Understand

Your Horse

The Musculoskeletal System:

Important for:

  • efficient movement

  • performance

  • correct posture 

Equine muscles work in groups or chains, such as the dorsal chain (topline), ventral chain (core muscles), hind quarters and thoracic sling group (shoulder muscles). Each group has its own function, and tightness in each can cause different problems within the horse. Knowing where your horse may be tight can help in understanding the way they move, and how best to improve their performance. 

The Dorsal Chain

Aka the topline, this muscle group works to flex and extend the back and neck, and is important in creating proper posture during performance. Tension here can lead to an inability to work forward into the contact, stretch over the back and build the topline muscles evenly, which may in turn highlight any asymmetries that are already present. 

Tension here can be caused by, or cause, ill fitting saddles. Uneven backs can be very hard to fit saddles too, and ill fitting saddles can cause muscle wastage and uneven buildup - this chicken and egg situation can be frustrating, so addressing both problems at once can often be the best way to get to the bottom of it.

The Ventral Chain

Aka the core muscles, this muscle group works to lift the body and stabilise the weight of the horse during movement. This works in harmony with the dorsal chain to enable proper posture, as without the lift from the core muscles, the horse cannot work over the back correctly. Tension or weakness here can be observed through poor topline, which makes it hard to distinguish. Targeting core muscles in exercises also helps to build up the topline, so if this is your aim focusing on the core muscles is your friend.

The Thoracic Sling

These muscles are important in supporting the body and the forelimb during movement, as the forelimb is not attached by a bony joint - just this muscle group. Therefore, this group is especially important during high impact movements such as jumping, as it must be strong to support the weight of the horse on landing. 

Tension here can reduce stride length due to restriction during the protraction phase, showing as a short and choppy stride. It can also lead to a hollow frame through poor interaction with the dorsal and ventral chains.

The Hind Quarters

The hind end, as we all know, provides the power for the horse. In all disciplines this is key - for push off during jumping, for holding during dressage movements, and for speed during races. Tension or weakness here can create problems in these aspects of performance, and make the horse work harder to do their job. This can also cause problems across the whole horse through compensatory mechanisms, leading to tension over the back or in the opposite shoulder, and so addressing tension here is important for all aspects of movement. 

  • Understanding the muscles is the first step to understanding the way your horse moves, and understanding this can help improve performance, reduce pain and help keep your horse feeling their best.

  • All muscle groups work together to move the body as a whole, so it is very likely that a problem in one group will cause or be caused by a problem in another. Compensatory patterns can also then cause pain in areas you wouldn’t expect to be linked, and can change the way your horse moves.