Robin Peterson DVM Part II
Dr. Peterson's Article continued:
"Already armed with information resulting from the experiment with pasture horses, compared to those which galloped two miles nearly every day, Nunamaker was ready to launch another study. If as the first study revealed, long gallops did not strengthen the bone any more than roaming a pasture, there must be another way to get the job done. Nunamaker reasoned that the way to achieve stronger bones would be with short, fast workouts early in the horse's career.
(the four sample groups of the Maryland Shin Study described.)
The reason that speed work is so important, Nunamaker said, is that when a horse is going slowly, the principal angle of strain is about 40 degrees out of its vertical axis. When this happens, the bone is going to remodel in the direction of the magnitude of the strains. When a horse runs at speed the angle of strain is much greater. So, horses on long, slow works remodel their bones for that training, while horses that breeze more often remodel their bones for racing.
...A Thoroughbred will train while walking, trotting, and cantering. Rarely do TBs (in many conventional training programs) run while in training. They only run (fast) every 10 to 14 days. Therefore, the bone remodels to what it feels--which is not racing.
The amount of speed work required to stimulate proper bone remodeling can vary on a horse-to horse basis, and there is often a fine line between too much and too little.
The problem with recommending high speed work, Nunamaker said, is that if you tell someone they should do high speed work, and they go out and do it for a half mile three times a week, they're going to break that horse down.We know there is a fine line in the critical time frame as to what is too much and what is not enough.
Armed with the info from New Bolton, Vet-trainer Fisher set out to establish a specific training regiment that would stimulate bones to strengthen appropriately.
Two years later, he was ready to report that he had come up with a plan that worked for young horses. Today, he is still using the same basic approach, although it has been somewhat refined.
Fisher Training
Once the young horses are comfortable doing 1.25 miles per day, the speed work begins and continues during what amounts to 4 months prep before racing (120 days!).
He begins speed work by asking the young horse to travel at a 2 min lick for 1/8 mile TWICE a week.
Then 1/4 mile at speed in :15s. then 3/8s in :15s, and by end of THREE months 1/2 mile at 2 min lick. (Note, these are just turned 2 yr olds.) But at this point this speed work is done every 5 days instead of twice a week. (Ivers would say they need to dump their spleens more often!)
During the final month of pep, the young horse will be breezing a quarter mile twice a week.
In between speed works, the horse is galloped or rested.
The theory is that after a speed work stimulates the bone, it must be given time to remodel before being subjected to speed again (--note "theory"). When a bone remodels, large cells called osteoclasts remove the stressed bone. The bone forming cells (osteoblasts) fill in the area with new material.
Fisher also discovered that track surface figured into the remodeling equation. If his were to race on dirt--which they were--they had to be trained on dirt if there were to avoid bone injury. While the wood chip track at Fair Hill is more forgiving, it does not trigger the bone to remodel effectively for the stress and strain of running on dirt (see "Barbaro".)
Fisher said his approach works. he rarely had shin problems. And, he adds, he has not had an increase in ankle or knee injuries as a result of the speed work.
Once the bone has responded correctly to the stimulus and has changed its shape by adding more density at the points of stress for maximum strength, it will remain that way. This point generally is reached when the horse is four years old.
At this point, Nunamaker said, after bone has changed shape, you could take the horse out of its training program and put it in any training or racing program you want, because its bone won't change back again." (Really????--I think Dr. N is strictly speaking about bucked shins. Otherwise, I question this!)
Next: "Newest bone study".
Training:
Wed. 3/4 Our temperature hit 6 degrees on 3/6/08. This year, even with snow very cold weather of the last week we've been able to do riderless speed work every three days (since last Fri.) 70 degrees today. Snows melted. A mess. Winter over, hopefully.
Both horses did riderless speed work in 2f bursts with rests between (due to mud), with very short full speed bursts here and there. Nice for the conditions.
Thurs. 3/5 Rod does a mile of walk trot under tack. Art is limping. I take a look. The cut frog from 2 weeks ago oozing puss from way deep in with a suspicious hole the size of a pinhead. Vet tomorrow to see if anything is in there.
"Already armed with information resulting from the experiment with pasture horses, compared to those which galloped two miles nearly every day, Nunamaker was ready to launch another study. If as the first study revealed, long gallops did not strengthen the bone any more than roaming a pasture, there must be another way to get the job done. Nunamaker reasoned that the way to achieve stronger bones would be with short, fast workouts early in the horse's career.
(the four sample groups of the Maryland Shin Study described.)
The reason that speed work is so important, Nunamaker said, is that when a horse is going slowly, the principal angle of strain is about 40 degrees out of its vertical axis. When this happens, the bone is going to remodel in the direction of the magnitude of the strains. When a horse runs at speed the angle of strain is much greater. So, horses on long, slow works remodel their bones for that training, while horses that breeze more often remodel their bones for racing.
...A Thoroughbred will train while walking, trotting, and cantering. Rarely do TBs (in many conventional training programs) run while in training. They only run (fast) every 10 to 14 days. Therefore, the bone remodels to what it feels--which is not racing.
The amount of speed work required to stimulate proper bone remodeling can vary on a horse-to horse basis, and there is often a fine line between too much and too little.
The problem with recommending high speed work, Nunamaker said, is that if you tell someone they should do high speed work, and they go out and do it for a half mile three times a week, they're going to break that horse down.We know there is a fine line in the critical time frame as to what is too much and what is not enough.
Armed with the info from New Bolton, Vet-trainer Fisher set out to establish a specific training regiment that would stimulate bones to strengthen appropriately.
Two years later, he was ready to report that he had come up with a plan that worked for young horses. Today, he is still using the same basic approach, although it has been somewhat refined.
Fisher Training
Once the young horses are comfortable doing 1.25 miles per day, the speed work begins and continues during what amounts to 4 months prep before racing (120 days!).
He begins speed work by asking the young horse to travel at a 2 min lick for 1/8 mile TWICE a week.
Then 1/4 mile at speed in :15s. then 3/8s in :15s, and by end of THREE months 1/2 mile at 2 min lick. (Note, these are just turned 2 yr olds.) But at this point this speed work is done every 5 days instead of twice a week. (Ivers would say they need to dump their spleens more often!)
During the final month of pep, the young horse will be breezing a quarter mile twice a week.
In between speed works, the horse is galloped or rested.
The theory is that after a speed work stimulates the bone, it must be given time to remodel before being subjected to speed again (--note "theory"). When a bone remodels, large cells called osteoclasts remove the stressed bone. The bone forming cells (osteoblasts) fill in the area with new material.
Fisher also discovered that track surface figured into the remodeling equation. If his were to race on dirt--which they were--they had to be trained on dirt if there were to avoid bone injury. While the wood chip track at Fair Hill is more forgiving, it does not trigger the bone to remodel effectively for the stress and strain of running on dirt (see "Barbaro".)
Fisher said his approach works. he rarely had shin problems. And, he adds, he has not had an increase in ankle or knee injuries as a result of the speed work.
Once the bone has responded correctly to the stimulus and has changed its shape by adding more density at the points of stress for maximum strength, it will remain that way. This point generally is reached when the horse is four years old.
At this point, Nunamaker said, after bone has changed shape, you could take the horse out of its training program and put it in any training or racing program you want, because its bone won't change back again." (Really????--I think Dr. N is strictly speaking about bucked shins. Otherwise, I question this!)
Next: "Newest bone study".
Training:
Wed. 3/4 Our temperature hit 6 degrees on 3/6/08. This year, even with snow very cold weather of the last week we've been able to do riderless speed work every three days (since last Fri.) 70 degrees today. Snows melted. A mess. Winter over, hopefully.
Both horses did riderless speed work in 2f bursts with rests between (due to mud), with very short full speed bursts here and there. Nice for the conditions.
Thurs. 3/5 Rod does a mile of walk trot under tack. Art is limping. I take a look. The cut frog from 2 weeks ago oozing puss from way deep in with a suspicious hole the size of a pinhead. Vet tomorrow to see if anything is in there.
posted by rather rapid at
9:58 PM
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3 Comments:
Any idea how the high class QH racing outfits train their 2YO QH's? Seems they likely do Maryland "Bucked Shin" Programesque training just by virtue of their shorter distances....
I say "bucked shin" because I've found a difference of internet opinion on the MS program, and it has seemed to split along the fault line of whether you can hit the target speeds. If not, they buck and people sour on it much like bigger interval training. If you can hit the times, seems many people like it...Though I think few do it exactly as perscribed by the good Dr's.
I know this isn't to your main point of optimal frequency....
KH
Any idea how the high class QH racing outfits train their 2YO QH's? Seems they likely do Maryland "Bucked Shin" Programesque training just by virtue of their shorter distances....
I say "bucked shin" because I've found a difference of internet opinion on the MS program, and it has seemed to split along the fault line of whether you can hit the target speeds. If not, they buck and people sour on it much like bigger interval training. If you can hit the times, seems many people like it...Though I think few do it exactly as perscribed by the good Dr's.
I know this isn't to your main point of optimal frequency....
KH
Hi, KH.
Staaden on QH trainer Caesar Dominguez: captured the Los Alamitos training titles from Blane Schauvenveld, late '80s. training logs show Caesar breezed (or raced) his QHs every 10 days like clock work with almost nothing in between. A rare gallop hear and there, and the walker. Youngsters, best I recollect, he'd gallop for 2-3 months without any speed work starting very young, then do 1/2f and work them up to their 220 yd distance, lol. Unknown how frequently. Not Maryland shin stuff, certainly.
Interestingly, the big pot futurities at Eureka were usually won by some trainer shipping from NM, who'd conduct actual warm ups with short sprints, pre-race. I never saw him lose, You'd see pre-race all our Eureka trainers, Joe Thomas, Sue Smith and company, slacked jawed at the rail watching those warm ups and pondering their navels as their horses were walked to the gates. Generally the NM fellow won by the 100 grand by daylight.
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