A3-12) Fat people and Horse Riding
Description
This article is from the Big Folks Sports and Activities FAQ, by sharon@ecs.ox.ac.uk (Sharon Curtis) with numerous contributions by others.
A3-12) Fat people and Horse Riding
Horse riding is a very enjoyable experience. It can be very liberating
to feel all that power between your legs. And horses have a wonderful
intelligence.
The question most frequently asked by big folks is
"Will I be too heavy for the horse?"
The short answer is "maybe".
The long answer is that it depends on a lot of factors: your weight,
experience, the type of saddle you use, the horse's strength, age,
health, and how hard the horse is worked. As a rough guide, a horse
can carry about a quarter of its weight, a fifth with a novice rider.
Your weight:
There are large people (various weights up to 360+ lbs) on the newsgroup
who have ridden without problems. There are also people who gave up
riding when they became large enough for it to be a problem for their
horse (for example, one person was 300+ lbs at the time).
Your experience:
If you are a good rider, and know how to post, you will minimize the
chances of harming the horse. Novices tend to bounce around a lot
more, and this could possibly cause stress to the horse's kidneys.
A properly conditioned horse can handle a large experienced rider
pretty easily, but a novice of 350lbs sitting at a trot can do damage.
Also novices don't have the inner thigh muscles to grip effectively,
and once a large person is slightly off balance, it is more difficult
to regain balance.
The type of saddle:
If you ride English, this uses a small saddle, and posting is required.
However using a Western saddle, this spreads the rider's weight out
more, causing less stress to the horse. It also provides a handy grip
for novices. Check that your saddle fits - the length of thighs makes
more difference than weight, but large thighs or rears can make a
difference too.
The horse:
Horses are very strong creatures, and properly conditioned, can handle
a large rider easily. When you first feel the power in a horse, the first
time the horse decides not to do what you're telling him to do, you'll
realise what a light-weight you are :-)
The riding stables can help to select you an appropriate horse. Choose
one that is big, in good health, not too immature, reasonably quiet.
You may wish to consider a draft horse.
What level of activity you do:
If you're a novice, you probably won't want to go faster than a
walk at first anyway, until you get comfortable with the horse and
vice versa. At any rate, the gentler the activity, the less hard on
the horse. Walking, trail riding are great fun. Galloping and jumping
do put more strain on the horse if you are heavy.
You may wish to try a stable that is involved in therapeutic riding, as
they often have a wide variety of horses, plus mounting ramps for those
who have difficulty from the ground or a low block. They are also
more sensitive about differences than your average stable.
A good idea is to call ahead to the stable, saying what you weigh and
asking whether there is a suitable horse for you. They may well
appreciate you calling as then they can reserve one of the more strongly
built horses for you.
The organization Double XX Riders may be of interest (see the
Fitness Resources FAQ).
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