This blog is written by NF guest blogger Helen Townes.
Pregnancy is life-altering and brings dramatic changes: your body, those ginormous prenatal vitamins, and endless OBGYN office visits, among others. But pregnancy doesn’t have to come between you and your love of horses.
Whether you choose to ride, or wait it out on the ground, there can be many benefits of carrying on with your barn routine: bonding with your horse, maintaining your fitness, preserving a sense of normalcy and routine, and connecting with your barn mates.
Let’s take a deeper look at how pregnancy might affect your time in the saddle, how to decide when it's time to stop riding, and what precautions to take if you decide to continue to ride. We’ll share stories about riding while pregnant, and present options for staying connected with your horse beyond climbing aboard during those nine months.
What to Expect When You’re (a Rider Who’s) Expecting
When you first find out you’re pregnant, it’s important to consult your physician before deciding to ride. Pregnancy will change how you feel in the saddle, even as early as the first trimester, says Wendy J. Smith, MD, MPH, a board-certified obstetrician/gynecologist who has been practicing in Portland, OR since 1995.
“If you know how to ride, and how to ride well, you are not likely to be doing anything in the first or early second trimester that will cause trauma,” she emphasizes. Especially in the first trimester, Dr. Smith added, “the uterus is down low in the pelvis, and it’s well protected by the pelvic girdle, so there’s very little risk.”
Most riders will see significant changes during their pregnancy in how riding feels, however, Dr. Smith points out. Hormonal changes and increased body fluid volumes might lead you to feel more tired and breathless even in early pregnancy and may affect your concentration and focus. As your body works overtime in pregnancy, measures of physical exertion can change as well; you might see increases in your heart rate and rate of breathing during activity, and it’s more important than ever to stay hydrated and nourished. You may have ligament laxity in the joints surrounding the pelvis, which can contribute to soreness and an increased risk of joint injury.
It’s during the third trimester that there is a heightened risk, Dr. Smith emphasizes—either to the expectant woman herself, who may experience pelvic discomfort from increased elasticity, or to the fetus—trauma in a fall during these last three months could cause a placental abruption or even pregnancy loss.
Naturally, there are warning signs to stop riding at any stage of pregnancy. The Athlete Health and Safety page of the Federation Equestre Internationale (FEI) addresses “Horse Riding While Pregnant” with a list of symptoms you should never ignore:
- Excessive shortness of breath
- Chest pain or palpitations
- Fainting or dizziness
- Painful uterine contractions or preterm labor
- Leak of amniotic fluid
- Bleeding
- Excessive fatigue
- Abdominal pain
- Pelvic girdle pain
- Reduced fetal movement
- Breathlessness before exercise
- Headache
- Muscle weakness
- Calf pain or swelling
Dr. Smith acknowledges that the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists generally recommends avoiding horseback riding during pregnancy, but she has a balanced view. “I think every woman can make her own choice. I would never tell a patient not to ride, as long as they understand the risks.”
Conversations About Riding During Pregnancy
“My biggest piece of advice to a woman thinking about riding while pregnant is to listen to your body,” asserts Holly Coetzee, a British-born, Two Star international show jumper based in the United Arab Emirates. Since attending university in the UK and receiving a degree in Equestrian Sports Science, Holly has lived and worked as a trainer in Dubai.
Holly has ridden and trained clients throughout two pregnancies, competing until she was 20 weeks in her first trimester, and hacking well into her third trimester during her pregnancy with her first son, Teddy. “For my second pregnancy [with Oliver] I unfortunately was much sicker during the first trimester and needed to be hospitalized. This obviously meant no riding. Once the sickness improved at around 20 weeks, I did get straight back to riding,” she remembers. “I was able to continue light schooling and hacking comfortably until week 36.”
“I am sure keeping physically active and mentally happy was only a positive for both of my pregnancies,” Holly added. “Being pregnant is really hard, so whatever keeps you feeling good, mentally and physically, can only be considered a positive in my opinion.”
Kendall Bourgeois, head trainer at hunter/jumper barn Imagination Lane in Sherwood, OR, is an upper-level hunter/jumper competitor and was able to ride through her entire first trimester of her pregnancy with her daughter Alison, who was born in May 2023. Kendall competed at the 2022 Desert Holiday competition at Desert International Horse Park in Palm Springs, CA late in her first trimester. After that competition she took a break from showing herself but still supported her clients and their horses.
“I went from riding five or six horses a day to riding one or two, mostly the ‘senior citizens’ and safe horses,” Kendall says. “But I was able to stay really active through my whole pregnancy. Even at Thermal in March I was still lunging horses and doing a lot of other things.” Kendall felt supported by her barn community, and even by her doctor, although she admits “she didn’t encourage me to ride. She did her job—she shared the risks of riding and let me make my own decision.”
Veteran West Coast trainer Lynne Dennis runs Silver Winds Farms, a hunter/jumper training barn in Banks, OR. Lynne rode through the seventh month of her pregnancy with her daughter Chelsea, now 33. Lynne decided to take a break when “my belly was touching the pommel when I was posting!” she laughs. Lynne admits that she did fall off once while jumping when she was six months pregnant. “I had an old-time country doctor, and when I called him, hysterical, he just chuckled. He didn’t tell me not to ride—he just said don’t fall off again!”
And it’s okay to acknowledge that riding may just get downright uncomfortable as your pregnancy progresses. Amateur rider Kate O’Hara shared in a 2021 Equestrian Voices podcast with Noelle Floyd’s Caroline Culbertson, “I felt comfortable riding through the first trimester – [to] keep flatting and hacking but probably stop jumping because my horse is a little green,” she said. “I stopped a little sooner than I planned, because it just started to feel like it wasn’t the right fit for me. I was tired, a little nauseous, and I just felt like I had a hangover all the time.”
Some Safety Equipment and Tips to Consider
Naturally, it’s a no-brainer that one should always wear a protective helmet while riding, pregnancy or not. Additionally, there are Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) options for pregnant riders to help ensure their safety. Riding vests can be adjusted to fit a pregnant rider comfortably and provide necessary protection (make sure to consult the vest manufacturer to confirm if this is the case for your vest first). Maternity support belts can offer extra support for the back and abdomen during riding.
Lynne has additional suggestions for pregnant riders. “Is your horse spooky? Don’t be too proud to have the pro ride your horse and move to a lesson horse,” she points out. Also important, she says, is to stick with what you know best. “Don’t start something new, jumping, for example, or endurance riding. It’s not the time to try something you’ve never done before on a horse when you’re pregnant.”
Holly adds to this, saying “If you are feeling tired or sore, don’t make yourself ride. If you get on and feel pain anywhere, don’t push it that day,” she urges fellow riders. “I found that some days I would feel fantastic and able to even jump my horse with no issues, and some days even moving out at the walk caused soreness in my pelvis, so those days I just had a short ride and called it a day. I also would dismount onto a tall mounting block once I reached around 30 weeks, to avoid jumping down off my horse.”
Kendall has coached her own clients through pregnancies, and says they’ve been very sensible about riding while pregnant. “One client was very decisive—she told us how long she was planning to ride—but she was also very cautious, and would stop if it was too hot, or if her horse was being naughty. There can always be compromises—if you’ve been jumping, then stop, and stick to riding horses who are more on the safe side. It’s different with everyone.”
Choosing a Nine-Month Hiatus—Without Losing Your Equestrian Identity
For some equestrians, especially those who have a high-risk pregnancy, don’t have access to horses they trust completely, or just don’t want to take the risk, a break from riding is the best choice.
Equestrians should remember that there are many safe alternatives to riding while pregnant. Groundwork exercises with your horse are very beneficial and can significantly improve your relationship with your horse. In good weather, it's enjoyable to walk your horse, hand-graze them on a lead rope, and appreciate nature from the ground.
Grooming is another way to (relatively) safely spend time at the barn with your horse while your abdomen is growing. Maybe this is when you learn to braid your horse’s mane and tail for your next post-pregnancy show!
Lynne remembers a client who was hoping to ride through most of her pregnancy with her second child. “She started having breakthrough bleeding early on and stopped riding immediately. But she still got her horses ready for other riders and watched them ride. She mucked out stalls. She spent just as much time at the barn as she did before.”
The Choice is Personal One
Pregnancy and having children is a transformative journey that brings about significant life changes, but it doesn’t have to end your identity as an equestrian. If you choose to ride through some, all or take a break from riding, the choice is entirely personal.
“I think clients and I have always been able to know when it was time to stop,” Lynne says. “There will always be lots of time to ride after you have that baby!”. Don’t forget, the time spent being pregnant is a relatively short period of time in the grand scheme of things, so don’t put any undue pressure on yourself.
Another way to stay involved and continue your own education during those nine momentous months is to sign up for a NF Equestrian Masterclass membership. With course offerings from the world-renowned equestrian experts including (but not limited to) Tik Maynard, Boyd Martin, Laura Graves, and Karl Cook, you’ll have access to over 50 in-depth online courses, guided rides, and training programs. Think of it as "pregnancy homework": you'll get back to riding post-pregnancy armed with new knowledge and confidence.
About the Author
Helen Townes is a writer and editor based in Portland, OR, and holds a master’s degree in journalism. She rides her Hanoverian Joey at Silver Winds Farms, a hunter-jumper barn in Banks, OR, and enjoys spending time with her family, watching soccer, and reading.
