How to Handle Strength Training Breaks as an Equestrian Athlete

As equestrian athletes, our bodies are our most important tools — we need strength, balance, and power to ride effectively and support our horses. But what happens when life throws a curveball? A vacation, injury, a busy season, or an unexpected break might leave you wondering:

How do I maintain my strength gains when I can’t keep up with my training?

This was exactly what I faced last spring when we purchased our farm.

I’d been consistently training for weeks, feeling stronger, more stable in the saddle, and seeing great improvements in my riding efficiency. The idea of taking a break made me nervous. So, I dug into the research to understand how strength training interruptions affect performance and how equestrian athletes can manage them.

Here’s what I discovered.

How Breaks Impact Strength Training Gains

The Basics: What Happens During a Break?

A study by Lars Andersen and colleagues explored what happens when sedentary individuals complete strength training and then stop. Over three months, participants significantly increased their muscular strength. But after three months of inactivity, most of their gains were lost.

Interestingly, they retained some benefits: their muscle power under no load actually increased. This means that while they lost some strength adaptations, they improved in executing fast, powerful movements — a silver lining for athletes needing explosive power such as jumpers who need to execute fast turns or riding out those spooks when the nature on trail gets a little too friendly.

What About Highly Trained Athletes?

For equestrian athletes, a closer parallel might be highly trained powerlifters or football players. In a study by Tibor Hortobagyi, trained athletes took a two-week break from strength training. While their muscle size (especially fast-twitch fibers) decreased, their hormonal profiles improved, with increases in growth hormone and testosterone and decreases in cortisol.

This suggests that short, intentional breaks could refresh your body and enhance performance. However, if the break stretches beyond four weeks, significant losses in muscle strength and specialized fibers can occur.

Lessons for Equestrian Athletes

1. Short Breaks Are Okay
   If you’re away from strength training for up to two weeks, you’re unlikely to see a significant decline in overall performance. Your body retains much of its strength, and the recovery can help balance hormonal profiles and reduce stress.

2. Don’t Skip Riding-Specific Exercises
   While a break from strength training might be manageable, staying consistent with sport-specific activities is crucial. For riders, this includes core stabilization exercises, balance drills, and movements mimicking riding mechanics. These maintain the neural and muscular adaptations critical to effective riding.

3. Use Tapering to Your Advantage
   Leading up to a major competition, you can taper strength training without fear of losing gains. Research shows that stopping heavy strength work for a few weeks can preserve muscle power while allowing you to focus on fine-tuning riding skills.

4. Incorporate Plyometric and Functional Training
   Exercises like bounding, skipping, or short sprints are ideal for maintaining power and endurance without overloading your body. These activities also mimic the explosive movements needed for jumping, transitions, and other riding maneuvers.

How to Plan Your Taper

For equestrian athletes, tapering isn’t just about reducing time in the gym — it’s about ensuring your workouts align with your riding goals. Here’s a quick guide:

• 4 Weeks Out: Continue regular strength training with progressive overload. Focus on core stability, leg strength, and upper body endurance.

• 2-3 Weeks Out: Begin tapering heavy lifts. Shift toward bodyweight exercises and functional training that mirrors riding mechanics.

• 1 Week Out: Focus on flexibility, balance, and light plyometric drills. Incorporate stretching and mobility work to ensure you feel limber and strong.

Final Thoughts

As equestrian athletes, we need to balance strength training with riding demands. Breaks don’t have to set you back. In fact, with proper planning, they can enhance your performance.

The key is to maintain riding-specific movements while giving your body time to recover. If you’re preparing for a big competition, a well-thought-out taper can provide the best of both worlds: the power from your training and the precision from focused riding practice.

So, next time you find yourself needing a break or planning a taper, remember — it’s all part of the process.

If you’re looking for more insights, consider working with me one on one. Many of my clients are actively competing in their sport and together we are able to balance their exercise load to help them get the most out of their workouts, but also be primed and ready when the competition date arrives.

Happy riding, and here’s to staying strong in and out of the saddle!