**1. Introduction**

Evidence that programmes promoting organised physical activities and sports amongst children and adolescents may contribute to the improvement of health-related quality of life has been systematically reported [1–8]. Horseback riding can be seen as an appropriate organised recreational physical activity, and indeed, it is practised by many young people. It is a sport which requires a high level of dexterity and postural muscular effort, with an emphasis on excellent fine motor skills and balance, in order for the rider to practise an ethological equitation [9]. It recruits aerobic and anaerobic energy systems with increasing energy cost as the horse progresses through the gaits; it improves postural control by coordinating one's body movements with those of the horse, and it has been proven to produce effective physical fitness changes ranging over various aspects such as muscle strength and muscle mass, total and regional body composition, cardiorespiratory endurances, agility, and balance enhancement [10–16]. Amongst the most suitable equestrian disciplines for children and adolescents are endurance, pony games and show jumping. Endurance is a long-distance competition against the clock which tests the speed and endurance of a horse and challenges the rider's effective use of pace. It requires a synergetic horse and rider combination to successfully complete a marked course within a specified time that is specifically designed to test their stamina and fitness on the track with distance, terrain,

**Citation:** Demarie, S.; Chirico, E.; Bratta, C.; Cortis, C. Puberal and Adolescent Horse Riders' Fitness during the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Effects of Training Restrictions on Health-Related and Functional Motor Abilities. *Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health* **2022**, *19*, 6394. https:// doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19116394

Academic Editors: Clemens Drenowatz and Klaus Greier

Received: 3 April 2022 Accepted: 23 May 2022 Published: 24 May 2022

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climate, and clock constraints without compromising the welfare of the horse. Although the rides are timed, the emphasis is on finishing the race in good condition rather than coming in first. Each course is divided into phases with a compulsory halt for a veterinary inspection which determines whether the horse is fit to continue or not. At the beginner's level, horses complete courses that vary from 15 km to 19 km long, either at walking or trotting speed. Pony games is a team sport that combines the love of ponies and friends with various races. Teams of four or five riders and ponies take part in a series of exciting races that involve a mix of turns, handovers, skill, vaulting, and galloping against other teams. Competitions are comprised of several relay-style races, requiring riders to pick up objects from the ground while remaining in the saddle, weave through a series of poles at high speeds, hand items to teammates without slowing their ponies, and dunking objects into buckets; beginners usually compete at the walking and trotting gaits. Show jumping is a competitive equestrian sport in which the horse and rider are required to jump over all of the fences in a course that has been designed for a particular show without knocking them down and within a set time limit. Competitors compete one by one, and judges determine whether the fences are successfully cleared and assign penalties and points; then, the times and scores are compared to determine the winner.

In Italy, where the study was conducted, after the first period of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic when physical activities were restricted to home-based training and individual outdoor jogging and running, competitive horse riders have attempted other forms of training besides those on the horse; nonetheless, they suffered from significantly decreased performance with a substantial contribution of cognitive distress to the overall perception of effort [17]. It is worth noting that in Italy, high-level athletes and horse owners have been allowed to resume training after eight weeks of lockdown, while recreational athletes were kept from sport activities for four weeks longer. This led to concerns about the impact of detraining on young athletes' health, performance, and injury risk at the resumption of regular physical activity [18–20].

To this purpose, a detailed profile of athletes' physical fitness allowed not only the determination of the underlying performance qualities for training-planning purposes, but also a wide range of health-related attributes associated with the quality of life. Many studies investigated fitness- and health-related changes after the COVID-19 confinement in healthy or diseased school children and adolescents [21,22]. However, young athletes could suffer a major impact during confinement due to their greatly modified lifestyle. Most athletes will find themselves searching for an optimal solution to maintain their physical, physiological, and psychological levels as close as possible to their original ones. Many studies collected questionnaires and interview data on young athletes' confinement and on its outcomes, and general guidelines have been provided for athletes to optimally maintain physical and mental fitness whilst respecting the measures taken during the COVID-19 confinement period [23]. However, to the best of our knowledge, no studies collected objective measures of physical activity and fitness level changes in young, healthy athletes during the first strict confinement period that could be useful for planning the activities to be implemented in youth sports settings if a new wave of confinements were to occur in the future.

To quantitatively assess the physical attributes of the young and children, field fitness test batteries can be administered with inexpensive and easy-to-use equipment, being therefore useful for the continuous monitoring of training effects and fitness levels as well as for the comparison amongst different populations [24–26].

To assess the effect of twelve weeks of training restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic on young recreational horse riders of different equitation disciplines, the aim of the study was to analyse their fitness level by administering a motor fitness test battery before and after the emergency period and to compare their results with reference values of healthy, active, age-matched athletes of the same geographical region.

### **2. Materials and Methods** *Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health* **2022**, *19*, 6394 3 of 13

Sixty-six female puberal and adolescent (age range 9 to 18 with a mean age of 13.87 ± 0.34) recreational horse riders practicing endurance, pony games and show jumping equestrian disciplines were recruited for the study. Inclusion criteria were participating regularly and continuously and taking equestrian classes at least twice a week for 12 or more months. Exclusion criteria were noncomplying with home-based training during all of the 12 weeks of training restrictions, testing positive for SARS-CoV-2, or suffering injuries or illnesses during the test period or in the 3 preceding months. Three of the subjects either tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 or suffered injuries or illnesses during the test period or in the 3 preceding months, and 2 of them did not practice horse riding continuously in the previous year. This led to the exclusion of 5 riders and left 61 participants equally distributed amongst the three equestrian disciplines (Endurance, *n* = 20; Pony Games, *n* = 20; Show Jumping *n* = 21). Participants' equitation experience was assessed as the number of months ranging from the first time they rode a horse to the pre-test date, with a mean value of 13 ± 3.1 months. During the 6 months before the study, the subjects had regularly completed 2 ± 0.3 training sessions per week, each lasting 45–50 min each on the horse. **2. Materials and Methods**  Sixty-six female puberal and adolescent (age range 9 to 18 with a mean age of 13.87 ± 0.34) recreational horse riders practicing endurance, pony games and show jumping equestrian disciplines were recruited for the study. Inclusion criteria were participating regularly and continuously and taking equestrian classes at least twice a week for 12 or more months. Exclusion criteria were noncomplying with home-based training during all of the 12 weeks of training restrictions, testing positive for SARS-CoV-2, or suffering injuries or illnesses during the test period or in the 3 preceding months. Three of the subjects either tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 or suffered injuries or illnesses during the test period or in the 3 preceding months, and 2 of them did not practice horse riding continuously in the previous year. This led to the exclusion of 5 riders and left 61 participants equally distributed amongst the three equestrian disciplines (Endurance, *n* = 20; Pony Games, *n* = 20; Show Jumping *n* = 21). Participants' equitation experience was assessed as the number of months ranging from the first time they rode a horse to the pretest date, with a mean value of 13 ± 3.1 months. During the 6 months before the study, the

All riders and their legal tutors received written and oral information about the purpose of the study, of their rights as study participants, and of the anonymity of their data and provided written informed consent. The project received approval from the institutional review board (protocol code CAR-14/2019). subjects had regularly completed 2 ± 0.3 training sessions per week, each lasting 45–50 min each on the horse. All riders and their legal tutors received written and oral information about the purpose of the study, of their rights as study participants, and of the anonymity of their data and provided written informed consent. The project received approval from the

As depicted in Figure 1, fitness test batteries were part of the regular training program and were usually administered every 8 weeks by the coaches of the clubs involved. Since subjects were familiar with all test protocols long before data collection, a learning effect impact on the post-test outcome should not be likely. Tests were administered throughout the 3 weeks preceding the pandemic period and immediately after the resumption of physical activity after the 12 weeks of training restrictions. The motor fitness test battery comprised 8 items performed as previously described [24,26]. institutional review board (protocol code CAR-14/2019). As depicted in Figure 1, fitness test batteries were part of the regular training program and were usually administered every 8 weeks by the coaches of the clubs involved. Since subjects were familiar with all test protocols long before data collection, a learning effect impact on the post-test outcome should not be likely. Tests were administered throughout the 3 weeks preceding the pandemic period and immediately after the resumption of physical activity after the 12 weeks of training restrictions. The motor fitness test battery comprised 8 items performed as previously described [24,26].

**Figure 1.** Training and test sessions timeline. **Figure 1.** Training and test sessions timeline.

During the 12 weeks of the training restriction period, athletes trained on their own, on a regular basis, for approximately 45–50 min 2 days per week; the routine comprised stretching warm-up, no-load isometric and elastic-band-resisted exercises for the core, and upper and lower limb muscle strength training, as depicted in Figure 2. Home-based training was initially programmed for 8 weeks; one set and one repetition were added for every exercise every 2 weeks. From the first to the eighth and from the nineth to the twelfth week, the training programme remained unchanged [27]. During the 12 weeks of the training restriction period, athletes trained on their own, on a regular basis, for approximately 45–50 min 2 days per week; the routine comprised stretching warm-up, no-load isometric and elastic-band-resisted exercises for the core, and upper and lower limb muscle strength training, as depicted in Figure 2. Home-based training was initially programmed for 8 weeks; one set and one repetition were added for every exercise every 2 weeks. From the first to the eighth and from the nineth to the twelfth week, the training programme remained unchanged [27]. *Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health* **2022**, *19*, 6394 4 of 13

Compliance with the home-based training programme was ascertained by text messages to the coaches listing the number of exercises, sets, and repetitions completed during

To measure height, the athlete stood on the stadiometer platform with their shoes off. Their feet were together, and the heels were supported on the base of the device with the arms along the body. The participant was instructed to gaze outward, and the measurement was rounded to the nearest 0.5 cm. We assessed the body weight simultaneously by instructing the athlete to step on the scale (with their shoes off). The results were recorded in kilograms and centimetres (HE HEM Medical Weight Scale with Stadiometer, HI-WEIGH, Shanghai, China). All anthropometric measurements were taken by the same medical doctor in charge of all of the clubs involved. Body mass index (BMI) was calcu-

Motor fitness tests are comprised in the Eurofit and ALPHA test batteries that have been widely used throughout Europe with children and adolescents [29]. They have been developed as a standardised European fitness test battery used to assess the effectiveness of physical education and to measure the health-related fitness of schoolchildren [30]. The fitness test battery's inter-rater reliability and test-retest reliability are considered adequate to support their clinical use; indeed, they have been successfully used with primary, middle, and high school students, providing reference data bases [26,31]. The same test items have been used in the school districts of our children and adolescents, ensuring that subjects may have come from similar ethnic, cultural, socio-economic, and socio-demographic groups. Physical education schoolteachers provided the results of their last col-

The sit-and-reach test was employed to assess hip mobility since it has been suggested that hip flexibility is the main determinant of the back-saver sit-and-reach test in adolescents, and no significant differences in inter-method agreement were observed between the back-saver sit-and-reach test and the sit-and-reach test, implying that they are comparable [32]. The flamingo test was demonstrated to be suitable for measuring youth aged 9 to 17 years [33]. Amongst the balance tests, the flamingo test results were mostly predicted by strength of the abdominal muscle in pre-adolescent girls [34]; therefore, it seemed to be the most suitable for horse riders that centre their motor control in the core area. Moreover, the flamingo test showed the highest associations with the other motor abilities and correlated the best with endurance running as compared to the one-leg stance on a low beam and the low-beam walking test. Amongst the three tests, it also showed the

In the flamingo test for balance, participants stood upright on a special wooden beam (50 × 3 × 4 cm). The leg they stood on was fully extended, whilst the free leg was bent at

lection, which served as reference values for comparison with our subjects.

highest reliability score (0.910) in pre-adolescent children [35].

**Figure 2.** Description of the home based training sessions. **Figure 2.** Description of the home based training sessions.

lated as weight in kilograms/height meters squared [28].

*2.1. Anthropometric Measures* 

*2.2. Motor Fitness Test Batteries* 

Compliance with the home-based training programme was ascertained by text messages to the coaches listing the number of exercises, sets, and repetitions completed during each week. The weekly training programme was considered completed if at least 80% of the maximal repetitions and sets were accomplished for each exercise.
