Product Review: Horsepal Offers a New Solution for Equine Fitness Monitoring

I, admittedly, have had a bit of a love/hate relationship with heart rate monitors in the past. My first introduction to them was during my time as a triathlete, when everyone convinced me it was a “must have” item for my own (human) fitness training. Ultimately I think I used it maybe 4 or 5 times and found it generally more annoying than helpful.

A few years later the Hylofit equine heart rate monitor hit the equestrian market, and I got to be an early tester for that. It was a solid tool with good data, but since I didn’t really have a good way to watch my phone screen during a ride, the data was mostly useful for analyzing after-the-fact. A couple years after the Hylofit I tried the Seaver, which I don’t think I ever managed to get to work quite right, despite a lot of trial and error. I gave up.

I do, however, still have a very keen interest in having some sort of quantifiable metrics by which to measure my horse’s fitness. I’m an amateur rider living in Ocala and between the heat and humidity of Florida and the general demands of the sport, I take the task of conditioning pretty seriously. There’s no worse feeling than asking a horse to try its best for you and then finding out you just haven’t done your part to put enough in the tank.

It’s been a few years since I regularly used a heart rate monitor as part of my horses’ training, but now that my homebred has stepped up to Preliminary, his fitness program has also gotten more serious. When I was asked if I wanted to try out the new Horsepal heart rate monitor, I jumped at the chance. I’m always down for exploring new equine tech, and particularly interested in seeing a different heart rate monitor compared to ones I’ve had in the past..

First things first: the Horsepal is simple to put on. It might help that I’m not new to heart rate monitors in general, but it’s an elastic strap with some Velcro… it truly does not take a rocket scientist to figure it out. I watched a video on their site before I started, and it was easy peasy. Since the strap runs under the saddle pad I did have some initial concerns about whether or not it might rub, but even after hour-plus rides in the middle of a disgusting Ocala summer, my horse never had so much as a hair out of place.

My favorite feature by far (and what makes the Horsepal my favorite heart rate monitor I’ve ever used) is the screen, which you can either snap into a little protective sleeve down by your girth/the electrode, or you can put it in a handy dandy rubber case that clips to your saddle dee. This provided what I really wanted most: the ability to see the data in real time. No fumbling with a phone, no squinting at a watch – the display is easy to read and sits right there by the horse’s withers. Having that info constantly available is a total game changer. I can know exactly what the horse’s heart rate is doing and when, which makes it much easier to recognize patterns or make adjustments during your ride.

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And while the heart rate data as it relates to fitness training is obviously the goal, being able to see a real-time heart rate revealed a few other takeaways as well. Most notably, I noticed that my horse’s heart rate was always consistently about 10bpm higher when he was on the far side of the property (away from other horses)… useful insight into some ongoing anxiety issues he’s been having on cross country.

I also liked that you can share your ride with someone in real time. The app will send them an email when you start a session, and they can log in and watch the data live. I could see that being a particularly useful feature for vets, amateurs, or in my case – since I often go out alone – so that the people back at home could see my status.

The unit is lightweight and unobtrusive, as well as easy to clean, which is a huge plus when your horses get as sweaty as ours do.

Battery life is another big win. I can go many long rides without taking much away from the battery, which honestly isn’t something you can say about a lot of tech these days. The monitor itself is not rechargeable, but it’s easy to order inexpensive packs of extra batteries to have on hand, and they do last for quite a long time.

The Horsepal app itself is straightforward and user-friendly, with all the data saved and easy to review later. I can look back at sessions, see heart rate zone data, track how recovery times are improving, and make tweaks to the horse’s conditioning program based on actual numbers instead of just feelings.

I did have to email Horsepal to ask some questions about their heart rate zone data and how they do their calculations, which they quickly and easily provided. My biggest complaint is that I wish they had a bit more education and literature on their website for people that might not be experienced or well-versed in using a heart rate monitor or interpreting the data. Hopefully that’s coming!

All in all, I found the Horsepal to be a valuable tool that’s easy to use and met my needs for providing useful information about my horse’s fitness. I was able to learn more about where we’re REALLY at, and make a plan (with numbers!) for what to build on next. Being able to see it all in black and white, in real time, is invaluable if you’re trying to focus on improving your horse’s fitness.

✅ Pros:

• Having that screen clipped to the saddle dee gives me all the joy.
• Easy to put on and stays in place.
• App is simple and easy to use, and has nice graphs for the data.
• The unit has good battery life.

⛔️ Cons:

• More info and education on the website would be helpful!
• Their heart rate zones are defined slightly differently than I’ve seen before, which you wouldn’t really know unless you asked.
• Had a connectivity issue once in an area with no good signal, and the horse’s speed data wasn’t accurate. The heart rate part still worked great, but if you’re in an area with particularly terrible service or GPS, beware that the speed data might be less accurate.

Overall Rating: 4 🌟 out of 5 🌟

If you want to pick up your own Horsepal, click here. Horsepal is now available worldwide. 

How EN Does Product Reviews:

We believe that product reviews are the most useful when they’re honest. We will always let you know if we’ve been compensated in some way for writing a product review; in all review cases, we reserve the right to write with honesty on our experience with a product, with no editing authority given to the sponsoring party or brand. This review of Horsepal was compensated as a part of an advertising package. This review reflects our writer’s full experience using this product.