50 Miles in 30 Days Challenge

Cease And Desist Budget Equestrian

So recently I was contacted by a horse trainer because I had used ‘words’ that were trademarked. And I had written this blog post almost a year ago exactly about working with your horse, and coming up with a challenge for the month. I was told I needed to “remove ANYTHING that had reference to this trademarked phrase.’ So I can’t say what the words are. I guess it was bad for me to try and do research on a ‘challenge’ (I sure hope this word isn’t a trademark) I guess my article was too popular for the guy that accused me of using his trademarked words.

To me that’s funny, because I just shared my thoughts, and came up with a challenge for myself – because I wasn’t going to invest $100 into a program that I can’t find any information on.

And I wanted to share my personal challenge with you. How dare I have a thought of my own. And while I won’t mention the website, that he claims I infringed on, or his trademarked phrase (I did not). I decided to come up with a new challenge to share with you.

I mean tomorrow is April 1st, and there are 30 days in the month, so how about we shoot for riding or walking with our horses and attempt to reach 50 miles in 30 days? It is a lofty goal, but I think I am up for the challenge, how about you? And the best part about this is it is 100% FREE.

And I’m going to ‘walk’ you through it here, on my blog right now. A full 30 days of things you can do with your horse over the next 30 days.

50 Miles in 30 Days Challenge

When you think about it all at once, it seems like a lofty goal. But to be able to look back on a month, and say you walked (or rode) your horse 50 miles…. wow! But what does that look like, from a practical approach?

Work Up To An Hour a Day

I believe that in order to hit my goal of 50 miles for the month of April, I will need to build up to walking (or working with) Plezant literally for one hour every single day. I’m not sure, but I think this is what it will work out too. It might be more, it might be less. But I am going to work up to an hour a day.

And in order to keep track of how many miles we are walking, I am going to keep track of our progress using my Equilab app. Have you tried this yet? I love this app. Once you get in the habit of turning it on, it’s really fun to look at your progress over the course of a week.

And by turning on the app, I will have a record of how many miles we have walked, as well as the time. This is so much easier than trying to figure out on my fitness tracker of how many miles Plezant and I walk. I have my regular daily steps, and then trying to deduct that from my work time with Plezant, well, the Equilab just makes more sense to me.

So we are going to start with an hour a day, and see how we progress over the course of a week, then two, then three.

The Benefit of Walking Your Horse

You probably know what a fan I am of ground work, as well as challenges. And this new challenge will be starting on the ground, mostly, unless Plezant lets me know he is ready for more.

I don’t know about you, but I don’t need a program to understand the benefit of walking my horse. I already get that. Anything that you can do on the ground, will make it that much easier when you get into the saddle. So exposing your horse to as many different situations on the ground will help him (or her) to experience new situations while you are with him, but on the ground.

I can tell you from my personal experience of just walking with Plezant around our property, it helped him settle in so much. He is much more quiet on the ground than he was a year ago. He really seems to enjoy going for walks.

I love this horse! He just amazes me every time I ask something of him. He is just super cool.

Benefits For You Too

But by going for hour long walks won’t just benefit your horse, but it will benefit you as well. When was the last time you walked for a solid hour? I mean, I can easily get 10,000 steps a day, which is roughly 5 miles a day. But this is a part of my regular schedule. This is what I do every single day. So my body is used to it. But, walking for a sold hour? Nope, I’m not used to that!

So not only will this help my horse by hand walking him, working his muscles, and getting him fit slowly, but it will help me to get fit too.

Walk with Me

Ok, today is Wednesday, March 31st. Tomorrow is April 1st. That means I am starting my own challenge now. Want to do it with me? Then, let’s do it! You can look me up on the Equilab app (under the section to add friends) and we can help keep each other accountable, as well as see what others are doing. Oh, and it won’t cost you $100 for 14 days, or even a dollar for one day. This is completely free, but if you want to pay yourself for doing it, how about getting a jar, and putting a dollar (or two) in the jar for every mile you walk with your horse?

50 Miles In 30 Days Challenge

Alright, so tomorrow is the first day of the free 50 miles in 30 days challenge, brought to you by me, the Budget Equestrian. Be sure to follow me on Instagram ( @budgetequestrian ) to follow our progress, as well as daily tips to get you motivated in case you want to join in on the challenge too!

So let me show you what the next 30 days will look like. I’m going to break down what you can do every day over the next 30 days to work with your horse.

50 Miles In 30 Days Challenge

Ok, so we have 30 days to ride or walk 50 miles. I think this is doable, don’t you? So this is how I am planning on doing it. Feel free to do the same, or change it up to suit your needs.

Week 1

This is a shorter week, since the first falls on a Thursday. I call that a win – a short week for week one is a good thing. It makes it easier to set an attainable goal.

• Thursday, April 1st: Walk for 15 minutes in hand, groom for 15 minutes
• Friday, April 2nd: Walk in the back pasture 15 minutes, groundwork in the arena 15 minutes
• Saturday, April 3rd: Walk on the road 15 minutes, 10 minutes on the trail
• Sunday, April 4th: 15 minutes groundwork in the arena, 10 minutes on the back trail

For myself, this week is a good starting point. I like to start slow, and build. This will help me, as much as it will Plezant. And our walks might be a little bit longer than 15 minutes. It depends on how he is feeling. If he wants to go longer, I can do that.

I let Plezant guide me into what he feels up to doing. At this point in my work, I don’t want to over do it. He is just coming off about 3 months of not really having anything to do because of the winter. I am figuring we can walk about a mile in 15 minutes. And if I can keep up the pace, we should be able to get in 7 miles during this first week by moving at this slower pace.

Week 2

• Monday, April 5th: Off Day
• Tuesday, April 6th: 15 minutes hand walking, 15 minutes lunge line work
• Wednesday, April 7th: 20 minutes walking in the trail, 15 minutes walking under saddle
• Thursday, April 8th: 20 minutes walking under saddle, 15 minutes lunge line work
• Friday, April 9th: 15 minutes groundwork in the arena, 15 minutes lunging
• Saturday, April 10th: 30 minutes trail riding (walking)
• Sunday, April 11th: 15 minutes groundwork in the arena, 15 minutes walking on the road

Week 2 is a little bit more intensive. If I can stick to the plan I have crafted for Plezant and I, we have the potential of walking a minimum of 12 miles! That adds up quickly doesn’t it? And with each session, I am establishing a habit not only for Plezant, but also for myself. Not only are we both having more physical activity, but by working with him consistently, on a daily basis I am establishing better responsiveness from him, and working through any issues he might have.

Plezant is very easy going. So I have already incorporated some saddle time with him in the first two weeks. But if your horse is not quite ready for that, it’s ok. Do what works best for YOU and YOUR horse. If that means all groundwork, so be it. That’s fine! The important takeaway is just getting out there and working with your horse every day. Do something with him every day.

Week 3

• Monday, April 12th: Off Day
• Tuesday, April 13th: Groundwork for 15 minutes, lunging 15 minutes
• Wednesday, April 14th: Hand walking on the road 15 minutes, arena work 30 minutes
• Thursday, April 15th: 30 minute trail ride
• Friday, April 16th: 30 minutes arena work, 15 minutes hand walking on the road
• Saturday, April 17th: 60 minute walking trail ride
• Sunday, April 18th: 15 minutes groundwork, 15 minutes hand walking on the road

Ok, week 3 it gets a little more intensive. But hopefully, it is all enjoyable work. I like to mix things up, and change things up so we are not always doing the same thing day in and day out. That would get boring, repetitive, and might cause Plezant to have a little bit of an attitude.

I love this horse and the last thing I want is for him to resent the time we have together. So keeping the work sessions challenging, as well as fun will help prevent that from happening. And if I can hold true to my schedule, for week 3 we have the potential to work around 16 miles. This means at this point the grand total is around 35 miles! I think we can do this!

Week 4

• Monday, April 19th: Off Day (Rest day for the both of us!)
• Tuesday, April 20th: 15 minutes hand walking on the road, 15 minutes groundwork in the arena
• Wednesday, April 21st: 15 minutes groundwork on the trail, 20 minutes on the lunge line
• Thursday, April 22nd: 30 minutes arena work, 15 minutes walking on the road
• Friday, April 23rd: 30 minutes arena work, 30 minutes trail work
• Saturday, April 24th: 60 minute trail ride
• Sunday, April 25th: 60 minute arena work

At the end of week 4, we are adding an additional 15 to 16 miles. And I am hopeful by this point, Plezant is well versed in all aspects of the road, trail AND arena work. If I can do this, it also puts us right around the 50 mile mark.

So you see, this is totally achievable! You can do this! I can do this! And this even incorporates a day off for you and your horse every week. Personally, I do feel it’s important to incorporate a rest day in each week for you and your horse. Well, more for your horse because you are still going to have chores that need to be done, and probably some reorganizing of your tack room. Depending on what you do each week with your own personal goal.

Week 5 – The Home Stretch!

• Monday, April 26th: Off Day
• Tuesday, April 27th: Arena work for 60 minutes, 15 minutes hand walking
• Wednesday, April 28th: Walking on the trail 30 minutes, ground work 15 minutes, lunging 15 minutes
• Thursday, April 29th: Arena work for 30 minutes, hand walking on the trail 15 minutes
• Friday, April 30th: Trail ride for 60 minutes

And that’s it! We are done! We have completed the 30 days! Whoop whoop!

So by breaking down the prior 30 days, and coming up with an attainable goal, we should be able to work with our horses for around 65 miles, or an entire month. Not too shabby right?

So I guess instead of being angry with Steve Halfpenny, I should say thank you to him for motivating me to come up with a schedule that I can work with my horse so he and I can get fit, and in shape for the upcoming summer. As well as being able to share a challenge with you, and perhaps motivating you to go and enjoy the time you have with your horse.

50 Miles in 30 Days Challenge

I am not a horse, or a people trainer. I am just a person who loves having horses in my life, and I love sharing my experiences with other horse owners like you. For someone to ‘claim’ that I have infringed on them for voicing my own opinion, or sharing an idea ticks me off. I understand that my ideas, or opinions aren’t going to be shared by everyone else in the world, and I’m ok with that. We each have an opinion, and a way that we do things that works for us.

And that’s ok, we are all individuals with individual opinions and we are entitled to those opinions. But the reasoning behind me posting what I do is to offer options for other horse owners who want to better themselves, and their horses without having to spend money to do it. Horses are expensive. So having access to free things is always beneficial. Which is why I do what I do. If it helps even one person to connect with their horse, I consider that a success.