Activate Your Seat

16/02/2026

Very excited (and also slightly bricking it!) to be a demo rider in the upcoming British Eventing Scotland Pippa Funnell Masterclass this Saturday.

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1F9qCyQD9n/?mibextid=wwXIfr

So this week we are going to introduce you to all our demo riders for Saturday night at the Pippa Funnell Masterclass.

First up we have Maeve Sheridan:

I am the fifth child of six children from a completely non-horsey family, and for some unknown reason I was obsessed with horses from the age I could talk. My parents eventually relented and let me join a riding school when I was 10. This was on an island in north Donegal so we learned to ride on roads and on the beach, and did all our schooling and jumping on the same beach.

I did a degree in physiotherapy and a masters in veterinary physiotherapy so I could work with horses and horse riders. But I didn’t get my own horse until I was in my early thirties. I did a bit with him, a beautiful big ex steeplechaser, but then had two kids and just hacked a lot whenever I could get a spare hour. I lost him after six years and then bought an Irish horse and started to slowly get back into jumping.

After a few gins I signed up for the wobbleberry challenge, went on a very steep learning curve, and crawled my way round a BE80 at the age of 39. Then I was hooked! I did a few BE90s (slowly) over the next few years with the same horse, but it wasn’t his favourite thing and so I sold him to a lovely hacking home and went to look for my new event horse.

I very quickly realised that what I wanted and needed were at least double my price range and then happened upon an advert for a newly backed 3 year old that I liked the look of and could afford, flew to Ireland on my own to try him and the rest is history.

Pronto is a complete gem, half Irish draught and half thoroughbred with a lovely brain and a forward attitude. When he was five we did two BE80s and two BE90s. And then last year we did eight events and had a pole at each until the last one, the Scottish Champs at Scone, where we managed our first double clear and scraped a ticket to Badminton Grassroots Championships. We are currently counting down the weeks until this, and in full throttle training mode!

My aim is to complete at Badminton and have a good time, and then hopefully move up to do my first BE100.

15/02/2026

12 weeks to go!!!⁣
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And what a week! Travelled down to with to train at the most amazing facility.⁣
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I jumped things I genuinely never thought I’d be capable of. Pronto was on fire. I’ve had him since he was three and have done everything myself, and often it feels like the blind leading the blind. But he has the best brain, we’ve had fantastic training, and he really feels like he loves his job and trusts our partnership.⁣
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He’s now on a mini holiday while I take the kids to see my family in Ireland for a few days. And then next week is another exciting one!! ⁣
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13/02/2026

⁣🌟 Client Focus Friday 🌟 ⁣
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“I got the bungi with the level 1 ⁣video at the end of November, and not only do I feel more comfortable in the saddle now, I also have got much more control over my hips and seat. ⁣
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I feel the precision and symmetry of my aids has improved greatly too, and the effects the programme has had on me are reflected in my horse.⁣
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What’s more!! My back pain - the one I was very much treating as a constant in my life - is gone!! Out of the eleven exam periods I’ve had in my uni career so far, this one was the first one when my back did not complain even once, and that’s something I did not expect to experience, ever!!⁣
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Activate Your Seat is a life (and back) saver!!⁣
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Aleks Burkiewicz, Poland⁣
Facebook Review⁣
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Wow, what an amazing review!! ⁣
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❤️ Thank you so much for this Aleks!! ⁣
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I’m so delighted to hear you are having such fantastic results with the programme, both in and out of the saddle. ⁣
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🤩 There are now 250 five star reviews on my page, thank you! ⁣
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⁣As a very small business, your reviews, shares, comments and recommendations really do mean the world to me so thank you so much 🥰⁣
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⁣You can purchase your own bungi and access to the online exercise videos from my website www.activateyourseat.com (link in my bio).⁣
I post worldwide 🌎 ⁣
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Happy Friday!! ⁣
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💙 Breathe better, move better, ride better⁣
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Maeve ⁣
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12/02/2026

⁣What is your seat?⁣
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➡️ Your “seat” is an umbrella term used by riding trainers and coaches to describe any part of your body that contacts the saddle and therefore can influence the horse. It is not an anatomical term. ⁣
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➡️ Your seat is any part of you that has contact with the saddle. This includes your pelvis, hips and inner thighs. ⁣
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➡️ Your “seat bones” are called your ischial tuberosities and are located at the base of your pelvis. Your three hamstring muscles have their origin there. ⁣
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➡️ Your pelvis is the large bony structure at the base of your spine. Your spine joins to your pelvis at your sacroiliac joints and your pelvis connects to your thighs at your hip joints. ⁣
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➡️ Your hip joints (or femeroacetabular joints) are large ball and socket joints between your femur (thigh bone) and pelvis. They are large range of movement joints with movement available in all planes of motion. ⁣
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➡️ It is important to be able to move your hips independently of your pelvis and your pelvis independently of your hips. Being able to dissociate these movements with good control and range allows us to influence the horse with our seat. ⁣
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➡️ Psoas is the only muscle that connects our lumbar spine, pelvis and hips and has a huge influence in how we move and control our seat. ⁣
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➡️ Gluteus medius not only abducts, extends and internally rotates the hip, it also controls the side to side movement of our pelvis which is essential for keeping us balanced when we give a leg aid. ⁣
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✅ Aiming for symmetry of our seat in the saddle is key to a balanced horse and rider. Ensuring good movement and control through range in the key muscles around our pelvis and hips is essential to help achieve this. ⁣
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🤩 That’s why I developed the Activate Your Seat exercise programme done against the resistance of the bungi. In the level one video we target all the muscles of the seat and work them into the resistance of the bungi, improving your strength, suppleness and symmetry in the saddle. ⁣
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💙 Breathe better, move better, ride better⁣
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Maeve ⁣
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09/02/2026

It’s getting there…⁣
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This was 5.15pm on Thursday last week.⁣
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After the wettest, windiest, muddiest winter, there is some light in sight.⁣
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Less than 9 weeks until the first Scottish event, hopefully it’ll stop raining soon!!⁣
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08/02/2026

13 weeks to go!⁣
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Note to self: ⁣
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Must do more show jumping training⁣
Must ride more forward in the first round ⁣
Must be less intimidated in the warm up ⁣
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Note to Pronto:⁣
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Please keep your shoes on 🙏⁣
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Onwards…⁣
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06/02/2026

⁣🌟 Client Focus Friday 🌟 ⁣
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“Hi, I am from Denmark. I have pincer type femeroacetabular impingement (FAI). I have been to several therapists for over a year and have trained in different ways but it has not helped my hip pain. ⁣
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I found you through Facebook and bought your bungi package and level 1 and 2 video access⁣ and have trained for several months 2-3 times per week. ⁣
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My hip pain is now gone and I have gained a completely different strength in my hips, lower back, and whole body. I can feel a HUGE difference when I ride, despite the fact I have only been riding for 1.5 years. ⁣
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I am so happy and grateful to have found you. Thank you for your help! I love your training programme and train several times a week. THANK YOU!”⁣
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Samira Sehovic, Denmark⁣
Facebook message⁣
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⁣Thank you Samira for this fabulous message! I am so delighted you are feeling such a big difference with the programme, both in and out of the saddle. ⁣
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🤩 There are now 250 five star reviews on my page, thank you!!⁣
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As a very small business, your reviews, shares, comments and recommendations really do mean the world to me so thank you so much 🥰⁣
⁣
⁣You can purchase your own bungi and access to the online exercise videos from my website www.activateyourseat.com (link in my bio).⁣
I post worldwide 🌎 ⁣
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Happy Friday!!⁣
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💙 Breathe better, move better, ride better⁣
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Maeve ⁣
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05/02/2026

And they say we just sit there…. 🤷‍♀️⁣
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Equestrians - do you train your stamina? ❤️‍🔥⁣
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Stamina is the ability to sustain prolonged physical and/or mental effort.⁣
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As riders we can have elevated heart rates for prolonged periods of time, so training for stamina is essential.⁣
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One study in eventers showed rider mean heart rates of 157bpm during dressage, 180bpm during show jumping and 184bpm during cross country.⁣
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⁣A study of elite polo players showed a mean heart rate of 150bpm for the match, and stated the largest proportion of playing time was spent in the hard heart rate zone.⁣
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A study into jump race jockeys showed an average of 93% of max heart rate for the race, whilst a study into flat race jockeys showed an average of 86% of max heart rate for the race.⁣
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A study looking at 45 minute schooling sessions showed mean rider heart rates of 128bpm at walk, 137bpm at trot and 149bpm at canter. ⁣
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If you want to find more, have a look at Google scholar.⁣
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These are high and often sustained high heart rates. Off horse strength training is key to improving symmetry, strength, balance and performance in the saddle. Adding in regular cardio will improve stamina in the saddle and help prevent fatigue. ⁣
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A mix of both strength training and stamina training is essential if you want to compete. That way you will have enough physical and mental alertness to help your horse if he tires towards the end of your round.⁣
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What do you do to improve your stamina?⁣
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💙 Breathe better, move better, ride better⁣
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Maeve ⁣
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04/02/2026

⁣Over the last few weeks we have looked at the four things I consider to be the cornerstones of being “fit to ride”. Today is the last in the series - stamina.⁣
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Rider Stamina - the ability to sustain prolonged physical and/or mental effort.⁣
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As riders we can have elevated heart rates for prolonged periods of time, so training for stamina is essential.⁣
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❤️ Our cardiovascular system circulates blood around the body to provide oxygen and nutrients and to remove waste products. Each time the heart beats, blood is pumped out of the heart and into the body to supply oxygen to working muscles and to the lungs. Heart rate refers to the number of times the heart beats per minute and is directly related to the workload being placed on the heart. Resting heart rate is usually around 60-80 bpm.⁣
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❤️ Our heart rate is controlled by our autonomic nervous system, the sympathetic and the para-sympathetic. The sympathetic nervous system releases hormones to accelerate our heart rate and the para-sympathetic releases hormones to slow our heart rate. Stress, caffeine and excitement can temporarily increase our heart rate, whilst slow deep breathing using our diaphragm can slow our heart rate.⁣
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❤️ Exercising for any duration will increase our heart rate and it will stay elevated for as long as the exercise continues. Regular cardio exercise over a prolonged period of time can decrease our resting heart rate by increasing the hearts size and contractile strength.⁣
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❤️ Towards the end of the cross country course, as the horse starts to fatigue, the rider needs to have enough physical and mental alertness to react to situations and ensure a positive and safe finish. Training off the horse at higher heart rates is something every event rider should focus on.⁣
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❤️ Running, rowing or cycling are all useful ways to achieve this. Try starting at a perceived moderate exertion rate (working hard but still able to talk!) for 30 minutes 3 times per week. If you are short on time try HIIT sessions, interval runs or spin classes. This will elevate your heart rate and improve your cardiovascular capacity and your stamina.⁣
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❤️‍🔥 How’s your stamina?⁣
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💙 Maeve⁣
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03/02/2026

How much exercise should riders do?⁣
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This is a question I get asked a lot!⁣
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And the answer is - it depends!! ⁣
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The World Health Organisation (WHO) published their physical activity guidelines in 2020 and they recommend that ALL adults do:⁣
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150-300 minutes per week of moderate intensity physical activity - slightly out of breath⁣
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OR⁣
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75-150 minutes per week of vigorous intensity physical exercise - very out of breath⁣
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At least 2 sessions per week of strengthening exercise ⁣
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🏇 So does riding count? ⁣
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Well I would say again, it depends!! ⁣
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If you are working a string of horses daily then chances are you are hitting most of the physical activity targets. But you would still need to do off horse exercise to improve your aerobic capacity, as well as strengthening exercise to improve your comfort, symmetry and performance in the saddle.⁣
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If you have one horse and ride 3-4 times a week, then chances are you are not hitting many of those physical activity targets.⁣
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If you need to increase your physical activity, then start where you are now, and gradually increase what you are doing. ⁣
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For example, if you walk your dog daily then increase your pace so you are slightly out of breath. And add in some hills.⁣
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If you don’t do any strengthening exercise then buy some light weights or my bungi and start to work against resistance at least 3 times per week. ⁣
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If you have a sedentary job, try to increase your daily steps. If you currently hit 3k steps a day, then aim for 4k by going for a lunchtime walk, taking the stairs when able, getting off the bus a few stops earlier and walking.⁣
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If you want to start running, use a programme like couch to 5km and build up tolerance gradually.⁣
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💫 Exercise now because you can.⁣
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💫 Exercise now to be a better load for your horse to carry.⁣
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💫 Exercise now to be able to keep riding when you’re in your 50s/60s/70s and beyond.⁣
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💫 Exercise now to increase your longevity - people who follow physical activity guidelines live longer!⁣
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🙋‍♀️ Do you hit the physical activity recommendations?⁣
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💙 Breathe better, move better, ride better⁣
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Maeve ⁣
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