Saturday, November 28, 2015

Bending from behind. WOW. New movement! Pirouettes/shoulder/half pass ...





"Woot Woot!  Breakthrough session for Susan and Beau! Check out how we are getting the "bend" behind the saddle and how it changes the way Beau is moving. This is part #2 where we move up into the trot"
What happened?  This is when Beau started using his hind quarters and taking longer steps, even in the in the lateral movements. As those who have been following the progress of Susan and Beau know...  Beau has been a complicated horse who came to us with a lot of serious issues.  With Susan's love for him and dedication to the training process he has continued to improve.  Since they are competing in 2nd level dressage they are doing more "lateral work" like the shoulder in, half pass and turn on the haunches (walk pirouette) These lateral exercises have not been easy for Beau to understand and his tendency, before this day, was to lock up at times and take short steps.  First we had to teach him how to be more supple in the front (bending from the front of the saddle and staying soft to the rein connection) than this day, we were finally able to add the bending from behind the saddle which changed his movement. The good news is that we have filmed their training process for the past 4 years so you can see everything Susan has done to get Beau to this level.  You can find them on this Youtube channel in the playlist area.
Are you enjoying watching the training progress of our featured riders?  As you know, we do not edit any of the videos and are showing you actual training sessions where I am coaching as I am trying to film.  It is your feedback that inspires both the riders and myself to continue sharing this information with you.

Wednesday, November 25, 2015

A new walk! Feeling when a horse is tracking up though all of the walks....





"What if.. like many riders you keep hearing that your horse needs to be more connected and balanced and connected at the walk. To do this, all we have to do (technically) is to keep our horse tracking up at all of the walk gaits.  What does that mean?  How do you know when "it" finally happens?  Now you can watch what happens as Susan takes Darrien to a new level at the walk by focusing on how he is staying connected in his neck as he is tracking up"



This was a breakthrough session for Susan and Darrien.  It has taken us two years to reach this level as Darrien (Susan's new FEI horse) had to work through a lot of physical and mental issues before he was ready.  In this session he changed his walk!  It was very exciting to see as for the first time Darrien is staying connected and in balance (round/on the aids/in front of the legs, on the bit, packaged and so on) as he tracks up at each of the walks (collected, lengthening/extension and medium). Now you can see the process we have used and the results.



Can you see how Darrien's walk changed?  Are you ready to try this Horse and Rider Awareness technique on your horse?  Stay tuned as there are two more videos from this session and you will be able to see that even Darrien's trot has now changed!



Saturday, November 21, 2015

Keeping the horses focus, when it does not want to... Training level. S4...




“What if.... in the middle of a training session, your horse decides it no longer wants to stay focused on what you are doing. What can you do to bring them back into connection?"


In this session we are trotting and Ani decides she would rather look at something outside the ring (this is not her barn..) This happens to so many riders. Something happens in the training process where the horse gets distracted and we need to get it back into connecting with us. On this day, Trudy's response was to start locking up in her hands and holding the reins too tight for too long. She told me that her arms were hurting which told me what was happening. To help Trudy get back in control I asked her to focus on something different. I asked her to focus on connecting Ani on one side for two strides, than the other. It worked! This is a great video as you can see that sometimes we simply need to try something different to get to where we wanted to go.

The "Two steps" on one side than the other is a technique I use to help riders become aware when they get "locked up" on the reins or holding their aids to long. When something stressful happens, like a horse not wanting to pay attention, it helps to keep a rider focused on asking their horse to connect on one side than the other. Once the rider can do this for two steps that can move up to 3 and so on. 

Friday, November 20, 2015

Improve your leg yield/half pass longer steps sideways at the trot. Secrets if The Trainers"





"Would you like to know how you can teach your horse to take longer steps sideways in the leg yields or lateral work? You are not alone.  This is one of the biggest challenges for riders and their horses as they both need to learn a new way to balance while staying connected" 


This was the final video of this series with Susan and Beau. What a transformation!  Our goal was to ask Beau to stay connected while taking longer steps in a different balance where he is shifting his weight back more to his haunches. As you can see, they have gone to a new level.  To do this, we focused on the "bend from behind the saddle".  What we also found interesting was the importance of Susan keeping her inside leg and weight softer and her position anchored on the outside  (as too much weight or riders leg aids will shift the horses rib cage and back out instead of under the rider on the inside for circles and lateral work)  We are very happy with the changes and are happy to share them with you so that you can also see the possibilities with your horse or students. To see more about how we started this process check out this weeks posts or go to our Youtube channel and look in the Playlist area under "bending from behind"

Have you tried this yet?  Stay tuned as I will be sharing the same process with Susan and Darrien next.  You will see that even a schoolmaster can learn new ways of doing things.  :) 

Wednesday, November 18, 2015

Can you keep your horse tracking up at all the walks? Feeling when a horse is tracking up and connected through the top line






"What if.. like many riders you keep hearing that your horse needs to be more balanced and connected at the walk.  This is what happens when your horse is tracking up. What does that mean?  How do you know when "it" finally happens?  Now you can watch what happens as Susan takes Darrien to a new level at the walk by focusing on how he is staying connected in his neck"



This was a breakthrough session for Susan and Darrien.  It has taken us two years to reach this level as Darrien (Susan's new FEI horse) had to work through a lot of physical and mental issues before he was ready.  In this session he changed his walk!  It was very exciting to see as for the first time Darrien is staying connected and in balance (round/on the aids/in front of the legs, on the bit, packaged and so on) now you can see the process we have used and the results.



Can you see how Darrien's walk changed?  Are you ready to try this Horse and Rider Awareness technique on your horse?  Stay tuned as there are two more videos from this session and you will be able to see that even Darrien's trot has now changed!

Sunday, November 15, 2015

Canter. Bending from behind.Retraining a Schoolmaster. S4 Dressage video






"Improving the canter with the "bend from behind" This begins with how you are using your riding position. It's time to focus on more ways to stay connected and in balance at the canter"

It has taken us almost 2 years for Susan to get Darrien to relax and respond to what we are doing. He came to us with a lot of issues and we are slowly unraveling them and rebuilding his knowledge. Finally, Darrien has lost a lot of his "anxiety" about the training process. He is breathing and more relaxed. As a result we can now focus even more on his balance and if he is really "bending" from the front and the back. As part of this process you will see that towards the end of this video that he starts going sideways as he tried to understand what Susan wants. The good news is that this gave us an opportunity to go even "deeper" in the following videos to fill in those missing holes in his training.

Have you noticed that your horse also has learning curves as you go through the training process? How has watching Susan and Darrien's process made a difference for what you are doing? 

Saturday, November 14, 2015

The bend from behind the saddle. How you can feel it! Trot. S4 Riding i...






"How do you know if your horse has the right bend from behind the saddle?  What does that mean and why is it important for what you are doing with your horse?  Watch what happens as this horse and rider focus on it"



If you are like many riders you enjoy doing different things with your horse. In this session (4 videos) you will see a big change in Beau's movement.  He went to a new level of balance and connection!  All we did was take the time to focus on if he was really bending from behind the saddle in the curves and lateral work.  It sounds easier than it might be.  Now you can watch the process we are using and apply it to what you are doing with your horse.



Can you see the changes starting with Susan and Beau again?  3 more videos in this series.  You will see big changes. So glad I was able to film this for you.


Friday, November 13, 2015

Improve your rising trot. Exercises to improve your balance and lower leg




"Now you can improve your riding position in 30 days!  It's time to go back to the basics and focus on your riding position at the Trot"

Trudy had only been able to ride maybe 10 times in the past 3 months when I filmed this. Like most riders, she is probably not as steady with her riding position as she would like to be. We start re connecting her riding position by focusing on her lower leg position. In the process we work on issues that are common with most riders. To do this I have added the neck strap so that Trudy keeps her hands where they need to be to balance her seat over her lower legs.  Next, we start doing different exercises that will help her to focus on what she needs to feel.  At first, she is not able to sit two rise one in the posting but little by little...  gets back into a more secure seat. 

To improve your riding position all you need to do is try these exercises for 30 days.  5 minutes a day.  You will be amazed at the difference in your riding position. 

Let me know how these exercises work for you.  Please tell us what you experience (whining is allowed...) and how different your riding position and lower leg feel after you try them.