{"id":24123,"date":"2015-09-01T16:07:54","date_gmt":"2015-09-01T06:07:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/?p=24123"},"modified":"2017-02-10T11:16:05","modified_gmt":"2017-02-10T00:16:05","slug":"adelinde-cornelissen-on-the-importance-of-balance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/2015\/09\/adelinde-cornelissen-on-the-importance-of-balance\/","title":{"rendered":"Adelinde Cornelissen on the Importance of Balance"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"AdelindeFeature\"<\/a>The Olympic silver medalist explains why being fit to ride is non-negotiable<\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n

Story by Rebecca Ashton , and\u00a0Photos by Rebecca Ashton and Roz Neave<\/h3>\n

The Netherlands has been one of the most progressive dressage countries in recent years. Where Anky showed us how to ride a K\u00fcr, Adelinde is spearheading rider fitness like no one else. So much so, that the Dutch Equestrian Federation has now made it compulsory for a third of the training of new equestrian coaches to be in the area of rider fitness. Adelinde also now has her own online training centre where anyone can get to know her fitness methods.<\/p>\n

Adelinde explains, \u201cThe physical fitness work is really, really important. You owe it to your horse. You don\u2019t want to be the weakest link. You expect your horse to be in top-shape every day of the year but if you\u2019re not, then that\u2019s not fair. I get cross when non-horsey people think the horse does all the work, but when you look at some riders, why would they not think that? If you tell people what you do for your horse, the list is long. And for yourself? Nothing? That\u2019s not right\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s changed me tremendously. Big, big, big changes. You start to be aware of your own body and what muscles you actually use and how you use them. It\u2019s so funny because I said to a couple of riders in the clinic, \u2018Relax your upper legs. Just sit.\u2019 Then they\u2019re like, \u2018Oh, this is so much easier!\u2019 But that\u2019s just being aware of your own body and what it\u2019s doing. Where do I have tension? Where do I relax? How do I get this position without tensing up. That\u2019s just so, so good.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adelinde\u2019s system isn\u2019t about going to the gym and running on the treadmill or using the rowing machine and wearing yourself out. She believes riders should be fit for their sport. \u201cYour body needs to be as quiet as it can be so the horse can pick up the small signals. You need a certain tension in your body, a core stability, but not tightness. Both horse and rider need relaxation first, but it\u2019s not your end goal. You need the perfect tension in the right muscles\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you train your own body, you realise how training affects your horse\u2019s body. That\u2019s really important. You realise that your horse\u2019s muscles cannot keep going on forever. What you see happen a lot is that riders keep on going forever and ever and ever because the exercise doesn\u2019t go right so they keep going with it and it gets worse and worse. People don\u2019t seem to realise that it\u2019s getting worse because the horse is getting tired!\u201d<\/p>\n

The Dutch champion got serious about her fitness two years ago, \u201cWhen I came into the Olympic squad, I thought I really have to do something, not just for myself but for my horse.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tjalling van den Berg, Adelinde\u2019s fitness coach is based in northern Holland about 1.5 hours away from her. He told her she could come every Wednesday between 11:30-13:30. Adelinde continues, \u201cThis was hard because of my commitments but he said time doesn\u2019t count, think about your priorities!\u201d Tjalling, who used to train the Dutch gymnastic team, is not one to mess with. The only answer was, \u201cYes, sir!\u201d and it is definitely worth the effort. He\u2019s a tough man but also a generous one and utterly passionate about what he does. When Adelinde asked him what he wanted in return he said, \u201cIf you win a gold medal in London, I want a thank you. If not, I don\u2019t want anything.\u201d<\/p>\n

The training consists of everything from boxing to ballet, running, trampoline work, work on the balance beam, core stability on the ball and balancing blindfolded. Adelinde enthuses, \u201cI\u2019ve done so many weird things! In two years, not one week has been the same as another. What my trainer constantly does is get me out of my comfort zone and see how I respond to that. You see it is only when you are out of your comfort zone that you start training. If you do what you did, you get what you got!\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ParzivalPia\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Tjalling provides 20 coaches to take Adelinde through the different exercises. There is also a mental coach at the gym who is there for the whole two hours of Adelinde\u2019s training session. He walks around, monitoring the athlete and bringing awareness to the training process. Adelinde explains further, \u201cWe don\u2019t sit down and talk about how I feel before a comp. He puts me in situations as I train and asks me how I feel. For example, I might be doing my boxing and he sees me getting my breathing up or stiffening up, so he\u2019s there just making me aware of it and asking me how I feel at that moment. This is really important.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s like when you are riding, you don\u2019t really have time to think about your own balance or your own breathing. If you look at all the riders, half of them are not breathing or not breathing correctly and breathing way too high. They breathe in then forget to breathe out! That causes them to stiffen up in the shoulders and then the horse starts to get stronger and then the rider starts to stiffen the legs and on and on. Breathing deep and low gets your centre of gravity low and helps you with your balance and then it is easier for your horse to carry you. When you do boxing, you can be aware of your breathing, notice when it gets too high and change it, get more relaxed, get the breathing lower and get more grounded into the core and hence become more stable. Tai Chi, yoga and pilates are great for that as well.\u00a0 If you want your horse to balance, you have to learn to balance yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n

The awareness is about the whole body, not just the breathing. If the horse is expected to do piaffe, passage and pirouettes, how can the rider not be in balance?<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s important to understand what the horse is feeling. Like on the ballet bar, I did a pirouette and then I realised how hard it is for the horse. If you do a little bit with your upper body to the left or to the right, you totally lose balance. You understand how your balance affects the horse. Then when you are on the horse, you really think about being centred with your upper body, about not leaning to one side because the horse has to correct that all the time,\u201d emphasises Adelinde. This was a really big focus in the riding lessons that she gave. The focus was not just on what the horse was doing and the different movements, but very much the rider position and influence and bringing awareness to how stiff and strong a lot of the riders were, controlling their horse by strength rather than balance and softness.<\/p>\n

Adelinde\u2019s favourite exercise is boxing. \u201cI love the boxing. It has so much in common with\u00a0 riding. The co-ordination, the balance, the breathing, the quickness of reactions but then being able to relax again straight afterwards and the mental part of it. You start to realise you can do more than you think you can!\u201d<\/p>\n

We also touched on the subject of nutrition. Adelinde elaborates, \u201cThat\u2019s also part of it. It\u2019s changed a bit for me. In the mornings I would always eat maybe bread and jam or something but then my nutritionist said I had to write down everything I ate for a week. You start to think twice when you pick up the chocolate! So you skip it, which is good! I can eat everything but of course I have to be aware I\u2019m not eating pizza seven days a week. The whole Summer I was doing a lot of vitamins and lots of fruit. I\u2019ve never drunk alcohol or smoked, so that helps too.\u201d<\/p>\n

During Equidays held in Hamilton, New Zealand, where she was the star presenter, the Dutch champion shared some exercises with the crowd. Her first aim was to swap positions with the audience. She made everyone go down into the arena while she stood up in the stands. \u201cThe first step is to get out of your comfort zone! Be there and present yourself. Get your energy up! Posture! The way you present yourself is how people are going to see you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"RA_20131019_0038\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Then it was time for a few exercises. Here are three Adelinde\u00a0suggested:<\/p>\n

\"RA_20131104_0003\"<\/a>Exercise for balance. <\/i><\/b>Adelinde explained, \u201cWhen I clean my teeth, I stand on one foot. Now you stand on one foot. How is your balance as a rider? Your horse has to do this in piaffe. Now find a partner and try to push each other over like this. The next step was to try it with eyes closed.<\/p>\n

\"RA_20131104_0015\"<\/a>Exercise to test reaction.<\/i><\/b> Two people face each other with their hands out, palms down, fingers touching. One person tries to hit the top of the other person\u2019s hand and the second person tries to pull their hand out of the way before they get hit.<\/p>\n

\"RA_20131104_0024\"<\/a>Exercise to test co-ordination.<\/i><\/b> This is a boxing exercise. One person puts their hands up, palms facing out and the other person has to hit them as fast as possible. It tests both people as the one moving their hands around has to come up with all different kinds of combinations to keep the other person thinking, just like you have to do with your horse so he doesn\u2019t anticipate the movements. And when the audience were having too much fun? \u201cStop laughing! Boxing is about fighting. Really hit their hands hard and fast!\u201d joked Adelinde.\"Winner\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Everyone was made to throw their arms up in a \u201cY\u201d and yell \u2018Winner!\u2019 Adelinde had the crowd feeling great right from the start, \u201cI do this every time I do something good. It changes the energy. Try it! When I get ready to compete I do it in front of the mirror,\u201d and for the rest of the weekend, everywhere you turned there was someone with their arms up yelling, \u2018Winner!\u2019 The message was clear: feeling like a winner will help make you a winner.<\/p>\n

The session finished with Adelinde encouraging everyone to give three compliments to their partner. \u201cLook straight at them and take their hand. Everyday you have to give 10 compliments to people. This is your homework. Positivity!\u201d<\/p>\n

The strong message was that the rider must train as well as the horse. If not, only half the bases are being covered, and in today\u2019s competitive environment where the stakes are higher than ever, this just doesn\u2019t cut it anymore.\"RA_20131019_0049\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The audience finished energised, happy and focused. Adelinde is a fierce competitor, but also very good fun. She really walks her talk, is vivacious and always looking for new ways to improve her performance. If her fitness and mental attitude is anything to aspire to, no rider out there can afford not to do this work.<\/p>\n

For more information on Adelinde\u2019s off the horse training methods, go to: www.adelindetrainingcenter.nl<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

Cornelissen, Adelinde<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n