Ifa Simmonds is back on the podcast after four years. That's a long time. When he was last on the podcast, he was training clients in a cold New Jersey barn and had just launched Equestrian Fitness Academy. Today he's studying equestrian sport science at Hartpury University in England, expanding his business internationally, and preparing to bring his work to the Kinship Conference this November.
In this conversation, we talk about what it took to leave everything behind and go back to school across the world, not just logistically, but mentally. Ifa gets into what entering equestrian culture as an outsider taught him about asking questions no one else is asking, and what it's been like to find community with Black equestrians in the UK through an organization called Cool Ridings.
We also get into what he's looking forward to at Kinship, what he wants attendees to walk away from his session feeling, and the moment at the end of the episode when he pulls out a note he's kept on his desk since listening back to their first conversation.
Topics covered:
- Returning to school after 10+ years and why he had to go to England to do it
- Entering the equestrian industry without growing up in it, and what fresh eyes reveal
- Rider fitness vs. horse fitness: why the industry consistently prioritizes one over the other
- Cool Ridings UK and Lydia Haywood's work building Black equestrian community in England
- Bringing it all to the Kinship Conference, the morning wellness session and what he's most excited about
Find Ifa:
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Join us for the Kinship Conference: blkinthesaddle.com/kinship
Mark your calendar: November 6–7, 2026 in Greensboro, NC.
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