Follow our top advice and make time to ride this autumn.

  1. If you have more than one horse to exercise, try to ride and lead on hacks, if it’s safe to do so. You can save hours of time while making the most of valuable daylight hours.
  2. You could consider swapping your haynet for a haybar. They’re great at keeping hay off the stable floor, better for your horse’s respiratory system, and help you reduce the time spent filling haynets.
  3. Try putting a clip on your haynet to make it easier to change nets without having to undo the knots.
  4. Semi-deep littering can help you save time during the week so that you only have to do a full muck out at the weekends.
  5. Slow-cooker dinners will stop you getting stuck in the kitchen and give you time to ride after work.
  6. Use big trugs of water daily so you don’t have to defrost your taps before use on a cold morning.
  7. Alternate your am or pm duties with a friend so you can save time and money.
  8. Save time by taking time off. Sounds bonkers, right? However, there’s a method in this madness because giving you and your horse a little time off training can help you get through some of the tedious tasks and yard work we often neglect in the busier months.Try taking a month off every year – it sounds a long time but it’s good for your horse to have a break. You can get all the jobs done that you neglect when you’re busy, like field maintenance and pole painting. Get those time sapping tasks done and you’ve just banked yourself riding time.
  9. Organising yourself is the best way to bank a few more minutes in a busy day. Grab a calendar and work out your windows of opportunity to ride over the coming days, weeks and even months if you can bear to look that far ahead. Do this on a Sunday evening ready for the week ahead so you’ll know on which days you know you’re going to have to ride in the morning rather than the evening.

Try something like this

Monday – Interval work in the school

Tuesday – 20-minute hack (am, before work)

Wednesday – Day off (set out jumps for tomorrow’s session)

Thursday – Jumping session 1 (pm, after work)

Friday – 20-minute hack (am, before work)

Saturday – Hack with friends (take the long route with jumps!)

Sunday – Jumping session 2

Don’t miss the latest issue of Your Horse Magazine, jam-packed with training and veterinary advice, horse-care tips and the latest equestrian products available on shop shelves, on sale now.