All Blog Posts Tagged 'balance' (23)

Christmas Books

Christmas Books

I did not get to ride this week. Part of the reason is that I am being super cautious about the Covid-19 pandemic, and the other reason is that, for once, winter came to NC just after the Winter Solstice. It is 20º F here right now at 9:30 AM. No snow, just bitter cold.…

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Added by Jackie Cochran on December 26, 2020 at 11:13am — No Comments

I Miss Riding

I Miss Riding

The COVID-19 shut down now looks like it may last for months, not weeks. I want to get close up to a horse to groom, I want to get close up to a horse by riding, and I want to get close to a horse by taking care of it after riding, but, alas, fate is dictating otherwise.

This is a true bummer!…

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Added by Jackie Cochran on April 11, 2020 at 2:46pm — No Comments

Trying to Bring it All Together

Trying to Bring it All Together

The past few months have been a time of discovery for me, discovering just how badly my multiple handicaps affect my position, seat and aids when I ride horses. Between my Pegasus Butterfly saddle, the “rider's push-ups”, the Equicube getting my shoulders right, the Rainbow reins, and the old type Wellep snaffle bit, I discovered how abysmal my riding was and,…

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Added by Jackie Cochran on April 21, 2018 at 1:16pm — No Comments

I Put My Feet "Home" in the Stirrups

I Put My Feet “Home” in the Stirrups

I find that trying to do the “rider's push-ups” is quite challenging for me. Until my lesson on Wednesday EVERY TIME I did a “rider's push-up” I felt like I was teetering forward and back in my stirrups, my right stirrup still felt 2 holes longer than my left stirrup, and I had a great fear of falling head long over my horse's shoulder. In order to get my…

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Added by Jackie Cochran on September 23, 2017 at 2:02pm — No Comments

Is My Right Leg Shorter Than My Left Leg?

Is My Right Leg Shorter Than My Left Leg?    

Last Sunday, for my ride on Cider using my new Pegasus Butterfly saddle, I added both the ¼” and 3/16” bridging shims to my Contender II BOT/ThinLine pad.  This made the pad thicker, which meant Shannon had trouble getting Cider’s string girth to the bottom hole of the billet straps.  If we had used any girth but a mohair string girth we would have been in real trouble, but since the string girth has some stretch to it Shannon finally got…

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Added by Jackie Cochran on November 26, 2016 at 2:07pm — 1 Comment

Harnessing The Power of the Half Halt

The half halt should be one of the earliest things that riders learn to master when learning to ride their horse. It is a vital part of riding well and being able to performing accurate, balanced movements with your horse. However, while many riders understand the concept of the half halt in theory, unfortunately the carrying out of the actual movement leaves a lot of room for improvement.

You can listen to the audio version of this blog post…

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Added by Lorna Leeson on July 30, 2015 at 11:00am — No Comments

Building Solid Foundations for Jumping

Jumping, it has the ability to thrill and to strike fear into riders, sometimes all at once!   However, if approached in a systematic and patient manner, most of the fear will dissipate allowing both you and your horse to enjoy jumping; whether it be a pop every now and then, or a trip round a course of fences weekly at a local show.

You can listen to the audio lesson over on the original blog post …

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Added by Lorna Leeson on April 8, 2015 at 8:00am — No Comments

Why is Your Horse 'Falling In'?

More importantly, how do you know if your horse is falling in?  The quickest and easiest way I can explain this is to imagine you are riding a circle which you have planned out beautifully in your head; but as your horse travels around it you seem to be getting more and more off track with each passing stride; in fact what started out as a 20m circle is soon resembling a 10m triangle, drawn by a three year old...

Or another area this where problem can tend to rear its ugly…

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Added by Lorna Leeson on March 18, 2015 at 3:30pm — No Comments

Serenity

One of the challenges I face as a rider is knowing when to ride and school dressage and when not to.   I've learned to listen to my horses on this.  There are days when my mares tell me in no uncertain terms that they just want to be left alone to eat their dinner.  Although my mare Elena de la Vega (2004, golden bay Friesian/Warmblood cross pictured in my profile photo),… Continue

Added by Ingrid Henry on September 10, 2011 at 9:20am — 2 Comments

SENSE & NONSENSE says William Micklem



Happy children and happy summer riding days. Full of friendship and partnership with both their ponies and other riders. How lucky these young riders are as long as they come under the wing of a good coach. A coach who fully understands that what children learn first tends to stay with them, just as with a young horse. So our young riders and young coaches need excellent coaches. They don’t need to be high-level coaches of elite performers,…

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Added by William Micklem on July 17, 2010 at 7:30am — 7 Comments

Ride With Confidence: Part 8 - The Art of Staying in the Saddle

While we all know there is a huge psychological component to riding there is no denying that it is also very much a physical skill. Everyone needs to develop a balanced, stable secure seat on a horse. That requires improving your core strength and balance but there is a payoff for that effort. You will fee much more confident in the saddle if you know that you can stick there no matter what happens.


Your posture and balance also have a tremendous influence on your horse's…
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Added by Laura Hunter on March 10, 2010 at 9:49am — 1 Comment

The Smile Muscles of the Seat

As someone who specializes in movement…
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Added by Sit_the_Trot on February 23, 2010 at 10:00pm — 1 Comment

How can I keep my hands quiet? The Secret Lies Below your Navel!

Question: When I ride my hands bounce up and down at all the gaits. Not a lot but enough so I am not riding horses to the best of my ability and knowledge. I can keep the horse on the bit but in the posting trot every time I go up my hands come up too.Holding a strap doesn't help. Trying to make my hands go down as I go up doesn't help. What can I do?



Basically if you are stiff in mid-back or in the upper chest and shoulders and the shoulder blades don't slide well over the rib cage… Continue

Added by Sit_the_Trot on February 9, 2010 at 10:00am — No Comments

Breathing: A Lesson on the 1st Step to Effective Movement

As riders we get all sorts of information about how to have correct posture, how to breathe, and how to use our abdominal muscles. All of these things affect the way we stand, sit, move, and breathe. They even affect the way we think and our emotions. As babies we knew how to breathe naturally and use our breath for power. We filled our lungs, letting our belly expand, and screamed! When we breathe naturally our lungs fill as our diaphragm lowers and flattens out, and, because our stomach,… Continue

Added by Sit_the_Trot on January 30, 2010 at 9:30am — 1 Comment

Balance Exercices: #1

Have you ever felt un-balenced on a horse? I know I have! So here are some exercices to help you stay in balence!



#1 Around The World

Swing your right leg over the front of the saddle, so that you are sitting side saddle. Next, swing your left leg over the back of the saddle so that you are facing backwards. Then swing your right leg over so you are sitting side saddle again, and then swing your left leg over so that you are sitting facing forward again.



Next month… Continue

Added by Sasha Merlin on January 25, 2010 at 9:22pm — 2 Comments

Tummy Out! Find Your Strong and Supple Core and Release Tension

“Tummy out, tummy out,” I heard in lesson after lesson when I rode in Germany at Etoile International Equestrian Academy under the direction of Stephan Kiesewetter, chief trainer. Tummy out? I’d never heard such a direction from a dressage instructor, yet when I did it, I felt my lower back fill out and hip joints relax, the mobility of my lumbar spine increased while my upper torso stabilized, and I sat deeper. I found it easier to follow each big, bouncy stride—in fact, my horse gave bigger,… Continue

Added by Sit_the_Trot on January 20, 2010 at 4:30pm — 7 Comments

Supple, Balanced Seat + Dissipation of Force

The rider, to ride well must be supple; the body must be filled with shock absorbers at every joint to allow the movement of the horse to go through the legs and up the rider's spine without getting stopped anywhere. For the dressage or western rider the ankles, hips and shoulders must be relaxed, moveable, and independent of the movement of the torso.



This… Continue

Added by Sit_the_Trot on January 14, 2010 at 10:00am — 2 Comments

Lazy Horse? Behind the Leg? or Tense Rider?

Often people who come to my clinics complain that their horse is lazy. They say things like: "He doesn't want to go," or "Even my trainer has problems getting my horse to go."

I say, really? your healthy, vibrant 5 year old is lazy? Your prime-of-life, athletic 10 year old is lazy? Really? Does he just stand around out in the pasture?

"Well, no..."

Hmmm, Let's see what's going on, I'll say.



I watch as they ride and yes, the horse seems sluggish, making little effort to… Continue

Added by Sit_the_Trot on January 10, 2010 at 7:00am — 3 Comments

Ride in Harmony: Half-Halt--Biomechanics of Your Seat, Legs, and Hand

For many riders the half-halt is elusive even though they understand that if done correctly it will rebalance the horse, increasing engagement of his hind end and readying him for the next move. Your seat during the half-halt must be ready to receive the engagement of the hindquarters and increase of energy created by your legs, otherwise you'll lose your balance and be tempted to hold onto the reins or grab with your legs because the change in balance and energy has left you behind the motion… Continue

Added by Sit_the_Trot on January 4, 2010 at 12:43pm — 5 Comments

Horse Nutrition: How do I balance my horse's ration?

The concept of a balanced ration in equine nutrition is similar to humans eating the daily portion of the four food groups.



The first step is to balance water intake. Here the balance is very much like money, you cannot have too much. Water is the most important nutrient in your horse’s diet and needs to be closely monitored.



The second nutrient to balance is long stemmed-fibre. However, much needed research is necessary to substantiate what long stemmed-fibre implies in… Continue

Added by Equine Nutrition @ Purina on December 2, 2009 at 11:30am — No Comments

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