Hey guys, it’s Tamara from The Sweaty Equestrian, where we explore optimal performance for endurance riders. Today, we’re talking about making endurance work when you work full time.

Have you ever gotten excited about the upcoming endurance ride season, only to look at your daily schedule and feel your insides deflate? As much as you want to finally get out there, reality is overwhelming.

How are you supposed to condition your endurance horse, work full time, commute, exercise, take care of your family, and still find time to eat and sleep? When do you condition if you’re stuck at the office from 8:00 to 5:00? Is endurance even possible with a full-time job? 

In a word, yes. 

I know this for sure because I work full time, myself. I don’t commute these days, but I did for many years. In 2015, I was working 8 to 5 and commuting almost an hour each way, and I completed over 600 endurance miles on three different horses, including two 100’s and a different horse’s first 50. I did all the conditioning myself, plus kept myself fit.

So it is possible! Let’s talk strategies:

To begin, take some time to identify Your advantages and limitations.

Before you can make a meaningful plan for endurance riding with a full-time job, you need to take a hard look at reality. Each of us has a unique set of challenges, but we also have unfair advantages.

So, take a moment to consider what you’re up against. What gets in your way of conditioning, training, and caring for your horse, as well as building your own fitness for the sport?

This will likely include obstacles like your work schedule, commuting time, parenting responsibilities, household chores, and social events. Maybe you’re also in school or running a side hustle. In winter especially, you may be dealing with short daylight hours and limited indoor horse facilities.

List it all out. I’ll wait…

Okay, now take a deep breath. Don’t let hopelessness take over, because now we’re on to the fun part: our unfair advantages. What resources can you leverage to support your endurance goals?

Maybe you have a supportive spouse, a childcare swap, a flexible boss, excellent planning skills, high-quality rain gear, or a gym at your workplace. Maybe you have a friend at the barn who will catch your horse when she visits her own, saving you that 15 minutes. 

Give yourself time to be creative, and I’ll bet you’ll discover more advantages than you expected.

Next, accept the opportunity cost.

You’ve probably heard the expression, “You can have it all, but you can’t have it all at once.” Well, that definitely applies to those of us who want to endurance ride while working full time. 

There’s just no getting around the fact that endurance is a time-consuming sport. Choosing to pursue it means giving up other things. Period.

Like what other things?

Most of us can start with a “cut the fat” approach. This means replacing time spent on unnecessary (if pleasurable) activities like watching Netflix or scrolling through social media. 

Maybe aren’t watching TV or Facebook reels at a time you could be riding anyway…but you probably are doing it when you could be accomplishing something else that would free up horse time. Think workouts, laundry, homework, meal prep, electrolyte research…so many things.

Everyone needs some down time, of course, but when you find yourself spending too much of your week on activities that don’t support your endurance goals, it’s time to cut the fat.

But there’s more. And it gets more painful, I’m afraid.

For those of us who work full time, prioritizing endurance means giving up other activities that are meaningful, enjoyable, and healthy. This could mean church potlucks, movies with friends, reading novels, recreational travel, hosting dinner parties, coaching peewee soccer…

Like I said, all good things. But not necessarily things you can do while working full time and conditioning your endurance horse.

Making sacrifices like these will go more smoothly is you get your family’s buy-in first. Use your words, people! Have a heart-to-heart with your partner and kids, so they understand why endurance is meaningful to you and how it will affect your availability. 

If that’s a tough one for you, check out my article on What to Do if Your Partner Doesn’t Support Your Riding Goals. I’ll put a link in the show notes.

Ok, once you’ve prepared to pay the opportunity cost of endurance riding, it’s time to move on to nuts-and-bolts strategies for fitting everything in.

You’re going to need to creatively manage your other obligations.

While we can sacrifice some activities in favor of endurance riding, there will still be plenty of non-negotiables. Here are some ideas to get your wheels turning on how to creatively manage your work, personal fitness, and household obligations to free up more time and energy for endurance:

Number one: Task-Swap with a Buddy

Instead of trying to do everything, every day, look for a friend who can bear the load on some days while you take over on other days. Be creative! This might look like:

Sharing the commute so one of you can manage your side hustle while the other drives

Childcare swaps so you can ride on Tuesdays while your friend rides on Thursdays

Assigning dinner duty so your spouse cooks while you get horse time, then you cook while he pursues his own passions

Number two: Outsource Tasks

If finances allow, consider hiring help with time-consuming necessities like grocery shopping or house cleaning. Don’t write this idea off too hastily…think for a moment! Will you be saving money (say, on skipping dinners out to ride) that you could redirect toward a time-saving service?

If your kids are the right age, look for ways they can help out at the barn. Can you pay them to clean stalls while you ride? Can they keep Old Reliable in shape while you’re aboard your Just-Needs-Miles Greenie?

Speaking of kids (and maybe your spouse!), is it time they stepped up a bit more on laundry or making their own lunches? You can approach this as a much-appreciated opportunity for them to support your goals, rather than being critical.

Number 3: Multi-Task

Multi-tasking isn’t always a great idea, but there are plenty of times when you can accomplish two things at once. For example:

Work out with friends so you can get fit and catch up on gossip at the same time.

Take calls while doing chores or driving to the barn.

Turn a household chore, like batch-cooking for the week, into a date or family activity so you can enjoy time together while still getting something done.

Number 4: Simplify the Necessities

Speaking of batch-cooking, I spend a huge amount of time every week by making large quantities of dishes that can be served for dinner one night, then eaten for breakfast or lunch throughout the week – no further prep required.

Another way to save time on meals is to simplify your recipe choices. This can be a bit painful if you enjoy cooking, but highly nutritious meals can also be quick and easy. Sauté up some chicken or toss salmon fillets in the oven, steam some veggies or toss a salad, serve with rice, and voila! 

You can even simplify your wardrobe. Many people apply “personal uniform” or “capsule wardrobe” concepts to create a minimal wardrobe of comfortable, interchangeable, easy-care clothing. If you aren’t familiar with these concepts, a quick Google search will bring up tons of great resources.

Once you’ve minimized your obligations and managed the ones that remain, it’s time to figure out how you’re going to condition that endurance horse while keeping the job that pays his hay bill.

Number 5: Adopt a Smart Conditioning Schedule

If you are serious about endurance, you absolutely must commit to consistent conditioning. Getting the job done takes…you guessed it…more creativity and planning.

Block Out Time

Calendar specific time blocks to spend with your endurance horse. These might be the same every week, or you might need to establish them every Sunday evening. Either way, your mission is to identify exactly when you’ll condition your horse and then follow through by defending that time. Make it non-negotiable, just like getting to that doctor’s appointment or a meeting with your boss.

Consider a Lean Conditioning Schedule

Have you ever wondered how much conditioning is absolutely necessary? Can you condition an endurance horse in two days per week? Four? Personally, I’d put the minimum at three.

Assuming you are starting with a relatively unconditioned horse (new to the sport, or returning after an extended break), three or four rides per week is an appropriate minimum commitment. Six months is a good timeframe for preparing such a horse for a conservative 50 mile endurance ride.

If three conditioning three days per week is all you can manage, don’t make the mistake of riding harder because you’re riding less often. Your horse’s body must adapt gradually over weeks and months. Attempting to get him fit faster with workouts that he hasn’t built up to will likely lead to injury. 

Unsure how to apply a 3-days-per-week conditioning schedule for your endurance horse? Grab my free guide. It’s at TheSweatyEquestrian.com/ConditioningGuide, or just follow the link in the show notes.

Map Out Your Year

Your endurance conditioning schedule won’t look the same all year. By planning ahead, you can use this to your advantage.

Anticipate more conditioning time early in the season. As your horse gets fit for the first time, or after a long winter break, he’ll need at least three conditioning rides per week.

Later on, endurance rides themselves will give your horse a big conditioning boost. Plus, he’ll hold onto his fitness much better than we humans do. If you’re competing regularly (say, every six weeks or so), you don’t necessarily need to condition as frequently. This is especially true if your horse has access to lots of hilly turnout space.

When it comes to balancing endurance with other priorities, like family vacations, take advantage of your horse’s rest period immediately after endurance rides. Two weeks of leisure after a 50 is appropriate for him and useful for you!

 Recruit a Rider

If even three days per week (say, weekends plus Wednesday) is too much, or if you have more than one horse to condition, or if you prefer your horse gets ridden you might need to recruit a second rider.

One option is to pay someone to ride your horse. This can be particularly helpful if you can combine it with cross-training for your horse. Know someone who is good at jumping or dressage? Perhaps they can help your horse get fitter and more well-rounded at the same time.

Another option is to find someone you trust to put conditioning miles on your horse for free, perhaps in exchange for a catch ride down the road. How? Ask your riding friends. Maybe there’s a college student missing her own horses. Or a fellow endurance rider whose usual mount is injured. Or a rider in a different discipline looking to dip a toe in our sport. 

Whether you recruit a rider or go it alone, there’s no time to waste. In fact, depending where you are in the world, you might be six months out from your season’s first 50 right now. That means you need to get started conditioning…even if it’s the dead of winter or the height of summer. 

So let’s talk about conditioning around a full-time job even if the weather isn’t ideal.

Shall we start with hot weather?

Change your Mindset

The first thing to realize about conditioning in hot weather is that it isn’t necessarily a bad thing. You might be competing in the heat, after all, and it’s not a good idea to go into that cold…pun intended. 

Heat training, done safely, is necessary for you and your horse to perform optimally. Even if it turns out to be cool on ride day, the physical adaptations from heat acclimation (like increased blood plasma volume and less sodium loss in sweat) support better athletic performance.

For a load of details on heat acclimation, check out the article at TheSweatyEquestrian.com called Heat Acclimation for Endurance Riders. I’ll put a link in the show notes.

Anyway, the point is that we need to give up the notion that conditioning in the heat is to be avoided at all costs.

Obviously, you can overdo riding in the heat, especially if it’s humid as well. Make sure you’re aware of the symptoms of heat stress in both humans and equines. Go out of your way to offer plenty of water and electrolytes to your horse, and cool him with shade and water on his skin at every opportunity. Slow down as much as you need to to keep him from overheating.

You, the rider, need plenty of hydration as well! That means water and electrolytes, not just water. 

Protect your skin and stay cooler by wearing lightweight, light-colored long sleeves. Skip the half chaps, but for goodness sake, don’t skip your helmet! If you battle heat rash, Desitin and over-the-counter antihistimines (like loratadine, which is Claratin) can really help.

Another thing you can do is learn to ride at night.

Yes, really! This is an excellent skill to practice, especially if you have ambitions of riding 100s. Riding in the dark may be scary at first, but it’s a lot of fun once you get used to it. Here are a few tips:

Try easing into riding at night by starting at sundown and letting the light fate as you ride.

Choose a familiar trail without hazards like traffic, barbed wire, or cattle guards.

Slow down to a walk until you’re comfortable trusting your horse to trot.

Wear a headlamp, but try not to use it. Definitely don’t use the regular white light, which will disrupt your horse’s vision. Red or green light is much better.

Double-down on safety precautions: Tell somebody your plan. Wear reflective clothing. Carry your phone (or satellite communication device if you’re off-grid) on your person, not in your saddle bag.

Night riding can also be a good strategy for endurance conditioning in winter, simply because they days are shorter. You might not even leave the office until after sundown! 

Here are some additional tips for conditioning in cold weather:

First, buy good gear.

You might be surprised how comfortable it can be to ride in wet or frigid weather, provided you have the right gear. Get ahold of warm riding tights, perhaps in a wind-proof fabric. Consider putting a riding skirt over the top. Wear a snug base layer with a high neck, topped with mid-weight layers and a Goretex shell. Ideally, use items you can unzip so as not to get sweaty and then chilled.

I like to ride in gear made for other outdoor adventure sports. Clothing cut for activities such as skiing, snowboarding, and cycling tends to work well for riding. It is often higher quality than most equestrian-specific brands, sometimes less expensive, and much easier to find secondhand. Hit up your local outdoor gear consignment shop for deals on quality brands like Marmot, Mammut, Outdoor Research, Rab, and Patagonia.

You also need to find good footing.

Winter conditioning is often thwarted by slick footing, but you may be able to find safe (if not exciting) conditioning options. My favorite is a two-mile stretch of gravel road climbs a gradual hill, gets steep toward the end, and can be repeated several times for an excellent workout in nearly any weather.

Walking in sand or snow can be another great option. You don’t always need speed to put in a good effort!

And, of course, you may be able to access an indoor arena. Working on patterns, poles, collection, bending, or small jumps can provide excellent benefits for your horse’s body and mind.

Ok, so we’ve covered a lot of ground. Making endurance work when you work full time means making sacrifices, being committed to consistent conditioning, getting creative on managing your other obligations, and being willing to ride in less-than-ideal conditions.

Does all this sound like a big commitment? Well…it is! But the accomplishment of a successful endurance season – 9 to 5 and all – is even bigger. If you really want to, you can do this!