Today has been very exciting.
The first pallet of our latest publication arrived yesterday. Gillian has been busily signing and David busily wrapping and packing ready to send out the first consignment tomorrow. If you have pre-ordered a copy you will get it very soon, particularly if you live in Great Britain. The rest of the world could be a bit slower and Christmas is on the way as well! We have well over a hundred books to wrap so it may take a few days! We are so pleased Anatomy in Action is proving so popular already.
The book itself is filled with images of the horses moving from left to right across the fold out pages in a series which let you study and assess the movements step by step. The fact the horses and riders are adorned with their skeletons on the outside lets you really imagine what is happening under the skin.
The book and the accompanying biomechanics course, which consists of 28 videos – stand alone or linked to the book, has been designed to appeal to a wide variety of riders, horse enthusiasts, professionals, therapists, vet students, coaches and in fact anyone with a fascination for horses, movement, anatomy and biomechanics.
On the most basic level the book can be enjoyed as a beautiful coffee table book in which you can simply appreciate the versatility elegance and prowess of these magnificent creatures as well as marvel at the skills of the riders and handlers.
At the next level you can listen to the voice overs and follow the guided explanations of the movements and perhaps recognise some of the descriptions and observations in your own horses.
Anatomy in Action is not intended to be a training manual. It is a study in horse movement. If you are training to be a therapist, vet, farrier or saddler – or indeed work in any equine focussed profession, it is illuminating to study exactly how the horse moves.
Finally, you can use both the book and videos to study the movements yourself, deciphering and analysing every step and taking from it whatever is relevant to your situations. For coaches, trainers and professional riders, it is fascinating to appraise the biomechanics of movement. This can certainly help manage expectations as well as in some cases shed light on the limitations of the horse.
There is always something to learn.
At all levels it is fascinating and unusual to see and understand how the horse’s back moves from above . Studying the drone sequences or by seeing horse in the treadmill allow you to do just this. Movement in the back can certainly cast light on movement, performance and in some cases unsoundness.
So, what is actually covered? Well the variations of basic gaits – the walk, trot, canter, gallop and backing up; there are lateral gaits, lateral and collected movements, flying changes, polework, jumping and then some slightly less common movements, the Icelandic gaits, pesade, capriole and the sliding western stop. These are included for you to really appreciate the range of movement of which the horse is actually capable. They are certainly not included for you to try at home!
Here at Horses inside Out we consider ourselves lucky that our riders, most of whom are performing at the top of their chosen discipline, have been so generous with their time, expertise and horses. For this project to be endorsed by their contributions and support is very humbling. There is a list of our contributors at the end of the book and a biography video of each at the end of the biomechanics course.
Anatomy in Action was originally inspired by Gillian’s fascination in the work of Edweard Muybridge and his early attempts to capture and fully understand exactly how the horse moves. With the skills of our wonderful videographer Matthew Roberts, seeing how the horse moves using 21st century slow motion video technology has allowed us to go further in our appreciation of how the horse moves. It has been a privilege.
We do hope everyone who invests in this multimedia publication enjoys and benefits from learning a little more about Anatomy in Action.
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