How to Overcome Nerves When Riding Cross Country

Cross-country riding can be one of the most exciting parts of horse riding. Galloping across open ground and jumping solid fences, ditches, drops and water can give you an enormous sense of achievement.

But when your confidence begins to disappear, cross country can also feel very different.

You may be perfectly happy jumping in an arena but find yourself becoming increasingly nervous when the fences are solid and there's more space around you. Perhaps you've had a fall, a refusal or a frightening moment. Maybe you've moved up a level and suddenly the questions feel much bigger. Or perhaps nothing particularly bad has happened, but you've started thinking far more about what could go wrong.

Cross-country competition requires appropriate training, preparation and respect for the risks involved. Feeling confident doesn't mean ignoring those risks or pushing yourself beyond your ability.

As a clinical hypnotherapist and an experienced horse owner and rider of more than 30 years, I know that confidence can change even when your riding ability hasn't disappeared.

The good news is that cross-country confidence can often be rebuilt gradually.

Why Do Riders Lose Confidence Cross Country?

Sometimes there is an obvious starting point.

You may have:

• had a fall

• experienced a frightening refusal

• lost your position over a fence

• had your horse run out

• struggled at a ditch, drop or water complex

• felt out of control between fences

• moved up a level before feeling completely ready

• watched somebody else have an accident

• had several disappointing competition rounds

But confidence can also disappear without a dramatic incident.

As riders gain experience, they sometimes become more aware of the potential consequences of getting something wrong. Fences that once looked exciting can suddenly appear much more intimidating.

That doesn't necessarily mean you've lost your ability.

Your perception of the challenge may simply have changed.

Work Out What You're Actually Frightened Of

“I'm nervous cross country” covers many different fears.

What specifically worries you?

Is it the solid fences?

Going faster?

Ditches?

Drops?

Water?

Combinations?

Your horse becoming strong?

Getting the stride wrong?

Having another refusal?

Falling?

Competition pressure?

Once you identify the real source of the anxiety, you can work on the actual problem rather than treating the whole discipline as frightening.

Make Sure It Isn't a Training Problem

Not every confidence problem is psychological.

If you or your horse are struggling technically, repeatedly trying to make yourself feel braver isn't necessarily the answer.

Perhaps your horse isn't yet confident with a particular type of fence. Maybe you're having difficulty maintaining rhythm or balance. Perhaps you've moved up a level before either of you is sufficiently established.

Appropriate instruction matters.

Cross country involves solid obstacles and genuine risk. If something isn't working, get experienced professional help rather than trying to persuade yourself to ignore your concerns.

Confidence works best when it is supported by competence.

Go Back to a Level That Feels Comfortable

One of the most useful things you can do after losing confidence is make the challenge easier.

Riders sometimes resist this because it feels like going backwards.

It isn't.

If you've become nervous jumping a particular height, there is nothing wrong with spending some time over smaller fences.

If ditches have become a problem, start with an easy ditch.

If water makes you anxious, practise entering and leaving straightforward water before worrying about more complicated questions.

You are giving both yourself and your horse successful experiences.

Confidence grows through repetition of things going reasonably well.

Don't Keep Testing Your Confidence

When riders become nervous, every training session can turn into a test.

“Will I jump it today?”

“Will I bottle out?”

“Am I still frightened?”

“Can I prove I've got my confidence back?”

That puts enormous pressure on every fence.

Instead of continually measuring your bravery, concentrate on riding.

Think about your rhythm, line, position and what you're asking your horse to do.

The less attention you give to testing how confident you feel, the more space you have to concentrate on the job itself.

Course Walking Can Help — or Make You More Nervous

Walking a cross-country course is important, but an anxious rider can use the course walk to frighten themselves.

You reach a fence and stare at it.

Then you imagine approaching it badly.

You picture your horse stopping.

You imagine falling.

By the time you've finished walking the course, you've mentally ridden several disastrous rounds.

Use your course walk constructively instead.

Look at the question being asked.

Consider your line and approach.

Think about the terrain.

Listen to appropriate advice.

Then mentally rehearse riding the fence as you intend to ride it.

Preparation should make you feel more informed, not give your imagination several hours to create disasters.

Stop Looking at the Whole Course

Standing at the start box thinking about every fence ahead of you can feel overwhelming.

You don't need to ride the entire course at once.

You only ever ride the fence in front of you.

Once you've jumped it, your attention moves to the next question.

Breaking the course down in this way can make it feel far more manageable.

This is useful in training too.

Instead of thinking, “I've got to get around that whole course,” concentrate on the particular exercise you're riding now.

What If You're Nervous About Solid Fences?

Solid fences can feel psychologically very different from show jumps.

A pole won't simply fall away if you make a mistake, and knowing that can increase the sense of consequence.

The answer isn't to pretend the difference doesn't exist.

It's to make sure you and your horse are properly prepared for the fences you're being asked to jump.

Build experience progressively.

Ride suitable fences under appropriate instruction.

Allow smaller, straightforward fences to become familiar before increasing the difficulty.

You don't need to frighten yourself to become a confident cross-country rider.

How to Build Confidence With Ditches

Ditches can become a surprisingly powerful mental block.

Sometimes the horse is happy to jump them but the rider begins anticipating a stop.

That anticipation changes the approach, which can then affect the horse.

If ditches worry you, go back to something straightforward with an experienced instructor.

The aim is to make the question ordinary again.

Avoid repeatedly staring into the ditch or approaching while thinking, “Please don't stop.”

Concentrate instead on the approach, rhythm and instructions you've been given.

If your horse has developed a genuine ditch problem, treat that as a training issue rather than expecting confidence alone to solve it.

How to Feel More Confident With Drops

Drops can worry riders because for a moment you may feel as though you're riding into space.

Again, progressive training matters.

Begin with something comfortably within your ability and practise the technique your instructor has taught you.

Don't rush to make the drop bigger simply because you've successfully ridden it once.

Give yourself time to become familiar with the sensation.

Something that initially creates a surge of adrenaline can become far less significant after enough calm, successful repetitions.

What If Water Makes You Nervous?

Water complexes can introduce several worries at once.

Your horse may hesitate at the water's edge. You may worry about jumping into water, riding through it at speed or dealing with another obstacle shortly afterwards.

Separate those challenges.

Entering straightforward water confidently is one skill.

Jumping into water is another.

Riding a more technical combination involving water is another again.

You don't have to tackle everything simultaneously.

Building confidence step by step gives both horse and rider an opportunity to understand what is being asked.

What If Your Horse Stops at a Fence?

A refusal can damage confidence surprisingly quickly.

The next time you approach a similar fence, you may already be thinking about the previous stop.

That can affect your riding before your horse has done anything wrong.

Try to understand why the refusal happened.

Was the approach poor?

Did your horse understand the question?

Was the fence appropriate for your current level?

Did you lose rhythm or commitment?

Is there a training, physical or confidence issue with the horse?

A refusal is information. It doesn't automatically mean you're incapable of jumping the fence or that your horse will stop next time.

If refusals become repeated or you're unsure why they're happening, seek appropriate professional help.

Rebuilding Confidence After a Cross-Country Fall

A fall can change your perception of risk almost instantly.

Before the fall, you may have approached fences without much thought.

Afterwards, your mind begins producing:

“What if it happens again?”

That's a natural protective response.

But trying to eliminate that thought completely can make it more powerful.

Instead, look at what happened as objectively as possible.

Was there an identifiable reason?

Is there something that needs changing in your riding, training or horse's preparation?

Once any genuine issue has been addressed, return at a level where you feel reasonably secure.

You don't need to recreate the circumstances of the fall to prove you've recovered.

If the experience has affected your trust in your horse more generally, you may also find my guide to [LINK: How to Rebuild Trust With Your Horse] helpful.

Stop Comparing Yourself With Other Riders

Cross-country schooling and competitions provide endless opportunities for comparison.

Another rider sails over a fence you're worried about.

Someone in your group moves up a level.

A friend appears completely fearless.

None of that tells you what is appropriate for you and your horse.

You don't know what another rider is feeling internally, how much experience they have or what difficulties they've previously overcome.

Your job is to ride the horse underneath you at the level appropriate for your partnership.

Confidence built on comparison is fragile.

Confidence built on your own experience is much more useful.

Don't Let Competition Pressure Change Your Riding

You may feel comfortable cross-country schooling but become nervous when competing.

Suddenly the same type of fence feels more important.

There's a start time.

People are watching.

You're conscious of your score.

Perhaps you're worried about letting your trainer, friends or yourself down.

Try to keep the task itself familiar.

You're still riding your horse.

You're still using the same skills.

You're still riding one fence at a time.

If competition nerves affect you across several disciplines rather than specifically cross country, my guide to [LINK: How to Overcome Horse Riding Competition Nerves] looks at the wider problem in more detail.

Notice What Anxiety Does to Your Body

Fear isn't only a thought.

It changes how you ride.

You may:

• grip with your knees

• hold your breath

• become rigid through your back

• tighten your hands

• tip forward

• interfere with your horse

• rush the approach

• stop riding positively

Then your horse responds differently and you interpret that as evidence that you were right to be worried.

Learning to recognise your own physical signs of anxiety gives you an opportunity to interrupt that pattern.

Check your breathing.

Notice your shoulders and hands.

Bring your attention back to the rhythm.

You don't need to become completely relaxed. Cross-country riding requires concentration and alertness.

The goal is to prevent unnecessary tension from interfering with your riding.

Use Mental Rehearsal Constructively

Many nervous riders are extremely good at visualisation.

Unfortunately, they're visualising everything going wrong.

If you repeatedly picture a refusal, bad stride or fall, your body may begin reacting to an event that hasn't happened.

Use the same ability differently.

Imagine yourself riding towards a straightforward cross-country fence.

Picture a steady approach.

See yourself looking where you're going.

Imagine jumping the fence and riding away in balance.

You can mentally rehearse specific challenges too — water, a ditch, a drop or riding out of the start box feeling focused.

The aim isn't to guarantee a perfect round.

It's to give your mind a more useful picture of what you're trying to achieve.

Can Self-Hypnosis Help With Cross-Country Riding Nerves?

Self-hypnosis may help riders who have the necessary skills and appropriate horse but find that anxiety is interfering with their cross-country riding.

Hypnosis combines physical relaxation, focused attention, positive suggestion and mental rehearsal.

It can give you an opportunity to imagine cross-country situations while feeling calmer, helping you rehearse responding with greater confidence rather than automatically anticipating something going wrong.

I created my Cross Country with Confidence Self-Hypnosis MP3 specifically for riders who want help managing nerves around cross-country riding.

The session focuses on remaining calm and focused while approaching the different challenges of cross country, including solid fences, water, ditches, drops and varied terrain.

It isn't intended to make you ignore genuine risks or attempt fences beyond your ability.

The aim is to help unnecessary anxiety interfere less with the skills and experience you already have.

Don't Make Moving Up a Level the Measure of Success

It's easy to judge progress by fence height or competition level.

But confidence isn't simply about jumping bigger fences.

You may make considerable progress by riding a course more calmly, recovering quickly after a mistake or approaching a fence without the negative mental commentary you previously experienced.

You may even decide you're happier competing at a particular level.

There's nothing wrong with that.

Your riding doesn't have to become progressively more difficult to remain worthwhile.

Give Yourself Credit for Small Improvements

Confidence often returns so gradually that riders don't notice it happening.

Perhaps you jumped the ditch without thinking about it for ten minutes beforehand.

Maybe you walked the course without mentally rehearsing a fall.

Perhaps you felt nervous in the start box but settled once you began riding.

Maybe a fence didn't go perfectly, but you recovered and continued.

Notice those moments.

They're evidence that your response is changing.

You Can Respect Cross Country Without Being Controlled by Fear

Cross-country riding deserves respect.

The fences are solid, terrain varies and horse and rider need appropriate preparation.

Confidence should never remove sensible judgement.

But there is a difference between respecting the challenge and allowing fear to dominate every training session or competition.

Build your skills.

Choose an appropriate level.

Get good instruction.

Listen when something genuinely feels wrong.

And give yourself enough manageable, successful experiences for your mind to stop treating every cross-country fence as a threat.

You don't have to become fearless.

You need enough confidence to think clearly, ride effectively and enjoy the challenge again.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why have I suddenly lost confidence riding cross country?

Confidence can change after a fall, refusal or frightening experience, but it can also decline gradually as you become more aware of risk or move onto more challenging fences. It doesn't necessarily mean your riding ability has disappeared.

How can I stop being scared of cross-country fences?

Make sure the fences are appropriate for you and your horse, then build experience progressively. Returning temporarily to smaller or easier questions can help restore confidence without overwhelming you.

How do I regain confidence after a cross-country fall?

Consider why the fall happened and address any genuine riding, training or physical issues. Then rebuild gradually at a level where you feel reasonably secure rather than immediately trying to reproduce the situation in which you fell.

How can I stop being nervous before a cross-country competition?

Prepare thoroughly, use your course walk constructively and focus on one part of the course at a time. Mental rehearsal, breathing and bringing your attention back to the immediate task can also help reduce anticipatory anxiety.

What if I'm confident show jumping but nervous cross country?

That's not unusual. Solid fences, varied terrain, greater speed and obstacles such as water, ditches and drops can make cross country feel very different psychologically. Treat cross-country confidence as a separate skill and build it progressively.

Can self-hypnosis help with cross-country riding confidence?

Self-hypnosis may help reduce unnecessary anticipatory anxiety and physical tension while allowing you to mentally rehearse cross-country situations more calmly. It should complement appropriate instruction, training and safety preparation rather than replace them.