cantering

[obsessions]

i just started riding 6 months back and i have just learnt to canter. i see everyone cantering with nice beautiful posture but i on the other hand just can't seem to get it right. whenever i start to canter, my back will automaticlly fall backwards and i look like i am leaning back. i could even feel the saddle touching my back. how can i correct this? any help would be lovely.

[jaymmz]

Well i'm certainly no expert, but I think you are doing really well to be cantering at all :) It took me ages to get from trot to canter. If you are cantering, well that's great.
But don't forget you have only been riding 6 months. Don't compare your ability to others, who may have been riding alot longer.
My instructor encouraged me to lean back a little, mostly because I had a tendancy to lean forward. I still lean back a bit now. What I think about now as I canter is pretty much the same as when in trot or walk, I think about my leg and foot position, I try to keep my tummy in, back fairly straight, and I imagine a big rubber band pulling my hat up. It's tricky coz when you first start to canter it feels really fast and that's a bit worrying. But it's not really, especially in the school. It's such a lovely pace, my fav.
Really, time and practice will help you. So have fun :)

[SailleCinza]

My suggestion: relax, and don't worry. I've been riding for 6 years, and my position isn't perfect. Your basic position at all the gaits is something that has to evolve. So don't think you have a *problem,* you are rather learning the basics of things that even more advanced riders work on... for their ENTIRE lives.


I've spent time studying the proper position, as I'm a dressage rider now. The most fundamental thing is an easy balance, and free hands. STRETCH BEFORE YOU RIDE. :) Remember to relax and sit tall, but not lean back. Your lower back will rise up and down with the horse - encourage and expect this movement. Spend time "softening" your vision and just feeling the horse move under you, until you realize what kind of balance is required. Never sit stiffly, you must move with the horse. It's easy to think that you must always sit tall and straight, but realize that this will vary with which part of the canter the horse is in. Just keep cantering, and relax!

Believe it or not, some of that natural balance will come from riding through varied situations, such as bolting horses and taking jumps... especially ones in which you have no idea how high the horse will jump. Then, you will learn to adjust your balance without thinking about it.

Good luck, and more importantly, have fun!

[jaymmz]

Oh good advice SailleCinza, relax! :) That's why it took me so many months to canter at all. Too tense, not relaxed at all, and the harder i concentrated on the problem the less relaxed I got! :rolleyes: My instructor was always telling me to relax. And breath :D