Starline Equine Bodywork
Our mission is to inspire and to motivate, and give you tools for a better life with horses. This podcast is intended to give you takeaways to apply to your own life- whether you're a horse owner seeking more, a bodywork practitioner, or even an aspiring one. In this podcast you will meet our host, Judith Rathbone. For most of the last decade she’s been a full time equine bodywork practitioner, a renowned sports specialist, an author and a bodywork educator. During the course of this podcast she will lead deep dive discussions into what she has learned from clients, top bodyworkers and vets in the industry, and unpack some of the most up to date and groundbreaking research into equine physiology, fitness and tissue training. Connect with us: Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/starlineequinebodywork Web - starlinebodywork.com
Episodes
What we practice is what we get. Walking horses prepares them for…. (insert drumroll here)…Walking.
The true fitness of a horse dictates what happens in a bodywork session and what homework will be left for the horse between sessions.
There are many aspects to fitness: general fitness, sport specific skill acquisition, and tissue training.
This last type of fitness is what is most commonly overlooked and ...
Join me for this episode of the Starline Equine Bodywork Podcast where we look at the thoracic sling. This is the horse’s built-in shock absorber and suspension bridge.
It is a powerful muscular-fascial hammock made of the serratus ventralis, pectorals, subclavius, trapezius, rhomboids, and longissimus that lifts the thorax between the front legs and carries 60–65 percent of the rider’s weight.
When the sling is weak, tigh...
This fan favourite episode is based on a listener question about prepping her dressage horse for the demand of show season without overloading the horse’s tissues.
I chat about assessing weaknesses, planning exercises to overcome them and how to gauge where the point of fatigue/ failure is. I also reveal my 2 secret tips for a body “re-set” to help horses maintain correct form in workouts while we are increasing fitness le...
In this episode, we are thrilled to welcome Isabelle D’Costa of Honos Nutrition Co., a leading horse nutrition expert. She has helped many horses, from young ones in training to older retired friends, build strong and healthy toplines. Join us as we explore how the right food can create and keep that great topline from the inside out.
We chat about the basic foods horses need for strong muscles and some common feeding mist...
In this episode, we dive into the subtle world of equine behaviour, exploring whether your horse is genuinely at ease or subtly working to calm itself amid lingering stress. As prey animals, horses are naturally primed for survival, often exhibiting self-soothing actions when they’re still in a heightened state of arousal. We break down the key differences between these de-stressing signals (rooted in the fight-or-flight response) ...
Have you ever seen a horse stretch its neck waaaay up during a bodywork session? Well, then you’ve witnessed a pandiculation!
Pandiculation is very different from passive stretching.
Join me for this fan favourite episode of the podcast where I examine the scientific differences between these two types of stretches. I examine what is happening in the body in each situation, and why it is extremely important to kno...
Join us on the Starline Equine Bodywork Podcast for an enlightening conversation with sports medicine veterinarian and rehabilitation specialist Dr. Bri Henderson, where we delve into the realities of equine recovery.
Discover why rehabilitation is not always a straight path, exploring the biological factors (like inflammation, proliferation, and the lengthy remodeling phase) that sometimes lead to progress plateaus and se...
Cantering and galloping can offer more therapeutic value than bodywork and stretches put together. Still, too many of us miss out on the opportunity to head out and let our horses really stretch their strides.
Address gait rhythm issues, back hollowing, back stiffness, and one-sidedness through galloping.
Come along as we dive into the advantages of galloping in this fan favourite podcast episode.
Join me as we dive into the world of equine dentistry with our guest, Dr. Christy Barnes, a veterinarian with a special interest in dental care. As an equine bodywork practitioner, I’ve often uncovered hidden mouth issues during assessments that explain puzzling performance hurdles, and Dr. Barnes sheds light on how dentistry is a cornerstone of overall equine well-being. We’ll explore the fundamentals of jaw balance and TMJ functi...
Struggling with lead changes? Notice your saddle shifting to one side? The culprit could be your horse’s ribcage!
It may seem unexpected, but the ribcage and its surrounding muscles play a massive role in your horse’s overall performance and well-being.
Tune in to this fan favourite episode as I dive into the ribcage and share my top bodywork method for getting it mobilized!
LINKS RELATED TO THIS EPISODE:...
In this episode, we explore spinal segmentation issues in horses, where the spine’s motion segments (comprising vertebrae, discs, facet joints, and ligaments) lose normal micro-mobility or neurological coordination, often before visible structural damage like arthritis appears.
Common types include hypomobility, hypermobility (unstable excessive movement), facet inflammation, and multifidus muscle inhibition leading to longissimus ...
In this fan favourite episode, I talk about an article I read warning people to avoid practitioners who claim that taping can strengthen a muscle of a horse.
The article had undertones of attempting to discredit other practitioners. That’s just unfair, especially because it used a very narrow definition of what is actually meant by “assisting a muscle” to strengthen it.
In today’s episode I talk about why I feel t...
In this hands-on episode, we dive into the horse’s hindquarters—the true “engine” that powers propulsion and performance. Restrictions in the hip flexors (iliopsoas), lumbosacral junction, or sacro-iliac joints often lead to compensatory issues elsewhere, affecting everything from the stifle and hock to the back and neck.
Designed specifically for equine bodyworkers, massage therapists, and dedicated horse owners, this episode prov...
A massive THANK YOU for tuning in to the Starline Equine Bodywork Podcast all year. Your support means everything!
We're closing out 2025 with a bang! The final episode is here, packed with the BEST and most unforgettable moments from the year.
Fresh, all-new episodes are coming your way in 2026, so stay tuned!
Shoutout to this week's incredible featured guests! Go give them a follow on Instagram:
Full disclosure: I think this method of horsemanship is GENIUS. And looking back at this fan favourite episode, I believe everyone can benefit from this technique and philosophy- regardless of their profession or discipline within the equine industry.
Communicating with horses in way they understand is key to our safety as bodywork practitioners, and to the safety of our client’s horses while in our direct care.
Tom Shields is a Mast...
Ever had show season sneak up on you, only to realize midway through that your horse isn't firing on all cylinders?
On this episode of the Starline Equine Bodywork podcast, I sit down with Dr. Amy Bennett from Bennett Equine Veterinary Services. She shares her essential pre-season, mid-season, and post-season checklists for managing performance horses.
We're talking soundness checks, targeted treatments, bodywork timing, ro...
In this episode of the Starline Equine Bodywork Podcast, we dive into the fascinating science and practical application of 128 Hz weighted tuning forks – a gentle yet powerful tool for accelerating tissue repair in horses and humans alike. Often called the “Otto 128,” this low-frequency fork creates coherent mechanical vibrations that travel beautifully through bone and dense connective tissue. Backed by principles of vibroacoustic...
Who themselves hasn’t worked out to the point of being a little bit stiff and sore? Horses aren’t different.
In this fan favourite episode we talk about how there is a fine line between working muscles to an appropriate place to allow tissue adaptation and fitness to increase, and a place where you have pushed too far.
Join me for this episode of the podcast where I discuss delayed onset muscles soreness, muscle micro-dama...
Horses aren’t just animals—they’re individuals with their own thoughts, feelings, and voices (if only we learn how to listen).
In this deeply personal episode of the Starline Equine Bodywork Podcast, I open up about a horse who came into my life under less-than-ideal circumstances…and how everything transformed in just four short days.
It all shifted because of one sentence.
Dr. Marisa Markey of Full Circle Equine Veterinary happened ...
This is the muscle group, that in my opinion, is too often overlooked. I believe that it is largely responsible for long term soundness in the pelvic limb and its joints, low back health and correct way of going.
Join me for this fan favourite episode where I look at the equine iliopsoas group. I look at anatomy, function and dysfunction that appears in horses. Of course I will also look at ways to exercise to promote the...
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