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Connecting with your horse: mindfulness, yoga and horsemanship for horse owners with Karine and Christophe
9 April 2015 - 10 April 2015
€220
This weekend course is suitable for horse owners and experienced horse people who want to deepen their connection with their horse.
Yoga and horsemanship are both disciplines which involve body and mind and for this reason, they complement one another very well. The ability to stretch beyond our limits (physically, emotionally and mentally) that is often necessary to become better horse people can be increased through yoga practice, and then readily transferred to our horsemanship. Likewise, the qualities we aim to foster in the horse (balance, strength and suppleness, energy and calmness) become manifest in ourselves through the practice of yoga.
Horses are naturally attracted to people who are connected with themselves and their surroundings. They need calm and clear communication to feel confident and relaxed. When a horse is confident and relaxed, it is possible to deeply connect with them and train them. This is the goal of this workshop!
In the horse sessions, we will learn how to develop a true connection and how to train a horse in a centred and sensitive way, with respect for his whole being and without any use of force. This is achieved by learning how to communicate with the horse, based on how it naturally interacts with other horses.
The horse part of the workshop will incorporate liberty training, groundwork and riding. You will be taught how to use your body in a soft but clear way to communicate with your horse. You will learn the importance of intention before technique, and how let your horse have his own opinion. Finally, you will learn how to use the techniques taught in the yoga classes when interacting with the horses.
In the Sati yoga classes, you will first work at developing mindfulness of the body, which greatly improves communication with horses, who are masters at reading body language, whether we are on the ground or in the saddle. You will also learn to create strength and flexibility as required, with a view to striking the right balance between intention and softness when interacting with our horse, and you will learn a fitness routine which if practice regularly will greatly improve your riding.
You will also learn to develop better awareness of your breath and how to use it as an effective tool to communicate more clearly and connect more deeply with your horse.
Finally, through the practice of mindfulness meditation, you will learn how to become more aware of your emotions and how to develop a non-reactive mind, an essential life skill when dealing with horses, who are acutely aware of the emotional state of their handlers – whether acknowledged or not.
This is a non residential course, starting in the morning on Sunday 9th of April and ending in the evening on Sunday 10th of April.
No yoga or meditation experience is assumed or necessary to take part in this course.
Cost of the course is 220 euros (if you are coming with your own horse). There’s an option to use one of Slieve Aughty centre’s horses for the course, at an additional cost of 60 euros. A 50% deposit, payable online by Paypal or by bank transfer, is required at the time of booking.
Cost is 220 euros for the weekend and includes:
- 14 hours of tuition in yoga, mindfulness and horsemanship
- Vegetarian lunch on both days
- Livery for your horse (if you cannot bring your own horse, you can rent one for the workshop at an extra cost of 600 euros)
Accommodation is not included in the price, but Slieve Aughty Centre offers various accommodation options, see their website for details. Contact them directly to book you accommodation.
Number of participants on this course is limited to 8.
Karine is a professional riding instructor and horse trainer from Belgium.
She has been riding horses since she was 13 and knew early on that all she wanted to do was helping horses… She started working with horses professionally twenty years ago, and has experimented with many different training methods, both classical and “natural”. These studies, and her own experience and insights, are the foundation of her Horsefulness training system.
Horsefulness treats horses in a horse-friendly, respectful manner, without force, punishment … or bits. It consists of four main parts: Liberty work, Groundwork, Gymnasticizing Groundwork & Bitless Riding Art, the first three of which will be explored in this workshop.
Karine’s dream is that every horse lives a happy and healthy life where they are understood,and respected. She hopes that horses can find inner peace in a human world and also have fun with “their human”.
Karine teaches lessons and clinics internationally and has developed an online coaching program, for horse owners. She also trains Instructors and trainers
Christophe has been studying and practicing yoga since 1994. He has trained as a yoga teacher in the late 1990 and has studied a number of different yoga styles in Europe and India. He is particularly interested in pranayama (yogic breathing).
His quest for a more balanced practice also led him to study the teachings of Buddhism, which complement his hatha yoga practice. He regularly practices anapanasati (mindfulness of breathing), vipassana (insight) and metta (loving kindness) meditation and regularly attends retreats in various traditions of Buddhist meditation.
Christophe is certified by the Independent Yoga Network as a senior (1000 hours) teacher.
He is also a very experienced horseman and a trained Equine Assisted Learning facilitator with EAGALA.
The course start at 9.00 am on Saturday 9th of April and finishes at 5.00 pm on Sunday 10th of April
Daily timetable:
9.00 -11.00 am: Mindfulness meditation followed by yoga class with Christophe
11.15 – 1.00 pm: Horsefulness training with Karine
1.00 – 2.00 pm: Lunch
2.00 – 4.00 pm: Horsefulness training with Karine
4.15 – 5.30 pm (5.00 pm on the Sunday): Breathwork and mindfulness meditation with Christophe