According to a study, horseback riders feel more in touch with nature, and this has positive consequences for their well-being.
People who ride horses spend more time outdoors in “green” areas away from cities and generally feel better physically and mentally than people who don’t own any animals, said Gabriele Schwarzmüller-Erber, PhD candidate, of the Center for Public Health at Medical University Vienna and the University of Applied Sciences, both in Vienna, Austria.
Similar to dog ownership, horseback riding allows people to be more connected to nature, and activities with these animals in a natural environment “is a source of wellbeing, enjoyment, self-confidence, and social contacts,” Schwarzmüller-Erber said.
That’s of particular importance in middle-aged and older people, who often get so involved with work and routines that they find less time for exercise and outdoor activity. “Working periods increase, and, consequently, health-related problems increase as well,” she said. “Horseback riding acts as an opportunity for physical activity and mental relaxation.”
In their study; Schwarzmüller-Erber and her fellow researchers carried out extensive questionnaires and found that dog owners and horse riders benefited from better moods and general well-being than people who had no animals. In particular, they noted these people had happy feelings when spending time with their animals and just afterwards.
Dog owners and horseback riders also had similar levels of connection with nature, Schwarzmüller-Erber said. Although they got about as much exercise as people without pets, horseback riders tended to feel like they had better physical health. That might be because horseback riding involves the use of multiple musculoskeletal regions, involving trunk stabilization and muscle strengthening. And in fact, the more horseback riders and dog owners felt connected to nature, the healthier they said they felt.
“Natural environments are associated with positive feelings, decreased depression, and higher perceived mental health,” she stated in her paper.
Her study underlines the fact that horses can bring both physical and mental wellbeing to humans, in particular as they reach more advanced ages. “Horseback riding makes it possible to reach the recommended activity levels (150 min of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise per week) even at an older age, and thereby to increase well-being (esp. physical and psychological),” Schwarzmüller-Erber said.