International trainer and riding instructor Daniel Stewart is widely considered one of the world’s leading experts on equestrian sport psychology, biomechanics, and athletics. He teaches clinics and seminars to thousands of riders each year and is a popular guest speaker at many national and international conventions. Right now Daniel is in the middle of his annual summer clinic tour, featuring the popular “Pressure Proof” Clinics based on his fabulous and fun book PRESSURE PROOF YOUR RIDING.
Daniel’s summer tour has sold-out stops at farms from California to Maine. We are blown away by his seemingly boundless energy and positivity, even while he’s crisscrossing the country and pressure-proofing the masses! He always has a smile and a laugh at the ready, and we don’t know how he does it!
Check out Daniel’s typical day on the road, the fourth installment in TSB’s “Horseworld by the Hour” blog series.
A TYPICAL DAY ON THE PRESSURE PROOF SUMMER TOUR
5:00 a.m. Wake up by mistake and smile because I still have another hour to sleep!
5:30 a.m. Still smiling.
6:00 a.m. Wake up and get ready to work out (the smile’s gone away a bit now…)
6:30 a.m. Have a light breakfast of yogurt and fruit.
7:00 a.m. Cardio and weight training (light weights and lots of repetitions so I can keep my girlish figure).
7:30 a.m. Return to my hotel room—Yay, my workout’s done!
8:00 a.m. Have a shower so that I can be clean when I get dirty at the barn.
8:30 a.m. Have a second breakfast full of protein because it’s going to be at least 4 or 5 hours before I see a fork again!
9:00 a.m. Drive from the hotel to the venue hosting my clinic.
9:30 a.m. Welcome my clinic riders for the day.
10:00 a.m. Teach a Pressure Proof Clinic to 4 intermediate horses and riders.
10:30 a.m. Riders start doing situps because they’re scoring too many faults in my clinic!
11:00 a.m. Teach a Pressure Proof Clinic to 4 advanced horses and riders.
11:30 a.m. I oversee more situps because there are more faults!
12:00 p.m. Teach a Pressure Proof Clinic to 4 novice horses and riders.
12:30 p.m. Still more situps. The riders are having a hard time standing up now!
1:00 p.m. Riding lessons (and situps) are done for the day. Time to untack and eat a healthy lunch of wraps, fruit, and veggies with my clinic riders.
1:30 p.m. Prepare and begin to teach my “confidence boosting” seminar to a room full of awesome riders.
2:20 p.m. Still talking. Take a minute to finally take a breath because I talk so fast. Wrap up my seminar with a Q&A. Most common question: “Coach Stewart, why do you wear white pants when you teach in a dirt arena?”
2:30 p.m. Sit down (for the first time in 5 hours) for my book signing of my book PRESSURE PROOF YOUR RIDING and rider fitness DVD E3: Extreme Equestrian Exercises.
3:00 p.m. Say a big goodbye to the riders and thank the clinic organizer for all her hard work.
3:30 p.m. Begin my drive to the venue where I’ll be teaching another great clinic tomorrow.
4:00 p.m. Get lost on the way.
4:30 p.m. Get found on the way.
5:00 p.m. Get lost again.
5:30 p.m. Arrive at the hotel. Yeah!
6:00 p.m. Skype with my wife and children—they miss their papa!
6:30 p.m. Have a healthy dinner: Lots of protein, fruit, and veggies.
7:00 p.m. Prepare for an hour of returning emails and booking flights and hotels for the next stops on the clinic tour.
7:30 p.m. Can’t find any flights or hotels that I can afford so I keep looking.
8:00 p.m. Finally decide to book the expensive flights and hotels because that’s all there is!
8:30 p.m. Shut the computer off and turn on the TV. Get ready Weather Channel, here I come!
9:00 p.m. Watch my favorite show, MTV’s Ridiculousness (people do the dumbest things!!)
9:30 p.m. Try watching my show but can’t seem to keep my eye’s open… must… not… fall… asleep…
10:00 p.m. Fall asleep reminding myself how lucky I am to be able to repeat this wonderful day 49 more times in the next 58 days!!!
10:30 p.m. Nobody home. Smile still on my face though…
PRESSURE PROOF YOUR RIDING by Daniel Stewart is available from the TSB online bookstore, where shipping in the US is FREE.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD A FREE EXCERPT
“Daniel’s enthusiasm is infectious, and his attitude toward emotional challenges makes having nerves and insecurities seem so normal—and so manageable.” —Leslie Threlkeld, Editor, Eventing USA
Read the other installments in TSB’s “Horseworld by the Hour” blog series: