A Wonderful Lesson

The next LB (Light Bulb) Moment will have to wait for tomorrow. I just had the most wonderful lesson and I have to share! It is a wonderful feeling, for both me as the instructor and for the rider, when the lesson is wonderful!

The owner of the training horse came to ride. He is a little apprehensive about riding, as he is middle aged and haven’t ridden much at all, even though his wife has horses. He just loves the personality of this horse, though, and he really wants to get along with riding him. He is a motorcycle guy, and he was getting frustrated with trying to ride the horse with horse cues and not in motorcycle mode.

Something clicked with me at the AAHS clinic. Or after starting to read the Centered Riding Book 2 on the flight home from the clinic. Whatever it was, worked! Maybe it was due to the fact that I am still tired from 10 days of traveling, 1 day of being very tired here at home, and another day of deciding how to catch up with all the paperwork. When it came to lesson time, I was ready for a break. So I took things slow!

I walked the horse around as I talked about the Nature of the Horse, explaining why the horse does what he does. Then I had him mount and do a couple of exercises to work on sitting correctly. I had him stand in his stirrups and get the straight line from ear to heel. I talked about your center, and what a Tai Chi ball would feel like in your center, small but heavy. I talked about that ball spinning in our center and our center sinking into our seat. The weight of our seat should continue down into our legs and feet and sink into the ground, as we keep the sensation of feeling grounded. As he rode, I talked about the Following Seat, and had him move with the horse, allowing his hips to move freely. I had him pedal backwards and feel each side of his seat move as the horse walked. As he felt the movement and moved with the horse, the horse’s movement became freer and he moved with a deep stride. As he rode, I had him steer with his body, not just his arms. I told him to think about having flashlight beams coming out of his shoulders, waist and knees, and as he turned the horse, to turn with his body. That worked really well to help him turn the horse. He had a great time riding his horse, and the frustrations that we had a few weeks ago were no longer visible. It was an awesome lesson.

Things just clicked with me, too. I felt like that was the best lesson that I ever gave. I was relaxed and watched the rider and his horse. I gave him practice time after each step that I taught him. I know I need to work on giving the riders time to think things through and practice so that they understand the concept. It seemed to work great today. I look forward to our next lesson. Until then,

“Embrace the Journey!”

Happy Birthday to my oldest brother, Ray! Wished we weren’t so far away. Here’s wishing you many, many more years!

Light Bulb (LB) Moments

Now I have to start another area of discussion, besides Centered Riding and
Secure Seat Exercises, Training Tips, and Questions. This has to be the Light Bulb (LB) Moments!

My LB Moment came yesterday! I was riding Shaggy, my 8 year old QH gelding who hasn't seen much ride time except 30-60 days each year, and very random. I have been riding him this last month. At the AAHS clinic, we were talking about Unlocking the Lower Back and Standing in the Stirrups and moving with the Horse, then Sitting the Trot and still allowing the movement of the trot to go down your leg and into the stirrups.

Unlocking the Lower Back helps to lower your center of gravity. With all your weight in your seat, pedal backwards as the horse moves. Do not move your leg, but you may appear to be rocking from the waist down. You can lengthen your horse’s stride by pedaling harder, and shorten the stride by pedaling slower. You can turn the horse by pedaling one side. This is the same as the Following Seat in Centered Riding. Allow the hips to move with the movement of the horse.

Standing at the Trot and Moving with the Horse at the Trot, the horse will shift your weight from stirrup to stirrup. The horse’s body moves freer. His gait will become more fluid as his back comes up. As your hip, knees, and ankle joints become more flexible, you will move will your horse more.

Well, finally, after a year of Centered Riding exercises, of the Following Seat, I got it!!! I sat at the walk and I could move with my seat as the horse moved his hind legs. My hips became freer. My seat moved with each gait, and the movement went down in to my legs, through my knees to my feet.

I made a conscious effort to feel the walk stride in my seat, which I always did with Finny. This time, I tried to feel it go into my legs. I think Finny had such a smooth gait is the reason I didn't get the feeling as strong. With Shaggy, he is very true and has a very deep stride, and I could really feel his walk and trot. I could feel as I did the Backwards Pedaling motion, like you should do in the Following Seat and Unlocking the Lower Back, each motion of the pedaling! My seat and legs moved as if the were pedaling. Awesome feeling!!! Try feeling this in your seat before trying to feel it in your knees and legs.

My next LB moment came while I was reading the Centered Riding Book 2 and I
can't wait to share that with you tomorrow!

“Embrace the Journey!”