The Elevated Equestrian

There's more horse information at your fingertips than ever, and somehow owners are more anxious than ever. Fran of The Honest Equine wants to help you become a better observer of your horse without becoming an anxious one.Fran is an equine musculoskeletal and rehabilitation practitioner based in the north of England. She spent years in racing and racehorse retraining before studying equine therapy and rehabilitation at university, and her work now spans functional assessment, hands-on treatment, rehab, prehab, and owner education. She's built her practice around knowing her scope, working as part of a team with vets, farriers, saddle fitters, and trainers, and being honest with owners about what their horse is actually telling them.We get into what "evidence-based" really means (it's not finding one study that agrees with you), why sometimes the most evidence-informed answer is "we don't know yet," and why a horse with horrendous X-rays can be going beautifully. We talk about prehab as building the capacity your horse needs before it becomes the thing holding them back, why variety in surfaces, terrain, and work matters, and how long lining or watching someone else ride your horse shows you what you can't feel from the saddle. Then we walk through the rehab path for a kissing spines horse: what injections and mesotherapy actually do (they don't create space between the spinous processes, they buy you a window), why groundwork comes before the rider, and why Fran works within the limits of the horse, not the rider. We also talk about serviceably sound horses, Sue Dyson's Ridden Horse Pain Ethogram, and why not every behavior is a diagnosis.If you've ever scrolled past a post and thought "oh no, my horse does that," this one's for you.Follow The Elevated Equestrian so you never miss an episode, and if this one lands, send it to a horse owner who's drowning in information.

What if you worked out your hourly rate and it came to six pence? That's exactly what happened to one barn owner — and it's more common than you think. In this episode, Samantha Baer sits down with Cheryl Johns, founder of LiveryList (the UK's leading livery yard directory) and the Yard Owner Hub, to talk about the business side of the horse world nobody wants to discuss: why barn owners consistently undervalue their time, why cheap yards stay full while high-quality barns struggle to fill stalls, the guilt culture around raising board prices, and how unregulated the livery industry really is. Cheryl shares how she built LiveryList from a literal dream in 2010 into a 15-year business with 800+ yards, plus the organizational systems that let her run it all solo. Whether you run a barn, board a horse, or dream of doing either, this conversation will change how you think about what horse care is actually worth.Follow The Elevated Equestrian wherever you listen, and find everything Samantha is up to at samanthabaer.com.

Why does your horse stand crooked — and what is it costing him? In this episode, Dr. Karen Gellman, veterinarian and research scientist behind Postural Rehabilitation, explains how neutral posture is the foundation of soundness, and why the most common lamenesses we treat trace back to a horse who simply can't stand up square.We cover the three factors driving abnormal compensatory posture — the hooves, the teeth, and the upper cervical spine — and why fixing only one of them means the horse reverts within weeks. Dr. Gellman breaks down how the TMJ is hardwired into postural control, why an untreated overjet or offset jaw changes where a horse loads his feet, and how negative palmar angles crush the navicular bone and cause navicular disease.We also get into hypermobility and ECVM, why instability presents as anxiety and spookiness, and what "up foot/down foot" really tells you about a horse's whole body.If this episode gave you something to look at differently, follow the show wherever you're listening — it genuinely helps more horse people find it.For training resources, ride-along lessons, and everything else I'm working on, head to samanthabaer.com

What if your horse's mystery lameness, spooky behavior, or separation anxiety isn't a training problem — but stored trauma? In this episode, I sit down with Mandy McConechy, founder of The Neural Shift Method, to explore how the nervous system holds onto physical and emotional trauma in both horses and riders — and how releasing it at the root cause can change everything.Mandy is a former intermediate-level eventer whose career ended in burnout and chronic pain. After being told she'd have to live with a herniated disc, she discovered how suppressed emotions were physically reshaping her body — and that discovery led her to a method that works with horses and humans as one connected unit.We get into pain pathways and why horses stay lame no matter what the vet nerve blocks, how the brain creates compensation patterns from sound, sight, and past trauma, and why weaning shows up as a root cause in nearly 97% of the horses Mandy works with. We also dig into the horse-rider mirror — how your nervous system directly shapes your horse's body and behavior, and how releasing something in the rider can unlock a breakthrough in the horse overnight.Whether you're dealing with an unexplained lameness, a "difficult" horse, or your own riding anxiety, this conversation will change how you see your horse — and yourself.Follow the show so you never miss an episode, and visit samanthabaer.com for the blog, ride-alongs, and more.

Follow The Elevated Equestrian so you never miss an episode—and if this one shifts something for you, share it with a riding friend who needs to hear it.What if the way you ride—your busy hands, your collapsing core, the leg that just won't stay quiet—isn't a habit you need to drill away, but a pattern your body has been building for decades?In this episode, I sit down with rider biomechanics coach Suzanne Galdun, one of only a handful of people in the world certified at her level in Mary Wanless's Ride With Your Mind method. We get deep into the physics, anatomy, and neuroscience of how you actually sit on a horse—and why your nervous system, your fascia, and even an ankle you sprained 25 years ago are showing up in every ride.We talk about mirror neurons and how horses feel your anxiety before you do, why "sit up straight" almost never works (and what sensory-specific language to use instead), why a horse can't be in self-carriage until the rider is, and how the patterns in your body off the horse—how you hold a steering wheel, how you walk, how you sit at your desk—follow you straight into the saddle. We also get into the stuff most riding instruction skips entirely: pain, the pelvic floor, mind-body connection, and the fact that you can rewire all of it, no matter your age.If you've ever had a magical ride you couldn't explain or repeat, this one's for you.

That "training problem" might not be a training problem at all. In this episode, Samantha Baer sits down with Julia Alebrand, a certified equine and saddle ergonomist with Saddle Fit 4 Life, to unpack how saddle fit issues hide in plain sight — masquerading as behavioral quirks, performance plateaus, ulcers, or "just how my horse goes."Julia explains why saddle fit is never a one-time event (your horse's back changes with season, training, nutrition, and age), how to read the behavioral cues your horse is already giving you, and the self-checks every owner can do before they ride: wither clearance on top and the sides, the two-to-three finger rule, finding the 18th rib, saddle balance, billet alignment, and matching the tree to your horse's shoulder angle.We also get into the stuff riders argue about online — wool vs. foam flocking, treed vs. treeless, adjustable gullet plates and what they actually adjust — plus why the half pad is not the fix you think it is, and how to tell a qualified, brand-independent fitter from a rep who's there to sell a saddle. And because it's never just about the horse: Julia breaks down why a saddle has to fit you too, and how the wrong one can sabotage your position no matter how hard you work off the horse.If you've ever wondered whether it's the saddle, the training, the feet, or the ulcers — this one gives you the tools to find out.Enjoying The Elevated Equestrian? Subscribe wherever you listen so you never miss an episode — and if this one helped, share it with a barnmate who needs to hear it.

In this conversation, Samantha Baer and Emmie Speckens, co-founder of Equithink dig into learning theory and positive reinforcement training, puzzle design and environmental enrichment, and why agency and choice are quietly some of the most important pieces of equine welfare. They talk through the difference between compliance and a true yes, how curiosity transforms not just enrichment time but ridden work and confidence under saddle, why mares absolutely do play (despite what you've been told), and what it looks like to build a "smart stable" where horses can turn on their own lights or even their own nebulizer when they need it.They also get into the bigger question underneath it all: what happens to a thinking, problem-solving animal when we make every decision for them — and what becomes possible when we stop. Whether you're a competitive rider, a positive reinforcement curious horse owner, or someone rethinking traditional stable management and horse keeping, this episode will give you a new lens on the horses in your life.If this conversation resonates, follow The Elevated Equestrian Podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen — new episodes drop weekly, and your follow helps more horse people find the show.

What if the way your horse stands in the cross-ties is telling you everything? What if the "good" horse in the show ring is actually the most dysfunctional one? Sam sits down with Tara Osborne of Long Drove Holistic Horse Training for a conversation that will change how you watch horses move. They cover Tara's assessment process for spotting compensation, the seesaw of front-to-back balance and why every horse she assesses has a balance problem, and why the thoracic sling is the linchpin connecting the back end to the front end. The conversation goes deep on hypermobility — the explosion of hyper-loose horses in modern sport, why they need Pilates-style stability work instead of more mobility, and how that instability is reshaping how riders are forced to ride. Tara also shares her go-to groundwork exercises (thoracic sling lifts, pole work, podiums, balance pads, incline work), how to recover a horse after a competition weekend, and what she'd push for if she could change one thing about how sport horses are produced today.If this episode hits, follow The Elevated Equestrian Podcast wherever you listen so you never miss a conversation — and share it with the rider in your life who's ready to start looking closer.

What if a simple cotton swab could tell you more about your horse's health than a blood draw? In this episode, molecular biologist and cancer researcher Dr. Kimberley Mackenzie breaks down her groundbreaking work at For Martin Bio, where she's developing a saliva-based test that analyzes the sugar molecules — called glycans — attached to your horse's antibodies to reveal what's really going on inside their body.We get into how glycan research in humans has been able to predict type 2 diabetes up to seven years before traditional testing catches it, and why Dr. Mackenzie believes the same science could be a game-changer for conditions like EMS, Cushing's, and laminitis in horses. She explains how truncated glycans change the shape of antibodies and weaken the immune system, what the collection process actually looks like (spoiler: it takes about five minutes and a cotton swab), and why removing the stress of repeated blood draws matters more than most people realize.We also talk about the performance side — how this testing could help fine-tune training programs for sport horses by catching overtraining before injuries happen, the fascinating differences between how male and female glycans age in humans and what that might mean for mares versus geldings, and where AI fits into making all of this data actually usable for the everyday horse owner. Plus, I share a wild story about a client whose horse was treated for Cushing's for a full year before a second test revealed it didn't have it at all.Whether you're managing a competition horse or keeping your backyard pony healthy, this conversation will change how you think about preventative care.🎧 Follow The Elevated Equestrian Podcast so you never miss an episode and check out all the links → https://www.samanthabaer.com/links

Physical therapist and lifelong equestrian Dr. Allison Baier of EquiPT joins the podcast to explore why so many riders feel disconnected from their bodies in the saddle — and what to do about it. Drawing from her training in somatic experiencing and over a decade of physical therapy, Allie explains the "felt sense," how fight, flight, and freeze states show up in your riding, and why no amount of stretching or positive self-talk can release what's actually stuck in your body. We talk about why adult amateurs struggle with fear more than kids, how orienting to your environment can break a panic spiral at a show, and what happens when you stop trying to fix the problem and start noticing what's already working. If this episode hit home, do us a huge favor — follow the show, leave a rating, and share it with a rider who needs to hear this. It's the single best way to help us keep bringing conversations like this one to more riders. 🐴

In this episode Samantha Baer sits down with Linda Hauck, founder of Tapestry Equine Products, racetrack trainer, eventing technical delegate, and competition coach with over 40 years in the barn. Linda didn't design her products from a boardroom — she designed them because her horses were telling her something wasn't working, and she actually listened.They talk about why horses go to the back of the stall when you tack up, how the wrong girth kills movement and willingness, the spur Linda built after testing every option on the market on herself, and why the neck strap belongs on every horse regardless of level. If your horse seems duller or more resistant than they should be, start here.🎓 FROM STIFF TO SUPPLE IN 28 DAYSSix ride-along audio lessons coached in real time, right from the saddle. Presale is 40% off — code applied automatically at checkout. Ends March 14th. Stiff to Supple

Samantha Baer sits down with Matt Brown, a five-star eventer and horse trainer based in Pennsylvania who's been vocal about rethinking how we use tools like whips in competition. In this episode, we talk about his journey from traditional, dominance-based training to a more horsemanship-focused approach - and what it took to make that shift while competing at the highest level.We get into why being named a Rio Olympic alternate was actually his lowest point, the difference between a shut-down horse and a horse with a voice, his decision to ride Kentucky 2025 without a stick, how outcome-based culture affects both horses and riders, and having honest conversations about what needs to change in horse sport.Whether you're competing or just trying to build a better partnership with your horse, this one's worth a listen.🐴 Ready to help your horse move better? Check out my course From Stiff to Supple in 28 Days – currently 40% off at $58 (regular $97). Presale ends March 15th.👉 Course

Presence is one of those things everyone in the horse world talks about but almost nobody explains how to actually get there. This week I sat down with high performance and nervous system coach Natalie Hummel and honestly this might be one of my favorite conversations we've had on the pod. We get into why presence is the single most powerful thing you can bring to your horse, what's actually blocking you from accessing it (and why it has nothing to do with focus or discipline), the real root underneath fear and performance anxiety, why awareness alone isn't enough to change your patterns, and how the work I do with horses and the work Natalie does with humans turned out to be almost identical. I also share my own burnout and people pleasing era that I'd honestly rather forget — but it's too relevant not to. If you've ever felt like you're doing everything right and still hitting a wall, this episode is going to reframe a lot for you.Your horse already knows how to be here. This is about catching up to them.🎓 My course From Stiff to Supple in 28 Days is in presale right now. Six ride-along audio lessons designed to systematically unlock your horse's body and yours. 40% off, code applied automatically at checkout. Presale ends March 14th. Grab it here: https://www.samanthabaer.com/courses/stiff-to-supple-28-days