Monday 27 June 2016

Lazy Days

I feel like I've been on the go without a real break for well over a year now. Normally, I take a couple of weeks in December or January and give myself and the ponies a break, but for whatever reason that didn't happen this year. Maybe that has caught up with me, maybe not, but I'm finding myself in the position of forcing myself to go to the barn and forcing myself to ride. I have fun once I get there, but for whatever reason it's not serving as the zen space/mental refresh it normally does. Looking back, this has been going on for about 6 weeks now, and only getting worse. First world problems for sure, though! The weather has been gorgeous and I'm dreaming of a time out on a beach somewhere with a fresh margarita - riding seems like too much work, and honestly I'm feeling a little homesick for G. The real job has been stressful of late, which isn't helping as I start to weigh out whether the paycheque is worth the horsey time it buys me. I've been feeling guilty, but letting my mind wander to a life without horses where I would have the time and finances to do more, travel more, live a little better. We all know I'd be unhappy after about a week of that, but hey, grass is always greener :)

So, this past weekend, B and I wandered the trails with no real purpose. We're supposed to be doing gallop sets and jumping courses, but meh. I'm still in the mindset that I'd like to push some of our scheduled competition dates off a bit, so the goals and homework don't feel as pressing as maybe they should.
Also on the to do list: pull the pony's mane!


If you remember, we are supposed to be attending an event in 2 and a half weeks time, but I still haven't signed up. Sign of the times. It's going to cost me about $600 all in, and that's a lot for me right now. It's the weekend before our trip to Rebecca Farm, so it would be cool to go there after a fun weekend of eventing, all motivated and inspired. It'd also be cool to go there rested and with extra $ in my pocket and get my inspiration there by watching far better riders than I for free :) Perhaps our next event will wait until August. We're meeting so many goals this year that maybe I'll save a couple for when I'm mentally refreshed and ready to really enjoy them as I should. I know I'll regret some of this mid winter when the weather is terrible and we're struggling along in the dark evenings dreaming of days like today, but what really matters is how I feel right now. And right now I feel like balancing the work and play a little more and not making withdrawals from the bank account. You'd never talk me into cancelling lessons, but I may be persuaded to trade some of the upcoming competition weekends in exchange for some time on the beach with G. We'll see. I'm torn. My dissatisfaction and stress is work related, not horse related, so maybe I just need to keep on my original plan. G is having a milestone birthday this week (OMG where is the time going??!), so I'll be going home to have a margarita in the backyard with him this weekend and think on life a little (mmmm, how about a mexican b-day dinner with lime margaritas and a key lime 'birthday' pie with a pretzel crust....brainstorming but I think that could be a winner  :)

Trailventures are always a good choice
My question for all the wise blog readers out there: How do you handle the low spots where you're feeling a little burnt out? Do you take a time out, do you push harder, or...?





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7 comments

  1. I go through feelings of burnout a couple of times a year! I usually don't try to push my way through it; I just take a week or two off because I find that I'm not productive. Sometimes it's fun to change up what I'm doing, too, like last fall when I took the whole winter off to go foxhunting instead of doing endless dressage on Gina.

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  2. Happy birthday to G! I say it's a hobby, do what makes you happy. I don't guilt myself into riding if I'm really not feeling it, or maybe I take the pressure off and hit the trails rather than working on things like you're doing.

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  3. I'll typically take a small bit of time off and then come back and continue through it, a lot of my low points are either tiredness or chemical and not like an actual apathy caused by riding.

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  4. I listen to myself. It's supposed to be fun. If the fun is missing then I try to figure out where it went. I can get a bit goal focussed so need to back off. Maybe a fun weekend is just what you need. Bridget won't dissolve if you take some days off

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  5. Mine tend to be every few weeks. I tend to have about a week where I'm really motivated (with whatever, not just horses), a couple of weeks where I'm less motivated but still on board, and then about a week where I'm just over it. I go through enough small spikes that I'm just used to working right through them but every once in awhile a hit a point where I'm just really not motivated and then I usually give myself a little break. It's just good to recharge.

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  6. Take the time off! I bet if you do you'll be itching to get back on. Also, Rebecca is more than enough inspiration on it's own. I've gone right after a show and when we haven't been to a show yet in the year. I've noticed no difference in the experience, and I ALWAYS leave all fired up and excited to ride.

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  7. I generally will still ride every day, but do more trail riding or 'fun' stuff like western, groundwork, or bareback instead of hardcore schooling and conditioning. I need my pony time, but I can definitely burn myself out since I get SO focused on improving. I also NEED that pie recipe! ;)

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