Wednesday 10 August 2016

The Elephant in the Room

I post pictures of myself, so it'll be no surprise to anyone that I am an overweight rider. It's not exactly my favorite subject. But it does make a difference to my riding, and currently it's a factor for my saddle search, so I feel the need to talk about it a little.

2007 - just after paragliding down from a mountain in the Austrian Alps!

Background


I was always a fairly skinny, small kid. I was a picky eater when I was young, but in high school and university, I ate more than anyone else I knew and was still pretty skinny. I was a healthy BMI for my height and weight, but I had a decent amount of muscle so I was slim for my weight. As well as riding horses I played rugby and did a number of other sports and activities.

2009 - getting more serious about dressage

After university, I got a job as an oilfield inspector. I worked a lot of overtime and travelled extensively. I wasn't able to ride much and I couldn't commit to being a part of any other sports teams any more. Fast food and gas station meals became a necessary part of life. I did that for over two years. Unsurprisingly, I gained weight during that time, but not much more than 10 pounds. I still wasn't fat by any means.

2011 - after finishing university, partway into inspection life

Then, in August 2013, I had a positive blood test for celiac disease. I changed jobs and moved around the same time and with switching doctors etc, it took me 6 months to get my final diagnosis (a blood test isn't definitive so you have to get an endoscopy and biopsy of your small intestine to confirm - you have to keep eating gluten until the endoscopy so that it gives accurate results). For those 6 months I gave myself free rein to eat whatever I wanted. It was the last time in my life that I was going to be able to eat pasta, pizza, cake, etc. etc. so I indulged. In hindsight, this was supremely stupid, but c'est la vie.

Then, I got the final diagnosis of celiac disease and went on a strict gluten-free diet. My intestines that had been so damaged for so long, started healing and started absorbing (though it certainly wasn't as instant as some people will have you believe). The massive quantities of food I had eaten for most of my life hadn't been necessary due to a high metabolism, they had been because my intestines were only absorbing a small amount of it. Now, I didn't need to eat so much, but try telling that to my mouth, stomach and brain who have been chowing down large meals and snacks for years.

The combination of these things meant that I gained a huge amount of weight very quickly (I'm sure there were also some other factors at play, but those are the big ones).

2014 - right after getting Kachina

Now


With difficulty, I have mostly managed to stop the weight increase, but I haven't been able to lose it.

I do at least 5 hours of moderate exercise a week. I barely ever eat out, and I cook balanced meals. I have good strength and muscles. My organs are now functioning better and I have better energy levels, and healthier iron stores etc. However, all of that is covered by a layer of fat that I cannot easily get rid of.

I won't say I am a saint of healthy living. I work at a sedentary desk job. I maintain my love of candy. I still default back to large portion sizes. Also, I need to always use my self-control to not eat gluten, so when I come across junk food that I can safely eat, it's hard to say no.

I'm not perfect, but I'm trying.

2016


How it effects my riding


As far as riding horses goes, I'm lucky that I'm short. The pounds I gained would look a lot more flattering spread around a taller frame, but at least even at my high BMI, my actual weight is not that high. I don't weigh more than an average sized man and I can ride most horses without getting close to that 20% guideline.

My size does however effect me in the saddle. For one, mounting and dismounting is more difficult. Second, my fat a$$ needs a bigger saddle to fit in. Even judging my shoulder-hip-heel line is tougher when there's extra flesh sticking out in either direction. However, the biggest thing is that my balance and proportions are just different which messes me up. I learned to ride as a smaller person, and I am still adapting to my current reality. Having the shape of my seat and my thighs change, and my center of gravity change, changes my natural position in the saddle, and so every thing I used to know about making my position more effective needs to adapt accordingly.

It's tough, because one hand, I want to lose the extra weight, so I don't want to adapt to having it. But on the other hand, I need to realize that it's not going to happen overnight and I may never be quite as small as I was before. I am trying to find some middle ground. This goes for both how I ride and what I ride in. For example, I bought a cheap used show coat in my current size, but I am going to try and lose at least a couple sizes before I upgrade to a nicer coat.


Anyone else have struggles with weight or re-learning to ride after a change to your body (weight, injury, pregnancy, growth spurt etc.)?

17 comments:

  1. I'm still re-learning to ride with my bum ankle (and it was over 3 years ago that I had my accident). I've gotten a lot better but I picked up some bad habits while trying to protect my ankle that I cannot seem to shake.

    I am also a heavier rider who struggles with weight. I've always struggled and I carry most of my weight in my middle, which definitely has it's challenges.

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    1. I can imagine that coming back from an injury would be tough, especially one to a joint that you have to use as much in riding as an ankle. I'm lucky that I haven't had to go through that myself. Good luck shaking the remnant bad habits!

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  3. I started struggling in graduate school. I went from being a highly active athlete to a stressed out sedentary student. I wear my weight well and I am down from when I was in grad school but I still have more to do. When I started riding again I hated it because I felt so floppy and my body would not do what it used to do. It's frustrating but I do remind myself that I'm well balanced and there have been studies that show a well balanced heavier rider is easier on the horse than an unbalanced lighter rider. Granted Stinker would probably be happier with a lighter balanced rider but that is a work in progress.

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    1. I wouldn't have pegged you as one with those struggles, I guess it just goes to show that you can't assume things are necessarily easier for someone who looks like they have a more ideal rider's build (though still a little jealous of your long legs!) :)

      I agree that an experienced rider is certainly easier on a horse's back than a beginner who is flopping around and doesn't know how to sit or post the trot etc.

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    2. I wear my weight really well. I actually had a nurse say their scale was broken when she weighed me (it wasn't). It was when I was at my heaviest and it was a wake up call for me. My biggest issue now is stress eating. But I am doing better but I still want to drown my sorrows in French fries...

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    3. Who wouldn't want to drown their sorrows in french fries ;-). Luckily my celiac disease already cuts out pretty much all fried foods. I find other unhealthy options to binge on though *sigh*

      Lol about the "broken" scale

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  4. As a fellow overweight person who struggles to lose weight despite exercising and eating sensibly (most of the time), I feel your frustration!

    I try hard to focus on exercise that will help me in the saddle; I do various weight lifting exercises so I am strong and have good core strength. I do moderate cardio to help my endurance. I try to squeeze in yoga and stretching to stay supple and balanced. Doing that makes me feel like a capable rider, so even if I don't *look* like the svelte picture of equestrian perfection, I know I'm strong and balanced.

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    1. That's great that you're strong and balanced! I try and do a lot of core strength exercises too like dragonboating and pilates. I feel like my strength in the saddle is pretty good, but it's the balance I'm really struggling with. That's a big part of why I'm saddle hunting. I think my saddle doesn't fit me well with the extra weight and so it is pushing my balance out of whack.

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  5. I learned to ride with a bum shoulder, and somehow its been pain free for several months and getting used to that has been weird (but great!)

    I definitely recommend lifting weights. I had been a hardcore cardio person and bought wholly into the weightlifting myths, when I finally started lifting weights I was pleasantly surprised by how I felt and looked.

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    1. Re-learning to ride without an injury... that is a unique scenario. Glad you're pain free now though!

      Thanks for the weights suggestion. I've never fallen for those myths, more the thing is that I feel my day to day life gives me more opportunities to build muscle than cardio fitness (carrying groceries, lugging around tack and water buckets, etc.). I more frequently feel out of breath than I do weak, so I feel cardio is important for me. Of course activities that build both muscles and fitness are the best!

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  6. It is tough. I am also an overweight rider and I have to make adjustments for it often. I carry most of my weight in my thighs and butt so that isn't as much of a disadvantage as carrying more weight higher on your body (at least as far as messing with your balance in the saddle) but I will say that all that extra junk in the truck makes it darn tough to open my hip angle but not arch my back-I can't create the picture I want because my butt is physically in the way. Its funny, I feel so completely plugged in when I ride in my trainer's saddle so I bought the same exact model...or I guess I thought I did (granted, they are on different horses). I can't seem to get that same feeling in my own saddle- I always feel like it is too small.

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    1. Hi, I haven't seen you comment before, thanks for reading and sharing! I just took a peak at your blog and I'll definitely have to read more about you and your jumping percheron!

      I feel like I have that exact same problem with opening my hip angle! I'm hoping a new saddle helps me out on that. I have noticed in my saddle search that the balance of the saddle has a huge impact of how good it feels, so maybe that is why yours feels good on one horse but not the other?

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  7. I've always been a bit overweight, but 2 different back injuries really set me back and caused me to gain a lot of weight that I have since found much harder to lose. There's a Facebook group started by a horse blogger for riders who are trying to lose wright called goalbreeches. You may want to join as well.

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    1. Thanks for the suggestion! I just joined up :-) . Good luck with your weight and back injuries

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  8. Hi Sarah, I am a rider, not particularly overweight, but do have coeliac disease. Just wanted to say how well you are doing to eat a balanaced diet - I am totally guilty of eating too much saturated fat and dairy products, just because I figure if I can't eat everything, what I do eat has got to taste great. In the end, a healthy and functional body if worth so much to being able to live properly. Good luck with finding a new saddle!

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    1. Thanks Elphingirl! It sometimes really sucks to have to be on such a restricted diet eh? But you're right, having a healthy and functional body is worth it.

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