"Dressage is not an easy sport, there are so many variations, but the reaction to your leg, and straightness, are so important. You just don’t see top Grand Prix riders kicking or straining for a result. Don’t tease him, tap there so quick he doesn’t know it is coming. Everything in a horse’s life should be black and white, not grey." ~ Debbie McDonald
The most energy efficient way for a horse to gallop cross country is to gallop in balance, so that very little adjustments are necessary in front of the fences. If you could gallop in such a way that a fence could drop from the sky and land in front of you when you are just 3 or 4 strides away, and you could jump it well - then you will be giving your horse the best chance to finish the course with plenty of gas in the tank.
Your training goal for the "hot" or high strung horse should be to help him to learn how to control his energy. Don't try to wear him out. That will never work with the truly hot horse.
Michael Jung says he puts particular emphasis on checking his horses’ heart and respiratory rate once before and twice after each ride, the first time immediately after work and the second time after the horse had time to recuperate.
Don't forget that the way the distance rides between two jumps changes as the fence height changes. The horse will land further into a line or combination when the jumps are larger, which makes the distance effectively shorter.
The old masters learned early on that riding accurate arena patterns is the key for improving a horse's balance and straightness. Always keep this in mind in your training.
When you are teaching your horse something new, begin to teach it to him in the direction that he finds the easiest, so that it is a more positive experience for him.
Be extra careful when conditioning both young horses and older horses. Young horses have tendon/ligaments/bones that have not yet been strengthened. And the older horse’s ligaments and tendons tend to become less elastic and resilient over time.
Sometimes what I see makes me crazy(er); so here are my own thoughts on the topic that I wish you would take into consideration when you lunge.It is said that whenever you work with your horse you are "training" him— sometimes for worse, sometimes for better but he will always draw some conclusion about what you have done. That said, from the moment you bring him out of his stall you should be "riding" him— directing him in a positive way to accede to your wishes. If you let him walk all over you in hand or pull his head down to grab at the grass when he feels like it, it will not bode well for work under saddle. (Click on Blog Title above to read full entry)
"Don't delude yourself into thinking that you have light, soft hands, if you ride with loose, almost dangling reins on a strung out horse. That can be done with insensitive hands as well. A soft hand requires the rider to feel whether the horse is softly on the bit, chewing, and whether it responds to a light pressure, in other words, whether it has an active mouth. If he rides with loose reins, the horse can have a dead mouth, which will only show up when you use the reins to stop or to shorten the strides, as it will either let you pull its nose onto its chest, or it will invert, and in both cases it will open its mouth." ~ Oskar M. Stensbeck
"When you're carrying a bag of feed over your shoulder and that bag slips, what do you do? You move underneath the bag. That’s exactly what happens to the horse. Every time you move, he's going to try to get underneath you. So, our job is to stay in the middle and not move around so much." ~ Buck Davidson
Positive reinforcement is a very powerful way to train horses. And because of this, you must be very careful that you are actually reinforcing the right things.
Mental limitations can often be much more career limiting for riders than physical limitations. If things are difficult for you physically, don't give up!
A good lunging program will allow your horse learn how to balance himself on a proper circle in self carriage, without the added challenge of a rider on board.
A horse needs to have above average back strength to carry a rider easily in collection. If you have lofty goals with your riding, it is a good idea to keep your horse on a strength training program.
You don't really improve your horse's canter by just cantering around and around. Instead, use lots of forward and back transitions to "spice up" your horse's hind legs.
From Facebook fan Nicole Cotten Ackerman ~ "Someone once suggested I recognize that I was nervous because 'I love this and am so lucky to be doing it', and now I say that out loud to myself and my horse every time the nerves creep in... works wonderfully!!!"
"When your horse loses his 'go', try sitting lighter, not deeper. I find on my mare, when I'm losing impulsion, I'm gripping or riding too deep. And when I just relax my legs and drape them and use my hips more, my horse goes forward. Sometimes that means standing for a split second and re-adjusting my seat to get lighter but it works!" ~ Jennifer Stankiewicz
It may seem like riders only need to think about a formal conditioning schedule at the upper levels, but every horse at every level will benefit from a balanced and well thought out conditioning schedule.
I observed a very exotic horse on a show grounds the day before he was to compete. He was an Iberian horse of some sort who obviously had a lot of training. But unfortunately he was totally wired. A thumbnail: held together, tense throughout, unable to stand still in a halt or make a clear four beat walk. All his trot work was very cadenced and suspended but not going forward. Even his medium trot did not track up. The canter was equally problematic. He would switch behind at times, and in both the pirouettes and the tempis he seemed blocked. I kept thinking "circus." (Click on Blog Title above to read full entry)
"Permeability can only exist when, on the one hand, the thrust and impulsion from the hind legs reach the forehand undiminished, and on the other hand, when the weighting and flexing half-halts fully reach the hind legs. This requires the forehand and hindquarters to be aligned in such a way that, on a single track, the horse always adjusts his spine to the straight or curved line of travel, so that the hind legs follow in the same line as the front legs." ~ Waldemar Seunig
When trying to eliminate a bad habit in your riding, try exaggerating your bad habit momentarily to the point that it seems ridiculous. This will increase your awareness of what you have been doing. After that, practice exaggerating the opposite for a while to change your behavior.
When working with fresh horses that want to look around and be unfocused, do yourself and your horse a favor, and let them have some free time to relax at the beginning of a workout. Either a short time lunging or free schooling, or simply a 10 to 20 minute walk on the buckle to let them gawk and take everything in. Then, when you pick up the reins and go to work, you will usually find that there is less resistance.
