Polework exercises
Polework exercises for horses are great for improving their posture, core strength, straightness and proprioception, which is the awareness of their own body and movement. They’re good for you as a rider, too, as they make you focus on accuracy, planning and give you a feel for rhythm – and they keep your training interesting.
Polework is also regularly used as part of rehabilitation and strengthening programmes as they can be used in endless different ways to alter the way your horse uses his body.
If you need some inspiration for polework exercises to try at home, check out the examples from top riders and trainers below.
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Improve your horse’s bend in walk with this simple polework exercise
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Refine your centre lines using just two poles and two cones
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Olympic rider shares simple polework exercise that can improve flexibility and rideability in horses at any level
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How to stop the drift and correct a horse that swerves over a fence
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Learn how to strengthen your horse at home using polework
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‘Aim to do this straightforward exercise to score 10 out of 10’: how Harry Meade uses polework to improve suppleness
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Not just for trotting over: Michael Eilberg shares his innovative use of poles
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7 polework exercises to keep your horse interested
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3 polework exercises that could help give you and your horse the edge
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One simple pole exercise that can transform your horse’s canter
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Position, polework and partnership – 13 insights from Pippa Funnell’s demo at London
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How walk work over poles benefits equine rehab and strength
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Fitness, polework and details: six training tips from double Olympic medallist Tom McEwen
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20-minute weekly work-out: raised trotting or canter poles
This exercise helps a horse find its rhythm and is effective for horses working on the flat and those that are jumping
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20-minute weekly workout: rider focus
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Oliver Hood on using polework to improve your horse’s transitions
The show rider uses pole exercises to add something new to training, while improving self-carriage, balance and both upward and downward transitions
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#SundaySchool: How do I ride a circle without my horse falling in?
Dressage rider Lesley Peyton-Gilbert provides some advice on how to get more engagement when riding a circle
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4 exercises to help you ride better lines when jumping
Check out these useful exercises from a top eventing coach
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Lungeing over poles: the benefits and how to do it
