How to Make a Training Schedule That Actually Fits Your Life

The best training schedule is not the one with the most coloured blocks or the longest list of goals. It is the one you can still follow when a child has a school assembly, work shifts sideways, the weather turns nasty and your horse arrives full of opinions. Planning for that ordinary mess is more useful than pretending every week will be perfect.

I built my first eventing plans around what I hoped life would look like, which was a clever way to ensure they fell apart quickly. These days I start with capacity: the time, energy and money genuinely available, then build the horse-and-rider work around them. The result still leaves room for nerves, family, admin and the odd cup of tea at the club.

Start with the life you already have

Before opening a calendar, write down your fixed commitments: work hours, school runs, appointments, household jobs and stable obligations that cannot move. Add travel to lessons and competitions, because a 45-minute float journey can swallow what looks like a spare afternoon. In regional Victoria, servicing the ute or float and a detour for hay can make a nominal two-hour gap almost useless.

Next, mark your non-negotiables. These might include a weekly lesson, strength work for you, turnout, veterinary or farrier visits, and one full day when neither horse nor rider is asked to perform. I also plan for gear, not just riding, because I always keep a spare pair of breeches in the car for sudden weather changes, splashes or an unfortunate wardrobe mishap. A realistic plan treats preparation time as part of the work.

Choose the work that matters most

Training priorities should change with the competition phase. Before a dressage test, accuracy and relaxation may matter more than a full cross-country course. Before a show jumping round, I want a calm rhythm, a decent canter and one reliable gymnastic grid. Before cross-country, fitness, confidence and efficient gallop position often deliver more than another polished arena session.

Choose three outcomes for the week rather than a catalogue of exercises. One can belong to the horse, such as a quieter warm-up or cleaner canter. One can belong to the rider, such as sitting securely at trot. The third protects your life outside the saddle, whether that means an early night, family time or meeting a work deadline. If a week feels crowded, the third outcome is often the one that needs defending.

This also makes progress easier to judge. Minutes alone can be misleading: forty focused minutes may outperform ninety minutes of jumping fences because the rider is tired and the horse is overcoiled. Judge the session by what changed, what stayed manageable and how both of you felt afterwards. Competition nerves often improve when the week has a few clear jobs rather than a long stream of vague instructions.

Plan in energy, not just hours

Now budget energy. Looking after a horse, travelling to an arena, office work, childcare and gym time all draw from the same person. Check what kind of day you have before deciding what kind of training you have. A short, accurate school at the end of a long day may be wiser than squeezing in a full lesson when concentration has gone.

Put the demanding work where your energy is best. Some riders thrive early in the morning; others can barely string together a canter after work. I tend to use the cooler part of the Australian day for track work and save technical repetition for when I am mentally fresh. A tired rider often makes every small error look bigger, then carries that frustration into the next session.

Rest is part of a training plan, especially for horses. Hand-walking, grooming, stretching and relaxed turnout with hay can support a busy week without adding another box ticked. On an arvo when the temperature climbs, early starts and shade matter more than squeezing in extra effort. If the horse is drinking, eating and moving normally, a lighter day may do more good than forced intensity.

Give every session a clear purpose

Give each session one purpose and one visible measure. “Ride better” is vague; “canter quietly through changes and finish with four relaxed strides” gives the session a finish line. Warm up with a purpose, practise the hardest thing while attention is high, and cool down before the horse gets too warm to listen. A simple note afterwards is often enough.

Separate horse and rider notes. The horse may need softer hands, more time on the flat or a change of environment; you may need to slow your eyes, breathe or stop rushing. Mixing both problems into one drill can leave nobody knowing what to fix. A coach or members of the eventing community can help untangle them, and getting another perspective can expose assumptions. I keep Devin Berglund bookmarked as a reference when I want a wider view of goals and direction.

Use a three-column record: intention, observation and next adjustment. For example: intention, quiet canter; observation, rider loses rhythm over the second pole; next adjustment, lower the jump and focus on the approach. Over a month, those notes reveal patterns that memory edits. They also turn a disappointing outing into useful information rather than a reason to scrap the whole plan.

Build a weekly pattern with breathing room

A weekly pattern gives you a starting shape without turning it into a prison sentence. I might use one school session in the middle of the week, one coached or competition-style outing, and one longer horse-and-rider block. Travelling days, strength sessions and rest days then sit around those anchors. The exact weekday can move; the purpose should stay recognisable.

Protect one buffer slot. Competition entries, wet roads, missed rides, tack repairs and family plans all happen in Australia too. If every hour is allocated, one disruption creates a cascade. That buffer can hold a shortened ride, a phone call to the instructor or admin that must be done, or genuine time off. A plan with a little white space is easier to keep.

Name calendar blocks by outcome and preparation time rather than by vague label. “Canter rhythm, 60 minutes including warm-up and cool-down” is more actionable than “horse time”. Book the arena, pay the instructor and organise a friend or horse transport where needed. In the Australian equestrian market, local clubs, mobile arena providers, saddlers, online retailers and specialist equine insurers each add lead time, so admin belongs in the schedule too.

Adjust for horses, weather and real life

Weather can be an opponent in Australia, particularly when cross-country is on the calendar. Melbourne can switch from sunshine to a cold front, while strong wind changes how a horse sees the ground and where a rider can safely sit. I wrote about riding in windy weather after one of those days when a simple walk became a negotiation and every branch looked like a jump.

Build a wet-weather alternative rather than relying on motivation. An indoor school, flatwork in a safe area, walking, stretching or a lesson focused on the next competition phase can preserve momentum. Keep cross-country homework specific: water confidence, banks, related distances and recovery after exertion. Also check the forecast, ground report, boot and shoe options, and the organiser’s instructions before leaving. A sensible rider changes the session when conditions demand it; she does not pretend the original plan still applies.

Heat deserves the same flexibility. In Brisbane, Adelaide or inland NSW, a session moved to first light may be the difference between useful work and a horse that has no interest. Freeze water, electrolytes, shade and travel downtime matter, and competition policies may set heat thresholds and veterinary guidance. Planning the backup before a hot day is faster than improvising when the horse is already dull and the clock is ticking.

Keep the plan useful between competitions

Review the schedule every week, but review it in small pieces. Check whether the planned work happened, whether the horse finished well, whether you enjoyed it enough to repeat it and whether something outside the plan got squeezed. Change one or two priorities rather than rebuilding everything. A schedule should respond to evidence, not punish you for missing a marker.

After competition, use the judge’s sheet, cross-country notes and your own reflections to set the next cycle. A score can show where the marks were lost, but your log may show that the halt was the only moment you held tension. For eventers, the most useful plan is often a blend of technical correction, fresh horse work, rider fitness and enough unstructured time to remember that the partnership is supposed to be fun. Affiliation with Equestrian Federation of Australia and the relevant state body, along with entries, vet requirements and emergency paperwork, also needs a place in the calendar.

Now build the first version: open your real calendar, mark the commitments that cannot move, choose three weekly outcomes and place three training blocks around them. Add one buffer and one complete rest day, then print or save the plan somewhere you will actually see it. Start tonight with twenty honest minutes, because a schedule that survives ordinary life is far more valuable than a perfect plan that fails by Tuesday.