DefinitelyDressage.com

Well, it happened. I fell off Ariel today. We finished our ride and I was dismounting. As in, we weren’t moving. I swung my right leg over, and either she spooked (which she never does) or I goosed her. Anyway, she did something quickly and I went off. Landed on my butt/hip. I was alone in the arena but Elizabeth and Marissa heard me calling and came in. Ariel of course stood there. I shifted to my back and laid there a few minutes. Jamie came in to help me up. Of course I was wearing a helmet. My right hip (the fat part) is ever so sore. Took ibuprofen and applied arnica.

Ouch! Hope you are OK and not sore.for too long!

Ouch feel better

Hope u don’t ache for too long! Like you I schedule my falls twenty years apart by only riding steady eddies! My last one we were heading home from a trail across the neighbors property and my old guy stumbled and almost went to his knees. Since I was perched on top not really riding I went over his shoulder and landed on my back with all the air knocked out of me. I still had the reinsclutched in my hand and he was at the end of them trying not to spook at seeing me in that strange position/location! Sore for a few days then all okay. I hope for the same for you.

I have a fist sized bruise on my inner right thigh. It’s the color of grape jelly. The soreness is dissipating. I think my right leg got hung up on the cantle when dismounting. I goosed her and she spooked. Saturday I will have my trainer watch me dismount and see what I’m doing wrong. I fractured the head of my left fibula in November. Non riding accident. I don’t think I’ve returned to my previous fitness level. This is my year of orthopedic injuries.

Ouch. Sounds like it was one of those falls that you couldn't have saved yourself from however fit or limber you were. I hope the purple bits fade soon!

The latest in my orthopedic adventures. This happened around 3pm Saturday. Fell off the mounting block, ambulance ride to the ED. The mounting block is a wooden platform with 3 stairs, used to get on and off a horse. I won’t go into details except to say Michelle blocked my fall with her body. Otherwise I’d be in a halo. Fentanyl in the ambulance, morphine before X-rays.Hamstring strain and tailbone injury. Mild muscle relaxants and a donut pillow help. I am mobile but don’t overdo it. I’m sick of Tv and my tablet. Don’t have the focus to read. My car is still at the barn. That’s okay. Not like I’m going anywhere.

Jeese, I'm sorry, Paula. Getting old is rough. Remember me stepping backwards off a stool at champs and the intense wrist pain, and ended up thinking I was riding with a broken wrist for most of the show in a brace and on codeine and tylenol? Luckily a bad sprain, but man. Remember when we used to bounce?

Take care with that strain. I ended up in the ER about 10 years ago after slowly tripping onto both knees in my yard. Ended up a bad strain in both quads. I still have to use my arms to pick up my legs sometimes, but I am sloooooowly getting it back.

The irony of my latest is that I was practicing my dismount. I can’t get my right leg over the cantle. Either I need a new saddle or need a strengthening program. Or both.

Ouch, Paula! You might want to look into working with a personal trainer or physical therapist. They can help you build a program tailored to strength, balance, and movement.

Heddy, I have an order for PT which I will schedule once I can drive. It is literally behind my townhouse and I’ve been there twice so they know me! I will also text my former trainer and book a few sessions.

I hope you are feeling better, Paula! I've had to work really hard on my hip flexibility and core to make getting out of a dressage saddle easier as I've started to work with longer stirrups, so I can relate! I do a stretching and mild pilates session most mornings before I go to the barn. I can get off my horse now!

oh no, ouch, Paula!

Feel better soon!

I’ve had 2 sessions of PT and it’s kicking my butt. Gonna be a while before I get back in a saddle.

How are you doing?

I came in to post an update. Yesterday I got back in the saddle. Not on Miss A. though. On rock steady school horse Astro. I was more nervous about mounting than dismounting but I got on and off 3 times. My instructor Ana and friend Michelle were there for moral and physical support. I was able to get my right leg over the cantle with plenty of clearance. I’m going to do another session on Astro, then ride my own horse. The riding itself is fine. It’s the mounting and dismounting. I will be borrowing a saddle with a lower cantle.

PT is tough! My PT does deep massage to loosen everything, and everything is tight. Then I do 30 minutes of leg strengthening exercises. My left leg is still a touch swollen but I’m not favoring it.

I found out why I fell. Apparently I had a death grip on the reins and she moved away from that pressure. My right leg was still arcing over the cantle and my left foot was hovering over the mounting block. Splat.

Glad to hear you are back at it!

The high cantle on modern saddles is a real tell for tight hips, I know. There have been days when I have to do a full on body sprawl to get off.