by Tonya Johnston, MA Featured article on ProEquest.com, October, 2014 How do you keep yourself calm, cool and collected while you are trying Mr. or Ms. Maybe-Right? Let’s face it, trying new horses can be a lot like going on a bunch of highly recommended blind dates....
By Molly Sorge Mind over matter, as the saying goes. It’s no secret that mental strategies play a key role in performing at one’s best. But it’s a lot harder to tell yourself, “Be positive,” and affect a change than it is to say to yourself, “Push your heels down,”...
Any successful equestrian will tell you that riding well is just as much of a mental exercise (if not more) than it is a physical one. This book approaches that aspect of riding, focusing on mental preparation, and using this insight to improve your skills. The author...
By Traci Donatelli It’s common for riders to spend time in the gym building physical fitness for greater proficiency in the saddle. Author Tonya Johnston, a lifelong hunter/jumper rider who is a mental skills coach, outlines a variety of sport psychology techniques...
by Tonya Johnston, MA Appeared in Practical Horseman, July 2012 There you are on your horse, waiting for your lesson to start. Things have been very challenging recently, and to say you’ve been having a rough time is an understatement. These difficulties are...
The horse is sound, the rider is fit and ready for the ring. Or are they? Riding is a sport, and even the world’s top riders and the best horses have off days. No matter how physically prepared a rider is, if their mental skills are not on par they are not prepared to...
by Tonya Johnston, MA Appeared in Eventing USA, February 2010 The field of sport psychology is thought of in a variety of ways by the general public. One commonly held idea is that it assists those who “Strive for Excellence”. This attracts people who look...
by Tonya Johnston, MA Appeared in The Plaid Horse January/February 2010 There you are, at the bottom of the list to come back for round two, or last to enter the ring for the work-off. What does that mean? In a millisecond it registers in your mind (and the...
