Wish me luck!

Many people (nonhorse people) may think you don’t need to be physically fit to ride a horse. They would be wrong. You don’t need to be physically fit to sit on a horse. You must be physically fit and emotionally fit to really ride a horse. Riding a horse is an exhilarating experience and that experience is what motivates my change in eating habits and physical fitness routine. Sometimes I wonder if we don’t approach weight loss from a backwards direction. Lance Armstrong doesn’t ride his bike in order to be physically fit. He keeps physically fit so that he can ride the way he rides. His passion for the sport is the motivation. Just as mine is. I don’t ride to keep fit. I keep fit so that I can ride.

I don’t count calories, but I do read labels. I try to keep the fat content low and the fiber content high. The mainstays of my diet are lean protein, vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and low fat dairy. I walk daily, and I’m working on strengthening my core. I work on balance and flexiblity. Over time I am the incredibly shrinking woman. The side benefits are more strength, more endurance, more energy, and I look better in my clothes…but that is not the reason I stick with it. That I do because of the horse. when you find your passion, the activity that resonates with you, that is when taking care of yourself becomes a priority.


Hahahaha! I wrote that 3 years ago…today I am 20 pounds overweight and trying to talk myself into getting back on the treadmill and cutting out the sugar. We all fall off the wagon. The trick is getting back up again…my goal is to be walking regularly and off the sugar by the time my doc releases me to ride again. Wish me luck!