Healthy Strides- Magnawave, Massage & Bodywork

12/19/2025

12/04/2025

Just me and my overly curious auditor of the day.
Update: the magnawave cord was relocated😂

12/04/2025

🤷‍♀️ I probably shouldn't tell this story, but it's me... So you know I love having an educational moment at the expense of one of my mistakes. Let me make them so you don't have to. 🤦‍♀️

So I was ground working my mare yesterday with corrective exercise and incline work. I knew she was a bit lethargic from the long ride the day before, but she was moving really well. Slightly short in her surgery leg so opted not to ride. She was working great over the cavaletties and I reached a point where I kind knew we needed to be done.

But sometimes as therapists we have a tendency to challenge our personal horses more than we would a client horse. Why? Because I guess I try to reserve my own dumba$$ery for my own animals...

So I ask her for one more lope before I cool her down. She started out fine, then I saw her back grab right as she dropped her lead and broke into a stabby dual-legged bunny hop behind and then into a chaotic sprint in this circle. I hold her a few circles and try to calm her down but it's not happening and I knew she was going to pull away.

➡️ Now, getting stuck in flight and running the eff off on a lunge line has happened with her before. (It's super common with stifle horses. That's why in rehab facilities, we make sure client horses are contained where we do corrective exercises.)
But it's been a long, long time since she's had her back catch. The one thing I don't have where I'm at is an ideal fenced area to do ground work. So she ran all over the open pasture, yard, road... And we finally got her captured.

🤦‍♀️ How is it owning horses can have you cussing and praying literally at the same time? The moral of this story is... If you think "I'll do just a bit more" ...Don't.

It is what is and she always has a reason for explosive behavior. It was definitely my fault. But the worst part of it was trying to get her to come down out of flight. She just couldn't get herself grounded so she could let out a breath because all the running left her back CRAZY tight. With her Psoas fired off like that she couldn't catch her air.

In the end all was well, she's fine today and I didn't have to ask myself... "What should I teach the people today?"

➡️➡️➡️ The sad thing is... I work on horses that have this degree of back tension constantly and their owners can't understand why these horses are dangerous, unpredictable or unwilling to perform. It's because they're living in a chronic state of flight and they're miserable. 😢😢😢

💁‍♀️ Let's break down the science behind my $h!t show...

👉 When a horse suddenly grabs, cramps, or shoots forward, it's usually a neuromuscular reflex, not bad behavior. A sharp spasm in key back or hind-end muscles sends a fast “danger” signal through the nervous system, and the body reacts before the brain can think.

Think of it as the horse’s body hitting a “panic button” because something in the chain from lumbar → sacrum → pelvis → hind end fires incorrectly or gets over-stimulated.

🔶 Main Muscles Involved

▪️Longissimus dorsi (major back muscle - a sudden cramp feels like an electric or painful)

▪️Psoas & lumbar stabilizers (deep core muscles that trigger hump up or buckling motion)

▪️Biceps femoris & hamstrings (hind-end power muscles that can “snap” into propulsion)

▪️Gluteus medius (creates that launch-forward feeling)

These muscles work together, so one spasm can lock up the whole chain.

🔸 Nerves Most Affected

▪️Lumbar dorsal nerves (L1–L6) – control the back and trigger strong reflexes

▪️Sciatic nerve – when irritated, sends a jolt down the hind limb and forces the horse to leap

▪️Sacral nerves – sharp pain here equals immediate flight

👉 Why Does It Make Them Run Off?

Because the pain signal doesn’t just hurt...
It activates survival mentality.

▪️Sudden sharp pain = predator attack

▪️Pain in the back or hind end = “something grabbed me”

▪️Stay alive = get away fast

A back spasm triggers the same neural pathway as:
➡️ “A mountain lion is on me! Move now.”

Their feet start moving faster than their brain. They aren't being dramatic... their flight response has taken over.

👉 Misadventures happen, but any excess tension in the back is going to cause issues throughout the whole body. If you see elevated, raised, tense muscles on either side of the spine... You need to address this dysfunction.

12/03/2025

12/01/2025

Today I had one of those little moments where it just hit me how much I truly love what I do.

I had just left a client, and the whole drive home I was just thinking about them — what shifted, what we worked through, what I’m excited to see progress next. I do that a lot. I come home talking about my clients because this work genuinely lights me up from the inside out.

So take this as my late Thanksgiving post- I’m so thankful that I get to do this.
Helping horses is part of it,
but helping the people who love them is the other half.

The people who think they’re “just getting older,”
who’ve accepted pain as their new normal,
who’ve started adjusting their entire life around physical limitations.
I get to show them that there’s another way.

I’m thankful that my clients trust me enough to talk to me & confide in me even.
to tell me what hurts, what scares them, what they’re hoping for.
I don’t take that lightly.

More than that I’m thankful I get to be the person who encourages you to take the scary steps,
to keep going through the hard moments,
and to celebrate every little win along the way.

Honestly, I think about y’all more than you know.
On the drive between barns,
in line at the grocery store,
in all the quiet in-between moments.
I find myself praying for you, rooting for you, and carrying your stories with me.

It’s been six years, almost 7, of me doing this work,and God has led me every single step of the way. I’m proud that I trusted Him on this unconventional path. And I’m so thankful that I get to do work that doesn’t feel like work at all — it is 100% my passion, calling, and purpose.

And I don’t take that for granted for even one day of the 365.

11/28/2025

Love this

The 3 Days • 3 Weeks • 3 Months Rule

How Training, Conditioning, and Massage Therapy Support a New Horse’s Adjustment

When a horse arrives in a new home, their body and brain go through predictable stages of stress, recalibration, and integration. Understanding these stages helps set fair expectations for training, conditioning, and bodywork — and ensures the horse feels safe enough to truly learn.

First 3 Days — Survival Mode

What’s happening in the horse:

• Elevated cortisol & adrenaline

• Hypervigilance, scanning for
safety

• Tight fascia, shortened stride

• Limited sleep, digestive changes

• Polite or shut-down behavior

• Not ready for new demands

Training Implications:

• Keep it minimal. Think familiarization, not training.

• Introduce routines gently: turnout, feeding, leading.

• Avoid high expectations — they’re not mentally available yet.

• Don’t correct “weird behavior”; it’s stress physiology, not defiance.

Physical Conditioning:

• No conditioning work yet.

• Allow grazing, walking, and movement at liberty.

• Let the horse decompress before analyzing gait or posture.

How Massage Therapy Helps:

• Supports parasympathetic activation (“rest + digest”)

• Loosens protective tension in the poll, neck, TMJ, ribcage

• Improves breathing and vagal tone
• Helps the horse recover from travel stress

Goal of this phase:

Establish safety, lower stress, restore baseline physiology.

First 3 Weeks — Adjustment & Testing Phase

What’s happening in the horse:

• Nervous system begins stabilizing

• Sleep improves

• True personality begins to emerge

• Herd dynamics are being negotiated

• Fascial patterns surface (bracing, crookedness, restrictions)

Training Implications:

• Start light, simple, consistent training

• Focus on boundaries, manners, basic communication

• Expect some testing — this is normal

• Introduce new tasks slowly

• Reward relaxation and curiosity

Physical Conditioning:

• Begin low-stress conditioning:

• In-hand work

• Hill walking

• Long-and-low

• Ground poles

• Evaluate natural asymmetries, stride length, and posture

• Avoid hard cardio or heavy schooling

How Massage Therapy Helps:

• Identifies tension patterns formed from travel, past training, or stress

• Releases compensations as the horse begins doing more

• Improves thoracic sling mobility and ribcage elasticity

• Supports better saddle fit as musculature shifts

• Enhances proprioception during early training

Goal of this phase:

Build trust, establish boundaries, begin reshaping movement.

First 3 Months — Integration & True Conditioning

What’s happening in the horse:

• Herd social structure established

• Full neurobiological regulation

• Digestive system normalized

• True posture, habits, and movement patterns appear

• Genuine learning and bonding accelerate

Training Implications:

• The horse is now mentally available for real training

• Can handle consistency, new challenges, and progressive demands

• Trust is present → training becomes safer and clearer

• Complex concepts (lateral work, transitions, softness) begin to stick

Physical Conditioning:

• Begin structured strength-building:

• Raised poles

• Cavaletti

• Lateral work

• Hill work

• Engagement and core work

• Monitor soreness as new muscles develop

• Expect posture changes as the horse remaps its body

How Massage Therapy Helps:

Massage and MFR are most impactful at this stage:

• Supports remodeling of fascia as new movement patterns develop

• Helps muscles adapt to conditioning without overload

• Prevents old compensations from returning

• Enhances stride length, symmetry, and thoracic sling function

• Keeps joints decompressed as the horse gains strength

• Creates better balance between sympathetic and parasympathetic tone

• Improves overall body awareness → smoother training progress

Goal of this phase:

True integration, real conditioning, and long-term partnership.

A horse’s nervous system, fascia, and biomechanics need time to recalibrate after any major change. The 3 Days • 3 Weeks • 3 Months framework reflects how their body integrates safety, movement, and new information. Training and conditioning shape new patterns, while massage and myofascial work support the neuromuscular system as it reorganizes. Together, these pieces create lasting change — and a horse truly ready to thrive.

https://koperequine.com/the-power-of-slow-why-slow-work-is-beneficial-for-horses/

11/20/2025

🦠𝐀 𝐐𝐮𝐢𝐜𝐤 𝐍𝐨𝐭𝐞 𝐅𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐌𝐞 𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐄𝐇𝐕-𝟏

With everything going on with EHV-1 right now, I just wanted to check in and let y’all know what I’m doing — not out of fear, but out of respect for the horses I work on and the barns that trust me to step foot on their property.

💛 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐞’𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈’𝐦 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐝𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩 𝐤𝐞𝐞𝐩 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐟𝐞:

•𝘾𝙡𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚𝙨 𝙗𝙚𝙩𝙬𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙗𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙨
Keeping each stop as clean and separate as possible.

•𝙀𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙜𝙚𝙩𝙨 𝙘𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙣𝙚𝙙
My hands, my tools, my gear — if it touches a horse, it’s getting sanitized.

•𝙈𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙖𝙡 𝙨𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙙𝙪𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜
Fewer barns per day and avoiding back-to-back high-traffic locations. Slow is smooth, smooth is safe.

•𝙊𝙥𝙚𝙣 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙢𝙪𝙣𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣
If your barn has fever, travel, or possible exposure, just tell me. No stress, no judgment — we’ll shift the schedule and do what’s right for your horse and everyone else’s.

💛 𝐈 𝐰𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐜𝐮𝐭 𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬.

Your horses aren’t just “sessions” to me — they’re your partners,teammates & family. I care about them (and mine) too much to operate any other way.

If your barn needs to pause, I’m happy to wait. If we need to adjust or be extra cautious, we will. Protecting these horses will always come before my calendar.

💛 𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐓𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐌𝐞

I’ll keep an eye on updates and make changes where needed.
And if you ever have questions or concerns my messages are always open.

11/15/2025

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐩𝐲 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐚 𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐡 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧.

Every few months there’s a brand-new “game changing” modality on the market: MagnaWave, cryotherapy, Acuscope/Myopulse, EquiVibe, red light, PEMF, lasers, massage guns… it never stops.

And the question I get all the time is:

“Which one is THE best?”

Here’s the calm, honest answer:

👉 The value isn’t in the machine. It’s in the practitioner knowing how to read your horse.
👉 Tools don’t make decisions — people do.

A $15,000 device doesn’t matter if the person using it can’t see:
- where the horse is guarding
- compensatory patterns
- tension patterns before they turn into performance problems
- nervous system overload
- the emotional state underneath the body
- how workload, recovery, and biomechanics connect
- how to intervene strategically rather than randomly
- what belongs in the “now” and what belongs in the follow-up

And this is why bodywork is the foundation in my program, despite the tools available.

I firmly believe in using my hands first.
It’s the most honest information you will ever get from a horse and I hate to say it-
No machine has ever compared with the results.

For example:
You don’t walk into a clinic and ask for the “best drug.”
You rely on the doctor who evaluates your animal, reads the situation, and chooses the appropriate drug — not the coolest or newest one.

Same with performance therapy.
You don’t pick the tool first.
You pick the practitioner who knows what your horse needs and when they need it.

Tools can help - and the technology and science we have access to now, for our animals alone, is absolutely incredible.
But, the results come from the practitioner who knows:
- what they’re feeling under their hands
- how to interpret your horse’s reactions
- exactly where to intervene
- how today connects to your performance goals
- how to build a smart, realistic plan

So when people ask me:
“Is MagnaWave better than red light?”
“Is cryo better than vibration?”

My answer will always be:

It depends on what YOUR horse needs today — and how that fits into their performance plan.

Tools matter.
But chasing every new gadget is a hamster wheel.

I don’t bash modalities I don’t offer — but I’m also not chasing trends just to have the latest toy.

Bodywork → evaluation → strategy → then tech if needed.

11/13/2025

We’re all smiles after her bodywork session 😂
I went in to do a little TMJ release and caught a glimpse of these interesting teefies 🧛‍♂️