Shannon Fogden

All about the heart

I always said that my eventer, Charlie, would be my war horse. He would be the horse that I chose to ride into battle if I ever had to. He is tiny at 15.1hh but he has the heart of a lion. Charlie is now all but retired, apart from the odd jump and outride, but he still makes me grin from ear to ear every time I sit in the saddle. Base has taken over the mantle now, from a horse with a reputation for dumping people and spooking at everything, he now happily goes past almost anything spooky, over

The Work comes before the Belief

I recently listened to a motivational podcast by Andy Frisella and he used a phrase that really stuck with me, “The work comes before the belief.”  A lot of people constantly use the phrase “believe in yourself.” But that’s not something you just switch on, a nervous rider or competitor is not going to just magically start believing in themselves and feeling confident because someone says those three words. It’s a lot of work to increase your self confidence, and it’s takes time.  I can

Rider Fitness

Every year starts with a multitude of resolutions about more hours in the gym and fewer cookies. The difference this year for me, was I really do want to reveal fitter and stronger version of myself. I have always been a huge advocate of riders treating themselves as athletes. I love reading studies on exercise and strengthening, in both horses and riders and I am privileged to have access to some really knowledgeable health and fitness professionals. There is no doubt that in a sport that