New Year, New Equestrian Goals!
A new year of equestrian competitions and outings is very exciting for us all, especially after a well earned break over summer! This year you may be looking forward to taking the show ring by storm, spending more time dancing in the dressage arena, conquering a one-day event or just simply enjoying time with your special horse.
A good fitness plan is essential to helping your horse come back into work easily and stress free. There are many different conditioning programs designed to help increase a horse’s fitness level as regular work and training resumes. Training programs focus on the horse’s fitness, including muscle development and cardiovascular fitness.
A step-wise increase in exercise intensity should help to build the horse’s fitness level, whilst minimising the risk of injury to bones, joints, tendons, ligaments and muscles from over-work. It will also help to reduce unwanted stress and pressure on your horse, making training more enjoyable for you both.
It is not uncommon for horses to lose some of their built-up muscle tone and topline throughout their Christmas break from regular work and competition. For the best start to support the re-building of fitness and muscle tone, a properly balanced and formulated diet will help your horse return to the same or even better form than the year before!
Kohnke’s Own also recommend supporting your horse with their muscle and top-line building supplement Muscle XL. This concentrated and highly effective formulation is used by many horse owners because it is easy to use with quick results!
Muscle XL contains a rich source of BCAAs in a high protein supplement. The optimum profile of branched chain amino acids (BCAAs) helps to preferentially absorb and target muscle replenishment and bulking processes in horses. These BCAAs and other essential amino acids are able to incorporate into muscle fibres, particularly after light to moderate exercise, when the muscles are warm and can uptake the muscle ‘food’ provided by Muscle XL.
Muscle XL also contains a source of glutamine for muscle energy, plus synergistic ingredients to help the amino acids be converted to muscle fibres, including MSM and vitamin E for muscle recovery processes.
An example of Muscle XL supplementation for a performance horse lacking muscle tone on return to work is as follows:
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For the first month of work, feed Muscle XL within 15 mins after exercise mixed into a small handful of lucerne chaff – you should start to see results in only 10- 14 days!
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After desired muscle tone is reached, feed Muscle XL every 4-6 weeks for 4-5 days at a time to keep top-line and muscle build at optimum levels
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In the lead up to heavy work or competition, supplement with Muscle XL post work-out again for 3-4 days to build support muscle recovery and strength without fizz.
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During competition, supplement with Muscle XL after the workout or in the evening meal for the duration of the event. This will help muscle function and recovery after exercise, reduce soreness and keep your horse’s muscles prepared for each day.
