Cooling Down Tendons
Cooling down tendons:
This week I was asked by a client which tendon cooling product is the best.
I answered with my usual response….. well that depends.
The correct answer to this is the preparation of your horse is the most important thing.
Firstly let me explain aerobic and anaerobic respiration: Muscles require energy to contract and perform work. When this happens with oxygen present (aerobic metabolism), there is minimal lactic acid build up. When oxygen is not present, lactic acid builds up which is a key feature of muscle fatigue (muscles have reduced ability to contract and become sore). Factors which increase oxygen availability to muscles includes having a fit horse, having good blood supply to the muscles, and having a healthy horse with no disease.
Fitness:
First of all, when we train our horses we need to have them fit. Fitness for the desired discipline means that the blood vessels to the required muscles are maximal, and the muscle cells are able to metabolise aerobically for longer, which means carbohydrate muscle stores are not used as quickly and minimal lactic acid builds up. Fit horses can use more fat instead of carbohydrates for the same amount of exercise as it can be used as an alternative energy source when oxygen is present.
Warming up:
The next thing to remember is that warming up your horse prior to exercise is essential, especially during a competition where multiple tests or phases are needed from that horse. A good warm up allows conversion of blood supply from internal organs to muscles required for exercise. Again this prevents anaerobic (where oxygen is not used to supply energy to the muscles) respiration and the build up of lactic acid. This means stiffness and the sore muscle feeling is reduced.
Cooling down:
The cool down period is essential to ensure increased blood supply to the muscles from exercise remains until all the lactic acid has been removed. An example would be; at the end of cross country, you would continue to trot your horse until the increased respiratory rate reduces and your horse is no longer ‘blowing’.
From here if you wish to use tendon cooling agents then please do. However, please remember the most likely time to injure a tendon is during muscle fatigue, so to avoid muscle fatigue by having a fit horse, that is warmed up correctly, reduces this risk significantly.