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Wiola Grabowska | Aspire Equestrian

@aspireequestrian

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Horsewoman, coach & curious observer.
There are many good ways to educate horses & people.
This is one I’m exploring.
Coaching • Horsemanship

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I’ve been wondering whether making experienced coaching more accessible encourages more people to ask for help... or simply makes it seem less valuable.

In a world where AI can answer almost any question in seconds, social media is full of opinions and information has never been more accessible...

Do people still value asking an experienced coach for another perspective?

I honestly don’t know.

Or perhaps I just hope the answer is yes.

For nearly three decades I’ve had the privilege of helping horses, riders and coaches work through all sorts of questions and challenges. One thing I’ve learnt is that not every question needs a full coaching programme or an in-person lesson. Sometimes all we need is another experienced pair of eyes to help us think more clearly about the next step.

So rather than guessing, I’ve decided to run a little experiment.

Until 20 December, you can ask me one horse- or coaching-related question for £5.

Whether you’re buying a horse, wondering what to practise next, looking for feedback on a riding video, trying to understand your horse’s behaviour, or simply curious what another coach might notice, I’ll give you my honest, thoughtful perspective.

At the end of the experiment, I’ll share what happened, even if nobody takes part at all.

I’d love to know...

If you could ask an experienced coach one question for £5, what would you ask?

Ready for answers?
Link in bio.👆👆 ASK A COACH 👆👆 by @aspireequestrian

START HERE 🤍

If you’re here, chances are you care deeply about your horse — and you’ve started asking bigger questions about how you learn together.

Maybe you’ve felt a bit overwhelmed by advice.
Maybe training no longer feels as clear or satisfying as it once did.
Or maybe you’re simply curious to do things more thoughtfully.

This carousel is a gentle introduction to how I work at AERA, the Pathways I offer, and how to begin if you’d like support.

Have a wander through, follow your curiosity, and see what resonates.
You’re always welcome to explore further on my website.

📍Trial Sessions are where most people begin
🔗 Link in bio by @aspireequestrian

November, you started exactly how I’d picture a perfect autumn 🍂 🍁🥮☀️☀️☀️🌅

#autumn #equestrianlife #horses #workingwithhorses by @aspireequestrian

If every autumnal day was like the start to this week, I’d trade the crazy hot summer for it in a heartbeat 🍂 😁

First arena hire at Lower Mount Farm officially done and with no other but my favourite little Welshie @thetinywelshman 😍

If anyone would like to play with me with TRT here, groundwork or ridden, do get in touch ☺️

#autumnvibes #arenahire #groundwork by @aspireequestrian

WANTED FOR FULL LOAN (or purchase if absolutely spot on!): a schoolmaster/riding club type horse for one of my lovely riders. To be well looked after, loved and truly appreciated 😍
Regular updates for owner if wanted, top care offered on a lovely yard.
Please PM anytime or email if you know of a horse who meets the requirements 🥰

#horsewanted #fullloan #schoolmaster #ridingclub #firsthorse by @aspireequestrian

Beautiful September afternoon for a spot of Scentwork for Horses 👌 Yes we are still on it and yes the benefits are beyond belief!

#scentworkforhorses #exracehorse #funwithhorses #equestrian #scentwork by @aspireequestrian

Thirty years in coaching have changed me.

What I value in my work has changed. My approach has changed. My methods have changed.

I no longer feel inspired by the mainstream competition world and find myself increasingly drawn to a different space, one where there is still a passion for biomechanics, for beautiful movement, for harmony and ease, but where there are no longer timelines or deadlines.

My views on how we, as riders and owners, use our horses have also changed profoundly. There are things I can no longer be part of and others I would dearly love to see disappear from our industry.

But through all those changes, there is one thing that has never changed.

The feeling I get when I step into that glorified sandpit we call a riding arena. A ménage. A school.

Whether I walked into one in Poland, England, Norway, Portugal or Italy, the feeling has always been the same: an overwhelming sense of peace and the quiet awareness of being completely present.

It doesn’t matter whether I enter it to teach, to ride or to do groundwork. It feels like my own little universe, where time stands still and there is only here and now.

As I returned from my holiday and saw how far the work has progressed on my friend’s arena, where I will soon leave my own footprints, I felt exactly the same thing.

Peace.

Contentment.

Wonder.

Anyone else? 🤭

#equestrianlife #ridingarena #equestrian #coaching #horses by @aspireequestrian

☀️ Away on family holiday until 10th of August- see you all soon 🤩☀️ #holidaynotice by @aspireequestrian

Behaviour change.
I generally don’t assume that any behaviour, whether it’s the one we trained in and want or don’t want, is there forever. It seems to me that it’s in the nature of all animals to be adaptable and changeable. Horses, dogs, humans - we are never quite fixed in one behaviour. Environment, social dynamic, diet, state of mind, physical fitness, presence or absence of pain, sense of safety etc will all determine whether a behaviour repeats itself as we predict.

I know all this and yet, this particular behaviour change took me by surprise…

This lovely gelding is particularly sensitive about his legs being touched. He took a long time to accept lifting them for hoofcare and then it took some time for him to allow handling for clipping.
I’m not sure exactly what changed for him in the 6 months since I last clipped him but something has.

I found myself not only back to where I started last year but with added plethora of stress behaviours.
As I only see him twice a week for short periods of time, I decided to simply focus on re-building his trust in my actions rather than on overthinking all the possible reasons for the change and solutions to those.

Whilst it was a very time consuming process, his stress was visibly lower that way and he got better and better until I was able to clip all 4 legs to somewhat a passable standard.

I chose not to tie him up because it helped me notice smaller signs of stress creeping in and I wanted him to be able to disconnect, walk away and come back.

I still feel like I’m missing something in order to help him be fully accepting of the process. We shall continue learning ☺️

P.S. I’ve no issues with sedation for clipping and the owner did consider it but as this time the clip was not an urgent necessity, she decided not to sedate. He has history of mellanders hence the legs clip in the first place. No signs of them currently.

#clipping #equinebehaviour #education #horses by @aspireequestrian

Teaching jumping just for fun of jumping well is possibly my favourite sport 🦄

#equestrian #horses #barebackriding #ridereducation #showjumping by @aspireequestrian

Integrated Practice day with @angels_vetchiropractic helping Julia’s boys with various rehabilitative challenges.

Holistic approach to rehabilitation always interest me because whilst I can accomplish a lot via mindful movement, the multidisciplinary work makes a huge difference.

Restoring mobility, function, suppleness and soundness is a process that forever fascinates me and it’s fun and educational to explore it with equally passionate professionals 👌 by @aspireequestrian

When I put together the AERA Horsemanship for Children Pathway, my main goal was to show pony-loving children all the little things that make sharing your life with horses so special.

Whether they already own a pony or are lucky enough to have one on loan, like this little girl, I wanted to make sure those first 24 months weren’t just about learning to ride. I wanted riding to become just one of the many wonderful things they do with their ponies.

I hope that one day, when she grows up, she’ll look back and remember these small moments. 🥹

32C today so it was a perfect day to introduce “carrot stretches” lesson. The painted horses by @horsesinsideout_ never fail to make an impact 🤓

#equestrian #pony #kidsandponies #horsemanship #ridertraining by @aspireequestrian