# longing before you ride?



## morganshow11 (Dec 19, 2008)

No,you should not lunge a hot horse. I have a very very hot headed morgan. And if i lunge him before i ride he gets worked up and even more hotter for that ride. So you are better off not lunging.


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## ilovelucy91 (Mar 11, 2009)

She is probably not as hot headed as your morgan  but she does have alot of energy. I have longed/lunged/lounged (lol) her once for about 15 min. at a walk/trot before riding her and it did seem to calm her down, I was going to ask my instructor about it but I forgot (whoops) and I won't see her until tomorrow and I was going to ride today but I had also read things about it not being so great for the horse and stuff like that (normally only if you do it wrong though) so I was wondering if anyone had any good/bad things to say before I tried it out again (I was also going to talk to my instructor if people seemed to think it was a good idea since she knows her temperment I would also like to get her oppinion on longing in general for finished horses) Thanks!


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## Spastic_Dove (Oct 4, 2007)

Lunging can help, but I think there are better ways to do it. I let my horse out loose in the arena while I grab things and he runs around on his own and bucks and snorts and gets out energy. Lunging I think just adds to the problem of hot horses. All you're doing is building up their stamina and not really teaching them much other than running around in circles. 

Depending on your riding level, I think you should just get up in the saddle and get your horses mind on you and get them thinking by doing circles, bending, flexing, etc.

Pros of lunging are the horse is able to learn to carry itself properly without a rider. Sure, you can lunge for 5 minutes and get out some of the energy, but often I see someone running/"lunging" their horse for a half hour every time they ride. The horse isn't learning -- You're just tiring him out. 
Small circles can be bad for a horses legs, but I think the biggest problem with lunging is it often takes the place of training.


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## ilovelucy91 (Mar 11, 2009)

If I just let her loose in the arena she would just eat the grass on the edge  she has become alot more calm on the ground (she still has moments) but once I get on her its like she just has to go go go and as fast as possible or jig (grrrr) and that problem I think stems from the person who owned her before the person who owned her before me (lol) who let her freak out and jig and go as fast as she wanted to.

Thats


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## ilovelucy91 (Mar 11, 2009)

sorry I didnt mean to post yet


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## ilovelucy91 (Mar 11, 2009)

As I was saying  that is what I generally do and it has been helping (alot!) I guess I was just hoping that lunging would help.

lol I wouldn't go that far  but I see your point thanks! I will continue doing what I have been doing since it seem to work but if anyone has any other good ideas I am open to suggestion!


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## ilovelucy91 (Mar 11, 2009)

I meant to say I will continue without lunging her unless she needs it occasionally


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## Spastic_Dove (Oct 4, 2007)

She just needs to be taught. She has bad habits from her old owner and lunging isn't going to help that. I would recommend slow groundwork then move it up into the saddle. Lots of praise and repetition. I think you're going the right direction


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## ilovelucy91 (Mar 11, 2009)

I wasn't trying to replace training with lunging argh whenever I try to explain it it just comes out wrong!  and she does almost perfect with ground work (no I haven't stopped doing it ^.^) lol I have been doing so much repetition I think I could do it in my sleep (I change it up a little so she doesn't get bored) and have no fear! I praise her a ton whenever she does something right! Thanks for the encouregement!


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## morganshow11 (Dec 19, 2008)

Horses are all different. So some might work beeter if lunged and some might not*shrugs*


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## ilovelucy91 (Mar 11, 2009)

I can't agree more


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## PaintHorseMares (Apr 19, 2008)

morganshow11 said:


> Horses are all different. So some might work beeter if lunged and some might not*shrugs*


I agree. A lot of folks I ride with lunge before riding because they believe it gets the freshness out of the horse, but I believe, like others have said, that for some horses, it just winds them up more. I never lunge before riding, even when our mares are very fresh. They have learned that when leaving, just like returning, we walk the first 1/4 mile or so, and can then go to a good trot or whatever. Consistancy and repetition and they get used to the routine.


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## Vidaloco (Sep 14, 2007)

I think if your horse is stall kept then a light lunging is in order just to warm up the muscles if nothing else. 
Ours are pasture ponies so they are free 24/7. When its been awhile since we rode last I do some flexing exercises on the ground and then in the saddle before we take off. Make sure they have their mind on you. That they are giving to the bit and yielding front and fore quarters. I think this is a better exercise for focusing the mind.


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## wild_spot (Jan 30, 2008)

I never really lunge. I prefer to work out issues like that from the saddle, as that is where they manifest. But it's everyones personal opinion :]


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## horseoffire (Apr 7, 2009)

i lung before i ride


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## upnover (Jan 17, 2008)

Completely depends. I think lunging has it's purpose and can do great things for certain horses in certain situations. I'm a supporter of it when it's "purposeful" lunging where you're making your horse think and obey commands (change gaits, change directions, lunge over things, etc). It can be a good training technique, particularly with a disrespectful or defiant horse. If a horse won't work with you on the ground it most likely won't work with you undersaddle. What I can't stand is when people get their horse out, throw them on a line, and run them ragged for a half an hour just to get them tired before they get on. Then the horse behaves because they're tired, not because they're trained properly. UGH, big pet peeve. Don't get me wrong, when the weather's nasty and the horses haven't been turned out in a week, yeah, I'm going to throw them in the round pen a bit and let them get their bucks out before I get on! But just making them tired is putting a band aid over the problem instead of fixing it. Also, like someone mentioned, lunging (particularly the 'running around' kind) can make certain hot horses even hotter so it's not for every horse. Remember too that it puts quite a bit of wear and tear into their joints. I'm only going to do it when I need to.


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## ilovelucy91 (Mar 11, 2009)

I always (unless she is being a complete spazz which isn't often then I make her do lots of circles and different patterns at a walk) start with a loose rein walk and end with a loose rein walk (which is a feat in itself considering when I first got her walk wasn't in her vocabulary lol)...I don't stall her but the pasture she is in I would call a slightly oversized paddock and I don't see her running around alot (she saves all her energy for our rides lol) but I ride her 4 to 5 days a week also recently I have have been doing as Vida has suggested and done flexing and yielding of the hindquarters before I ride (although not all the time..I should be more consistent with that)...I am starting to agree with you more and more on that point wild_spot although sometimes I am like I don't know if I have the energy for this lol I haven't talked to my instructor yet but what I have seen so far of her training methods I would say she would also agree with you  ....horseoffire has lunging worked for you really well? is your horse more laid back or "hot" ? Thanks everybody! oh and I rode her today and didn't lunge her (it was really windy and everything) and she did so good! I can't believe how much she has calmed down!


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## ilovelucy91 (Mar 11, 2009)

Thanks upnover! I have also come to that conclusion  to me when I said lunging in no way shape or form was it to run her ragged or wear her out before I got on her I was wondering if it was a good tool to get her mind on you and if it was a good tool (if used in the right way) then were there any drawbacks to that, like it is bad on their joints...I will probably just lunge her if I haven't ridden in awhile...I just started thing about it and I got basically the same result when I lunged her for 15 minutes at a walk/trot and when I did the flexing and the yielding so that is also something to think about I guess...


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## wild_spot (Jan 30, 2008)

Thats great she is calming down :] she may just need some time to break old habits.


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## ilovelucy91 (Mar 11, 2009)

Thanks! I think so to but I am always on the lookout for new things to try hence the question on lunging  to me she is the most amazing thing ever!


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## PoptartShop (Jul 25, 2010)

It depends on the horse- some do better if lunged, to get some excess energy off. But I wouldn't really lunge a hot-headed horse...they might just need some more training & stuff. 
But sometimes lunging is good, even for a warm-up.


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## ilovelucy91 (Mar 11, 2009)

Thanks!  I am thinking in Lucy's case it will do just as well without the lunging so we will continue on without it, unless I think it would be dangerous to get on without letting her get rid of some energy ^.^


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## happygoose123 (Jan 19, 2009)

ive heard that it is good cause it helps the saddle sit proply on their back before you put weight in it. however, i only lunge a horse if they are bloating their belly while your doing up the girth. lunging them stops them from bloating so you can do up the girth proply so it doesnt slip when you get on or when your riding.


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## horseoffire (Apr 7, 2009)

i do because my horse has been stalled in the winter more because it has been raining and cold outside


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## ilovelucy91 (Mar 11, 2009)

well she is definitely a bloater lol but for that I just tack up at the barn walk her down to the arena check the girth get on walk to warm her up and check the girth again  

aahh that stinks I was so excited when the sun come out and the weather cleared up for 2 days..then it went back to being gross again..


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## horseoffire (Apr 7, 2009)

oh i hate when they blot


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## ilovelucy91 (Mar 11, 2009)

lol me too...I didn't even realized she bloated until my instructor was like I can see sky between her stomache and the girth (I hadn't checked it after we walked which was stupid of me) and I was like oops


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## RedRoan (Mar 2, 2009)

I believe lunging for the first ten minutes should be warm up / finishing off some extra energy. Then the last half should be a sort of join up (trying to get horse horse's mind on you and not what else is going on around him or her). By this I mean polishing ground work on the lunge line. For instance like asking from a walk to a trot shouldn't take more then five steps to get into it, and a canter to a stop (if your horse can do it). 

This method works great for my horse, and I know it works wonders before going on a trail ride and stuff.


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## ilovelucy91 (Mar 11, 2009)

I might try that with a mare I am about to start working with (but I am to heavy to ride her so I am just going to do groundwork and get her in shape) also with the ground poles and stuff ...also I have another question if you start lunging before riding all the time is it possible to ride your horse without lunging him/her? or do they get so used to it that they can't concentrate unless you have lunged them (not trying to be rude just curious ^.^) Thanks!


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## RedRoan (Mar 2, 2009)

> I might try that with a mare I am about to start working with (but I am to heavy to ride her so I am just going to do groundwork and get her in shape) also with the ground poles and stuff ...also I have another question if you start lunging before riding all the time is it possible to ride your horse without lunging him/her? or do they get so used to it that they can't concentrate unless you have lunged them (not trying to be rude just curious ^.^) Thanks!


I think it all depends on the horse. What I do with mine is I lunge and do ground work when I don't have time to ride. I try to mix everything up so a lot of the stuff isn't constant for this issue that _might_ happen. I try to focus more on ground work with lunging so it isn't just all about running round in circles and going over poles. There are some 'games' like long lining (i'm not even sure if that is the correct term), and rhythm work. Some of it looks funny... but oh my goodness it totally makes a different horse if done right.

I fine that weaning off of lunging some days and doing only some ground work before I ride helps a lot when I have a random sunny day that I'm like "OH lets go trail riding!" Practically all I have to do (at this point of my horse and his training) is do a little lunging and/or some ground work polishing before I hop on (that stuff can take from a quick ten minutes to a hefty half an hour if I feel like it). 

Starting from the ground up in whatever you do I think is the best for the horse and for yourself in many ways (again if done right). You can be in a bad mood and totally ruin a good ride because your mind isn't in the right place. Or you can have an awsome day and your horse decides its afraid of something totally out of the blue. 

They don't have watches so they can't tell when to be in the right mindset when its time to go for that nice ride. You gotta work off of your own horse and figure out what she acts like and what her 'natural time clock' is. 

Hopefully all of that made sence lol.


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## ilovelucy91 (Mar 11, 2009)

I understand what you are saying ^.^ thanks for all of your input! I will definitely use alot of it...I am familar with long lining (not a genius at it but I can make it work lol) and I will try the ground poles and the rhythm work and see what works for her, like people were saying horses are different and what works for one might not work for another...thanks!


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## mls (Nov 28, 2006)

PoptartShop said:


> But I wouldn't really lunge a hot-headed horse...they might just need some more training & stuff.


Can you expand on this statement?


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## ilovelucy91 (Mar 11, 2009)

lol I missed that sentence.............


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## ilovelucy91 (Mar 11, 2009)

I also disagree with it.....


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