Well now that you are spending time working on strengthening your seat its time to understand what your horses body is telling you about their strong/braced side and their weak/supple side.
Have you ever looked at a horse and wondered why their mane lays on one side or it lays all over the place? Well there is a reason for that. These are areas that tell us where they are braced or where they are weak. This is the starting point to your horses road map. Just like us your horse uses different parts of their bodies to balance themselves. For instance if you are right handed, your strong areas will be your right arm and your left leg. You right knee would be what you would use on your right side to move forward which makes your right hip your weakest part of your body (just like your horse). So back to your horse. Ever horse has a strong/braced side and a weak/supple side. When you look at your horse, the side that has the most mane on it is your horses weak/supple side. Meaning this will be the side that you can flex their neck easier and the rein that has very little weight or less brace on it. This will also not be the rein that you will gravitate to unless it is your inside rein. Most horses mane will probably lay on the right side. Also confirming why the right lead is the lead that gives people the most problem to pick up. As we start to study our horses and understand where they brace and where they fall to the in or outside of our circle, we can become more prepared to helping them become more balance and are able to carry us as their riders. Helping you to understand easier we are going to look at the horse that has their mane on the right side and nothing on their left side. I use a term "Northbound" when i talk about how horses move. This means that a horse uses their front end to go forward. When ever you have weight or other words a strong inside rein, that is where they have all of their balance and this is where they are moving forward from (Northbound). Their balance should ALWAYS, i will say it again ,ALWAYS be on their outside hind. This is where they need to carry their weight so they can pick up the proper lead or put you on the right diagonal. Horses were never meant to be ridden but since we choose to do so, it is our responsibility to help them learn to balance their weight on their outside hind not on their front end (head, neck and shoulders). This is how we can help them carry our weight when we are riding them. This is why it is so important that we spend so much time developing and strengthening our seat and gettinh our bodies independent from our horses. I have a saying "Our horses can only be as strong as their riders". So i don't overwhelm you with to much information we will stop here. So go out and see where your horses braced/strong side and their weak/supple side. Also as you ride feel which rein is the one that is the heaviest. Also look and see which side you have the most trouble getting the correct diagonal. No cheating now, as soon as you ask your horse take that first trot step you need to be going up and leading them in their trot. Another words don't wait a stride to pick up the proper diagonal. Remember the reason for this is this will be the strong/braced side of your horse. This is where they will carry most of their weight and leading with instead of balancing on their outside hind. All of this information is here to help you understand who is influencing who and why is your horse doing these things you don't want. Remember YOU are the LEAD dancer. YOU are the one who influences the horse not the other way around. So go out and have fun. This is a journey. May all your rides be GREAT!!!!!
2 Comments
|
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. Archives
September 2020
Categories |