 Many of you know I competed in Varsity Wrestling at the University of Calgary where I also completed my Kinesiology degree. Whether I was on the mat, in the gym or in the classroom, I was learning how to maximize sport performance. One concept I learned and practiced was that of periodization. Simply put, this is a way to plan out your year so you’re maximizing training with rest and recovery to improve performance and decrease risk of injury. With spring around the corner, conditioning is a hot topic. We want our horse or dog to be as fit as possible on the moment we want to achieve our goal. But how do we prepare our animal in such a way that he is really fit and healthy at the moment of your championship? Certainly, we want to avoid plodding away each day working on the same routine of things because it’s not stimulating mentally or physically. We also want to avoid doing too much, too fast which often results in burnout and injuries. This year let’s create a periodization plan and train smarter not harder! First, what is periodization? A periodization program is designed to work towards a certain long-term goal. It’s a style of training where training intensity and duration are broken up into smaller, easy-to-manage phases or cycles of training. Periodization is so common in other sports, but is relatively new in animal sports. Because of the similarities in the musculoskeletal, cardiovascular and nervous systems of dogs, horses and humans, the benefits of periodization can be extrapolated to the animals. Here is a basic example of a periodization program for sled dogs. This is just an example and changes would be need to be made for your discipline and individual animal. • Foundation — 16 to 20 weeks building an aerobic foundation to support the training platform. Large-volume/low-intensity work, such as long-slow-distance (LSD) training, with small amounts of high-intensity work after four to eight weeks for fun. • Preparation — 12 to 16 weeks devoted to moderate-volume/higher-intensity work, such as short-intense sprint races. Most sessions are at or just below the anaerobic threshold. Refresh with LSD training every 10 to 14 days to maintain an aerobic base. This is the most difficult period to stay focused. • Specialization/Competition — Four to seven weeks of high-speed, intense racing competition. Sharp decrease in volume of work during recovery, focusing on short-pace runs and lots of rest. This period using short-intense exercise paired with ample rest. • Recovery — Four to eight weeks of nonspecific activities that dogs enjoy, such as free play, walks and hikes. Mental and physical recovery is the goal. Why is periodization important? We need a structured training routine that progressively overloads our dog or horse’s body, making it get stronger and faster, while also building in periods of time for rest and recovery before increasing the workload again. In this way, we push the body enough to progress to the next level. Periodization is also integral to injury prevention, allowing for an “off-season” and “pre-season” with altered focus of training activities to avoid fatigue and injury. Periodization allows for rest and recovery, not only of the athlete’s body, but also of their mind. Where do I start? At first, it can seem overwhelming to make this sort of grandiose plan so break it down into manageable steps and consult your animal health and performance team for assistance. A program can be as simple or as complex as you want it to be. A balanced exercise program includes mobility training, strength training, endurance training, proprioception and balance exercises and appropriate discipline specific skill training. The program should manage duration, frequency and intensity while avoiding overtraining. Periodization is based on 3 principles that dictate our plan for the season. 1) Overload Principal: Consistently applying the appropriate stimulus at the appropriate time in order to achieve a psychological, physiological, or physical adaptation. 2) Specificity Principal: Degree of similarity between the performance and training exercise. Essentially, you need to do exercises that make sense for your sport. 3) Variation Principal: How we manipulate the overload and specificity principles to achieve results over time. This includes factors like frequency, intensity, time, type of activity, and volume. Make it simpler! The easiest way to plan your competition season is to work back from your competition date and determine when you need to be going through each cycle. Conditioning your horse or dog involves starting easy and gradually increasing the workload. It takes four to eight weeks for a dog’s body to adapt to a stimulus that creates an overload. Once the body adjusts and becomes stronger, it is time to change the stimulus again. • Set goals — Decide which events you want your animal athletes to compete at each season. • Incorporate available training options — Especially in Canada, it’s important to be able to adjust to weather conditions, varying terrain and other environmental elements. We want to be consistent with our training plan, so have indoor options available and consider different options like water treadmills if outdoor conditions are not favourable. • Re-evaluation — If you’re going to be competitive, it’s crucial to be objective. Evaluate your training program after every season to determine what worked and what didn’t. Adjust accordingly. • Adaptation cycle — Look at the example of a periodization plan. Determine what your goal is in each phase. Plan when you need to do high volume/low intensity and when you need to do low volume/high intensity. And remember, to maximize rest to prevent overtraining. If you want your animal athlete physically prepared for any goal, no matter what this goal is, a good periodization program makes all the difference. Finally, always be sure that your animal is cleared by a veterinarian before engaging in a regular fitness routine. The recommendations provided here are only for healthy horses and dogs who are physically mature and free of injury and/or pain. No matter what you have planned for your training day, always observe your animal closely for subtle signs of soreness, weakness or pain. For individualized recommendations for your animal, please reach out to your body worker or fitness professional.
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 What to expect working with me! Making each experience working with me relaxed, easy, and worthwhile is my biggest priority. From my initial assessment to my session report after working on your horse, I will listen to your concerns and will help you come up with a therapy plan to fit your needs. What to expect from me during our first session: 1. I will spend a few minutes with you discussing your horse: age, what riding discipline you do, any physical issues, any changes in training, any problems in training, any changes in the horse’s attitude. This is particularly important the first time I work on your horse, but please mention any problems or changes prior to subsequent appointments. 2. Then I will go through a detailed assessment looking for any asymmetries, pain, restrictions etc. This includes a gait analysis, postural assessment, range of motion testing and palpating head to toe. This guides me through the session and ensures an individualized session for your horse. 3. I then use a variety of modalities including massage, PEMF, kinesiology taping, stretching and exercises. To note, the cost of the appointment is a fixed fee meaning there are no additional charges based on the various bodywork techniques I use. It does not matter how many bodywork techniques are used during the appointment. The price is the same. 4. Variable session lengths. A equine session will last at least 60 minutes while a canine session lasts 40 minutes, but they almost always run longer. It depends on the horse, his behaviour and his issues. Usually the first session takes the longest, but I will always let your horse guide me to ensure a complete session. 5. I will show you how to safely do some stretches, massages or activations and will provide a written report of these suggestions. The results are incredible when YOU get involved in your animal's wellness. 6. Please expect that your horse will need additional treatments. Do not expect one treatment to resolve the issue. It is key that we must work together towards gradual, lasting results. Typically chronic issues take longer to resolve/minimize than acute problems. 7. I will always discuss my findings and their implications with you and anyone else on your horse's team. Please feel free to ask any questions. What I expect from you! 1. If your horse is ill or injured, he should be seen by a vet. If he is recovering from a major injury or illness, please clear bodywork with your vet first. 2. Have your horse haltered and ready for when I arrive. 3. I really appreciate when your horse is groomed for me prior to each session. A show quality grooming is not necessary, but for your horse’s comfort, please have dirt and mud well brushed off. 4. Make the time to hand walk your horse for 5-10 minutes after the session, particularly if he cannot be turned out after the session. Light riding or lunging is fine after bodywork – it is so important that your horse moves after the session to remove the accumulation of waste products like lactic acid caused by bodywork. 5. If you cannot attend the session, that is OK. Please make arrangements for someone to bring in your horse, groom him, hand walk him and turn him back out. I can do these things for you, but there will be extra charges. 6. If you are present, relax and enjoy the time in the barn. If you’re stressed chances are your horse will feed off that and make it more challenging to get him completely relaxed. If you have pain, consider booking a PEMF session for yourself. Your session can be done at the same time as your horses! 7. Life happens! If you need to postpone, please call me with 24 hours notice.    The Story Behind Evolution Equi-Sport Therapy I’ve been reflecting a lot on why I started on this journey of complimentary health and wellness. It’s been two years since I officially launched Evolution Equi-Sport Therapy but it’s built on a lifelong experience with animals, agriculture and athletics. I fell in love with horses at a young age and became heavily involved in Pony Club and 4-H. This involvement gave me the opportunity to compete in various disciplines both english and western. I was also an athlete on the University of Calgary Wrestling team and played nearly every sport in high school. I knew I wanted (needed) a career where I could combine my passion for athletics and animals together. I took sports medicine through high school, kinesiology in university and then Equine Sport Therapy in college. What can I say, I’m an anatomy and physiology nerd! I spent my spare time job shadowing vets, osteopaths, physiotherapists, and massage therapists. I asked a lot of questions and learned a lot. All of these experiences, made me realize it takes a village to keep an athlete (two-legged and four legged) feeling and performing at 100%. This is why I highly value the team approach and am committed to working with other professionals on your wellness team. Aside from those experiences, there’s one little dog that was the main driving force behind my career. Diesel fell into my family’s life when I was 7 years old when we went into a furniture store and came out with a pug. Odd but it was definitely fate. This little guy taught me so much. As one of my first 4-H projects he taught me to "Learn to do by doing" right into my current role as Canine Project Leader and Trainer of Millarville Mutts and Mustangs 4-H Club. “As he became a senior dog, with senior dog issues” he was a driving force behind adding PEMF technology as a tool in my business (I literally invested in the equipment after seeing the results of 2 sessions with him). He taught me that multiple modalities and multiple approaches are needed to maintain quality of life. There is NO single miracle drug, herb, or modality but when used appropriately in combination, you can truly change an animals life. I hope when I am 105, I can still be as good a teacher as he was. While he passed away at 15.5, his spirit and teachings live on every day in me and my business. Fast forward to taking the plunge into small business ownership… I named my company Evolution Equi-Sport Therapy as a reminder to always be accepting of change. A key part to my business is that I’m always adapting to meet the needs of each and every client. I enjoy researching the latest modalities, taking courses from industry leaders and learning something new from every individual client I work with. I can guarantee that my sessions next year will not look the same as today’s because I’m committed to innovation and continuing education. There you have it, the beginnings of Evolution Equi-Sport Therapy. I look forward to many more years helping you and your animals compete, heal and thrive.    Tips to Transition into Summer Injury Free with Your 4-Legged Friend Summer is just around the corner! After being cooped up for what felt like an eternal winter, most of us are excited to finally spend some time outside enjoying the warm weather with our 4-legged friends. Whether you compete with your horse, are an avid trail hiker with your dog or are an athlete yourself, these tips will help both you and your critters transition into spring injury-free. 1. Avoid being a weekend warrior Trying to make up for a decrease in training consistency by “cramming” on the weekends with longer or harder sessions only leads to soreness and injury. It is far better to do shorter daily sessions, than to do long sessions on weekends but sit around the rest of the week. This is not only better for your fitness but for your circulatory, lymphatic and digestive systems. 2. Start low and slow! It’s important to remember to ease into an exercise routine, too much too fast can be hard on you and your animals. It’s best to slowly increase the activity level, gradually building up duration or intensity. When it comes to your animals, don't mistake eagerness for fitness, and don't assume that they won't do more than they are physically conditioned to do. (Because they will!) 3. Cross Training is key. Cross training simply means engaging in a variety of different exercises to ensure all muscle groups get worked. It’s a great way to maximize fitness while minimizing the risk of injury. Training on different surfaces, on hills, and with obstacles can provide a different challenge for you and your animals. This will keep everyone physically and mentally stimulated. 4. Regular bodywork Getting regular bodywork sessions (Massage, PEMF, Physio, Chiro etc.) can help keep all the muscles limber and joints mobile so that you and your animals can exercise injury free. During these sessions your therapist can help with identifying and correcting little issues before they become BIG problems down the road. Then they can develop customized exercises so you can go through the season feeling healthy AND sound. Even though the sun might be shining and you might be itching to get outside all day long, take your time and listen to your 4-legged partner. If you take care of them, they will take care of you!  |
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