Fresh Start Equine Massage Therapy & Training Services

08/22/2022

Perfectly explained! Stretching has so many benefits. Every horse gets a good stretch after every massage!

Why is it important to stretch our horses? We have all heard it time and time again, stretch your horse after exercise, but why?
Much like human athletes (non athletes too!) our horses muscles need attention to remain healthy. Muscles can become stiff, and tight which increases the chances of a tear or sprain. We often do not think enough about injury prevention. By putting our horse through a series of gentle stretches, we increase their range of motion and ability to move more fluidly and in balance. Plus! Most horses really enjoy performing stretches 🥕

🐴10 benefits of stretching your horse 🐴
1. Increased range of motion and flexibility
2. Helps prevent injury by strengthening supportive tissue
3. Helps reduce post exercise soreness, stiffness and muscle fatigue
4. Helps improve dispositions by increasing relaxation and reducing stress
5. Increases performance on the ground and under saddle
6. Increases mental well being
7. Provides early warning signs to injury
8. Increases longevity of the musculoskeletal system
9. Fosters the ideal posture
10. Helps the rider/owner bond with their horse in new and exciting ways

Some science behind the stretch: muscles are made up of several muscle bundles, which in turn are made up of muscles fibres. These fibres have bundles called myofibrils which are rod like structures that run parallel to each other. Muscles as well as everything in the body is covered and interpenetrated by fascia. Fascia does much more than hold the body together, it also has nerves that make it almost as sensitive to touch as the skin. When it is under stress, it tightens causing restrictions and discomfort.

Book a session and I will be happy to spend the time showing and describing to you how to safely stretch your horses for maximum comfort and performance 🥰

08/17/2022

A lot more goes into training than just teaching a horse new things. Physical condition goes a long way into equipping a horse with the tools they need to preform. I put a lot of time in this mare to get her to where she needed to be physically to set her up for success in training! And let me tell you.. it paid off!

08/09/2022

Training Tuesday! This one started as a very feisty and hyper mare, with patience and time, we were able to focus/channel her feisty personality into something more productive!

07/25/2022

This is one of my favorite before and afters of my rehabilitation program. This senior gelding was a rescue that was extremely under weight and had no muscle tone. After he completed my program, he had filled out with muscle and was in the best shape he had been in years!

07/20/2022

A horse’s phycological state can play a huge role in their physical health! Massage brings awareness to where they are holding tension, allowing them to release it. The benefits of massage are endless!

*Back pain in horses can be related to psychological stress caused by aversive training *

" (...) An additional source of back pain is emotional tension: according to Ridgway and Harman (1999), pain and psychological stress may induce an extension of the spine (“hollowing the back”) and an increased muscular tension at neck or back. Several authors also suggested that emotions are a possible source of back disorders (humans: Dionne et al., 2005; Houtman, Bongers, Smulders, & Kompier, 1994;
horses: Ridgway & Harman, 1999).

Riding per se may be both a source of emotion (Schmidt, Aurich, Möstl, Müller, & Aurich, 2010) and of physical constraints, leading to a double potential effect on the emergence of back disorders (Hausberger et al., 2009, 2011).

The type of training may also affect back tension through emotional impacts. Thus, in a training task where the horses had to learn to go backwards in response to a vocal order, the horses trained using a “classical” negative reinforcement (stopping of a mild agitation of a whip in front of the horse when the response is obtained, Skinner, 1938) went backwards with a high and hollow neck, which may induce an increase of vertebral constraints (see Waldern et al., 2009) whereas those trained using a positive reinforcement (food reward as soon as the horse gave the appropriate response, Skinner, 1938) were observed more with a round neck (Sankey et al.,
2010).

Steady head carriages and roundness (here related to the use of a positive reinforcement) reflect calmness and spine welfare (Egenwall et al., 2012; von Borstel et al., 2009; Waldern et al., 2009; WarreSmith & McGreevy, 2007).

The observed prevalence of negative reinforcement and punishment in the
current education of horses (Warren-Smith & McGreevy, 2007) might lead to repeated undesired postures that might become chronic and hence a source of back disorders, even outside of work."

-✍️ Lesimple C., Fureix C., Aubé L., Hausberger M., (2016). Detecting and measuring back disorders in nonverbal individuals: The example of domestic horses. Animal Behavior and Cognition 3 (3), 159-179

07/14/2022

Having issues getting your horse to collect correctly? Soreness in the topline could be why! Soreness in the topline causes horses to hallow their backs which leads to them carrying their heads high, making the whole ride feel off.

𝗘𝗲𝗻 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝗳 𝗯𝗲𝗲𝗹𝗱 ✨

Er is op social media veel beeldmateriaal van paarden die gereden of getraind worden, waar ik niet vrolijk van word. Dit is voor veel mensen misschien wel herkenbaar.

Ik vind dat het belangrijk is om daarover te praten, om mensen te leren hoe de biomechanica van het paard werkt en waarom het belangrijk is om correct te trainen.
Helaas voel ik wel steeds meer negativiteit/verdriet als ik weer eens beelden voorbij zie komen van paarden die duidelijk pijn en/of stress hebben. En waarop dan allemaal reacties komen van mensen die het mooi vinden...

Daarom wilde ik vandaag eens een heel positief plaatje voor jullie analyseren. Ik gebruikt daarvoor deze foto van een pagina die ik met veel plezier volg: OneHorseLife

Ik zal je de lijnen die ik bij de foto heb gezet toelichten:

𝗥𝗼𝗼𝗱 - de neus van het paard op deze foto is net voor de loodlijn, hiermee voorkom je grote druk op de halswervels en het achterhoofd.

𝗚𝗲𝗲𝗹 - de afstand van kin tot borst is mooi groot. Hierdoor an het paard vrij ademen en slikken.

𝗚𝗿𝗼𝗲𝗻 - de mond, neus, oren en ogen zijn ontspannen. Ik zie geen tekenen van een painface en daar wordt ik uiteraard erg blij van.

𝗪𝗶𝘁 - je kunt precies een lijn trekken vanaf de elleboog van de ruiter naar de mond van het paard. De onderarm van de ruiter volgt deze lijn precies, hetgeen zorgt voor een fijn contact van de ruiterhand naar de mond van het paard.

𝗣𝗮𝗮𝗿𝘀 - het paard kantelt het be**en wat achterover, door aanspanning van de buikspieren en het juist gebruiken van de rug.

𝗢𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗷𝗲 - het paard begint mooi in balans te komen onder de ruiter. De sc**ft wordt gelift, het be**en achterover gekanteld en het gewicht van de voorhand en achterhand word op deze foto zo'n 50/50 verdeeld en gebruikt de achterhand hierbij goed.

𝗕𝗹𝗮𝘂𝘄 - de passen van de voorbenen en achterbenen zijn even groot. Ook dit betekent dat het paard in balans loopt. Hetgeen dit paard kan doen omdat hij zijn rug goed kan ontspannen, en de onderlijn kan aanspannen.

Kortom, je ziet op dit plaatje een paard dat de ruiter goed weet te dragen en zijn lichaam effectief en gezond kan gebruiken.
Daar wordt ik blij van, jij ook? 🐴 ❤️

07/12/2022

Saddle fit is critical! Incorrect saddle fit will lead to soreness which then leads to behavioral issues such as bucking, aggressive attitude, and overall poor performance.

07/10/2022

I haven't formally introduced myself yet! My name is Mariah Sutton, and I have just moved here from Indiana. I have been a certified equine massage therapist since 2018 and have loved every minute of it. My passion is getting your horse feeling their best so that your relationship with your horse partner can thrive! I also have experience with training horses, coaching for riders/owners, and rehabilitation programs. I'm excited to get to know you all!

07/10/2022

As a riding coach and trainer, we focus on more than just the riders performance. Through coaching, we help build the riders confidence, communication skills, patience, and many more things that reach far beyond the arena!

Psychological skills training (PST) is a proven coaching method used with athletes in a multitude of sports. This study, conducted by Middle Tennessee State University, investigated the use of PST with equestrian athletes. They found that 91% of equestrian coaches surveyed were using PST with their riders. Confidence building and goal setting were used more frequently than other skills, followed by imagery, self-talk, and task-relevant routine. Relaxation was least used. Use of confidence building, self-talk, relaxation, task-relevant routine, and goal setting were correlated to PST-attributable performance improvement by increasing self-confidence and lessening anxiety. These results suggest equestrian coaches actively seek methods for rider improvement beyond the saddle. For more information on this research, view the abstract published in the Journal of Equine Veterinary Science: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0737080621002215

06/16/2022

Hi all! I’ve just relocated from Indiana to Tennessee. I’m excited to now be available to accept new clients in Crossville and surrounding areas. I look forward to working with you and your horse partner!