YES! (Wow, that was a short blog post. Just kidding! We could go on about horses forever). That’s because at Happy Horse, we’ve seen firsthand how horses can not only make you happier— they can make you a better version of yourself. But we don’t expect you to take our word for it, and that’s why we’ve put together a list of our favorite reasons why horseback riding helps you become the best and happiest you. Don’t believe us? Keep reading and find out!
Horseback Riding Develops Positive Character Traits
If you’ve ever played sports before, you know that learning any sport requires patience and commitment. You also know that those lessons aren’t over once you master the basics of the game. The more you play, the more you learn— both about the game and yourself. And whether you ride competitively or not, mastering the basics of horseback riding is a vigorous activity that functions like a sport when it comes to the amount of exercise and teamwork it involves. So, when you take up horseback riding lessons, you’re not just learning to master the basics and control yourself, you’re learning to how to work closely with and control somebody else: your horse.
Because of this, horseback riding develops skills that aren’t taught through the pursuit of many other sports— skills like empathy, understanding, discipline, and self-control. And while you might be surprised to see self-control on the list, it’s more critical than you might think. Learning to be a good rider and develop a bond with your horse requires you to actively surrender the inherent selfishness we all have as people because you have to put your horse first. The necessity of consistently putting your horse’s needs above your own by prioritizing their health, grooming, and tacking encourages you to become a more considerate person day by day.
Likewise, as you get closer to your horse, you may find yourself becoming a more empathetic person, increasingly in tune with your horse’s moods, feelings, and needs. As such, it’s kind of a no-brainer that the patience, empathy, and selflessness you develop through horseback riding will improve your relationships with people too.
Horses Improve Your Sense of Confidence
At some point in our lives, all of us have struggled with the feeling that we’re not good enough or that we fail to measure up. These doubts and insecurities can affect not only our self-esteem and identity, but our relationships with others too. Horseback riding can help because our sense of inadequacy often stems from the feeling that we aren’t talented enough, smart enough, or capable of contributing something worthwhile. And though many of us have tried (and failed) at some type of sport during our time in school, horseback riding is not commonly taught and thus, not something everybody can do.
So, while you might not have anything on your football-playing buddies from high-school, mastering a skill like horseback riding gives you the ability to flaunt a rare, new skill you can be proud of. Likewise, when a new rider sets goals with the help and support of their riding instructor (and practices to meet those goals), they gain the ability to point to a pattern of consistent discipline, perseverance, and achievement that they earned through personal merit alone. Similarly, the consistency horseback riding requires can also improve our forgetful tendencies and remind us to stick to our guns in the real world when we need to set deadlines and take care of our responsibilities.
So, when you put all these factors together, you can see how the ability to conquer new hurdles and embrace opportunities can provide riders with a foundation of confidence which will improve their lives outside the arena. So, the next time you start doubting your self-worth, get back in the saddle to get comfort from your new best friend and a reminder that yes, you can!
Outlook
So, while we’re not suggesting that horseback riding is the magic cure to everything with which we struggle in life, we firmly believe that it can help each and every one of us to improve and become the best versions of ourselves— provided that we work at it. Building positive character traits takes consistency and time, and the journey to self-improvement can be difficult at times. But the great part about therapeutic horseback riding is that it feels a lot less like work when you’re having fun! So, whether you’re an old ranch hand or a newbie just breaking in your saddle, at Happy Horse, our advice is to keep riding and keep growing. Because while you’re taking care of your horse, your horse is taking care of you and teaching you patience, discipline, and empathy along the way.