Healing The Horse And Rider

"Is it pain?"

Every equestrian has pondered this when facing a horse's behavioral issues, training hurdles, or subpar performance, often leading to costly vet visits and extensive imaging. But what if pain is more complex, intertwining physical and mental aspects?

In our upcoming class, we'll explore the neuroscience of pain, drawing insights from the latest human pain science research to holistically understand and manage your horse's symptoms. You'll gain practical knowledge to maintain both your and your horse's well-being.

This session is ideal for equestrians of any age aiming for longevity in riding, and it's particularly valuable for those managing horses with past injuries, anxiety, trauma, or those simply striving for optimal health and performance.
Additionally, we'll introduce the Old Masters Training System with Rupert Isaacson, blending ancient equine training methods with modern practices. This approach, akin to yoga, enhances a horse's strength, flexibility, and mental state through gentle, progressive exercises. You'll learn foundational patterns to foster a deep bond with your horse, leading to mutual joy and a harmonious rider-horse relationship.

Join us to unlock the secrets of ancient wisdom and contemporary science for your horse's ultimate well-being.

A lifelong horseman who grew up foxhunting and eventing in the UK, Rupert came to dressage through observing that his autistic son Rowan began to communicate in the saddle in front of him when they rode horses together in collection. This led Rupert to the therapeutic technique now known Horse Boy Method, but he also realized that to really understand collection in order to serve an autistic kid well, he had to learn about dressage.

So he went on a quest – to Portugal, France and the UK, riding with different mentors but always finding that they were at least 50% confusing no matter how useful their exercises and techniques were. He became frustrated that no one could explain the overall structure and system in a way that was coherent and immediately doable.

He then started to study the old masters writing, spent hundreds of hours going through online instructional videos and also kept riding with good mentors. Little by little he put together the beginnings of our Stress Free Dressage course and system. When he then discovered the extraordinary Valenca family in Portugal and Christian Bachinger in Austria the whole picture at last fell into place.

So if you want to understand how the whole picture fits together, how you and your horse will get from your current point to where you want to go, then Rupert can explain it in a way that – because of his day job as a journalist – will make you finally go ‘Oh I get it!’.

He is also your man for really learning the in hand work and how to establish everything you are going to do under saddle in hand first – at walk, trot and even canter – so that the riding becomes fluid and easy. He is also your dude for learning the pillars, the airs and establishing the piaffe.

But for him, because of the background with autism, the main thing is to make everything clear, empathetic and fun so that the learning comes in a way that is stress free – the only way the human or equine brain can really take in information.

Sukie started her career in bodywork as a licensed human and equine massage practitioner for fifteen years, actually putting her hands on people and horses to feel the patterns expressed in muscles and fascia.

Over and over again she saw her clients transform their lives as a result of their work together. People left abusive relationships, changed careers, lost weight, became happier and more themselves while horses with extensive injuries or histories of trauma became calmer and moved better. What Sukie was taught about how her work worked — that she was "breaking up adhesions" in the tissue — didn’t map with what she saw happening with her clients.

She started to notice the connection between posture, movement and emotions. The patterns formed in a person or horse's body were the expression of what was happening in their nervous system. She also noticed that there was no correlation between muscle density, body size, age or any other factor with regard to how receptive a person was to the work and how rapidly their posture and movement patterns changed.

Those who changed the most readily, on average, were people who had highly developed mind-body coordination -- dancers, martial artists, equestrians and even weight lifters. Over and over again, her queries into how body-based work was affecting posture, movement and mood brought her back to the nervous system.

She now teaches humans how to rewire themselves for greater health, happiness and success through movement and biomechanics affecting the nervous system, and she teaches equestrians how to recognize and address signs of nervous system activation in horses to help them move better, become calmer, and increase confidence.

HEALING THE HORSE & RIDER

MEET YOUR TEACHERS

RUPERT ISAACSON

SUKIE BAXTER