When I restarted riding several years ago I developed a problem that had never bothered me before.  During my ride and for a few days later the sole of the balls of my feet felt sore, not terribly sore, but still sore enough to be irritating and inconvenient.  During my youth we were always expected to put up with pain, pain from sore muscles, pain from aching joints, and the pain from falling off our horses!  Since my foot pain was minor I sort of shrugged it off and figured it was due to my age and something I would just have to put up with.  I was wrong and I should have listened to my feet.

One big change in tack during my life is the adoption of the Fillis stirrups.  When I started riding we mostly used the Prussian sided stirrups, where the side of the stirrup flare out flat where the branch meets the tread of the stirrup.  Back then stirrup pads were considered a luxury and the first time I got to use them it was because I had bought them myself and put them on my stirrups.  Even without the stirrup pads, the "pricked" treads helped prevent the rider's feet from sliding in the stirrups.  I rode a lot in these stirrups without ever hurting on the balls of my feet and I used to ride for hours at a time both with and without the stirrup pads.  And in hunt seat we USED the flare on the stirrup, we would wedge our feet to the inside of the stirrup with the inside of the balls of out feet pressed up firmly against the flare.  This greatly added to the steadiness of our positions and to our security in the saddle.

But when I started riding again everyone was using Fillis stirrups and the regular stirrups in the tack stores were all Fillis, so I adapted.  Less secure because it was just too painful to force the inside of the ball of my foot against the round and thin branches of the Fillis stirrups I blamed my MS for my inability to make my position super secure.  When my feet started hurting I told myself that it really did not matter because I was only riding a half hour each session.  I thought my foot pain was coming from the branches of the stirrup, that the pain from the inside of the ball of my foot was migrating across my sole.  It never occured to me that my foot pain came also from the TREAD of the Fillis stirrups, after all they all have these nice thick rubber pads!  How could that cause my foot pain?  This happened with all the Fillis type stirrups I used, regular, single off-set, double off-set and Peacocks.  While the pain in the sole of my foot improved with the bow-flex stirrups there were still those round branches which still bothered my feet in spite of the rubber coverings.  Nothing seemed to work as well as the old type Prussian stirrups.

Then around a month ago I went by my favorite tack shop and Donna, the owner, excitedly told me that they had gotten, on consignment, a pair of stainless steel Stubben Prussian stirrups with pads!  Rapidly refiguring my budget I quickly decided to buy them, the books I had planned to buy could wait.  Then they sat around for a few weeks before I finally remembered to put them on my saddle.  The Prussian stirrups are lighter than the Fillis stirrups, and their tread is not as thick from top to bottom, though the top surface of the treads is much wider than the tops of the Fillis tread.  I was sort of worried about these stirrups being lighter, I am a firm believer that anything that helps the stirrup fall off the foot when the rider falls is a good safety feature.  Plus, when my foot looses its stirrup, it is easier to find the stirrup if it is heavier and not flying around.  But, hey, I learned to ride in the Prussian style stirrups, I rode for decades in Prussian style stirrups, and I figured I would adapt.  If they did not work out I have plenty of Fillis stirrups to use.

Fifteen minutes into my first ride with my new stirrups I noticed that my foot was not hurting ANYWHERE.  My feet felt so much more secure in these stirrups!  I could press the inside of the ball of my foot against the flared branch without feeling any pain.  I could put my whole weight in these stirrups without any pain.  I could ride with my feet positioned properly witout any pain.  I dismounted without any foot pain, and walked back to the barn without pain, and the next few days my feet felt no pain whatsoever.  What a change!  A week later I used them again with the same results.  

I have had a few problems in re-adapting to these lighter stirrups.  I had to search for them more with my feet when I picked them up, and it was harder for me to get them into the proper position across the balls of my feet.  But once I got everything positioned right my whole position started improving.  I had to "re-find" my feet because they did not hurt, and every time I got it all right my old security in the saddle appeared again!  IT FELT SO GOOD!!!!!  With the Fillis stirrups I always felt like I was teetering on a razor's edge with my feet, with the Prussian stirrups I felt like I had a solid floor under my feet.  When the stirrups did not cause pain my whole leg relaxed into proper position and feeling secure was a breeze because everything was where it belonged with no unnecessary tension.  Debbie yelled at me a few times about my feet until I "re-found" them but I improved throughout the lesson.  I have been trying out another bit with Mia (Myler egg-butt,  MB 33 high port snaffle mouthpiece, level 3), and all through my experiences with my new stirrups Mia started reaching out for contact more and keeping light contact longer even when I did not feel totally secure.

At the end of both rides I decided to do the acid test.  After helping with the grooming, trimming Mia's toes , helping tack up, walking to the ring, and riding 25 minutes I was VERY tired each time and sort of shaky.  So I asked Mia for a sitting trot.  Mia did a nice sitting trot, Mia reached out for contact, then Mia gave me full contact, and Mia kept up the contact longer than she ever had before.  While Mia carried her head a little higher than I like (ramener), she was neither inverted nor behind the bit and I am sure when I fully adapt to my new stirrups I will be able to coax her into carrying her head lower with her nose further out in front during the sitting trot.  Debbie was very pleased with us both, in fact Debbie started telling me that she uses the sitting trot to tell if a person is a good rider, looking for head up, seat bones "glued" to the saddle, the rider's seat following and "getting into" the motion of the horse's back, legs stable, and hands staying still.  So I asked her how I was doing with my sitting trot and she said while I was not perfect yet I was doing sitting the trot very well.  Mia obviously agreed.    

All of a sudden all the problems I've been struggling with while riding look like they are easily correctable.  Without the foot pain my whole position has improved, and it will continue to improve as I adapt to these stirrups.  My whole leg is finally working like it is supposed to, and I no longer feel like I am teetering on the brink of a precipice.  My balance is better since my feet feel like there is a floor under them.  Just because I changed back to the old style Prussian stirrups I now have hope that I can redevelope my old much more secure seat.  I will be able to move forward with my riding!

Stubben still makes Prussian stirrups, and some of the polo stirrups are similar.  Race horse exercise riders also use the Prussian stirrups, apparently without stirrup pads.  They find the "pricked" tread gives them security even when it is wet and muddy, so these stirrups are also available through race tack stores.  If the soles of your feet hurt during and after riding I highly recommend trying out the Prussian stirrups.  You may be amazed how much your riding improves when your feet are pain free.

Have a great ride!

Jackie Cochran