Functional Horse Training by Thirza Hendriks

04/11/2025

The last tickets!! ⌛️

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗢𝗻𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗲𝗲𝗽𝗲𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄𝗹𝗲𝗱𝗴𝗲 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗲

In three intensive days, you’ll discover step by step how the equine body is put together. Our experts will guide you through the anatomy, with this year’s special focus on the organs and internal processes.

Thanks to the unique online setting, you’ll see everything in razor-sharp detail – with explanations that immediately help you connect the dots to practice and training. These are insights you simply won’t find anywhere else.

Don’t miss this chance and secure your spot now – we're almost sold out!

👉 https://equinestudies.e-quine.com/en/online-dissection-2025/

20/10/2025

Have you always wanted to know what it looks like under a horse's skin? This is your chance! From November 13 to 15, 2025, Equinestudies is organizing a 3-day online horse dissection. 🐴

I will participate as a team member in this dissection. During the dissection, the horse is examined layer by layer to discover its story. Have you ever wondered why a horse reacts in a certain way or why it can or cannot perform certain physical tasks? How often have we said how much we'd love to get a glimpse inside the horse's body to find out exactly what's wrong with it? 🙏🏻

This edition focuses on internal processes (organs and hidden systems). Sometimes your horse seems “off”, but you can't find the cause in the muscles, bones, or nervous system. In those cases, it's crucial to look deeper, at the vital organ functions. Vague symptoms like lethargy, a dull coat, or the feeling that your horse is "slow to move forward" can point to internal problems.

Interested? In collaboration with Equinestudies, we have a great offer for you. Get a €50 discount with the discount code 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗿𝘇𝗮𝟱𝟬𝗲𝗻𝗴 ⚠️

I hope to see you there!
You can register via https://equinestudies.e-quine.com/en/online-dissection-2025/

17/09/2025

If you've always wanted to join us in person for a live whole horse dissection, then this is your chance. Cape Town, South Africa, October 17-19. For more info, click on the info below in the original post!

Take a journey through the horse-inside out. This eye-opening course is a MUST for anyone involved with horses. Scroll down below for more info.

24/07/2025

Are You Training with Purpose—Or Just Going Through the Motions? Last Chance to Join the Online Summit!

You get what you train. So do you train what you need to train?

Many horse owners stick to familiar exercises or those required for a specific test. But how do you know whether your training has the actual desired effect and achieving the right results?

• What physiological adaptations need to happen?
• How do you know when to back down or how to progress to a more intense training load?
• How to do you build a smart progressive training plan with long-term goals?
• And most importantly – how do you adapt it to make it work for the horse?

A basic understanding of exercise physiology will help you navigate these questions. It empowers you to train with clear, goal-oriented purpose and to understand how the horse’s body responds and adapts to training over-time – either becoming more efficient and resilient – or becoming less fit and more dysfunctional.

Want to know more?
If you’re ready to deepen your knowledge of Equine Physiology & Energetics, then join me at the Energy in Motion Online Summit where we will do a deep dive into:

• Energy metabolism
• Muscle physiology
• Elastic energy
• Fluid dynamics
• Respiration
• The diaphragm
• Fat, stress & metabolic disorders
• Gut Microbiome
• (Chronic) inflammation
• Exercise physiology & the principles of training

Unlock the science. Empower your training. Help your horse thrive.

Last chance to register via: https://www.thirzahendriks.com/events-1/energy-in-motion-online-summit-2025

20/07/2025

Behind every movement is a metabolic budget.

Did you know that the brain’s most important job isn’t to think or feel? — it’s to manage energy. Not just in humans. In horses too.

🧠 The brain’s core task is to constantly predict energy needs before they arise, ensuring energy efficiency through metabolic budgeting.

⚠️ This means that horses often mislabelled as ‘’lazy’’, ‘’hot’’, ‘’difficult’’, or ''underperforming'' aren’t suffering from mindset issues – they’re likely struggling to balance their energy budget.

Every movement, behaviour, or reaction comes at a cost to the metabolic budget. And when that budget is tight or runs low - whether from inflammation, stress, pain, or dysfunction etc. – it is expressed in the way our horses move, behave and perform.

✨ Energy in Motion | July 25–27 2025
From July 25-27, Functional Horse Training hosts an online summit that shifts the lens inwards, to address the ‘’thing before the thing’’. Because motion isn’t just muscle and joints—it’s metabolism, respiration, fluid flow and much more. It’s all the silent but crucial processes that prepare the body to move, long before a step is taken. Learn about fluid movement with greatest efficiency, but minimal effort!

What can you expect?
Across 10 dynamic science-grounded lectures we will explore the intricate landscape and interconnectedness of equine physiology and energetics. These sessions will translate complex science into practical, accessible concepts that you can immediately apply in your training, management, or therapeutic approach.

This is more than a lecture series—it’s a full weekend immersion into the interconnected processes that underpin performance, behaviour and well-being. Topics will be explored using scientific literature, case studies, dissection material and interactive discussions. The lectures will always deliver practical considerations/implementations - especially when it comes to functional horse training. Learn how the body responds to exercise and the physiological principles of training that underpin a progressive and goal-oriented training plan in any given discpline for more results.

📺 Can’t attend live? All sessions will be available for 6–12 months of replay access.

For more information and detailed information on all the lectures, check:

https://www.thirzahendriks.com/events-1/energy-in-motion-online-summit-2025

30/06/2025

🐎 He's just ''lazy'', ''hot'' or ''difficult'' ... Sounds familiar? A common mislabel.

As horse owners, we are committed offer our horses the best quality of live possible. want them to move with fluidity and ease. When challenges arise, energy regulation is an often overlooked piece of the puzzle.

🔋🪫This years’ online summit Energy in Motion held from July 25-27 will be a deep dive into Equine Physiology & Energetics.
Just two more days until the earlybird expires so don't miss out!

We’ll explore the internal processes that drive equine movement and general function. We tend to focus on output: the expressive behaviour we don’t like; muscle development; impaired performance. But instead of focusing solely output, we must shift attention inward – to the input. We will look at internal processes that generate, fuel, regulate and support motion and behavioural expressions from the inside-out. It’s time we begin addressing ‘’the thing before the thing.’’

📌Format
Across 10 dynamic lectures we will explore the intricate landscape of equine physiology and energetics. These sessions will translate complex science into practical, accessible concepts that you can immediately apply in your training, management, or therapeutic approach.
This is more than a lecture series—it’s a full weekend immersion into the interconnected processes that underpin performance, behavior and well-being. Topics will be explored using scientific literature, case studies, dissection material and interactive discussions. The lectures will always deliver practical considerations/implementations.

Whether you're a practitioner, trainer, or dedicated horse owner, you’ll walk away with a renewed perspective on what truly supports the horse—from the inside out.

🧑‍🎓💡You will learn about:
• Energy metabolism
• Muscle physiology
• Elastic energy
• Fluid dynamics
• Respiration
• The diaphragm
• Fat, stress & metabolic disorders
• Gut Microbiome
• (Chronic) inflammation
• Exercise physiology

If you can't attend the live lectures, there will be a replay of 6-12 months available.

For more information on the content, key words of each lecture and how to join please visit:

https://www.thirzahendriks.com/events-1/energy-in-motion-online-summit-2025

Enter coupon code Earlybird20 for a 20%. discount valid until July 1st 2025.