Confused about first lessons

[Jo2003]

Hi. I am a complete novice and just took my first two lessons. Although I am happy to have survived the first trotting etc some things the instructor said really confused me. People who have been riding before cannot answer me either..
She kept saying that when in walk you should ´push´ the horse forward with your seat, I have no idea what she means, all I know is that the bored horse I was on only tried to stop the whole time and walk as slowly as he could so I prob wasn´t ´pushing´him? ;) Anyone know what she meant?

[sallym]

Have a look at the "Kinder way" section on this site which explains it much better than I can.

Best wishes and good luck with your riding.

Sally

[Santorium]

It's a difficult question to answer (I asked it when I started riding), all I can say is that it clicks after a while.

Enjoy the riding :)

[cvb]

(1) you can not push or otherwise move half a tonne of horse without serious injury !

(2) you can however influence the horse.

for example if you ride like you're really tired, bored, unhappy - your body looks/feels like that, and the horse will react to your mood

Or if you're happy, excited, full of energy - then the horse will normally cheer up too !

And if you're scared, you normally tense up and the horse goes Uh Oh !!

So - if you get a chance, try it out. Really over emphasize tired/bored, then try happy/energetic. See how the horse reacts.

Don't advise trying scared tho ' :eek:

Do be aware that beginners horses are normally chosen for their laid back nature so you might not get a vast amount of reaction.

In terms of your instructors "push" - well if s/he really means it, its not the way I would personally teach (because of point 1 above !). However, if they are just trying to get you to influence the horse postively, then thats another thing.

Some more things to try....

1) when you are in rising/posting trot - try rising a little faster, or a little slower, and see how the horse reacts. Most horses will try and match you and this can be a convenient and sneaky way to affect pace and temp. (However, you need to be quite good at rising to have the control to do this without getting unbalanced - so be happy with simple rising before you try it).

2) ride to music. The rhythym of the music will affect both you (you are likely to ride in time to it) and the horse (who will often also match their speed/tempo to the music). Its useful to have some different tracks so you can see the difference. Some horses love particular types of music and will make their opinion very clear in the way they go !

[Tootsie4U]

Your instructor isnt crazy!

Yes, your seat and legs become more and more important the more you learn to ride. In theory, riders should be able to steer and guide a horses speed and never need reins.

What she means is this: open your hips. If you are stiff and lock them (many new riders do just because they lack balance and coordination) you essentially go *against* the natural swing of the horse as it walks. If you open your hips, your pelivs will move alot more which is a pleasant feeling for the horse. You can encourage a horse to keep walking if your hips are *pushing* rather than being locked up. Vice versa, you can slow your horse by planting your seat (or locking it up).

That help?

[Jo2003]

I had a look at the kinder way section but it says there it only makes a horse slow down / stop. So was my instructor wrong or is it a different theory?
Anyway, thank you for the advice, have my third lesson this evening so I´ll try to see who was right and whether I feel it ... just hope it will ´click´ at some point like you said!

[Jo2003]

Thank you again for the advice; really like the idea of the ´mood influencing´ you mentioned, now really wondering what happens with ´scared´ though :)
See, i thought that letting your hips move back and forth would make me look like I was sitting on a ´rocking horse´ but that makes sense; case of when the horse is feeling happier it is more likely to react or ´work´ I guess?

[Tootsie4U]

you're not wrong either. The trick is getting your "seat" to be independant from the rest of your body. Your hips have to move, but not your shoulders or head etc. If so, then yes, you're going to look like you're on a rocking horse ;) This only comes with time and practice (and patience!). Keep the theory in mind and it makes it easier to apply to your riding sessions!

good luck and enjoy!

[Jo2003]

:) I did not and still don´t expect to have a great posture or get even the basics like ehm steering the horse within the first couple of lessons so yes patience is the word I guess!
really happy to get some simple, practical info which I can at least remember and apply easily, since all those terms don´t mean anything to me! This is a good site for that though!;)

[Tootsie4U]

Something you might find very useful in the next few lessons is this resource. I still use it whenever a problem or question comes up. The website is www.horse-sense.org

An article off that website that you might find helpful for this specific question is http://www.horse-sense.org/archives/sitting_trot_image.htm

[Jo2003]

Thank you so much, really helpful link that one. Feel really positive and enthusiastic now. (good mood I understand) So let´s hope Magic feels up to it tonight! :p

[Santorium]

My horse is called Magic... You haven't horse napped her have you?

[Jo2003]

Ehm, is he light brown, a bit stubborn, likes to cut off as much corners as possible and an absolute beginners horse? he is also supposed to be very famous for making the beginners´life difficult. (which doesn´t sound very logical but hey) :p

[icantjump]

god that sounds familar i think bess the horse i ride, is allergic to corners she always cuts them and she is so lazy but she is bomb proof and she can put up with my rubbish posting and flapping hands:D

[FreedomStar]

I think your instructor might have been referring to the subtle weight shifts some riders use when riding, but since you are still a novice of sorts it would've been VERY confusing if she went on and on about it!

[epcd3000]

I was soo lucky for my first two lessons to be able to ride a boarder's horse named Beauty. (We at the stables gave her the record for world longest pregnancy.. Not because she is.. But because she -looks- it, LOL.) But anyway, she's the sweetest gal I've ever ridden so far. Unfortunately, now that I've begun cantering and doing other higher activities during my lesson, it'll be too strenuous for her. :(

[Jo2003]

Maybe the horses know these lessons by heart and just think hey, I am going from a to c, does it matter if I turn left a metre before?? can´t really blame them either

[cvb]

As Pat Parelli says, if you act scared then your horse goes "Oh no! Even My predator is scared ! It must be somethign AWFUL!!!" and may react to get you away from whatever is scaring you. So not something to play about with.

Having said that, a beginners horse will probably do the equivalent of shrugging its shoulders and "here we go again" and just get on with it.

The idea is that various joints in your body need to move to absorb the energy and movement - so that you are moving in orer to appear still :D

if you don't absorb the movement you are jolted all over the place. :(

[Wally]

I find different horses act differently with scared folk. Our guys tend to be kind if you are scared and seem to say, "Okay, you're not qualified, just stick with me and I'll sort it for you" Some horses take advantage ruthlessly and and either play on your fear or they react to it by becoming scared themselves.

The "driving" seat will make you insecure in the saddle, you are fighting the movement of the horse not moving with him. Some sensetive horses will hollow and become sore if you wriggle and drive your backside about in the saddle. You need to learn to move with the horse before you can influence him well with your seat.

If you can get a copy of Heather Moffett's "Enlightened Equitation" it will help you a great deal.