A major component to riding well, comfortably, and with a useful seat begins with FEEL. But to gain feel, you must first have body awareness - a sense of your body's activity, and orientation (if you will) to the the world around it and the situation at hand. This is the subject matter when your trainer says, "why did you do that?", or, "did you feel that?"
If you did not "feel that," then you probably need to work on your body awareness.
While you use your whole body to ride effectively (and just stay on the horse, for goodness' sake), I've decided to break out this concept of awareness to 4 key areas; while each of these areas have multiple functions (ie, communication, balance, etc), each area has a primary 'job' that, when working well, makes the whole of riding more effective and with less effort. And we all like not having to work so hard, right? Right.
So the four quadrants are as follows. I have placed them in the order that I believe they are best learned -- meaning that you're going to have a really hard time finding quiet hands if your butt is bouncing all over the place... and as such, you will be most successful to focus on these areas individually (as much as one is able) in this order, at least to start.
1) Seat (pelvis) and Thigh
2) Spine
3) Lower Leg and Feet
4) Shoulders, Elbows and Hands
You may not find all of these details right off the bat, but the point is to take the time to practice, and notice what you notice. I think you'll really be surprised at the things you find when you open up your awareness.
We'll start this with what I believe are the two major components to developing good feel and balanced equitation.
Seat and Thigh: This is your base, your engine room, if you will. This is where the horses movement impacts your body first, and most; it is where rhythm and movement with the horse begins; it is also your primary source of balance on the horse. Your seat and thigh absorb the bulk of the horses energy created by movement - imagine we throw a large rock into a body of water - the water has the biggest ripples at the point of impact, then they dissipate as they get farther away. In just the same way, if you're working this part of your body well, you will sense that the energy created by the horse is greatest in your seat, then dissipates -- up your spine and out through your head, and also down and out through your heels. if you think of this while riding, you might actually have a sense of being more elongated!
How to develop awareness: A particular exercise I often use with my students on the lunge is to simply close your eyes. If you're able, drop your stirrups and allow your attention to go to your pelvis and your legs - notice how your body has a natural swing with the horse, and that it's very similar (at least at walk and trot) to the same way you would walk or jog yourself if you were on the ground (a little bit up and down, a little bit right and left). If you change the motion of your seat to something different that what the horses' movement is offering, what do you notice? Try hyper-tightening your knees and thighs for several strides, then doing the opposite - go totally loose. What changes do you notice in your ability to balance easily, and to move with the horse in each state? What would a "happy medium" look like?
Spine: The spine is the connector -- sounds obvious, but how we allow our spine to carry us can really make or break our ability to be mobile - especially in sudden situations such as a spook. I say 'spine,' to give you the visual of the entire area we're looking at - the neck and head, back/torso, down to the tail. The spine's main function as we're discussing it here, is to keep the upper body aligned (ears over shoulders over hips), and to distribute (and dissipate as discussed above) the horses' energy coming through from the seat. The spine should always be relatively straight - neither hollow (arched), nor too round (slouched).
How to develop awareness: First off, I'm a huge fan of stretching while on the horse - again, on a lunge line or if you are on a steady Eddie, at the walk, drop your reins and stretch both hands straight up, as far as you can reach; hold for several seconds, then take this stretch into a side bend.
Another great tool for finding the feel of your spine is to (while at the halt or walking) drop your stirrups and bring your legs up to rest over the front of the saddle, putting you in a true chair position. Notice how and where your seat makes contact with the saddle, and how easy it is to stretch your spine tall. Bring your legs back to normal position and attempt to keep your back position.
Play with changing the position of your back - too arched and too slouched. What do you notice about your movement and your ability to guide the horse? What happens when you hyper-tense your abs? Again, notice changes specific to your ability to balance, move with the horse in rhythm, and maybe even your ability to use your cues effectively.
That's it for today! I'll post part two next week, working on the more detailed pieces of this puzzle. Thanks for reading and stay tuned!
Happy rides,
Erin
If you did not "feel that," then you probably need to work on your body awareness.
While you use your whole body to ride effectively (and just stay on the horse, for goodness' sake), I've decided to break out this concept of awareness to 4 key areas; while each of these areas have multiple functions (ie, communication, balance, etc), each area has a primary 'job' that, when working well, makes the whole of riding more effective and with less effort. And we all like not having to work so hard, right? Right.
So the four quadrants are as follows. I have placed them in the order that I believe they are best learned -- meaning that you're going to have a really hard time finding quiet hands if your butt is bouncing all over the place... and as such, you will be most successful to focus on these areas individually (as much as one is able) in this order, at least to start.
1) Seat (pelvis) and Thigh
2) Spine
3) Lower Leg and Feet
4) Shoulders, Elbows and Hands
You may not find all of these details right off the bat, but the point is to take the time to practice, and notice what you notice. I think you'll really be surprised at the things you find when you open up your awareness.
We'll start this with what I believe are the two major components to developing good feel and balanced equitation.
Seat and Thigh: This is your base, your engine room, if you will. This is where the horses movement impacts your body first, and most; it is where rhythm and movement with the horse begins; it is also your primary source of balance on the horse. Your seat and thigh absorb the bulk of the horses energy created by movement - imagine we throw a large rock into a body of water - the water has the biggest ripples at the point of impact, then they dissipate as they get farther away. In just the same way, if you're working this part of your body well, you will sense that the energy created by the horse is greatest in your seat, then dissipates -- up your spine and out through your head, and also down and out through your heels. if you think of this while riding, you might actually have a sense of being more elongated!
How to develop awareness: A particular exercise I often use with my students on the lunge is to simply close your eyes. If you're able, drop your stirrups and allow your attention to go to your pelvis and your legs - notice how your body has a natural swing with the horse, and that it's very similar (at least at walk and trot) to the same way you would walk or jog yourself if you were on the ground (a little bit up and down, a little bit right and left). If you change the motion of your seat to something different that what the horses' movement is offering, what do you notice? Try hyper-tightening your knees and thighs for several strides, then doing the opposite - go totally loose. What changes do you notice in your ability to balance easily, and to move with the horse in each state? What would a "happy medium" look like?
Spine: The spine is the connector -- sounds obvious, but how we allow our spine to carry us can really make or break our ability to be mobile - especially in sudden situations such as a spook. I say 'spine,' to give you the visual of the entire area we're looking at - the neck and head, back/torso, down to the tail. The spine's main function as we're discussing it here, is to keep the upper body aligned (ears over shoulders over hips), and to distribute (and dissipate as discussed above) the horses' energy coming through from the seat. The spine should always be relatively straight - neither hollow (arched), nor too round (slouched).
How to develop awareness: First off, I'm a huge fan of stretching while on the horse - again, on a lunge line or if you are on a steady Eddie, at the walk, drop your reins and stretch both hands straight up, as far as you can reach; hold for several seconds, then take this stretch into a side bend.
Another great tool for finding the feel of your spine is to (while at the halt or walking) drop your stirrups and bring your legs up to rest over the front of the saddle, putting you in a true chair position. Notice how and where your seat makes contact with the saddle, and how easy it is to stretch your spine tall. Bring your legs back to normal position and attempt to keep your back position.
Play with changing the position of your back - too arched and too slouched. What do you notice about your movement and your ability to guide the horse? What happens when you hyper-tense your abs? Again, notice changes specific to your ability to balance, move with the horse in rhythm, and maybe even your ability to use your cues effectively.
That's it for today! I'll post part two next week, working on the more detailed pieces of this puzzle. Thanks for reading and stay tuned!
Happy rides,
Erin
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