Fitness and Well-being

If your horse could talk….

He might tell you that while you’re having a great ride, he really isn’t. In fact, he’s not feeling well at all and has a touch of colic coming on. Or she might say that while you’re ready to push on after cresting that last hill, she needs more rest. The heat is really affecting her.

Now he can…..

For years, Polar products have been used in the world of endurance riding to keep horses safe during competition. But the same approach can help you keep your horse safe during weekly and daily rides. By monitoring your horse’s heart rate during exercise, you can listen to what his body is telling you and understand how the ride is affecting him.

It’s easy and there’s no discomfort to your horse. It’s the best way to keep him healthy and safe, while minimizing injuries and ensuring that he’s having a good ride also.

Sports Performance

Your horse listens to your cues……

Communication between horse and rider is essential in any equine sport. But unlike their human counterparts, equine athletes can’t always tell you how they are doing, So it’s up to trainers and riders to ensure their horses are fit enough to prevent injuries and to keep them in good health for the long competitive season.

Now listen to hers…….

A Polar Horse Heart Rate Monitor(HHRM) is the most reliable way to tell how effectively your horse is training. It easily and accurately measures the horse’s exertion levels during exercise and monitors resting and recovery heart rates as well. It lets you know what your horse is capable of on any given day under any given condition.

It’s the best way to keep your equine athlete in good health and optimize her abilities in the most efficient way!

Horse Health, Fitness, Performance

From the recreational horse owner to the equine professional, all have a vested interest in their horse’s health and welfare…..whether it’s the family pet or the filly favored to take the Triple Crown.

As in humans, one of the best ways to gauge the health and fitness of your horse is by his heart rate. A Polar Horse Heart Rate Monitor (HHRM) provides instantaneous and continuous feedback on your horse’s heart rate, letting you know how he is doing during exercise or recovery, and while at rest.

The latest Polar HHRMs are accurate and reliable, simple to use and easy to put on your horse. In addition, there is no ‘hard wire’ connection between you and the horse transmitter, enabling it to be used in training or competition-both with and without a rider-or during leisurely rides.

Whether used recreationally or competitively, Polar HHRMs give you the opportunity to listen to your horse’s body. HHRM training can help you establish a well-rounded exercise or training program to keep your horse fit while minimizing the risk of injury.

Benefits of horse heart rate monitoring

Although competitive equestrian sports are closely monitored by veterinarians, traditionally it has been difficult to determine the health status of the horse during general exercise or competition. Until now. Recreational owners, competitive riders and trainers alike have begun using Polar HHRMs to assist them with evaluating the health and performance of their horse.

Abnormal readings of your horse’s vital signs-namely resting, exercise and recovery heart rates-can alert you to immediate or impending problems such as injury, illness or fatigue.


Evaluate Stress Response to Travel or Environmental Change

When your horse is exposed to anything new-travel, a different terrain, new equipment, different skills or alternate riders-the horse’s heart rate may be abnormally high. Heart rate gives you a measure of how your horse is coping with change so that you can modify the horse’s activity accordingly.


Ensure Proper Warm Up and Recovery

Monitoring heart rate ensures that your horse warms up properly before strenuous exercise. And when he needs a rest, you’ll know that too. This is helpful information for the recreational rider whose horse may be in a stall all week with minimal activity.


Track Fitness Improvement

Improvements in your horse’s fitness can be detected by exercise and recovery heart rates. Increase in a horse’s fitness is associated with a reduction in heart rate at a given running speed and a more rapid decline in heart rate during recovery.


Measure Training Intensity

Intensity is the most important ingredient in any training program. Working too hard for too long invites injury and fatigue; working too effortlessly provides little training benefit. By monitoring your horse’s heart rate, you can adjust each activity session accordingly.


Assess Recovery During Interval Training

Many owners and trainers are now using interval training to improve their horse’s fitness, using short but intense training sessions separated by short recovery periods. If the horse’s heart rate isn’t restored to the desired recovery target within the rest period, it helps the trainer know if the program is too hard or too long. This can help ensure against any injuries due to over work or over training.


Gauge Intensity During Cross Training

Many owners and trainers now incorporate swimming in their horse’s exercise program to keep joints moving, muscles toned, and the cardiovascular and respiratory systems in condition. The Waterproof T51H/T52H Polar transmitters will transmit heart rate in water and let you know how hard the horse is working during swimming sessions.


Audit Training Sessions

Many owners and trainers don’t do their own riding and driving. With the Polar HHRM, you can record the horse’s training sessions into memory and check to see that the specific instructions relative to training intensity and time were followed after the the session is completed.


Increase Equine Expertise

Whether you are the owner or trainer, the horse is your most important asset. Using a heart rate monitor increases your knowledge about each individual horse to improve its general health and training. Utilizing the most advanced technology on the market today helps you increase the value of your training expertise.

Training for equestrian sports

A horse heart rate monitor allows you to determine the frequency, volume and intensity of training based on the individual fitness level of each horse, and the demands of each discipline.


Endurance

HHRMs have long been a critical tool in these competitions. Pacing your horse is obviously one of the critical elements of these competitions, where you must pass veterinary checks along the way. The HHRM will help you prepare your horse, and then help you pace him during competition so you both finish safely and reach your goal.


Eventing

A HHRM can help you prepare more effectively for all three events. Simulating the demands of each discipline and duplicatng those efforts during training will lead to a successful competition. The HHRM will tell you how your horse is being affected by the effort he is putting in, and allow you to make the decision to back him off, or push him a little harder. All while keeping him and you safe.

 - Jumping
By paying attention to your horse’s heart rate, you can assess whether he is stressed when he approaches a jump, or if his fitness is causing him to make errors late in the competition. You can simulate the demands on your horse and see how it affects him during training.

 - Cross Country
Simulating a challenging course in training, and monitoring the heart rate and effort of your horse, can ensure you are both ready for competition. With the speed information available, it’s an invaluable tool that will ensure your horse is ready for the more challenging questions. Prepared and not over-trained or injured.

 - Dressage
Endurance allows dressage horses to perform better while maintaining technical precision. It also minimizes injuries due to one-sided technical work. The HHRM can play a vital role in building and maintaining endurance.


Thoroughbred Training

While Thoroughbreds typically run at or near max heart rate, the HHRM is a great tool for assessing their potential ability on the track. Matching heart rate in relation to speed and pace gives you a close look into the potential of the horse and can help you make decisions about a particular horse’s future training and racing.

It’s also a valuable tool for gauging recovery, which is also a leading indicator of the fitness level and ultimately the performance of your horse. Gauging his resting heart rate will tell you whether he is prepare for the hard training that you have scheduled for him that day. And using it as a way to determine when to start the next interval will ensure that you get the most out of that workout, and also will go a long way to helping you avoid any overtraining injuries.


Harness/Driving

Finding the right intensity levels for your horse is critical when training for harness racing or driving events. Pacing by speed and heart rate gives you the critical information to prepare your horse right and make decisions about training relative to your horse’s fitness level and recovery.

A complete line of equine products for horse fitness,
well-being and sports performance

For recreational owners……

Enjoy products designed for leisure riding, basic training and rehabilitation. Products like the Polar Equine Inzone-which includes a nightlight and coded transmission-enable you to exercise your horse within a specific target heart rate zone. All monitors feature large, easy-to-read displays and simple button access.

For competitive riders…..

Choose a monitor and accessories tailored to meet the training needs of your equine event. For example, the Polar Equine CS600 Trotting is for use on a carraige or sulky, wirelessly delivering real-time heart rate, speed, and distance information, which can be recorded and downloaded to your PC.

For trainers…..

Take advantage of the most complete training systems on the market. If you’re a trainer or serious competitor, products like the RS800CXG3 will give you everything you need-real-time heart rate, speed distance, pace and altitude along with GPS mapping for electronically tracking your route after a ride. The wireless transmitter can deliver a signal 30 feet away without interference from other heart rate monitors nearby.

Polar equine products include horse heart rate monitors and accessories for:

-Health, safe fitness and rehabilitation
-Sports performance
-Sulky or carriage training
-Swim based cross training
-PC-based training and tracking to analyze key performance data
(heart rate, speed and distance, pace, time)

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