What's Inside
Search the Site
Tip/Quote of the Day # 3702
"Flexibility and self-carriage are the source of the horse's agility. Good turns, which develop its agility, are obtained only by making the horse flexible, putting it into balance, and thus giving it self-carriage. This involves not merely the lateral flexion of the entire spinal column but more so the flexibility of the hind legs. Only the latter enables the horse to perform quick and reliable turns under the rider, since the forehand is able to turn and change direction easily without danger for the health of its limbs only from the always secure support of the hindquarters." ~ Gustav Steinbrecht
Did you enjoy this article? If so, please share with your friends! Look for the share buttons on the far right side of the page. Thank you!
Related Articles:
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4436
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2241
- A Test to See If Your Horse is in LATERAL Self Carriage
- A Test of Your Flatwork Training (For All Levels!)
- All About the Volte!
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4412
- Lateral Work as "Medicine" For the Dressage Horse
- Do You Know What Skills You and Your Horse Need to Have Before Entering a Novice Level Event?
- The "Shoulder Yield" Exercise
- The Problems in the Eventing World Today! (written in 2014) (Current freebie!)
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3222
- Quin's Blog post # 2: The Ultimate Answer to Riding, the Universe, and Everything
- Riding From "Front to Back"
- Advanced Jumping Exercise # 1
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4283
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3658
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3317
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3287
- The Order of Aids For Changing Your Horse's Bend From One Side to the Other
- Basic Suppling Exercise # 5
- All Roads Lead to Rome.... Or Do They??
- Advanced Trot Pole Exercise # 2
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1831
- The Most Productive Way to Begin Each Ride
- Adding More *Scope* to Your Lateral Work - For Better Dressage Scores!
- The Use of Patterns in the Training of Dressage
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4330
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4236
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3871
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3280
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2957
- An Exercise to Sharpen Your Horse's Response to the Outside Aids
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2543
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1828
- The *Volume* of Your Aids
- Does Your Horse Pick Up the Canter With His Haunches In?
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4464
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4419
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4366
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4040
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3710
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3694
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3601
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3300
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3270
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3084
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2715
- How to Train for Self Carriage at the Gallop
- Training and Conditioning the Young Event Horse
- The Counted Walk - a Tool to Improve Your Horse's Carriage in Dressage
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1901
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1838
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1680
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1671
- Question # 318: My horse and I are continuing on in training and he has really become much more balanced over all in the show jumping. Before he used to land and have such a large canter stride that it seemed like most of my focus was...
- Dressage Canter Adjustability Exercise
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4502
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4413
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4388
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4215
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4210
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4115
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3917
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3884
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3625
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3330
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3289
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3095
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3006
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2785
- Rider Leg Aids
- Sport Psych in a Minute, with Dr. Haefner - Video # 55: Filling Your Treasure Chest
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2436
- Sport Psych in a Minute, with Dr. Haefner - Video # 54: The Power of a Plan
- Sport Psych in a Minute, with Dr. Haefner - Video # 53: Personality Part 2: Internalizer or Externalizer
- Sport Psych in a Minute, with Dr. Haefner - Video # 52: Personality Part 1: Past, Present, Future
- Sport Psych in a Minute, with Dr. Haefner - Video # 51: Who do you compare yourself to... it really matters!
- Sport Psych in a Minute, with Dr. Haefner - Video # 50: Horses as mirrors: Does it work the other way around?
- Sport Psych in a Minute, with Dr. Haefner - Video # 49: Respect: Essential for horse and rider
- Sport Psych in a Minute, with Dr. Haefner - Video # 48: Working with horses is complicated... that's a good thing
- Sport Psych in a Minute, with Dr. Haefner - Video # 47: Courage... Is it as simple as "Cowgirl Up" ?
- An Exercise to Help You to Refine Your Turning Aids
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2028
- Question # 341: Amy has a question about a new horse she is riding, who is not a big fan of flatwork!
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1891
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1812
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1795
- An Exercise to Teach Your Horse to Be More HOT to Your Inside Leg Aid
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1772
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1751
- Signs That Your Performance Horse Might Be Sore
- The Pre Flight Checklist
- Keeping the Older Horse Going Strong
- Keep Your Aids Dynamic
- The Mysterious Half Halt (Current freebie!)
- Basic Suppling Exercise # 4
- Video # 315 and Question # 340: Kaley has a question (with video), about his horse's jumping form, and whether or not his horse might still have upper level potential, despite the form he shows now as a green horse.
- Photo # 71: This is Kayla!
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4509
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4437
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4394
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4380
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4341
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4240
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4235
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4214
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4144
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4112
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4109
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4073
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4023
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3970
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3928
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3916
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3805
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3762
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3739
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3725
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3713
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3662
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3642
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3571
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3516
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3500
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3479
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3454
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3313
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3307
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3281
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3258
- Guest Blog # 118: Why Counter Canter? by Bill Woods
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3216
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3129
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3102
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3062
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2908
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2710
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2660
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2334
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2196
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1905
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1899
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1896
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1880
- How Your Driving Habits Relate to Your Riding Habits
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1814
- Video # 314, and Question # 337: Lauren has a question (with video) about her new OTTB mare.
- An Exercise to Help Improve Your Horse's Connection Over the Back
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1779
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1762
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1757
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1737
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1574
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1491
- A Spanish Riding School Exercise to Increase the Collection in Your Horse's Canter
- Question # 311: After reading your article on whether to look for a distance or focus on the quality of the canter, I have a few questions for you....
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1298
- HOW to Use the Turn Into Each Jump to Balance Your Horse
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1177
- How Many Gears Do You Have in the Canter?
- Question # 291: I want to get my mare to PSG in Dressage, and I'm dabbling again in jumping at novice level. I've been riding her Dressage for the last 5 years, with hardly any jumping. I ride mostly off of seat and thigh aids, with very little lower leg,
- What Does it Mean for the Horse to be "Between the Rider’s Hand and Leg"?
- Could YOU Jump a Fence That Fell Out of the Sky and Landed Three Strides in Front of You as You Canter or Gallop Along??
- Dressage Canter Adjustability Exercise # 2
- Question # 284: While conditioning work is best done in the open with varying terrain, not everyone has access to the amount of open space, or open space with the right terrain or footing to do their conditioning rides...
- Different Half Halts For Different Situations
- Introducing the Counter Canter
- The Different Schools of Dressage
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4133
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4485
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4446
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4405
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4403
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4379
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4368
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4295
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4290
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4170
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4137
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4084
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4016
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4007
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4001
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3976
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3944
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3911
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3892
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3881
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3866
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3769
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3763
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3758
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3751
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3735
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3701
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3697
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3679
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3676
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3672
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3669
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3647
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3567
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3563
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3524
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3472
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3467
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3466
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3463
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3403
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3401
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3348
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3296
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3294
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3290
- Guest Blog # 120: Too Focused? by Bill Woods
- There Are Always Two Sides to Every Story - Even Between You and Your Horse!
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3165
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3164
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3157
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3156
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3083
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3067
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3057
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2972
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2935
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2925
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2907
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2889
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2822
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2814
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2805
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2795
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2765
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2757
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2708
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2692
- Sport Psych in a Minute, with Dr. Haefner - Video # 59: Coping with Stress and Anxiety: Part II - Connection
- Sport Psych in a Minute, with Dr. Haefner - Video # 58: Coping with Stress and Anxiety - Part I: The Worry Bucket
- Sport Psych in a Minute, with Dr. Haefner - Video # 57: Desperately Dependent or Fiercely Independent: Finding the right balance
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2508
- Sport Psych in a Minute, with Dr. Haefner - Video # 56: How long will this take??
- Sport Psych in a Minute, with Dr. Haefner - Video # 46: Safety and Security - Essential tools for learning.
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2258
- Is Your Horse Sore in These Very Common Areas??
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2024
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1906
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1894
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1893
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1871
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1865
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1860
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1849
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1837
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1829
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1825
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1823
- Dr. Haefner's Blog post # 9: A Different Take on a Performance “State of Mind”
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1808
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1797
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1788
- Quin's Blog post # 4: Praising the Snort
- The Benefits of "Stair Stepping" Your Lateral Exercises
- Video # 312 and Question # 331: This is Rachael!
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1753
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1748
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1721
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1697
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1690
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1628
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1530
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1525
- Video # 102: This is Kellyn, riding Novice level test B
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1352
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1342
- Where a Rider Should Look When Riding the Various Lateral Movements
- Guest Blog post # 80: "The Professional Edge: Classically driven or Client driven?" by Bill Kraatz
- Horses that Tilt Their Head in Dressage
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1100
- The Corridor of Aids
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 528
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3341
- Question # 312, and Photo # 76: Kellyn has a question about her horse's tendency to get in too close to the jumps and jump in poor form.
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4456
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4429
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4415
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4336
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4328
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4310
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4252
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4250
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4216
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4155
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4094
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4075
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4061
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4035
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4034
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4005
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3943
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3846
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3818
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3799
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3790
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3780
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3764
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3744
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3643
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3634
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3564
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3541
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3493
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3440
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3333
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3326
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3233
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3230
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3174
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3133
- Guest Blog # 117: IT’S A HOLD UP! by Bill Woods
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2865
- Canter Pole Exercise # 1
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2827
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2815
- Video # 325: This is Bridget doing a Dressage test!
- An Exercise to Help You to Find Your Abdominal Muscles When in the Saddle
- Video # 324: This is Bridget and her 5 year old horse's first course at 75cm!
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2668
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2614
- Question # 354: Linda has a question about one of my quotes on "giving the reins."
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2484
- Question # 353: Amanda has a question about how to teach her young horse to lift and use his back correctly.
- Question # 349: I'm pretty new to eventing, and so is my horse. are there any beginner exercises you could give us? What should we work on the most when just getting into the sport? (Josie)
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2299
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2298
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2281
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2269
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2213
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2188
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2169
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2162
- The Triangle Exercise
- A Simple Exercise to Help You to Relax and Reset the Position of Your Shoulders When Riding
- An Exercise to Improve Your Horse's Carriage in the Dressage Ring
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 2004
- A TEST of Your Horse's Rideability & Adjustability
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1735
- Does Your Horse Fall In When Lunging?
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1709
- Video # 310: This is Susanne and her lovely horse Corelli, schooling cross country!
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1669
- Video # 107 and Question # 321: Kellyn has a question about her lovely OTTB, along with a video
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1534
- Guest Blog post # 89: "> or < ?" by Bill Woods
- The Adjustability Exercise
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1362
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1329
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 1262
- 3 Signs That Your Bending Aids Are Working Correctly
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 962
- Video # 87: This is my lesson from today. This is my new 4 year old OTTB (never raced, just race trained).
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 949
- Photo # 68: Hailey would like a conformation critique for her horse, a 16.2 hand Appendix!
- Improve Your Canter to Trot Transitions!
- Question # 121: My horse drops her inside shoulder and turns her head to the outside. What exercises can I do to fix this? (Holly)
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4513
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4501
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4484
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4483
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4474
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4462
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4459
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4458
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4455
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4444
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4439
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4428
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4423
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4417
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4401
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4399
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4395
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4373
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4333
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4326
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4314
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4297
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4293
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4280
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4278
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4262
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4248
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4247
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4242
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4226
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4200
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4191
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4189
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4186
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4162
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4153
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4152
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4143
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4140
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4122
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4118
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4117
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4062
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4057
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4029
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4017
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4014
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4011
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 4008
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3993
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3977
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3964
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3961
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3958
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3951
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3945
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3929
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3925
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3923
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3904
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3889
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3879
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3873
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3845
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3809
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3798
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3797
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3771
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3768
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3760
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3756
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3755
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3754
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3752
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3731
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3723
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3719
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3705
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3687
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3678
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3671
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3664
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3663
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3657
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3656
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3654
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3651
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3645
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3637
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3619
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3616
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3615
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3614
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3610
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3608
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3606
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3605
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3603
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3600
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3599
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3597
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3594
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3589
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3588
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3576
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3570
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3568
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3554
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3553
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3549
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3547
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3545
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3543
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3540
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3533
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3529
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3527
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3526
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3525
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3521
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3520
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3511
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3508
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3507
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3504
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3502
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3497
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3496
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3494
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3490
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3486
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3485
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3484
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3483
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3478
- Tip/Quote of the Day # 3470






