Post by Calaminty Jane on Mar 26, 2010 10:11:03 GMT -5
Spring Warm-up on the Trail
by Lynn Palm
Posted: Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Working at a walk is great to do in cool spring weather. It also gives you the perfect opportunity to work on your aids coordination and to learn how to more precisely control your horse's body position through the maneuvers.
If you live in an area that has had a hard winter with lots of cold weather and precipitation, then you and your horse probably are impatient for some quality riding outside. Before you begin the following exercises, do some stretching exercises yourself and warm up your horse either by longeing him or by letting him play at liberty in a controlled fashion.
Step-by-Step Yielding Exercise to the Left
First, the horse's body position and his spine must be straight and his head slightly flexed in the opposite direction of the lateral movement. In yielding left, his head should be slightly flexed to the right. (Note: Your horse already must know the turn on the forehand to do yielding.)
Aids sequence for yielding left:
1. Give the right leg aid asking the horse to move away from pressure and yield to the left. The pressure with your right leg will be stronger than your left.
2. Next, and most important, the left rein should be used as an indirect or neck rein to keep the horse straight so his shoulders stay in line with his hips.
3. Your left leg will have just a light touching pressure behind the girth to support the horse's straightness as he moves forward and sideways evenly.
4. Finally, the right rein slightly flexes the horse's head to the right, just enough so the rider can see the horse's right eye.
To ask your horse to yield to the right, use the same aids sequence with the opposite leg and rein.
A common problem riders have is trying to accomplish the yield to the left by pulling back on the right rein. All this does is bend the horse's neck and make him crooked.
You may be able to yield only a few steps in each direction, depending on how wide the riding area or trail is. Practice this exercise three to four times in both directions. This will help the horse listen to your aids and loosen his body at the same time.
Transition to Trot
After you do the yielding exercise, transition to the trot. Trot straight for 20 to 25 strides, and then transition back down to a walk. You can work in the yielding exercise again for variety. Yield to one side and then transition to a trot. Now add some variation in speed at the trot: slow it down, then speed it up, then slow it down again, all without breaking into a canter or a walk. This will help your horse to be more rounded and collected as well as help to loosen up his joints.
Yield to the Canter
To build on the yielding work, add a canter to the routine. The step-by-step sequence for the transition from yielding into the left lead canter: Posted: Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Working at a walk is great to do in cool spring weather. It also gives you the perfect opportunity to work on your aids coordination and to learn how to more precisely control your horse's body position through the maneuvers.
If you live in an area that has had a hard winter with lots of cold weather and precipitation, then you and your horse probably are impatient for some quality riding outside. Before you begin the following exercises, do some stretching exercises yourself and warm up your horse either by longeing him or by letting him play at liberty in a controlled fashion.
Step-by-Step Yielding Exercise to the Left
First, the horse's body position and his spine must be straight and his head slightly flexed in the opposite direction of the lateral movement. In yielding left, his head should be slightly flexed to the right. (Note: Your horse already must know the turn on the forehand to do yielding.)
Aids sequence for yielding left:
1. Give the right leg aid asking the horse to move away from pressure and yield to the left. The pressure with your right leg will be stronger than your left.
2. Next, and most important, the left rein should be used as an indirect or neck rein to keep the horse straight so his shoulders stay in line with his hips.
3. Your left leg will have just a light touching pressure behind the girth to support the horse's straightness as he moves forward and sideways evenly.
4. Finally, the right rein slightly flexes the horse's head to the right, just enough so the rider can see the horse's right eye.
To ask your horse to yield to the right, use the same aids sequence with the opposite leg and rein.
A common problem riders have is trying to accomplish the yield to the left by pulling back on the right rein. All this does is bend the horse's neck and make him crooked.
You may be able to yield only a few steps in each direction, depending on how wide the riding area or trail is. Practice this exercise three to four times in both directions. This will help the horse listen to your aids and loosen his body at the same time.
Transition to Trot
After you do the yielding exercise, transition to the trot. Trot straight for 20 to 25 strides, and then transition back down to a walk. You can work in the yielding exercise again for variety. Yield to one side and then transition to a trot. Now add some variation in speed at the trot: slow it down, then speed it up, then slow it down again, all without breaking into a canter or a walk. This will help your horse to be more rounded and collected as well as help to loosen up his joints.
Yield to the Canter
To build on the yielding work, add a canter to the routine. The step-by-step sequence for the transition from yielding into the left lead canter:
Continued:
1. Keep supporting your horse with your left leg so he can "bend" around this leg.
2. Position your right leg back of the girth (further back than your left leg) to bring the horse's hips to the left.
3. The horse's head is slightly flexed to the left, and the horse is supported by contact with the left rein.
4. The right rein supports with a light touch against the neck so the shoulder does not go too far to the right and the head does not go too far to the left.
5. When you ask for the canter departure, ask first with your seat, and then use slightly more pressure with your right leg. At the same time, continue supporting with your left leg, and use both reins to maintain the horse's body position, which should be slightly curved to the left during the transition.
Your cues for the transition from yielding into the right lead canter will be exactly the opposite.
Mix It Up
Once you are comfortable with the canter transition, try the following exercises:
-- First, walk, and then transition to a slow trot. At the trot, yield either to the left or right, and then transition to a canter. Next, transition down to a slower trot, yield to the other side, and then halt.
-- Add a yield at the walk to a trot transition. Lengthen the trot to a posting trot, and then transition to the left lead canter, back to a posting trot, and then down to a slow trot, a walk, and finally to a halt.
-- Start on the right side of the trail at a walk, and then transition to a slow trot. Yield left at the slow trot, and then transition to a right lead canter. Bring it down to a slow trot, yielding back to the right at this slow trot, and then halt.
Remember that external conditions like temperature and wind can affect your horse's responses. If your horse is quiet and responding well to you, then use the canter work in your routine. However, don't give yourself a hard time if you do not feel comfortable adding the canter or if you do these exercises at a walk.
The best part of this outside training after a winter of being cooped up is that you are heading down the trail or outside the arena so your horse doesn't think of it as work!
by Lynn Palm
Posted: Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Working at a walk is great to do in cool spring weather. It also gives you the perfect opportunity to work on your aids coordination and to learn how to more precisely control your horse's body position through the maneuvers.
If you live in an area that has had a hard winter with lots of cold weather and precipitation, then you and your horse probably are impatient for some quality riding outside. Before you begin the following exercises, do some stretching exercises yourself and warm up your horse either by longeing him or by letting him play at liberty in a controlled fashion.
Step-by-Step Yielding Exercise to the Left
First, the horse's body position and his spine must be straight and his head slightly flexed in the opposite direction of the lateral movement. In yielding left, his head should be slightly flexed to the right. (Note: Your horse already must know the turn on the forehand to do yielding.)
Aids sequence for yielding left:
1. Give the right leg aid asking the horse to move away from pressure and yield to the left. The pressure with your right leg will be stronger than your left.
2. Next, and most important, the left rein should be used as an indirect or neck rein to keep the horse straight so his shoulders stay in line with his hips.
3. Your left leg will have just a light touching pressure behind the girth to support the horse's straightness as he moves forward and sideways evenly.
4. Finally, the right rein slightly flexes the horse's head to the right, just enough so the rider can see the horse's right eye.
To ask your horse to yield to the right, use the same aids sequence with the opposite leg and rein.
A common problem riders have is trying to accomplish the yield to the left by pulling back on the right rein. All this does is bend the horse's neck and make him crooked.
You may be able to yield only a few steps in each direction, depending on how wide the riding area or trail is. Practice this exercise three to four times in both directions. This will help the horse listen to your aids and loosen his body at the same time.
Transition to Trot
After you do the yielding exercise, transition to the trot. Trot straight for 20 to 25 strides, and then transition back down to a walk. You can work in the yielding exercise again for variety. Yield to one side and then transition to a trot. Now add some variation in speed at the trot: slow it down, then speed it up, then slow it down again, all without breaking into a canter or a walk. This will help your horse to be more rounded and collected as well as help to loosen up his joints.
Yield to the Canter
To build on the yielding work, add a canter to the routine. The step-by-step sequence for the transition from yielding into the left lead canter: Posted: Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Working at a walk is great to do in cool spring weather. It also gives you the perfect opportunity to work on your aids coordination and to learn how to more precisely control your horse's body position through the maneuvers.
If you live in an area that has had a hard winter with lots of cold weather and precipitation, then you and your horse probably are impatient for some quality riding outside. Before you begin the following exercises, do some stretching exercises yourself and warm up your horse either by longeing him or by letting him play at liberty in a controlled fashion.
Step-by-Step Yielding Exercise to the Left
First, the horse's body position and his spine must be straight and his head slightly flexed in the opposite direction of the lateral movement. In yielding left, his head should be slightly flexed to the right. (Note: Your horse already must know the turn on the forehand to do yielding.)
Aids sequence for yielding left:
1. Give the right leg aid asking the horse to move away from pressure and yield to the left. The pressure with your right leg will be stronger than your left.
2. Next, and most important, the left rein should be used as an indirect or neck rein to keep the horse straight so his shoulders stay in line with his hips.
3. Your left leg will have just a light touching pressure behind the girth to support the horse's straightness as he moves forward and sideways evenly.
4. Finally, the right rein slightly flexes the horse's head to the right, just enough so the rider can see the horse's right eye.
To ask your horse to yield to the right, use the same aids sequence with the opposite leg and rein.
A common problem riders have is trying to accomplish the yield to the left by pulling back on the right rein. All this does is bend the horse's neck and make him crooked.
You may be able to yield only a few steps in each direction, depending on how wide the riding area or trail is. Practice this exercise three to four times in both directions. This will help the horse listen to your aids and loosen his body at the same time.
Transition to Trot
After you do the yielding exercise, transition to the trot. Trot straight for 20 to 25 strides, and then transition back down to a walk. You can work in the yielding exercise again for variety. Yield to one side and then transition to a trot. Now add some variation in speed at the trot: slow it down, then speed it up, then slow it down again, all without breaking into a canter or a walk. This will help your horse to be more rounded and collected as well as help to loosen up his joints.
Yield to the Canter
To build on the yielding work, add a canter to the routine. The step-by-step sequence for the transition from yielding into the left lead canter:
Continued:
1. Keep supporting your horse with your left leg so he can "bend" around this leg.
2. Position your right leg back of the girth (further back than your left leg) to bring the horse's hips to the left.
3. The horse's head is slightly flexed to the left, and the horse is supported by contact with the left rein.
4. The right rein supports with a light touch against the neck so the shoulder does not go too far to the right and the head does not go too far to the left.
5. When you ask for the canter departure, ask first with your seat, and then use slightly more pressure with your right leg. At the same time, continue supporting with your left leg, and use both reins to maintain the horse's body position, which should be slightly curved to the left during the transition.
Your cues for the transition from yielding into the right lead canter will be exactly the opposite.
Mix It Up
Once you are comfortable with the canter transition, try the following exercises:
-- First, walk, and then transition to a slow trot. At the trot, yield either to the left or right, and then transition to a canter. Next, transition down to a slower trot, yield to the other side, and then halt.
-- Add a yield at the walk to a trot transition. Lengthen the trot to a posting trot, and then transition to the left lead canter, back to a posting trot, and then down to a slow trot, a walk, and finally to a halt.
-- Start on the right side of the trail at a walk, and then transition to a slow trot. Yield left at the slow trot, and then transition to a right lead canter. Bring it down to a slow trot, yielding back to the right at this slow trot, and then halt.
Remember that external conditions like temperature and wind can affect your horse's responses. If your horse is quiet and responding well to you, then use the canter work in your routine. However, don't give yourself a hard time if you do not feel comfortable adding the canter or if you do these exercises at a walk.
The best part of this outside training after a winter of being cooped up is that you are heading down the trail or outside the arena so your horse doesn't think of it as work!