Polo Fitness: Why You Need to Be Polo Fit

Why do you need to be polo fit? Is it different to normal fitness?

In this polo lesson, we chat to India Parker-Smith of Chukka Wellness to answer these questions.

Why You Need to Be Polo Fit

Transcription:

Well, I tell you what, this is more interesting for me, I think because I've been trying to get fit and trying to get rid of this fat old belly and, you know, trying to get fit again, to go back and start riding. So that's going to be a real challenge, you know, but you know, there's so many parts of this getting fit.

And my first question would be why would it be, I mean, everybody says horses carry the player, but they don't realize until you get on the horse and start playing how physically taxing it is. So from your point of view, how important is getting really fit for polo? You know, how, how would you put that across to people to actually make them realize how fit they need to be to play this game?

Well, actually you kind of already said, one point is that, you know, you get on the horse. So when, once you're on the horse, you are kind of at one with that. So if you're working at your optimal performance and you know you're doing everything correctly, you're going to be giving the cues correctly to the horse.

So it actually, it's going to end up working for you a lot more efficiently. So actually, you know, just for the sake of the horse, you need to be fit and strong as a rider. But actually from the fitness side, the main thing is that players want to prolong their time in the saddle. You want to stay in the saddle longer injury free.

You want to feel fit. You want to kind of have these marginal gains. So you want to win your ride offs because you are strong. You want to recover quicker so that you can play more polo throughout the season. So just in general, we all know it optimizes athletic performance, which then you can take up into the saddle and become a more effective and stronger rider.

And actually just even performing an effective warmup scientifically, scientifically proven that this makes you more competitive. So mentally it enhances your performance as well. You've got more focus. You're better at decision-making or your reaction times are quicker. And so mentally as well, you're more prepared in the saddle, but also you're healthier and happier. You're more energized. So you have more endorphins.

So, you know, even off the saddle, out of the saddle, you are a healthy and happy person. And yeah, it's all kind of about making those marginal gains gains. If you have a good horse. So does the person next to you. But if you are feeling fitter, you're feeling stronger. You're making decisions a lot quicker in the saddle.

You're the going to get to the ball a lot quicker than the other person. And you're going to have more control in the saddle/with the ball over the other person. So actually I think it does come down to marginal gains and reducing your injury - risk of injury.

Cause, you know, throughout the Argentine open, I think it was about four or five big, high goal players, all had hip injuries. I think that their riding muscle went and you know, they kind of the slightly older, not older, they've just been playing polo a lot longer. And so their bodies... now the cracks are starting to show.

So, you know, you need to kind of start now wherever you, whatever stage in life you are, you need to start now with looking after your body because otherwise you're going to be more injured and you're not going to be able to enjoy playing polo because they're just going to be in pain the whole time. I know so many players that just kind of, you know, take some paracetamol and just get on and they just play.

And I'm like, no, you need to stretch, you need to warm up. You need to prepare your body. You know, even just a stick and ball session, you just want to be nice and warmed up that you are supple, you are relaxed and then you can be at one with the horse. Hmm. Well, you know, it's so interesting what you're saying,

India, because so much of my coaching is to do with the mental approach. Because if you are you like when you warm up just to go and hit some balls that at a walk so that you are striking the ball well, before you start to actually canter and start to warm up like that.

Now what you saying is from a fitness point of view, if you riding better, obviously your horses, then able to perform to its optimum where if you're unfit yes. For the first chukker you might be okay, but now you started to get fatigued and now you start to ride badly. You say your good horse is actually marginalized because of you not because of the horse. And now you go into a couple of rideoffs and things like that,

and you lose them because you're just tired and you, your turns are bad because your legs are done all of that kind of stuff and you start to lose plays. And now you start to lose your whole confidence level as well. It's so, so interesting. You know, we, we have to be fit to play.