Spyro ..my profile pic is him as a foal!

it was to be lighter to back him that I set about losing weight last year..28lbs down & we started riding him in May...he's fabulous!!!

Sue

ReedTf

Hi everyone,

I saw this group and thought this is perfect! Currently getting to ride my horses again is one of my biggest motivations. I have two Arabian mares. One is pushing 20 (Jasmine) and the other is her daughter 12 (Sassy). Recently I was trying to give my nieces riding lessons and needed to hop on my girl Sassy for minor corrections. I actually felt guilty for doing it. I may not be the heaviest person, but if I want to ride my 14.3 light boned Arabian I have to lose some massive weight. My older girl Jasmine is my treasure in life and I have been too afraid to get on her because of my weight and her age. She is physically fit and ready, but I feel it may be bordering on torture for me to ride her about.

I have ridden and trained Arabians for a long time. I would still be to this day, but back injuries piled on other medical issues has prevented me. I would be more than content to ride my girls gilt free for awhile. I certainly will not be getting on either of my own horsesuntil I drop weight... Till then I am stuck with my Mother's paint (Bart) who I must say is boring and slow .

marikaCL

Hi

My name is Marika and i'm 24.

I don't have my own horse although that is a dream of mine, but I have been riding for about 2 years now and love it.

skuehn48

Hi: My name is Sue and I am 65. I have been a rider most of my life but never owned my own horse until I was 37. At that time I bought a very green 6yo Quarter horse Moose (registered Brandon Valley Red, however he greyed out and was white by the time he was ten) and he and I had 24 wonderful years together before a thyroid issue caused me to put him down. Now I own a 23yo Quarter horse mare, Popper's Red Jule. I have had her for seven years. She was a 4-H show horse before I had her and the first time I took her down a hill on a trail ride I thought she would fall on her nose. Since then we have done a lot of trail riding and she is great. She is 14.2 hands and stocky and I do not worry about her carrying my weight but I really have issues getting on and off partly because of knee replacements but mostly because of my weight. I never had weight issues until I became pregnant with my first child. Since then it has been a constant thing. In 2004 I lost a lot of weight but have slowly put most of it back on. If I am to enjoy my retirement the way I want to then the weight has to go! Happy trails everyone.:happy: Sue

xxghost

Hey all!

My name is Shelby. I'm 21. I am a senior at Michigan State University, duel majoring in political science and secondary education, with a natural science minor. I'm going to teach middle school math and science! I enjoy shooting .22 and air rifle, and playing polo for my university teams. I also go on paranormal investigations, because it gives me an opportunity to study history, travel, see old buildings, spend time with celebrities (Steve from Ghost Hunters and Josh Gates from Destination Truth are regulars), and scare myself silly!



This is my beautiful girl, Annie (High Tide Arianne). She is a powerhouse - a big girl with a bigger attitude. But she and I have always gotten along really well. No one else in my family can ride her due to her rough canter, so I'm really the only one. And we've definitely bonded because of it. We did everything back in our glory days - jumping, dressage, trail, English, western, reining, gymkhana, showmanship - right up until I was too old for 4-H. Now she's fat and happy at my parents house, and I try to get out there and trail ride whenever I can with my younger sister. She has a Quarter Horse gelding.

We aren't the only one's with horses in my family. My grandparents manage a Standardbred training and breeding facility that has been in the family for ages. It has been such a cool experience growing up around that, and it is a real shame that the industry is suffering so much, especially here in Michigan.

I also have a small zoo at my house! Two llamas, two miniature donkeys, two cats, two dogs, a fish and a hedgehog! The hedgehog lives in my apartment with me. (:

I can't wait to get to know you all!

belles783

Hi everyone!

I am so excited that I found this group! My name is Julie, I am 30 years old and live in Rhode Island. I work for a small law firm, and sitting at a desk all day absolutely does not help with weight loss lol! I joined my fitness pal to lose weight and to live a more healthy lifestyle, and I can't wait to start seeing progress.

My horse is named Tank and he is (believed to be) a Belgian draft cross, although we don't know for sure... I have owned him for a year and I am obsessed with him! When I first got him he was very shy, nervous and green, but we have made so much progress in the past year. It has been a lot of hard (and by hard I am referring to the ground I have landed on several times lol) work and we still have lots to learn together, but I am so proud of him and the progress we have made. I am lucky enough to board him right across the street from my house, a two minute walk, so I do all my own daily chores and get to see him every day. I am not into showing, but we did just complete our first ever hunter pace and I almost fell off my seat when I learned we came in first and got a blue ribbon! My goal was just to finish lol!

Can't wait to get to know everyone and to see what kind of discussions we come up with

Julie

1princesswarrior

Hi All,

Thanks for forming this group! I can relate to many of you in that I didn't want to break my horse, Disco. He's in my ticker. I have him and another Arabian gelding Mateuss, 14. Sadly, Disco was recently diagnosed with Wobbler's disease so he is getting a year of field rest with his breeder until we can see if he is strong enough to be trained in carting. I just got Mateuss about 3 weeks ago so we are just now getting to know each other and I don't have many pics yet, he is 15.2 hh and I am hoping to do starters eventing and maybe even beginner novice with him and some endurance races next year.

I started riding in 2009 and began working at an Arab farm and lost 40 pounds, then tragically it burned down and I gained all that weight back. I lost my first horse in the fire. Then I got Disco in 2011 after the fire when he was 4 and only 14.2 at the time and I swore I would break his back so he is my motivation to get healthy and strong. Mateuss being older only strengthens that motivation.

I have a lesson later today so I'll see if someone will take some pictures of Mateuss and me. He's a lighter bay with three white socks and a white star. His registered name is simply Mateuss.

Right now I get a leg workout every time I ride because Matuess hadn't been worked in two years and he learned that if he quit working with his other owner she would get off of him, she calls him lazy, I call him pretty darn smart.

I also board him where I take care of almost all of his daily chores and I work there part-time in trade for discounted board.

My one riding goal in addition to staying on my horse is to be able to mount from the ground some day. Right now my stomach gets in the way and I can't lift my butt up with one leg only ... but I'm getting closer.

Healingnutritionsolutions

YAYYYYY!!! Super and about time for this group! So glad a MFP friend found y'all! I am 41 years old now and not at all as limber or as light as I used to be. I started my love affair with horses years ago when I was a teen with a mustang fresh off the Nevada desert... since then I have owned various horses throughout the years, including Arabians, Morgans, Quarter Horses and the Mustangs. I have always ridden western, working on actual cattle ranches, rodeoing some, and training horses for several years. My first daughter changed that in 1996, when I had to get a real job that paid the bills and started me on the path to a nursing career and upteen years of school. I continued to ride some, but at the time I was a single parent and time limitations took over. I have been horse-less for the past 10 years when I moved to the southern US to marry and continue building our family.

I will get some photos up later, but a couple of years ago I was given a young Quarter horse filly, "Belle"- rescued from overcrowding - and purchased the palomino, "Dawn" - also a rescue from abuse - she is shown in my photos. I have done only ground work with the baby Belle since she is still struggling to get some weight on her, but is doing much better this year. Dawn is now green broke, but I can't let my kids on her unless I am leading her, she is still really spooky and has some terrible trust issues with men.

My goal is to just keep working with them both, build their trust, confidence, lose weight myself, gain flexibility, and finish up my masters degree - then next summer start more intensive work. If all works out my middle daughter would like to do barrels and poles, etc on Dawn and we'll see what Belle shows an aptitude for. Really these are just super pleasure babies, and are cared for like our dogs, except they aren't allowed in the house, and they don't get bones for snacks

Asphaltcowgirlx

Oh wow! It's been great getting to read all about you and your horses! It's amazing just how much of a positive impact they play in our daily lives! Can't deny what great weight loss motivation they are either! I look forward to hearing more from you and seeing what discussions we come up with! Maybe a group challenge even? I'd love to hear ideas and Feel free to share!! Keep pictures coming as well! I'd love to see them!!

JediMomof3

HI! I am so glad that a friend found this group! I've been trying to figure out ways to find other friends on here who ride! My name's JC and I am 41. I've always loved horses and rode as often as my parents would take me when I was younger. I got my first horse, and appy, when I was 14. I've ridden on and off for years. I started putting weight on at 20 in my first semester of nursing school when I packed on 50 lbs. and I just kept going up. It became difficult to keep riding horses with my weight and with work, and my first husband really did a number on my confidence. I've yo-yo'd a few times but after about 4 years ago, when we had a stillbirth, I kind of gave up and my weight skyrocketed.
Now I have my Standardbred, Dakota, who is 24, I've had her since she was 8. I really stopped riding her when I got on her and she sagged, talk about feeling guilty! UGH. My kiddos have really gotten involved with 4H and the 4H leader as gotten me on her horses and mine several times over the last 2 years. I really hated how I looked last year at fair riding Quadrille with the 4H leaders and parents, but this year I felt much better and more confident as my balance is finally getting better. Dakota just got over lameness, she stepped wrong at Quadrille practice, so I have been riding my teenagers quarterhorse Buddy, he's the one in my profile pic, who is 25. He's speedy for an old guy! I hope to be able to eventually get a younger horse that is a bit quicker than Buddy, I think I'm finally ready. I like to just ride around the arena, the trails, and do play days with the kids and friends! I would like to try a season in CGA ~ California Gymkhana Assoc. but with the Jr. rodeos, kids sports, and dance I don't have a lot of time for me!
I feel stronger then I used to and I really want to drop more weight as I feel like I slow the horses down.
I have a lease horse, from our 4H leader, a quarter horse for my daughter, an arab who is older and showing a lot of arthritis in his knee, we're going to have to make the big decision before winter comes, a Welsh Cobb pony, that we are going to train to cart, a tennessee walker/arab that my middle son rides, and a mini stud who just turned 4, we are working on training him now and will eventually cart him and my son will help train him to ride, if he throws good babies next year we will keep him a stud otherwise he'll get the big Snip Snip.
We also have a steer that my son and his friends practice riding on, two ewes, two goats, two rabbits, a few fish, cats, and dogs.
I'm so looking forward to reading all about everyone's adventures and hopefully sharing some of my own!!!
I was trying to figure out how to post a pic of Dakota and I but I'm not sure how to post on here. If anyone friends me I have pics on my profile page!

micheledavison39

Thank you so much for this group! It is good to know that there are other people of substance that are riding too.

My name is Michele, I am 36, 220lbs and work all day in an office. I don't currently own a horse but I work with 36 wonderful ones nights and weekends when I teach therapeutic riding and take lessons myself. I actually starting riding a friend's horse bareback when I was 7 and pestered my parents for a horse EVERY possible gift giving holiday until they gave in when I was 12 and I started lessons at a jumper stable with my own OTTB mare. I had to sell Rose when I was 20 and really started packing on the pounds when I wasn't riding regularly anymore.

About 8 years ago, I was introduced to Ironstone Farm and absolutely fell in love with the place and their amazing horses and ponies. I had serious fear issues about riding due to an accident and back problems so I just started riding again about 3.5 year ago on a 16.2HH Suffolk Punch named Clint who is a "steady Eddy". Typically, I now ride an 18HH, 2000lb Percheron named Milo who likes everything to be exactly HIS way so sometimes riding can be interesting. I also alternate with a percheron/morgan cross and a couple of Suffolks but Milo is my "main man".

Long term, I want to be able to ride some of the smaller horses on the farm, so I have to get down to under 180. There are sometimes I just go to the farm for a "pony hug" when I am in need of an understanding shoulder that won't say a word but will let me lean on them until I can go on again on my own. They are my motivation and my rock.

SweetIDRider

Hi! I'm new to the group! I'm a horse person, love Idaho, a mom to a 3 yr old and a 1 yr old and I'm happily married to combat vet who has really over came some obstacles in his life since military life and also has been super supportive of us getting on a healthy lifestyle; I'm just so so proud of him!

I ride a purebred Arabian Stallion, he's black too but barely 15 hands so he really doesn't fit the Walter Farley Black Stallion description lol. I also ride a Arab/Appy cross gelding. He's super sweet and a little goofy but awesome stamina and full of energy so i used to do endurance riding with him. hoping to get back into after being away for 5 years!

TeresaMarie46

Hello,

I was wondering if any ladies lived here in Az? I don't have my horse here
she is in Washington State. She is a QH/Arab cross, and her name is Tic-Tac.

I just thought it would be great to meet like minded people that are both
MFP users as well as horse friendly.

Thanks
Teresa

Kickbox9Bitch

Hello everyone My name is Mari (like Marie but spelled weird) and my horse's name is Sora she is a 5yr old TB mare built like a warmblood personality like me. Feisty, sweet and loving lol.....with a side of meh...lol! I ride dressage love love love....it! I respect natural horsemanship and having communication with your horse I hate the old manhandling ways and cannot stand animal abusers. I like humans but, LOVE animals! Hope to make some new and awesome healthy new friends!

thelitas

Hi- I'm new to the group and just wanted to say it's been nice reading about everyone's journey and, of course, their horses.

I have been riding forever- I was that lucky kid whose mom ran a breeding farm- so I grew up showing AQHA and 4H. At 12 I got in to dressage, and I've been there ever since.

My horse's name is Narok. He's a 16 year old Swedish Warmblood, and I show him at 4th/PSG. I also weigh over 200 pounds and didn't start my weight loss journey until after doing a LOT of showing on him, so I hope I can be inspiration for anyone who is bigger to know you can be both effective and pretty while showing.

My two goals are to fit in to my old show breeches from my early 20's, and to be fit enough to take him out at Grand Prix next year. He's able, I just need to get myself to that point!

Anyway, I look forward to chatting with you all!

featherbrained

Hello, All!

My name is Ange and I have been horsecrazy for pretty much all of my 38 years. My mom tells me the only thing I ever drew as a toddler was horses, and that my favorite color was brown LOL

I have had my heart horse for 8 years. I got him as a 2 yr old, and we learned everything together. He is a 16.2HH solid colored PaintXBelgian with a heart of gold. We trail ride, alone. I rent acreage near my home for him and am his exclusive caregiver. I ride every chance I get, even though I get looks.

Sully's (Sullivan) weight is something I have to closely manage as he can rise to 2000lbs without blinking, so we carefully utilize dry lotting and grazing muzzles to keep him at 1350-1400lbs, his "fighting weight". I had a realization that I work so hard to keep my animals healthy (also have two cats, a blue heeler and 21 laying hens!), why don't I do myself the same courtesy???

I want to ride farther, harder, and longer than I currently do. My goal is for us to do some day-long rides, and hit some backroads around here I've never been on before.

I've been on MFP (under a different name) for about 5 years. in 2010 I lost over 100lbs using this site, and I felt awesome. Sully thanked me! Over the last 3 years, most of that has crept back on, and I am pretty disgusted with myself. two weeks ago I decided enough was enough. So here I am - again!

I have so much to lose. I am currently over 300 lbs ( hopefully this weigh in will put me below, I've actually lost 10lbs in the last 9 days.) I am almost 5'11, and very muscular (folks are shocked when/if I tell them what I weigh. Everyone puts me 50lbs lighter than I actually am.

In addition to riding Sully in our Aussie poley saddle and Easyboot Bares, I bike the mountain roads around my Blue Ridge home, and walk anywhere from 1 to 3 miles every day. The hills around here are killer. So activity truly is no problem for me!

Nice to meet you guys!

AnnaZimm70

Hi All. I've been riding since I was in 2nd grade. Got my first horse at 10. When I was 14 I got a 2 year old Arab who I trained myself and had until his death in 2012 (I had to put him down just before his 30th birthday). Miss him always. Then, last year I got a 7 year old OTTB straight off the track. She's 2 hands taller than my old guy and a completely different ride, but she's coming along great (except for a set back this summer when she had an abscess that finally came out her coronary band). My hope it to, after many, many years of just riding for pleasure, get back into some lower level eventing.

This summer we also got a 13 year old standardbred for my daughters (9 & 11) to ride. The 9 year old doesn't really want to ride much, but the 11 year old seems fully addicted :-)