Is Horse Riding Girly?

I’ve been trying to convince my son to come horse riding with me recently, and it’s been like pulling teeth.

He said he wanted to go but he couldn’t, and wouldn’t tell me why.

Eventually, I managed to get out of him that his friends at school had told him riding horses was girly, and not something boys should do.

I had suspected this might be why he was hesitant, so in order to make him feel better,

I decided to do some research and find out why people think horse riding is girly.

So, is horse riding girly?

It has traditionally been considered a somewhat feminine sport, but these attitudes have been slowly dying away over the years. Whether or not something is ‘girly’ is entirely down to your own subjective view—no one can tell you something’s girly if you don’t think it is! Even if it is, who cares?

So, the point is that in the past, horse riding has been seen as a somewhat feminine activity.

But attitudes have completely changed around these things, and the general view is that there are no ‘feminine’ or ‘masculine’ activities, really—they’re just seen this way by certain people.

Let’s look further into this question.

Why is horse riding a girl thing?

Again, the important distinction is just that horse riding has simply been seen this way in the past—there’s nothing inherent in it which makes it girly.

It’s all about perceptions.

That said, there are a few reasons why it has been seen this way in the past.

For one thing, gendered toys very often mean that girls are given things like toy horses, unicorns and ponies—which then become ingrained in the idea of being girly.

When they get older, girls are generally more interested in horses than boys simply because they were exposed to them at a very young age.

It was also seen as the kind of leisure activity that a woman might do in the past while men did the “real” work.

Again, all about perceptions.

This attitude persists today in the kinds of toys that we think girls should use, and this is the main way that we still think of horses as being girly today.

But, obviously, horses have always been ridden by men, and used by men, just as much as women.

It is in part the way that horses became more than just a means of transportation, and became a leisure activity. In general, men were perceived to not need to bother with activities like this.

So, what about equestrianism in general?

Is equestrianism a girl thing?

Well, this is naturally a very broad question, but the simple answer is no.

I would say there isn’t even necessarily a perception in this way, except in the general public’s exposure to horses—young girls playing with toy horses.

But men have always been just as involved in equestrianism as women.

Whatever we mean by this term—whether horse racing, horse breeding, whatever you are doing with the horses. horses have been a central part of human economies for thousands of years, and so there are countless things you can do with horses.

None of which are exclusive to women.

It is only since horses have fallen out of everyday use and have become mythologized that we gain the perception they are girly.

In the past, everyone had to know horses because everyone had to use them.

Now, they are a hobby and a special interest, which by many different forces has become feminine.

So, no, equestrianism is not a girl thing—and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.

Is horse riding good for men?

Horse riding comes with many great benefits, although there aren’t many that are exclusive to men.

That said, more men would benefit from doing horse riding if they could shake the perception that it is something women are supposed to do.

Regular horse riding has been shown to have many great health benefits.

For one thing, it has been shown to improve posture and balance, in both men and women.

Sitting upright is really good for your back.

It’s also been shown to be stress relieving.

It can clear the mind and help with mental health stresses, and even the smell of hay in people who regularly horse ride can have an effect on their mood.

It’s also just a great work out.

You might think of it as just sitting on a horse for a while, but it’s actually very physically demanding.

If you’ve struggled to find an exercise you can really get into, horse riding might be the one for you.

Finally, it’s just a lot of fun!

Being out in nature with a big, friendly animal, teaching yourself responsibility out in the open air.

It’s fantastic for both your mental and physical health—and this goes for men and women!

So, the simple answer to the original question is that something’s only ‘girly’ or ‘manly’ if you accept and believe that it is.

These things are all about perception and attitudes, and there’s no inherent truth to them.

Indeed, the attitude that horse riding is girly has clearly been falling away for a long time with the popularity of horse racing—you certainly see many more male jockeys than female!

Even if horse riding was girly, if you enjoy it, so what!