Many people think Equine Pilates is another therapy similar to homeopathy, osteopathy and acupuncture. However, Equine Pilates is very different because it involves the horse consciously letting go of unnecessary tension. The effects of Equine Pilates may be, and very often are, therapeutic, but it much more a process by which horses learn how to help themselves. So, in every Equine Pilates session, the horse is taking an active part in the process and the Equine Pilates practitioner cannot do anything without the horses’ willingness.
If we can find the reason for the horse’s aches and/or pains, then it does not take long to put things right. Many of the common actions like standing, grazing or walking have been learned anew and those new movements may at first feel strange. The habitual way in which horses move may be the very cause of many tensions which so often lead to lameness.
These tensions begin to result in pain, which of course, makes the horse tenser and so a vicious cycle is set up. IF a horse can start to learn how to use their bodies in a different way than the muscular tensions will slowly disappear. These different ways of moving are not new to the horse, they are the ways they moved as foals, but because of internal and external pressures, horses have forgotten them.
When you do try Equine Pilates with Pilates Mastery here in Aiken, it is important to realize this reeducation does take time and often it is hard to understand what is happening for the first ten sessions. It is important that the humans do not interfere with this process by training and/or engaging in poor riding. Once the horse is better balanced and integrated, you can reintroduce work under saddle again. But, it is advisable that if riding resumes regularly, then so too must weekly Equine Pilates maintenance session. Eventually, the horse will have learned a technique which s/he can use to help himself for the rest of his/her life.
To learn more about Canine CranioSacral, Equine CranioSacral, CranioSacral for horses, Horse Speak®, Equine Pilates and/or Reformer Pilates for Humans here in Aiken, head to Pilates Mastery. If you’re looking for Pilates near me, Pilates Mastery also offers virtual Pilates sessions if you are not local to Aiken, SC. You may book an Equine Pilates or a Horse Speak® session at: pilatesmastery.org
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