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Greetings Sikander!Interesting comment - and good to know that you haven't developed "massive" thigh muscles! Wouldn't it be more likely though if you were bareback on a horse all day, every day, for days/weeks/months at a time? (Much the same as a spaced routine of lifting weights can just tone the body, but lifting them for hours every single day will cause muscle buildup.) I'm thinking of all the long marches throughout the entire conquest of Persia. Unless, that is, the cavalry didn't ride the horses so as not to wear them out, and marched on foot like the rest of the army. Is this possible or probable? Something about that rings a bell, but I suspect that I read it in a fictional account of Alexander's life.All the best,
Linda Ann

Remember that the horses were pastured to graze and feed for part of each day. I think they would only travel so many staters (miles) a day and then rest the animals. And some of that would not be at full pace. Would they have been on the horses each day any longer than any cowboy would be?
(Cowboys must have strong leg muscles too. And have you ever seen the forearms of shepherds? Wow! - from lifting sheep to sheer them etc that is. hahah)

(Laughing) Well, they are big enough to do what needs doing! I once spent between 6-10 hours a day on horseback for almost a full year- and the trick is, as I said, good seat and proper balance. To become "an extension of the horse" so you *don't* have to keep a constant tight grip on the animal.And yes, there would be times that the horses would be given a "break", so it still would not require enormous thighs. After all, often if the thighs are too built up, as in a modern day bodybuilder, some range of motion becomes decreased (yes, I've done that, too, when younger, so I know the effects).Regards,
Sikander

Greetings Amyntoros,
Sikander is completely correct, If you ride back on the loins your legs will be against the barrel of the horse results lack of control, if you ride against the front (WITHERS) again lack of control and possible fistulous on the withers that will render a horse temporary useless. Center balance is the rule as Sikander mentions you become part of the horse and any horse will let you know when your riding them wrong. Practice makes perfect and the faster you go the smoother the ride this also applies to trots.
The horse must get in shape also, then you are right to say a horse goes ten to fifteen miles a day and more but their eating machines they must have food and some rest again this is when logistics and terrain becomes important.
Regards,
Andrew

Hello Andrew and Sikander:Very interesting information on bareback horse riding from both of you - thanks. I doubt that I shall ever put it into practice as I have been having enough difficulty staying on my feet because of the ice in New York City. I don't imagine I would last too long on a horse. :-)I wasn't too clear in an earlier post when I asked whether the calvary actually rode their horses during the marches. I wasn't questioning the times when the full army followed Alexander at a supposed more leisurely pace, but specifically the fast, forced marches that are frequently mentioned in the histories. My reasoning was that any foot soldiers had to keep up, so wouldn't it be logical for the cavalry to dismount and take some of the burden away from their horses? Apparently I'm wrong, because I found several references in Arrian regarding the pursuit of Darius.One is: "By reason of the speed of his march many of his troops were worn out while the horses were dying." Obviously, horses can keep up with the foot soldiers, so I presume the strain of carrying a rider over a long distance at a fast speed was the cause of their deaths. Arrian later also mentions how Alexander "dismounted some five hundred horsemen, selected from the officers of the infantry and the rest those who had best kept up their strength, and ordered them to mount the horses carrying their usual infantry arms." Shortly after this he says: "Alexander then started off himself at evening (with these same troops)and led his troops on at full speed; during the night he covered up to four hundred stades..." Isn't that about fifty miles?! And this also without horseshoes? They must have been quite amazing beasts. Credit is often given to the soldiers who followed Alexander, but little is said of the horses. I'm quite impressed.All the best,
Linda Ann

Great info about the horses, thanks! (I haven't ridden one for years but my son is quite the horseman and has been since he could walk! Though lately he hasn't been riding either. He's been more into horse racing). About the use supply wagons: I doubt they dragged many of them through places like the Hindu Kush (or the desert areas). Have you see the terrain through there? Even today the tracks are nearly impassable. So I'd imagine they would have used mainly pack mules. (A person in one of my travel writing classes had traveled some of those routes apparantly used by Alex. and the slides he had of the terrain were quite fantastic. Just to think they moved an army through there was amazing.)

Andrew,I would like to thank you and Sikander for such interesting information. I am in the process of printing off all your posts on this subject for future reference (you wouldn't believe how helpful it is!).All the bestMarcus