You owe it to the horse to put in as much effort to become an athlete yourself. So interval training and core work and mental training. Uses trampoline, beam,boxing, something different every week to improve reactions and to take out of comfort zone. Also helps you to understand the physical & mental demands on the horse in the work Stand and stretch like a winner. Give 5 compliments a day. Get in balance by standing on 1 leg (6outen other) for 10 seconds, breathing 3 secs in 6 secs out. Clearing mind- purple elephant exercise. Standing focused so cannot be moved by thinking about goal. Using Visualization in real time. Walk and move looking up and forwards not at ground . Doing juggling but then using peripheral vision to see something else eg trainer holding specific number of fingers up, physical exercises eg in pairs looking into each eyes and try to slap the others hand. Change exercises often, always variation and specific numbers. Keep focus- catching ball, not showing emotion but focus on next ball not on failure if you miss one. Boxing teaches using bursts of energy then return to relaxed breathing state Correction in posture is always at the core never in the shoulders. The horse- first thing is speed control, horse stays in same rhythm with rider in same balance and relaxed leg no pushing. Check responses to leg and then to rein.be able to slow on the long side/diagonal and speed up on short side so horse doesnt anticipate. vary number of steps forwards and back or go forwards then more forwards before slowing down. Horse over reacts, rider should not over react and must move on and not focus on mistakes. Next control- can you flex horse without shoulders moving off line then use speed control in flexed position.same both reins and in different paces. In canter horse must not come back against rider but must stay rolling over back when leg put on.then using travers with speed control & shoulder in with speed control. Then half pass in consistent rhythm then varying speed. Dont kick when horse exhibits tension ad creates more. Focus on next pace not on transition. It is working on the shortening and stretching and speed control work that develops the core strength of the horse. Speed control starts from the beginnning of the training but will be more progressive in the younger horse. Consistency is key. Both from the horse and the rider. Must give same aids every time. Quicker leg not stronger leg. Leaving horse alone ie not nagging with leg or hand. But also keep pushing the boundaries and find where limits are. Dont worry if make mistakes.always do what you have always done you always get what you have always got. If you want consistency then be consistent if you want to progress then push boundaries. If horse resists keep focus on what you want not on the problem and look at the place you want to get to. If you want horse to stay forwards keep legs forwards and not back. Large circle on canter quarter in the varying rhythm. Keep upper leg relaxed particularly when asking forwards and in canter. Then in speed control. Then smaller circles quarters in. Keep leg on and.canter must roll forwards, think shift weight back but keep forwards. Aids for collecting, keep same pressure in saddle, thing forwards with legs but slightly bring body back and half halt with reins. Loose legs so dont tense in thigh or knee if horse pulls. Allow horse to pull only at your core which is the only thing that should tense.you can push down with thighs but dont tense them up. Feel forwards to allow horse to collect. Every horse is different so need a range of tools to deal with challenges. You can learn from everyone so keep an open mind. Need to be flexible in goals and planning. Eg if horse doesnt feel fit enough to do planned lesson then need to adjust. AC feeds her own horses every morning to gusts how they are. Uses visualisation not a series of aids to do transitions and movements. Uses video to evaluate everything that happens. Helped her to keep still leg - kept watching it til made her decide to stay still and was able to visualize stillness and misled and nerves reacted to keep leg still Flying changes, start work in speed control. In Left canter go shoulder in put weight to left change flexion change. Start changes the easiest way for individual horse. Sometimes short diagonal so well can back horse off if runs away. Others from counter canter others from simple change with single walk step. If issues then check speed control. If late behind then put shoulders to new outside and make horse just change behind. the change where the horse bucks or runs away then that usually becomes the best change in the long run. Always check balance by riding consist rhythm on long rein in canter.then check on control by visualizing collection not doing aids. Does 6-7 Schooling sessions a week but most often outside on track rather than inside in arena. Variety & diversity. Strength and fitness as well as exercises. Polework and small jumps. Doesnt do galloping to extreme but uses interval training and monitors heart rate and recovery time. If horse doesnt react to leg dont give bigger & bigger aid but give twin and encourage horse to go more over back. Keeping rhythm is more important. Keep forwards thought always in collection. In half pass taking both hands in one direction moves shoulders one way so if quarters leading take hands towards inside, if quarters trailing then talks hard towards outside. Focus on keeping identical rhythm. Collected walk must be forwards on the leg but bringing body back. Pirouettes- circle quarters in. Check your straightness and that of the horse. Think increase energy in the movement. Try to only use leg when needed, ask then see what you have. Always wants to work with horses that want to go forwards. If lazy then like a lazy person - you can motivate but will just return to laziness unless you consistently ensure horse is quick to leg. But always check other possible causes. Horses should naturally desire to go. Working with the horse that goes into self in pressure situations so rider feels they have more horse behind than in front. Bend & flex thru corners. Keep riding forwards more and more until get speed you want and keep it thru corners. Nodding head always indicate lack of impulsion.quicker not stronger leg. If horse does hollow one side make him a little hollow on other side. Use travers into corner if horse falls into inside shoulder or steps to outside with inside hind. Make sure ears turn with nose in flexion. feel body stay over legs and doesnt fall in. Can help to sit on schoolmasters to feel movements. But often better to learn by mistakes as long as you learn from it. Warm up. 10 mins in walk. If very energetic hind legs then should put horse deep and round but if slow hind leg this may make slower. Always work a little bit the opposite of what the horse wants. Dont worry if horse comes behind vertical then dont worry providing you have maneuverability in the neck and frame. After warm up check speed control and check ability to bend in front and behind eg shoulder or travers. Doesnt ride test or exercises for their own sake. More about playing and testing adjustability to angles and speed control.passage is speed control and increasing more to hind leg from trot and then speed control to passage to piaffe. Some are better from walk to piaffe but then more care over rhythm and that hinds and fronts match. Single tempis- 3 with speed control then again. If balance is right then can do however many. Dont be too quick in aids. Relax horse down when successful. Where horse is very tense in arena seek out competition and ask if can ride in arena after competition is over. Or ride as training test. Ride test as if training. Be careful you dont grab reins from extended to collected walk, only pick up as quickly as you can still keep walk quality. Harder to ride straight if trying to correct straightness rather than riding forwards. if horse nervous then tends to be tense in back so do lateral supleness work eg tracers to get release of back.look to see bulge in neck immediately in front of withers.to build muscle have to lengthen and shorten so dont stay in place too long. Ask for lower neck with hand then relaxing hand forwards and encourage horse to follow. Need for the trainer to understand the character of the horse and of the rider. Some need compliments whereas some need kick up butt. So if you kick the sensitive horse they become more insular and dont trust you. Can improve walk rhythm by working in very deep going so horse takes more time to pick feet up or by working in tracers & shoulder in
Posted on: Sun, 24 Nov 2013 07:50:13 +0000