Study Suggests Many Riders Are Too Heavy for Their Horses

A survey undertaken by researchers from Duchy College in Cornwall, U.K., suggests that only about 5% of adult riders are at the best weight to allow optimal performance from their horses.

This conclusion was based on the proposal that the best performance resulted from riders weighing no more than 10% of the horse’s weight. Rider weights of up to 15% of the horse’s weight were considered satisfactory, while riders weighing 20% or more of the horse’s weight were considered to be too heavy. Riders at or above this weight ratio were thought to be putting their horses at risk for back trouble and lameness.

In the Duchy College study, results showed that about one-third of the 50 recreational riders surveyed were too heavy for the horses they were riding, while the remaining third of riders were within the satisfactory range according to the proposed ratios.

These guidelines are not universally accepted, and are somewhat more stringent than some other commonly suggested rider-to-horse weight ratios. A century ago, cavalry horses were expected to carry up to 20% of their weight without developing problems. Another rule of thumb stated that horses could carry a quarter of their body weight and pull half their weight, while ponies could carry half their weight and pull their full weight. The basis for these guidelines is unknown, and they may or may not have been realistic or in the equines’ best interest.

The judgment of “too heavy” is somewhat arbitrary if it is based solely on a rider’s weight relative to a horse’s weight. Other factors to be considered include the horse’s conformation, physical condition, and age; the rider’s skill, balance, and position; weight and fit of saddle and other tack; and the type of work the horse is being asked to do (slow trail riding, galloping and jumping on a cross-country course, or acting as a vaulting mount, for example). However, research using varied loads has shown horses have higher pulse and respiration rates as well as more muscle soreness after exercise as they carry incrementally greater weights.