Frequent quality transitions are the best way to confirm that your horse is listening equally to both the driving aids and the restraining aids.
Tip/Quote of the Day # 1842"Every horse is different, but you learn to compare, what to do in this moment with this particular horse, and that takes time. Dressage doesn’t go fast, this is the difference between our young riders and our more experienced riders." ~ Reiner KlimkeTip/Quote of the Day # 1841
You have to think about how you can get into your horse's head, to win him over to your side, rather than trying to muscle him around. Horses usually seek where they are most comfortable. Always keep that in mind.
"Through the energy of impulsion mobilized from within himself, the horse is now prepared, in his physique and emotional attentiveness, to respond instantly to the slightest indications to change his tempo, posture, direction or gait." ~ Waldemar Seunig
If you are too much "on guard" and ready for any possible shenanigans from your horse when riding, you might actually cause them. Your horse will feel your state of tension, and feed off of you.
"Today's [Dressage] horses have much more capacity, much more from the conformation, much more basic rideability. So for training it's much easier than those old masters." ~ Rudolf Zeilinger
"You are going to meet a fence one of three ways - short, right or long. Therefore you want to meet it on a stride that the horse can work from - a bouncy energetic canter - then he can add if he needs to and pat the ground, or say thanks for getting me here right." ~Jimmy Wofford
Tip/Quote of the Day # 1834"If you think of a horse standing on four legs, then you can think of a normal bridge construction, the pillars in front, the pillars behind. The horse is naturally made to run, it is not built to carry weight by nature. That means that something has to change during the training so that the horse can do its job." ~ Dr. Gerd HeuschmannDr. Haefner's Blog post # 10: Looking for the Fix: The Forest and the Trees
Typically, when a rider seeks out my assistance, they have a problem and are looking to get it fixed. Often their problem involves a strong emotional reaction to a specific situation that interferes with their riding, such as anxiety as they enter the show ring or panic as they approach a triple combination. Many are surprised, after they have described their problem, when I ask them to take a step back and look at the broader picture. Like most of us, my clients are highly focused on the problem and often believe that the solution lies in directly addressing that problem; changing some specific thing about themselves that causes the problem to vanish. (Click on Blog Title above to read full entry)
The horse's lightness (or lack thereof) will be particularly evident in the downward transitions.
Tip/Quote of the Day # 1830One sign of a well trained horse is that nearly anyone capable can hop on and get the horse to go well. It can be a good question to ask yourself now and then when you are training your horse.... Could other riders at my barn get on my horse and find him a pleasurable ride? Tip/Quote of the Day # 1829
A strong back is necessary for the horse to be able to achieve and maintain self carriage and collection for any length of time under a rider. Make sure you are not asking for too much too soon.
"The quality of a good canter: round, energetic, straight, cadenced, light. You have to feel in the strike off that the horse lifts his forehand without throwing himself forward." ~ Nuno Oliveira
I would like to ask your opinion regarding a horses natural jumping technique and how much it can be improved. I can set fences at home to get him jumping with better technique but then we go to a show and he reverts to jumping like this. He had been having 4 to 5 rails every round. How much can a horses jumping technique be improved? My feeling has always been that you can improve what they naturally have to an extent but you're not going to turn a "3" into a "10". And right now I think he's a 3 or 4. (Kaley)(Click on Video or Question Title above (in blue) to read the answer and the critique of this video)
Tightly clamped thighs make you lose your nice deep seat, and can drive the horse's back down into a hollow position.
Tip/Quote of the Day # 1826When strength is needed, such as when riding a strong horse, a rider needs to be able to find their strength in the center of their body - their core. Many times they attempt to find their strength in their arms or shoulders instead, and this is counter productive. As instead of being an anchor against the horse's strength, the horse thinks the rider is instigating a pulling match.Tip/Quote of the Day # 1825
"As a rider you always want to go on the good side. But you have to do a bit more on the bad side to make it as good as the good side. How many riders want to work the bad side? When I’m teaching, I see everyone wants to go on the easy side. But you don’t want to do so much on the bad side that you then upset your horse." ~ Charlotte Dujardin
Riders who get the best out of the sensitive type of horse are usually especially good at being tactful.
Tip/Quote of the Day # 1821"There is one principle that should never be abandoned when training a horse, namely, that the rider must learn to control himself before he can control his horse. This is the basic, most important principle to be preserved in equitation." ~ Alois Podhajsky of the Spanish Riding SchoolTip/Quote of the Day # 1820
"Don't set the horse up when cantering over a pole - allow the horse to make mistakes and learn to adjust its own stride to negotiate the pole." ~ Eric Smiley
I recently participated in a training course on techniques and strategies to build core mindfulness skills. While there were many interesting strategies that will be helpful to my clients over time, I was struck by Sheri Van Dijk‘s presentation regarding states of mind. She focused her presentation on two specific states of mind, the Rational Mind and the Emotional Mind and talked about the distinction between them. I think the ideas she presented are directly relevant to what we desire as a performance state of mind. (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)
You need a short bouncy energetic canter in water. Not just to the jump in, but to any jump out or otherwise related to the water. Getting long and flat in the stride can be especially disastrous at a water jump.
Ellen asks…"My question: How do I go from being seriously anxious about lessons etc, to just being nervous but excited? I had a great time at Adult Camp, but it wasn't until almost the end of the 3rd day, I started to 'flow'. Thank you"
Thanks for the question Ellen. From my experience, dealing with anxiety in one form or another is the number one challenge that riders face. Whether it is anxiety about performing, anxiety about riding a specific horse, anxiety about a specific activity like jumping or cantering, or anxiety about lessons and/or riding in general; they all share the same basic challenge which is how do I regulate strong emotions. (Click on Question Title above (in blue) to read full answer)
Tip/Quote of the Day # 1818"The difference between an incorrectly compressed horse and a collected horse is that he collected horse can put his nose toward the ground (stretch) while staying round." ~ Nuno OliveiraTip/Quote of the Day # 1817
What you are used to doing will often feel right to you. That's why you should make sure that what you are doing is really correct, before you practice that way so many times that it becomes an ingrained habit - one that might be difficult to change.
Tip/Quote of the Day # 1816"You are connected with your seat to the horse’s back, connected with your legs to the horse’s body, and connection can only work if it goes through the whole horse and into the rider’s body, and from the rider’s body back to the whole horse." ~ Susanne MiesnerTip/Quote of the Day # 1815When you are looking down you will have even more of a tendency to ride from your hands. Looking up will help to remind you to ride from your seat. Tip/Quote of the Day # 1814
"Rhythm is more about balance than footfalls. Don't get obsessed with managing the footsteps, rather try to keep the horse bearing weight evenly in the hind end and the feet will fall into a steady rhythm." ~ Suzy Hettich
"Don’t let him trick you into too much contact. He is allowed to go into your hand, but not an ounce more. Never cover up in training, never one stride with too much in your hand. One ounce too much will build up too much tension; shorten the frame creating the reason to let go of the rein. Don’t accept that when you engage him, he becomes more rigid – bend him in, bend him out, test if the suppleness can match the engagement. Make him looser when you collect him. When I collect, can I keep him supple? If you don’t test him, he’ll test you. Expose him to a touch more suppleness in extension and collection – a little more throughness. If you don’t ask for throughness you won’t get it." ~ Steffen Peters
Question # 339: Kayla has another question about how to stay with her horse's motion over jumps. I feel like I land really heavily on the saddle on the back side of fences. Watching some of my videos (like the one I sent you a couple weeks ago), it doesn’t look like my leg is too far back, but I perpetually feel behind the motion when we land. I did shorten my stirrups and that has helped a little, but I feel like there’s a crucial piece that I’m missing in either my muscle tone or my position that would fix it, or at least help? (Kayla)
Hi Kayla!
The rider's ability to smoothly stay with the horse's motion over jumps requires these 5 things: (Click on Question Title above (in blue) to read full answer)Tip/Quote of the Day # 1807
I love to look for an area in a field where I can do a big circle on the side of a hill, where on that circle the horse has to go down into a little dip in the ground and back up again. This can really help the horse to "let go" in their backs. The canter in particular usually feels loose and free when they come out of it.
Tip/Quote of the Day # 1806"I like to keep a little bit of a relaxed knee and thigh and close lower leg. I find if I have my calf close to the horse, I can really control how much pressure I’m putting on my seat. If I get locked in with my knee and my thigh, it’s very hard for me to control the seat, the seat’s putting more pressure than I want. Relax the knee and the thigh; keep the lower leg close, and then you can control very subtly the amount of pressure you’re putting in with your seat." ~ McLain Ward Question # 338: Nancy has a question about one of her legs, which tends to be too far back.One of my lower legs tends to be too far back. I have been told to get it forward by the girth, but I feel crooked when I place more weight in that heel even though I was told that corrected the problem. Not sure if muscle memory needs to be relearned... eventually it will feel normal? Or if the problem may be coming from up higher in my hip and seat. (Nancy)
Hi Nancy!
This is a common problem! Very few humans are natually symmetrical to begin with. And many of the things that we do every day only serve to make us even more one sided! Think of how you... (Click on Question Title above (in blue) to read full entry) Video # 314, and Question # 337: Lauren has a question (with video) about her new OTTB mare.I just got this ottb mare, who came off the track last year. She's hot but not out of control. But if I relax my seat and loosen my reins she is wanting to go into the next gait. She won't relax. She's very tense, but not in a scared way. No transitions or anything. Almost like she is still on the track. I did alot of circles, big and little. When she begins the circle she quiets down and gives her head but coming out of the circle (Or the other side of the circle) she speeds right back up. Do you have any advice on getting her to relax, and quiet down? I feel like our whole ride was half halts. Also during our circle she will fall to the outside, so i close my outside leg a little more and then she falls inside. Maybe im asking for the bend/turn the wrong way? (Lauren) (Click on Video or Question title above (in blue) to read the answer and the critique of this video)
I’d like to tell you about one of the most challenging exercises I was ever given in a jumping clinic. Before I describe the exercise to you, though, I want to set the scene.... (Click on Blog Title above (in blue) to read full entry)
"When you do something too much, too long, it’s called drilling. That’s not a good word with horses. If it’s not perfect it's ok. We have tomorrow, we have next week. Don’t be excessive with the horse." ~ George Morris
