The Confident Rider Podcast

Intuition and instinct: how often do you allow yourself to follow yours? And what's more, do you feel like you are connected to that internal sense of self enough that you are able to hear when it expresses a desire or impulse to you? Many of us don't. But that doesn't mean we can't cast off the layers of social and cultural conditioning that tell us it's not ok to trust ourselves or to follow our...

Team, I am so thrilled to be able to share this conversation with you today. I'm talking with Jim Masterson about the Masterson Method and how it is we can work with our horse to release underlying patterns of tension and promote optimal health, relaxation, and connection. Many of you will have heard me talk about this integrated bodywork practice before and it's something I'm utilizing on a near-...

Beating yourself up for not maintaining a solid baseline of calm with everything that is going on? You're not the only one! But the thing is, we aren't designed (nor is it preferable) for us to be calm all of the time. In an environment where there are lots of triggers ringing our nervous system alarm bells- from the sounds of actual alarms in our physical environment if you're in the city, to a f...

Aye kaboosh! What're the feels out there currently? From where I sit, it's certainly a mixed bag. One thing I do know is that we need to be even more intentional than usual in looking after our own sanity and wellness so we can ride out the waves as easefully as possible. The other thing? Whether or not you are able to hang with your horse currently or not, many of us have a niggling voice in the...

Routine! It used to be a word that I turned my nose up at, but these days, routine and I are pretty much BFFs. With so many of us finding ourselves well outside of our normal routines currently, it's important that we seek out and create some form of structure in our day so we don't find ourselves floating around in free-form, crazy-making territory! What it comes down to is this: When you have a...

A gift for you! I thought we could take a little moment together and do a shared, guided meditation. Be aware that within the aloneness, you are very much not alone, and within the non-idealness that might be happening right now, we are very much together in this. And that it's possible for us to find new ways of going about things, new ways of connecting, of understanding our minds and our hearts...

In this episode, we talk about: - How to create nervous system calm: I run you through a practical process for re-embodiment and getting out of your head and back into your body - The importance of self-care: Why self-care is not only vital for you as an individual right now, but is part of your community and global responsibility - How to reestablish control in an environment that feels the oppos...

Equine Assisted Learning is something that has become more and more common to hear about both in and out of horsing circles, but despite that, exactly what it entails and how it all works remains a mystery to those of us not already initiated into EAL life! Having received my certification as a Facilitator myself a couple of years back, I knew there were no two better people to bring on to share t...

Last week, I wrote an article on one of the common tripwires that see many a rider combusting from within- the emotional discharge of anxiety to anger. It resonated with so many of you that I've decided to dedicate today's episode to exploring it further, both from the position of someone in the midst of it as an emotional experience and someone on the receiving end (and let's face it, both places...

What's the difference between a horse that dances when you are on him and one that doesn't? This is the question that this week's guest, Visconte Simon Cocozza answers in his fabulous book, Core Conditioning for Horses, and the launching point for our conversation around how to mobilise and optimise the core when working together with our horses. Simon himself is a performance coach, an examiner f...

Patterns! We all have them, we all repeat them and most of us don't use them to our advantage. I'm always saying that if you have a pattern of behavior or experience that's coming up time and time again, then what you essentially have is a crystal ball… you can predict the future in advance! And THAT means that you can get to thinking about how it is you would LIKE things to go and dedicate yourse...

It's another person of radness in this week's podcast! A professional trainer and clinician, Ellie O'Brien has been a longtime friend and support to me in my horsing life, and we both share the passion of how to work with our horses in a way that preserves their natural spirit and curiosity. When I first decided to bring Dee under saddle myself, I went through Ellie's Start Your Own Horse Course (...

Comfort zones! We are all aware that in order to expand or progress, we need to gently elasticize the edges of our comfort zone. The thing is, most of us are unaware of both the subtle and not-so-subtle forces at play that we need to overcome in order to do so, and as a consequence, we can find ourselves engaging in self-sabotaging behaviors or simply not doing what we need or want to do. In this...

If horses were given a choice, would they let us ride them? Two documentary movies and a whole new way of approaching things later, that question was somewhat of a sliding doors moment for Elsa Sinclair and one that I and many others have infinitely benefitted from. In this episode we explore: - The principles and practices behind Freedom Based Training - The leadership scale: Passive, assertive &...

In this episode, I team up with one of my besties, Katy Negranti, to share with you something we've both been discussing lately that I feel is relevant to everyone… ...the expectations we put on ourselves to show up a certain way. ...the fear of failure or of somehow making a fool of ourselves. ...the pressures we face when it comes to literally and metaphorically stepping into the arena. This epi...

In this episode, I talk with horseman and trainer Ben Longwell on: How to create a transferable conversation from the ground to the saddle using your position, life, and space Horsemanship with purpose The Vaquero tradition and the Californian Bridle Horse; the history and training progression We would love to hear your thoughts! Feel free to comment and share this post, and screenshot the episode...

In this episode, we chat about exactly that including:   The importance of being discerning about who you share your dreams with (and why it's important!) Infusing the spirit of play and no-big-deal-ness into your actions moving forward How and when to create your plan so you aren't ruled by the mood of the moment   Let me know what you think! What are some common stuck points for you in bringing...

In this episode, Tania and I chatter about something dear to both of our hearts- writing, creativity and how that spills over into and informs our horsing lives also. As a professional writer and teacher, Tania has a liberating view of creativity and how we can inject more of it into our lives and riding for the benefit of ourselves and our horses. I hope you enjoy it! Comment and tell us your tho...

It's very easy for the last moments of a year, and the first of a new one to drive you into a slight panic-nee-existential-crisis about what it is you have been doing with your time, what it is you ARE going to do with your time, and what it is you have or haven't done. In other words, instead of celebrating what has been and relaxing into what is, we see the end of year deadline as a point of loo...

In this episode, I'm talking with Kelly Wilson, one third of the dynamic team that is the Wilson sisters and an accomplished author, photographer and wild horse trainer.   Kelly has just released her 13th book, Taming The Wild, that details all of the knowledge she's gained through her extensive work with wild horses, and that she shares over the course of her month long wild horse workshops. On h...

We are freestyling again this week! I had the inspired thought before recording this to ask the in my JoyRide Member's Group what was front of mind for the peeps in there and said I would roll with the first comment that came up. Running with that, this episode is all about where to take things when you've lost your purpose and drive (but still have the desire). --- Click below to learn all about...

In this episode, I talk about navigating that line in training of when to push through and when to hold back, as well as:   How to recognise the difference between pre-patterned emotion and emotion that's true for the moment (so you don't go to war with yourself) Training with kindness (training yourself that is!) Moving out of your head and into your heart   If you enjoy it, please feel free to s...

Combining horsemanship and classical dressage, Patrick King is a wealth of knowledge and experience when it comes to a holistic approach to training. Some of you will have caught my conversation with Patrick live a couple of weeks back on Facebook, but I am super excited to bring it to you again in this week's episode.   Among the many things we cover, Patrick discusses:   The difference between g...

I had different plans for this week's episode but then a couple of conversations I've had this past week or so made me change course and want to talk about how easy it is, firstly to get stuck in a story of our own creation, and secondly, why sometimes the best course of action is to seek relief rather than a solution. For the most part, all of the thought loops that we cycle through are stories t...

In this episode, I am talking with Karen Rohlf, internationally recognized horsewoman and clinician and founder of Dressage Naturally. We discuss what it means to create a happy and empowered partnership with your horse by bringing together the best of the worlds of dressage and partnership-based training. If you enjoy this episode, please feel free to share and leave a review! --- Click below to...