Fitness isn’t just about improving a horse’s performance under saddle. Whether hacking, eventing, dressage or something else is your aim, being fit for the job has a multitude of health benefits as well, most notably for the horse’s heart.
A horse’s heart rate is a crucial metric for assessing their overall health and it offers insights into their fitness, recovery and even potentially any health issues that they may be suffering from.
At rest, a horse’s heart rate typically ranges from 28 to 44 beats per minute (bpm). It can increase significantly during exercise, reaching over 240 bpm during intense activity.
A fit horse will show more efficient cardiovascular function with quicker recovery times, while prolonged or erratic heart rate recovery can indicate over-training, stress, or even health concerns like arrhythmias or respiratory issues.
Monitoring heart rate with specific tools can guide tailored training programmes, helping horses and riders to reach their goals more strategically while avoiding over-exertion.
By keeping track of data, such as heart rate against speed or elevation, you can form a true picture of how effective your sessions are for getting a horse fit. For example:
- Did you ever get your horse into an anaerobic zone?
- What speed did they reach?
- How much time did they spend in each gait?
These are all questions that are near impossible to answer without the use of a heart rate monitor.
Anaerobic heart zone
Working a horse enough so that they begin to enter the anaerobic zone is crucial for any rider wanting to see results in their cardio training.
A horse’s heart rate will enter this zone when it reaches 80-90% of its maximum capacity, which is typically considered to happen when their heart rate goes above 180 bpm.
However, it is during this time that the horse’s body is supplying energy primarily through anaerobic pathways, which breaks down sugars in the muscles.
Working anaerobically can also help to build muscle mass and improve the horse’s oxygen consumption and tolerance for lactic acid build-up.
However, working in this zone should be done carefully and thoughtfully as it can be stressful. The horse will be blowing hard and potentially sweating.
This is when a heart rate tool comes in handy, as it can be used to keep track of their individual stats.
Keeping track
Keeping a record of ridden sessions and their heart rate during these pieces of work is important for monitoring improvement and being able to accurately assess how fit a horse is.
Learning to evaluate the reports and stats you get from a heart rate tool is a big part of this.
My last bit of advice is that with any fitness session you must always ensure that your horse has a sufficient cool-down period by walking them on a long rein for at least 10-15 minutes.
This should be sufficient time for them to stop blowing and heart / breathing rates to return to normal, but extend if your horse needs you to.
Main image © Your Horse Library/Sally Newcomb
