AmandaDanceMore Member

Flexibility is good for everything, but I do think being flexible can help a lot in your riding. Yoga done well also helps you correct your posture and alignment, which is vital to using your aids correctly and sitting squarely on the horse.

I did a proper dressage school on my horse yesterday for the first time in close to a year (I have plopped around a bit with him and he has a kid that is competing him some, but I need to tune up him upper level work). I now understand how I was so fit and skinny when I rode 4 or 5 horses a day, plus all the stalls,…

I don't ride like I used to, but when I was riding several horses every day, I found the things that helped me the most were cycling (for cardio and strength), exercises that improved my core strength (not just crunches. Core meaning from my quads and up), and yoga to help both my flexibility and to my posture and…

I find that when I think of exercise as "exercise" I get very bored and hate it. I seek out things to do that I enjoy, instead, that get my heart rate up. I love walking and especially hiking in the mountains. I love yoga (which isn't terribly strenuous but is better than sitting on your butt), and get my butt kicked at…

Just a couple of places.

I am a huge fan of ballroom dancing and i am a big believer in its ability to teach you serious body awareness. I was a decent competive horseback rider when I took up ballroom and considered myself pretty aware, but nothing compares to how aware I am now. That being said, it isn't an inexpensive hobby and quality…

I'm not a huge breakfast eater. My go-tos are typically soy or almond milk yogurt with granola, peanut butter on a slice of whole grain toast, or, if I've got some time and feeling extra hungry, avocado toast with varying amounts of creativity. May or may not have some sort of fruit, as well wth any of those.

Walk at home, slowly building up time/distance. So easy/short hikes when you can, gradually biking up the distance, etc. There's no reason you can't hike overweight, but if you're not fit and used to at least walking a couple of miles, a mile hike up a mountain can be really difficult. Be kind to yourself by working your…

Ugh. Any type of exercise that requires me to be stationary, even while watching something or reading, is pointless and torture. I MUCH rather be going somewhere or accomplishing something. Give me a good hike, a nice bike ride out in the country, or let me nail my tango with my dance partner. Treadmills and stationary…

Gu is so gross and when I was cycling a lot and doing high mileage you practically had to hold me down to get me to use one. They do help, though! I prefer Shot Bloks, too, and find those pretty easy to get down. I've never used them pre-workout. Considering how brick like they can sit, I don't think I ever would. A banana…

Slow down, shorten your stride, make sure you're landing mid foot, reduce your distance. I did all these things after being just like you and was able to avoid them. If I get them, I ice and back off the running. Maybe a much slower pace or less distance, or no running at all until they feel better. There's some really…

I don't ride as much as I used to (re-prioritized my life a bit), but I was a professional in the horse industry for well over a decade. And, yes, I was very fit (not just from riding, but everything else that comes with running farms and teaching). I could eat like a total heathen (pretty much existed on coffee and…

I would say 50-75% of the water I drink (and I drink almost nothing but water) is seltzer or club soda. I see no ill effects. I do keep breaking Soda Streams, though.....I think I like my water too aggressively bubbly for the mechanics of them!

I tend to use this as a guide, though I usually err on the side of far fewer calories. https://www.google.com/amp/www.popsugar.com/fitness/Total-Calories-Burned-During-Popular-Yoga-Classes-16392584/amp

I don't find walking or yoga boring at all, so I would do those. I walk tons (and hike at least once or twice a week), and I enjoy yoga but forget to make time for it regularly. I hate the gym and I've yet to like any workout videos save some yoga ones.

Here's a little video of my dogs climbing up a portion of our "home" trail. This is a trail I'll often go to if I don't have tons of time but want to get into the woods. The video doesn't make the elevation gain obvious, but it's pretty steep through here. We also went down this section.…

I hike and walk a lot. To some extent, I'm sure it can be dependent on the type of terrain you hike in. My hikes are in the mountains with lots of climbing, rock scrambling, and constantly changing footing. My walks aren't nearly as intense, despite walking in a hilly area. I also typically carry a small day pack when I…

I stopped wearing mine several months ago when it malfunctioned and haven't missed it. I didn't find it changed my habits all that much, it just had the added "bonus" of making me feeling guilty if I had a lazy day or a busy day that didn't give me an opportunity to get steps in. I find I'm either going to get tons of…

Yoga and Pilates and good dance technique. I would assume head spins (if head spins are what I think thy are) are something you have to work up to, like head stands and other inversions in yoga. So, take your time and be careful. I feel like doing those wrong could be very dangerous.

Walking and hiking are my preferred form of exercise because i am outside and with my dogs (I love cycling, as well, but there are too many yahoos on the roads around me and I don't have the time most days to pack up the bike and get it to the trail). When I'm walking AND hiking (5-8 miles on rugged trails. Usually do that…

Broken and cracked ribs are no joke. They hurt way more than people realize and, if your fracture comes apart, your risk puncturing a lung. Honestly, I don't even know how who can think of exercising...I had just a cracked rib a few years ago, and laughing slightly too hard would seize me up with pain (added bonus: I was…

I some how got talked into trying it. I did it for 2 weeks, gained 4 lbs, was constantly starving, and missed eating food. Yeah, I had some veggies and fruit for snacks (although they encourage you to eat their snacks instead of fruits and veggies, etc), and I had a proper meal a day, but I just prefer to EAT my food…

I love quinoa and eat it quite a lot. I use it like I use rice or couscous, however it does have a nutty flavor, so you may have to adjust recipes a bit if you use it.

I hate the gym with a passion. I ran on a treadmill at hotel a few nights ago and thank god for wifi and a good show on Netflix because it was painfully boring. I don't love moving heavy things around for no purpose. It is all just mind numbingly boring. So, I don't. I walk and hike a lot, I do yoga, I do an activity that…

Every day. No one would want to be around me if I eliminated sweets.

How about queuing up some YouTube yoga videos or some such thing? I TRY to get some good yoga practice in on the days it's just tooooo cold to do much outside. It isn't the same as going for a run or a taking the dogs for a good long walk, but it gets me sweating a bit and my heart rate up.

When I use the recipe builder, I just put in how many servings it makes (sometimes having to guess a bit). Seems simple enough to me!

Considering all the vegans I know eat TONS of veggies, I would just get your protein and then eat the veggies he eats. Seems simple to me, unless he is more of a breaditarian and lives off of PB and Js (my vegan brother admits that this happens to him occasionally when he gets lazy....we won't talk about the fact that he…

I don't really have any trouble with it, but I still eat a lot of the same "bad" things I always have. I eat a lot of healthy stuff, too, but I haven't cut anything out, just changed the way I approach it. I am usually pretty well in the range I aim for. Occasionally, I'll be a bit short because I've not been very hungry…

Hahaha!!!!! Yes. I work in a fancy-schmancy inn and restaurant. Thank god we don't get a ton of free food as I'd be the size of a house. :wink: