Ask the expert part 2 : Dr. Cesar Parra
I can't even tell you all how exciting it is that Dr. Cesar Parra took the time to write for the blog.For those who do not know who he is, Cesar is one of the most exciting Dressage riders competing in the world right now. Under his belt he has the 2004 Olympic Games, 2005 world cup in Las Vegas, 2006 WEG in Aachen, along with team silver at the Pan Am games and winning various Grand Prix at Devon.
Check out what Cesar has to say about riding, injury and fitness by clicking on comments link below on the right...
And leave your own comment!
Cheers
Daphne
posted by haspel-soares at 12:21 PM
1 Comments:
1)You are one of the best Dressage riders in the world right now. How long have you been riding ? How long doing Dressage? What is the most memorable experience you have ever had on top of a horse ?
First thanks for the complement, I don't think of myself as one the best riders in the world. I think I am maybe one of the luckiest - I get to do what I love everyday and ride really cool horses. The horses are the best.
I started riding as a child on my Grandparent's farm in Colombia, but when I started in school I had to give it up. When I began my dental practice, I went back to riding, first as a jumper, but I wasn't very good, then I took up dressage.
I think the most memorable riding experience I have had is riding in Aachen. The crowd there is unbelievable. It gave me goosebumps.
2)You ride hours a day, just the thought of sitting the trot for so long runs a chill down my spine nowadays. Have you ever had any problems with your back? If yes, what did you do about it? if no, do you do anything to prevent repetitive stress injury anywhere in your body ? Do you warm up/stretch before riding? Do you see upper level riders stretching, being conscientious of their fitness?
I am grateful that I have not had problems with my back, outside of occasional soreness. I am careful and try to take care. I have a super massage therapist that I try to have work on me twice a month, and I do believe in chiropractic, but my chiropractor recommends more than just his manipulation of the spine. He came and taught me and my team stretches that help prevent injuries, so yes I believe stretching is important. I think that fitness in riding is just as important as fitness in other sports. When we are unfit, we are more prone to injury.
3)Do you exercise aside from riding? What do you do?
I find swimming very helpful. It helps me loosen up stiff muscles.
4)It has become obvious to me that fitness is an issue for many riders - you give lots of clinics, do you think that the average rider you see is fit enough to ride at the level that they are riding?
I believe that you are right that fitness is an important issue.
I have found there is a misconception in the general population that the horse does all of the work. I think anyone who has taken dressage lessons would argue with that. I remember a long time ago George Morris talking about fitness in his articles in Practical Horseman, and I remember him saying that riding one horse a day is not enough exercise to ride one horse a day well. I believe that is true. I know that I work on improving my fitness and I ride 5 or more horses a day, so yes I believe we all need to be more aware and work more on being fit.
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