Women in Horses

Your confidence is not separate from the body you ride with

Science-backed support for equestrian women who want to understand the connection between nutrition, hormones, energy, brain health, nervous system regulation and confidence in the saddle

You're not broken, you're not weak, and you haven't suddenly forgotten how to ride. If you feel more anxious, tired, foggy or less like yourself in the saddle, there may be more going on than mindset alone.

What Women in Horses is

Women in Horses is something I'm building to bring like-minded equestrian women together. It starts with a conversation our sport hasn't been having, about how nutrition, hormones, energy and the nervous system shape the way we feel in the saddle, and it's growing into events and communities where we can have that conversation in person.

Joining the email list is how you become part of it. You'll get the science-backed insights first, and you'll be the first to hear when events and local communities open near you.

If something has changed

These are sentences I hear on yards all the time.

• "I used to feel more confident."
• "I used to ride the sharper horses."
• "I love horses, but my body feels different now."
• "I don't feel like myself in the saddle any more."

If one of them is yours, this is for you. Maybe you feel more anxious than you used to, or the same horse feels sharper on some days. Maybe you're tired, sleeping badly, running on coffee, navigating perimenopause or menopause, or simply trying to hold too much together.

You keep telling yourself to just get on with it, but deep down you know your body is asking for more support.

The body behind the rider

Confidence isn't just mindset

So many conversations about rider confidence stop at mindset: be braver, push through, stop overthinking, get more saddle time. For many women, that isn't the whole story.

Your brain needs fuel to focus, your nervous system needs resources to regulate, and your body needs enough energy to feel steady. And your horse doesn't just feel your aids. They feel your breath, your tension, your timing and the body you bring to the saddle.

Recent research into female equestrians in perimenopause and menopause found high levels of anxiety, loss of riding confidence, sleeplessness, joint pain and fatigue. Those findings reflect what many women in horses have been quietly experiencing for years.

Sometimes the question isn't "why am I not confident?" but "what does my body need right now?"

What you'll receive

Supportive, science-backed emails on:

• Nutrition for energy, focus and steadiness in the saddle
• Blood sugar, caffeine, and why your body may feel wired but not steady
• Iron and ferritin, and how low reserves affect energy, brain fog and resilience
• The menstrual cycle, perimenopause, menopause and riding confidence
• Sleep, stress, recovery and nervous system regulation
• Research on women in equestrian sport

The aim is not to diagnose and not to scare. It's to help you understand the body you ride with.

Free recipe eBook

Fuel Your Confidence

Recipes to support energy, focus and steadiness in the saddle. Free, and sent straight to your inbox.

Built on work with over 100 equestrian women

The ideas behind Women in Horses aren't theory. Through my six-week course and my one-to-one work, I've taken more than 100 equestrian women through the frameworks that now form my book, coming in early 2027. These are some of their words.

About Nika

Nika Vorster is an equine chiropractor, physiotherapist and performance specialist with over 30 years of experience around horses. She has competed internationally in dressage, worked with performance horses across disciplines, and spent years observing the connection between the horse, the rider and the body behind the performance.

Through her course and one-to-one work she has taken more than 100 equestrian women through the frameworks in her forthcoming book, and she founded Women in Horses to bring that conversation to the wider industry. The book is coming in early 2027.

Join us

You're not alone

If you've ever thought "I don't feel like myself in the saddle any more", you're not alone. This isn't about fixing women. It's about helping you understand yourself, and finding the other women who feel the same.