Ride the horse gosh darn it.
I admit, I often find myself in a rutt in which I'm "too busy" to ride my own horse. I'm not sure why this becomes a thing that falls off for me (followed by waking up early enough for th gym) when it is something I know makes me happy.
Now, this obviously doesn't include the moments when I'm not riding because it wouldn't be beneficial for my horse, such as weather or poor footing or he's clearly not in the mental space for it. But, I need to stop making excuses in my own head for why I shouldn't.
One of my goals is to ride my horse to improve his physical fitness and as a bonding time for us. We're not galloping all around, we're taking easygoing adventure walks with lots of breaks for pats and snuggles. Why do I keep getting in my own way for this?! Even worse, why is it that my mental excuses for not riding are becoming reasons why I overall am spending less time with my horse?
Not sure if it is a compilation of many unrelated things (it likely is), but I want out of my funk.
With transitions in my work life, I've taken to blocking my schedule out again to ensure I am making enough time for the things I want to do. And that includes blocking out time for me to do the things I know will make me happy. No more excuses for not doing it.
The weather was beautiful today. Birds singing, warm sunshine, the type of day we all live for in New England. My tailbone has been off for a bit, not sure if it's out of alignment or a nerve is pinched, but sitting hurts. I almost let that talk myself out of it. But I decided 5 minutes was better than no minutes in the saddle. Heck, two circles was better than none! I gave both ponies a good brushing and snuggles before I went to get my bareback pad. I made sure my horse was in the headspace for this before I went for it. And ya know what? 10 minutes was better than no minutes.
The overwhelming peaceful calm I got from our simple little walk around was exactly what I needed. The relaxed, no stress noodle around was exactly what he needed. He got some physical work in today, and I got myself over the hump (at least for today).
Whatever you're goal is with your horse, just do it. Even for just 5-10 minutes today. Both you and your horse will benefit from the time spent together working on whatever the task at hand is.
He got a huge treat after and oodles more snuggles. And I got some reassurance that yes, I can do it when I make it happen.