Not happy with my stirrup length

[lgourlay36]

Just recently come back to horse riding after 20 years and had 3 or 4 lessons but cant seem to get my stirrup length right. Im either feeling like a jockey and cant keep my balance on the rising trot or let them down a hole and the iron ends up in the middle of my foot. Any suggestions? :o

[Ross]

Try riding for a short while with no stirrups, and let your legs find their own length - then put your stirrups there.

But give yourself time - you'll get back into it :)

Ross

[Pudding]

Start off shorter and gradually let them down a hole.........you are back in the saddle after a long time.....nerves makes you tense and your leg length will shorten until you get more relaxed and comfortable...........

You'll feel like a jockey until you get the feeling and confidence again...........don't worry about it.......small strides and it will all come back

X

[~*sugarlump*~]

i think that for basic riding they should be at about your ankle. or when about to get on put the stirrup under your arm by your body and i think the leathers should be as long as your arm when your fingers are stretched out. i explained that really badly :rolleyes::o
when you know your stirrups are the right length, dont think about them and soon enough you should forget about the length:)

[kedwards]

Try not to focus too much on the stirrup length. If you are finding a difference of one hole changes the leathers from too long to too short, then it's more likely that your discomfort lies elsewhere.

If your ankles and knees are stiff, it's going to be difficult to absorb the motion through these joints and maintain a soft (but consistent) position in the stirrup, whatever the stirrup length. So it might be that you could benefit from working on relaxing unecessary tension or doing off-horse work to improve your flexibility.

Some students find it helps to buy their own stirrups and irons that they can attach to whichever saddle they are using. I don't think it's generally necessary, but it is a way to ensure that you always have the length you prefer without having to spend an inordinate amount of lesson time adjusting and readjusting.

[stormchaser]

First, do warm up exercises for your legs... in fact, while you're at it, warm up, streach, losen up joints... warm up everything before you ride. If you have the time, cross train with other exercise to improve flexibility.

No-stirrup work helps you lengthen your leg get used to longer stirrups. If you keep at this, you will be able to drop your stirrups lower.

Other 'silly' exercises might help improve legs that can go with any stirrup length... standing in stirrups during walk, sitting/rising trot without stirrups etc.

Otherwise you could punch another hole somewhere on the leathers if you can, or buy your own set...

Just a few thoughts.

[Skib]

I always had such difficulty with stirrup length. And there is no simple answer. It depends on the sort of riding you are doing and the shape of the horse. And on the horse's saddle, for the position of the stirrup bar may vary from one saddle to another.
A rough guideline after mounting is to make sure you are sitting central on the horse, let your legs hang down each side and ask someone to fix the stirrup irons at the level of your ankle bone. I find this works well when I go to a new place. However, in winter if you are wearing boots with thick soles, the stirrups may need to be one hole longer to allow for your thicker boots.
Once you have the stirrups at that length, test them by standing up in the stirrups as you would in rising tot. Can you rise clear of the saddle? If not the stirrups are too long.
The next thing to try is whether you can get your leg on the horse. Can you get your calf back behind the girth as one does to turn the horse? I like to ride in long stirrups in my lessons, but if one is stiff or a newer rider, it can be more difficult to use the leg aids if your leathers are too long. In a lesson, you can ride with no stirrups to stretch your legs, but out hacking you cant do this, so you might want to shorten your stirrups to give you better control of the horse.
You mention the longer stirrups sliding up your boot. This is another thing that happens with older or stiffer riders. In theory our heels ought to be down, but our tendons dont stretch easily. And if we force our heels down, it brings our knees up, to grip - shortening our leg on the horse and making things worse. My solution is to use safety stirrups. But as you get back into riding, this will get better.
Riding schools dont make this stirrup problem easy, do they? Most schools where I had lessons used odd stirrup leathers and changed them all the time. I walked round with complicated notes about stirrups holes on every pony I rode. You dont sound to feel too safe with shorter stirrups and my choice (or rather the prescription given me by an elderly AI) was to learn to ride with long stirrups.

[C.J_Sox]

well people have always said to me that the stirrup should hang at your ankle length, i ride with them shorter though... no idea why i just find it comfyer :D
-x-:)