Winter workouts

ALL RIDERS ARE guilty of lacking motivation to exercise their horses over the winter months, especially when it’s cold and those few daylight hours are never enough. However, with ever more horses spending (perhaps too much) time standing in their stables for hours on end — and with obesity now a huge issue across the sector — there are two reasons already not to make excuses and settle in by the fire, but instead wrap up and saddle up.

Other reason include:

■ Exercise beats boredom. Try to imagine being stuck in your bedroom all day with nothing to do other than look out of the window and munch on the occasional meal. Even hand-walking or hand-grazing for 15 minutes is better than nothing.

■ A healthier horse. When you exercise your horse, you are keeping his muscles, tendons, ligaments, joints and heart and lungs healthy, meaning that he is less likely to become ill or suffer some kind of injury.

■ Prevent over-excitement. Riding a cold, fresh horse who has been cooped up in his