side reins and longing definitely can develop a topline. The point of these exercises and stretches is to strengthen and build the muscles in your horse’s back. A horse working the circle on the wrong bend stresses the joints and develops incorrect posture. Last year, my older gelding Khami, at 24, was diagnosed with Cushings. Pessoa® Lunging System Invented by International show jumping rider, Nelson Pessoa, this system** is designed to encourage balance and a gradual build-up of topline. RE: Lunging to build topline I agree, it takes months and months to build up topline/bum, with a combination of good work and feed. Hill work And lots of backing up. Walking around, grazing, playing with his friends will all be beneficial. Product Description. I find the Pessoa very confusing. Designed by an International Show Jumper, the Pessoa Lunging System works to encourage balance and gradual build-up of the topline.. A horse standing in a stable has an idle topline. Exercises that have been shared with me before: (a) rigging the horse (surcingle or Pessoa), (b) "long and low" under saddle, and (c) focusing on hind-end engagement on hills such as on trails or fields (for a horse that needed to build hind end muscle and work on maintaing their topline). Eventually you should work up to maintaining this position under saddle with the horse elongating it’s neck and back, lifting their shoulders, engaging their back and holding their head long and low. Remember that a well-muscled topline cannot come about through feed changes alone. This system is made from ropes, clips, and pulleys and can be used in four different positions, depending on the horse's level of fitness and training. Photo: ©Thinkstock/Bronwyn8. ... Other excellent ways to build muscle include lunging with side reins, working over cavalletti both on the lunge line and under saddle, and walking or trotting up hills at a level appropriate to the horse’s condition. A Stronger Topline = Better Self-Carriage for Dressage Olympian Sue Blinks discusses developing your horse's topline so it serves as a suspension bridge of musculature, making self-carriage possible. Lunging. Lunging a horse is an effective tool for sculpting the horse into correct alignment. But there are many things that can be done to maintain the health of an older horse so that his organs and other body parts function well, in spite of the aging process. Author: The horse must stretch to the contact on the side reins not lean on them or hide from them. Think of the visual plumpness of botoxed lips – a well done job. Does anyone have any comments on the above, or anything to add to them? Tip 1 “We take our horses to nearby gallops with an incline. A healthy topline is full and rounded with a double back. It’s all about working those muscles! “We feed our horses yearling cubes to build them up and design specific exercise routines to suit the individual,” she says. This is common for older horses these days. The Pessoa creates a fluid contact by a series of ropes and pulleys that encourage your horse to take weight off his forehand, work through his back and bring his hindquarters underneath him. Itty bit steps, uneven gaits, trailing hocks, or forehand heaviness will negatively affect the horse’s topline.

Exercises & Stretches to Build Topline. I need something to help improve and build up muscle/topline that isn't complicated and a mass of confusion for me.