Posture Prep Cross Fiber Groomer

10/08/2025

08/28/2025

07/22/2025

A super important video for Posture Prepping

RedFlags. Dents and Dings

Horses shoulders are only "attached" to the torso by muscles, ligaments and tendons. So when there are restrictions in the fascia from scar tissue and adhes...

07/14/2025

https://www.horsesinsideout.com/bbom?utm_campaign=d13cf591-074d-4d82-aca0-3a38eb754039&utm_source=so&utm_medium=mail_lp&cid=f6709f3b-d246-42d4-b989-f27a46d607cc

This informative documentary series focuses on the challenges horses face in the modern world. Equine anatomy expert Gillian Higgins uses the story of her own horse, Freddie Fox, as a case study to illustrate anatomy, biomechanics, and methods for improving performance, dispelling myths, and ensurin...

07/04/2025

Wishing you a blessed and grateful Fourth of July to you and yours🇺🇸🇺🇸🙏🇺🇸✝️🇺🇸🇺🇸

07/01/2025

https://www.facebook.com/100063770250046/posts/1326118962857100/?mibextid=rS40aB7S9Ucbxw6v

The gastrocnemius the name that you need to put your teeth back in to say 😃

I wanted to not draw a picture including the lower part of the horses limb because often to put yourself in the horses mind we need to visualise where a part of the anatomical structure is to visualise how it would feel to have something wrong in that area

Now if I said how many of you have suffered with heel or calf pain you will recognise that we are talking about the gastrocnemius and the tendon that runs down hugging your heel (achilles) because to have an understanding we first have to have recognition.

Again I am not just doing insertion, origin etc because there are many posts about structure but I always want you to think connection and whole horse.🫡

This muscle can often lose out to the bigger hind end muscles because as always bigger is better yet the tendons of the Biceps femoris, Semitendinosus, Soleus and the Gastrocnemius all have a connection that lead down to cover the Calcaneus (the bone you can feel at the back of your horses hock) known as the Calcaneous tendon or Achilles.

Remember see dysfunction in one muscle it always means a group are involved and how many horses have bulging hamstrings and a non existent gluteal, the gastrocnemius is a muscle of propulsion and how many horses shuffle, drag their toes, or just cant get that stride length in the hind end and if there is no propulsion there is no energy being fed to move and while most think bucking or rearing or rushing is the most common reason for pain on of the top reasons is lack of propulsion and the most common and probably one of the top three problematic areas in the horse is the hocks.

We all have had calf pain and linked in heel pain a lack of a proper range of motion through the hips, stifle or hocks will often compromise the function of muscles, tendons and joints, ligaments formed to support bone connection and strenthen joints can become lax creating instability, fascial connections into the lumbar will create pain or restriction that is often viewed as a primary and treated as such when often what we see is the result not the cause

We often only look at muscle tears to document issues in an area yet muscle strain is always a result of dysfunction wether it is overworked or underworked its not doing the job it was designed to do, and if we think of the job of a tendon yet the hock may not be utilising its full function then what is the ripple affect further up and down as the gastrocnemius has a connection with the Superficial flexor muscle and tendon.

If you tried the hock hold video I put out you can understand why your horse liked it so much for shortening an area can offer relief, turn on the forehand is another great exercise to get the whole area working.

So next time you think of hocks think of all the connections and the power they hold, do we still want to be working them before they are fully developed???

Hope the picture helps you recognise and maybe sympathise with the horse that maybe just isn't right behind ☺️

Ps I did do a post yesterday but was messing with the picture and deleted the post and didnt have the energy to rewrite it 😃😃😃

06/26/2025

My new favorite workout I have added for power and agility and much more. Bone strength, coordination, and, of course, brain health.

I do the first through 5th workout of 6 and feel improvement from the first workout.

Here is a 6 Drill Plyometric Training Sequence that's great for beginner to intermediate athletes. These drills can be scaled up or down in intensity and vol...

06/20/2025

🏋️ How Poor Training Creates Mitochondrial Burnout

Improper training programs represent one of the most preventable causes of mitochondrial exhaustion in performance horses. While exercise is essential for stimulating beneficial mitochondrial adaptations, the dose makes the poison - too much, too fast, or without adequate recovery creates cellular energy system breakdown.

The principle of progressive overload requires gradually increasing training demands to stimulate mitochondrial biogenesis and improved function. However, when training loads increase too rapidly, mitochondria cannot adapt quickly enough, leading to accumulated cellular damage. Each training session creates oxidative stress that healthy mitochondria can handle and adapt to, but overwhelmed mitochondria cannot recover from.

Inadequate recovery between training sessions is particularly damaging. Mitochondrial repair and adaptation occur primarily during rest periods. Without sufficient recovery time, damaged mitochondria accumulate while new, healthy mitochondria aren't produced. This creates a downward spiral of decreasing cellular energy capacity.

High-intensity training without proper base conditioning places enormous demands on glycolytic energy systems while bypassing the aerobic adaptations that support mitochondrial health. Horses pushed into anaerobic work before developing adequate aerobic capacity experience excessive lactate production and oxidative stress that damages mitochondria.

Monotonous training programs that don't provide variation in intensity and duration can lead to mitochondrial stagnation. Mitochondria adapt to specific demands, so horses trained only at moderate intensities may struggle when asked for higher-level performance, leading to acute cellular energy crises.

The solution involves periodized training programs that gradually progress training loads, incorporate adequate recovery periods, build aerobic base before high-intensity work, and provide training variation. Monitoring indicators like resting heart rate, heart rate variability, and recovery times helps identify early signs of mitochondrial overreaching before exhaustion occurs.

06/14/2025

https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1BsjWKarou/

05/22/2025

04/27/2025