Get Gritty With Chevy
  • Home
  • About Chevy
    • Recommended By Chevy >
      • Reading List
    • Contact
  • Get Gritty
    • Got Confidence?
    • Creating Confident Young Riders
    • Course Material Access
  • Blog
  • Get Gritty Online Outfit

The Gritty Rider Blog

 Get Gritty Mental Skills, Confidence Building, Motivation and more for Gritty Riders.
​Also some entertaining stories.
Photo by Lynn Raguse

Want to have a good ride? Do this BEFORE you catch your horse

11/4/2020

0 Comments

 
0 Comments

Has a close call shaken your confidence with your horse?

10/25/2020

0 Comments

 
Click here to sign up for my Free Training Video Series: What To Do After a Close Call to Boost Your Confidence (Instead of Wreck It)



0 Comments

Chevy and #RanchHorseBreezy's Great Buffalo Adventure, Part 5: YOLO

10/22/2020

0 Comments

 
Picture
French Creek Horse Camp-the view from my campsite.
​I awoke on Saturday morning feeling sad. Today was the day that I would need to pack up my little camp, load Breezy, and head back home.

The past three days had been wonderful. I had met some really cool people, ridden along the beautiful French Creek Trail, felt the rumble and heard the thunder as I galloped alongside a herd of buffalo, and ridden in the dark on a rescue mission.

Read More
0 Comments

Chevy and #RanchHorseBreezy's Great Buffalo Adventure, Part 4: Maps Should Have Scales

10/22/2020

0 Comments

 
Picture
The Roundup was amazing. (Read Part 3 for the Roundup story if you haven’t already.) Breezy and I made our way back to the French Creek Horse Camp after the Roundup and relaxed for awhile.

At about 2:30, my camp neighbors (the Sherriff’s Posse members from Colorado) asked if I wanted to join them for a short trail ride along French Creek. They had pulled out a trail map, and guessed that we could take a relaxing ride on the French Creek Trail Loop. Scott, the cowboy poet and amazing campfire cook, was staying back at camp and making pork chops and biscuits, and told us to be back by 7 for supper.

So Allan, John, Andrea and I saddled up and off we went.

Read More
0 Comments

Chevy and #RanchHorseBreezy's Great Buffalo Adventure, Part 3: The Buffalo Roundup!

10/22/2020

0 Comments

 
Picture
​I woke up every hour that night, checking the time in a panic, worried that I had overslept and missed the Roundup. At 4:51 am, I got out of my sleeping bag, too excited to sleep. I made coffee, fed Breezy his morning hay and grain, and headed to the camp shower house for a quick shower. I got dressed in a new shirt and my favorite wrangler jeans. Even though my stomach was full of butterflies, I made myself eat some reheated pancakes.

Read More
0 Comments

Chevy & #RanchHorseBreezy’s Great Buffalo Adventure, Part 2: Orientation Day

10/22/2020

0 Comments

 
Picture
I woke up Thursday morning feeling excited. Today was the Buffalo Roundup Riders Orientation Day!

As I sat drinking my coffee, watching a mama bighorn sheep and her baby run around, I thought about how blessed I was to be here today. I also thought about all of the work that Breezy and I have done over the past few years to make this possible.

Read More
0 Comments

Chevy & #RanchHorseBreezy’s Great Buffalo Adventure, Part 1: The Journey to Custer State Park

10/22/2020

0 Comments

 
Picture
Loaded up and ready to go!
The trailer was hooked up and packed with everything I could possibly need for a 5 day adventure. The truck was fueled. Extra spare tires were strapped to the flat bed.

#RanchHorseBreezy was a little reluctant to load (seriously Breezy!?!), but a quick wave of the flag reminded him of proper trailer loading procedures.

And then we were headed west!

This adventure is the furthest I have ever hauled by myself. Planned for this adventure was many activities that were most definitely outside of my comfort zone. Honestly, my biggest worry was whether I would be able to back my rig into my camping spot when I finally made it to Custer State Park!

Read More
0 Comments

Ask Chevy: Why Are There Horse Toys On Your Shelf? (The Power of Visual Reminders of Your Goals)

9/10/2020

0 Comments

 
0 Comments

Negative Thoughts, Your Inner Cave Woman, and Situational vs Psychological Fear

8/28/2020

0 Comments

 
Picture
Here is the thing about Negative Thoughts. You cannot get rid of them.

Our brains are hard-wired to notice the negative. That is how our cave woman ancestors survived. They noticed the scary saber-toothed tiger, they experienced emotions of fear, they certainly had negative thoughts about the situation, and if they were lucky their fight-flight-freeze response kicked in and they were able to run, fight off the saber-tooth tiger, or freeze and hide until it went away.

Now, today we have very few situations where our lives are truly in danger. However, these negative thoughts still occur. See, we still have this inner cave woman who notices all of the negative things, and she is really good at bringing them to our attention, so that we can do something about it and survive another day.

So, when you try to get rid of negative thoughts, your inner cave woman thinks that you are ignoring her. When you ignore her, she gets more scared, and the more scared she gets, the louder she gets, and the more those negative thoughts keep on appearing.

We need to address the negative thoughts by showing our inner cave woman that there isn't any actual danger, or addressing the fear with action.

Speaking of fear/danger, there are two types of fear: Situational Fear and Psychological Fear.

Situational Fear is the fear we experience as a response to a real and present danger.

Psychological Fear is fear with no concrete, immediate cause. It can be fear of what might happen, fear of what other people think, fear of failing, etc.

Now, our bodies respond with the fight-flight-freeze response whether the fear is situational or psychological.

We get a surge of adrenaline, our heart rate increases, our breathing gets faster, our muscles tense, etc. Our body is making sure that we have the ability to take action, to fight the danger, run away from the danger, or freeze and hide until the danger goes away. This reaction to fear is normal and is deeply embedded in our biology-this is the response that ensured that our cave woman ancestors didn't get eaten by saber tooth tigers.

This fight-flight-freeze response might be helpful when getting ready to run away from saber tooth tigers, but it generally isn't helpful when we are working with our horses. As prey animals, horses are very sensitive to the emotions and body language of others in their environment. So when our thoughts shift to the what ifs, and we start to feel afraid, our brain sends signals to our body, and we get tense, we might crouch forward into the fetal position, we might get fast with our hands on the reins, etc. Our horse senses that we are afraid, and it triggers our horses' fight-flight-freeze response, and our horse reacts, which further makes our thoughts more afraid, and the cycle continues, until either the danger passes or we break the cycle.

Psychological Fear can become Situational Fear:

Let’s say something scary happens, like your horse is walking calmly down the trail, then all of sudden he stops and shakes. In the moment you grab the saddle horn and hang on. After he stops shaking, and you realize that you stayed on, you probably have a thought like “Whew-that was close!” and you take a few deep breaths, confirming that you really are ok now, before continuing on your ride.

The key here is that after an incident of situational fear, once the cause of the danger is gone, you realize that “I’m OK now,” and your body returns to its normal heartbeat and respiration rate, your muscles relax, and you go on about your day.

Now, with psychological fear, because there isn’t an actual real and present danger that we can overcome, we might not get to the point of “Whew-I’m ok now.” So our psychological fears accumulate, and we stay in this state of anxiety. And our horse may pick up on our psychological fears, and their response might even transform into situational fears.

For example, let's say you are tacking up your horse, and you are thinking about the how he crow hopped the last time you rode him. You start worrying that he is going to crow hop again, and you start feeling anxious. Even though your horse isn’t acting up at this moment, you are worried about the “what ifs” that might happen. Your thoughts start affecting your body-your breathing, your heart rate, your muscles, your posture. Pretty soon your horse will start picking up on your fear, and he will likely respond by getting nervous himself, and he might start misbehaving. This is how psychological fear can become situational fear.

Break the Fear/Anxiety Cycle, and don't allow psychological fear to become situational fear. If you feel afraid that your horse might crop hop, then spend some extra time doing groundwork before you ride. Or maybe go on that trail ride with a friend instead of alone until you and your horse feel more confident. Remember, that inner voice of worry is just your inner cave woman, trying to keep you safe! Sometimes she worries needlessly, but sometimes not-so listen up! Ignoring her will just make her more worried and louder anyways, so listen to that voice!

Awareness is the first step, then once you are aware of the fears of your inner cave woman, you can take action to prevent your psychological fears from actually occurring.

Get Gritty,

Chevy
Picture
0 Comments

Gritty Riders Don't Fear Making Mistakes

8/1/2020

0 Comments

 
Picture
Gritty Riders Don't Fear Making Mistakes

Gritty riders know that mistakes are part of the process, and the only way to improve is to try new things.

Gritty riders know they miss 100% of the shots they don't take-so they throw their rope! If they miss, at least they missed trying!

What have you and your horse tried lately? How did it go? Did you win-or learn? I'd love to hear from you-share your experiences in the comments!

Chevy
​
0 Comments
<<Previous
    Picture

    About Chevy

    Hi, I'm Chevy. I'm a Mama to two adorable cowboys, a Farm Wife helping manage our herd of Hereford cattle, I prefer to be horseback whenever possible, I have a passion for horsemanship and helping riders learn the mental skills they need to get gritty and go after their big horse dreams.

    Categories

    All
    2020 Buffalo Roundup
    Competition
    Confidence
    For Horse Trainers
    Get Gritty Tips
    Gritty Riders
    Horsemanship Journey
    Horse Training Tips
    Mental Toughness
    Social Media Tips

    Read more of my blogs at
    ​Of Horse.


Privacy Policy

Terms and Conditions

Disclaimer
​

Essential Oil Disclaimer and Safety Information



Copyright 2016-2021,  Siobhan "Chevy" Allen

  • Home
  • About Chevy
    • Recommended By Chevy >
      • Reading List
    • Contact
  • Get Gritty
    • Got Confidence?
    • Creating Confident Young Riders
    • Course Material Access
  • Blog
  • Get Gritty Online Outfit