Riding Just Isn't Enough of Workout

Now, I'm not one of those people who thinks riding entails nothing but relaxing as if on a couch and letting the horse do all the work. (Do you know how often people say stuff like that to me? "Oh, doesn't the horse do all the work? Why do you get tired?" and so on.) I think I work pretty hard when I ride Marve, and I definitely get exercise. It's a lot better than spending my evening in front of the computer or downing a half dozen cookies. Not that I ever do that, of course. *shifty eyes*

But since I have been riding so much more in the past few months, it has inevitably taken time away from my other forms of exercise -- namely, some fairly intense yoga and long bike rides -- and I am feeling it. In the fatty zones.

It's my fault, of course. There will always be an excuse to avoid exercise, and lately I have been all too creative in devising new ones to avoid the yoga mat or the bike path. Technically, I guess could squeeze in yoga even on the days I work 9-10 hours and ride at night. But then I wouldn't have time for much else, like cooking, cleaning, writing, spending time with my SO, etc. The reality is that I have a lot of interests and things going on, and my yoga/exercise routine takes the hardest hit when I get in a time crunch.

At first, I hoped the extra riding would help keep me fit and strong. But it's not. I just don't get the same workout that I do when building muscles through power yoga or even, it seems, like a hearty and fast 4-mile walk in the park, which I used to enjoy when I had more time. The result is I'm getting softer and weaker, and obviously that affects my riding.

I'm not exactly a lost cause, but I also know that I'm not in good enough shape to truly move forward with my riding. I need to be stronger, more fit, and yes, leaner, to be a better rider. It's just frustrating that all the time I spend at the barn riding and caring for Marve ends up taking some time away from my other exercise.

But I'm a firm believer in "where there's a will, there's a way." Just like I have to sacrifice some things in order to write fiction, I will have to sacrifice other things to hit the yoga mat a bit more often. I'm just starting to wonder what else is left to sacrifice. Do you think the whole virgin-in-volcano thing would work for this purpose? Yeah, right....it's not like I'd even know where to find a virgin, anyway. ;)

In conclusion, I am feeling weakish and flabbish. But at least my rides have been going okay lately. But some more muscles and less weight to haul around just might give me a boost. Wish me luck.