The tightly packed field of Thoroughbred racehorses, straining every muscle for a few more inches of gained ground on the final turn…the Arabian endurance horse, with 89 miles of hard, mountainous terrain behind him and 11 more to go before he can rest…the Olympic three-day event horse, summoning up all his courage, agility, and speed to answer the questions posed by a diabolical course designer on a cross-country course built to put fear into the hearts of ordinary mortals. All of these are high-octane horses: animals performing at the peak of their athletic ability. Standardbred racehorses, high-goal polo and polocrosse ponies, sprint racers (Quarter Horses, Paints, and Appaloosas), and top-level cutting horses and barrel racers also can be high-octane horses, and because they are pulling out all the stops in order to perform at their maximum, they need serious nutritional support to provide maximum energy.

Understanding how your horse converts his feed into performance can help you design not only the most appropriate fitness program for him, but an optimum diet as well.

High energy, traditionally, comes from high levels of carbohydrates–but when horses are fed a high-carbohydrate (and subsequently, low-fiber) diet, they suffer all sorts of digestive troubles, from colic and diarrhea to founder and exertional myopathy (tying up). As a result, fueling the equine athlete becomes a delicate balancing of nutrients, to provide as much energy as possible while minimizing the risk of carbohydrate overload