Sep 07, 2021

Four In-Office Exercises for Desk Jockeys

Tony Sandoval in the saddle and at the gym/ Samantha Clark photo.

The vast majority of riders who compete at the lower levels of eventing are amateurs and most of them have “proper” jobs. After all, horses and eventing need paying for! Often, this means these riders work at a desk and are what strength and conditioning coach Tony Sandoval refers to as “desk jockeys.”

“Sitting in a chair for a long time means that certain postural adaptions occur so that you can sit there and work, but those are not good for your riding,” says Tony. “What can you do to make yourself aware of the way that you are sitting, so that you can start to do some stretches to keep things mobile and functional? Then you will be able to do good work when you are riding your horse.”

Tony recommends an easy set of four exercises that you can fit into your working day and your workspace. Do them and you will undoubtedly see the difference!

Check out this handy video which outlines the exercises Tony suggests, as well as the descriptions and benefits of each below.

1. Seated Chest Butterflies

    One of the main contributors to rounding of the shoulders is tightness in the pectoral area. This is caused by long hours working in front of a desk or on your phone. Until you stretch out your chest muscles, it will be difficult to use your posterior back muscles correctly.

    2. Neck Floss (forward to back)

    If your shoulders round forward, it is likely that your head will lean forward as well. It is a cascade of muscular compensations that the body creates to make sitting as economical as possible; the problem is that it’s not so good for anything else. It also weakens the anterior muscles of the neck, which help position your neck in an optimal position and aid in lowering the risk of head injury. Performing this neck flossing exercise will alleviate some stiffness in the neck caused by prolonged hours of sitting, help reduce low back pain, and aid in proper posture.

    3. Chair T-Spine Extension

    Another important region to address when stretching is your thoracic spine. Having the proper amount of extension through this area will help improve movements like rotation, increase stability in the mid back area and aid in proper posture. This exercise assists in helping the mid-back area to create healthy extension, which will also alleviate any type of lower back stiffness

    4. Half Kneeling Glute Squeeze

    Many people complain about tight hip flexors and how sitting for long hours feeds that dysfunction. The first thing that comes to mind for people is to stretch their hip flexors using various types of exercises. If you sit for a long time the last thing you want to do is try to stretch your hip flexor. Instead, you should focus on strengthening your glutes to help make those hip flexors looser. The glutes are the muscles that lose their tension and strength because of lengthy hours of being dormant. So if you want to get more movement through your hip flexors, strengthen your glutes through extension. You’ll start noticing that your hip flexor will loosen up and have you back to riding optimally in no time.

    This routine should not take you too long - it should be around 10-15 minutes, depending on how many sets you perform. Try incorporating this into your daily routine for maximum results both in and out of the saddle!

    Mar 22, 2023 Classic Series

    Memories from the Vet Box with Max Corcoran

    When super groom Max Corcoran mentioned in 2005 that it would be fun to participate in a USEA Classic Series event, her employer and eventing legend Karen O’Connor took that to heart. “I did a lot of grooming for the classic format when Kentucky and all those other competitions were proper long format,” Corcoran shared. “When Gretchen [Butts] started offering the Classic Series at Waredaca [Gaithersburg, Maryland,] she asked if I would come up and do some lectures to help people understand what the 10-minute box was and how to pack for it. I did that a few times and said to Karen, ‘Man, it would be so fun to do one of these.’ And so Karen's like, 'You want to do one? Yeah, you're gonna do one next year.'”

    Mar 21, 2023 Education

    Conformation Critique with Chris Ryan: Stella

    Has this horse quality? The answer is definitely yes. This first impression is so important. As a selector for the Goresbridge Go for Gold Event horse sale, I have an abbreviation ‘GPO’ which stands for "Good Pull Out." It means that the first look prompts the potential client the need to bring the horse out of his box for a further look.

    Mar 20, 2023 News

    Through The Lens: SRF Carolina International

    It was a beautiful but chilly weekend in the pines at the Setters' Run Farm Carolina International. After a record-setting 19.4 in the CCI4*-S dressage, Will Coleman became the first three-time winner in the event's history when he led from start to finish on Hyperion Stud's Chin Tonic HS.

    Mar 20, 2023 Classic Series

    Get to Know What’s Happening in Area VI in 2023

    West Coast eventers experienced tremendous success in 2022. Tamie Smith recorded top-10 finishes at Badminton in England, at the FEI World Championships at Pratoni in Italy, and at the Maryland 5 Star at Fair Hill. Helen Alliston won the $60,000 Adequan USEA Advanced Final, and Tommy Greengard captured the USEA Intermediate Championship at the USEA American Eventing Championships (AEC), presented by Nutrena Feeds. James Alliston returned to the Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event for the first time since 2017 and finished third in the CCI4*-S.

    Official Corporate Sponsors of the USEA

    Official Joint Therapy Treatment of the USEA

    Official Feed of the USEA

    Official Saddle of the USEA

    Official Real Estate Partner of the USEA

    Official Equine Insurance of the USEA

    Official Forage of the USEA

    Official Supplement Feeding System of the USEA

    Official Outerwear of the USEA

    Official Competition & Training Apparel of the USEA