I sometimes hear that excessive longeing is harmful to the joints and soft tissue. Is this true? If so, what’s a better way to exercise your horse from the ground, both for safety and conditioning reasons?
“What an important question! It is true that ground reaction forces can negatively impact the lower joints when a horse circles repetitively. These forces are especially amplified on the limbs on the outside of the circle and at speeds faster than a jog. It has also been found that excessive longeing, particularly with the addition of training apparatus like side reins, can lead to asymmetrical development of spinal stabilizing muscles.
With all this in mind, do your best to intersperse your groundwork with plenty of straight lines, even if this means longeing a few circles and then leading — or jogging beside — your horse on a straightaway before performing a few more circles. I call this “controlled wandering,” but the basic idea is to blend as many straight lines as possible in with all those circles. Something what I like to do is pony the horse alongside one of my riding horses for 20 minutes, during which time we trot briskly on straight lines. Then, I immediately longe the horse but only for 10 minutes. This gives me 30 minutes of quality aerobic exercise with only 10 minutes spent circling repetitively. Maybe a version of this can work for you.
Also, another consideration of ground reaction forces is the surface where you longe. A packed clay arena, for instance, impacts joints differently than loose sand, wood chips, grass, or other footings. When possible, spend a day or two each week performing your groundwork on a different type of footing. This will help mitigate repetitive overload to both soft tissues and joints.
Finally, studies have shown that a horse’s ability to make postural compensations during repetitive routines reduces negative impact. In other words, be sure to include days in your schedule without gear that restricts the neck. This allows the horse to make small adjustments to his body carriage while longeing which eases pressure on soft tissues that might be complaining or joints that begin to feel overloaded.”
–Jec Aristotle Ballou
Jec Aristotle Ballou has spent her life with horses, studying dressage around the globe alongside a tireless passion for equine exercise physiology. She has written and presented extensively on the subject of equine fitness and conditioning. Ballou is a tireless advocate for the horse, committed to promoting the understanding that quality athletic movement can never happen as a result of shortcuts, force, or hurried training methods. Through her clinics, articles, and bestselling books. Ballou aims to meet what she sees as an enormous need within the equine industry for simple, clear, and practical information.
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