cant give up

[HorseLuvr]

ive been riding my whole life western and bareback...i started english about two months ago and thought iwas doing fine but this past week i had a lesson alone .... i have group lessons so its harder for my trainer keep the attention on me getting used to english...my last lesson was alone and i started having all these problems riding which had never come up before... my back was arched...i wasnt releasing at the canter...i wasnt sitting well at the canter...my 2pt was terrible... i just started getting so frustrated and upset with the things that i find easy at western and because of it kept getting worse and worse...i was truly ready to give up and go back to western and never learn english again...when i came home i was really upset but got my act together and new i couldnt give up on riding english.... i was wondering if anyone else has ever gone through something similar to me and if anyone has any advice...it could really help
Wren :o

[equestrian3241]

Don't worry, everyone has bad days. It will take some time to become really good at english because the switch from western to english is a pretty darn big one. The positions are totally differant and so are the gates. Don't give up! It took me soooo long to get the right western position because I have ridden english all my life but I think I've got it now. Good Luck in your english lessons!

[galadriel]

The problems you're mentioning all have to do with tension. It's possible you felt a bit stressed since you were the only student--feeling stressed makes your body tense up.

When you tense up, your back goes stiff. You'll often lock your arms and elbows. So your back gets arched, you bounce, you can't keep your seat, you can't release or keep a contact...everything that you're describing can all be attributed to tensing up.

There are a number of ways to keep relaxed. One of them is to sing! When you tense up, you often hold your breath (you may not realize it). If you sing, you *have* to keep breathing. If you sing under your breath--or even just mutter nonstop to the horse--you won't be able to hold your breath, which makes a big difference to tensing up and locking up your back and arms.

One thing to keep in mind, though...if your riding is degenerating, you're going to get upset and you're going to get MORE tense. It can help to stop and take a few deep breaths, and back up to something you can do well. Once you feel like your riding is okay again, then you can get back to the things that were making you nervous.

Sometimes it's just the environment that makes you nervous--like being the only student and getting all of the instructor's attention. It can HELP to tell the instructor that it makes you nervous, and see what she can do to help you be more relaxed. She can't help you if she doesn't know what's going on in your head :)

If it's something out of your control, like a loud noise, or the weather, or other horses in the arena, or strange people watching...sometimes it's best just to get off and ride another day. If you keep making yourself more upset, you'll keep getting more tense and all you'll do is make yourself unhappy. It doesn't accomplish ANYthing to ride when you are tense and you CAN'T relax. But there are a lot of things that you can do to try to relax in stressful situations, and you can always try those first.

[Skib]

Sounds like you've been undermined.
I've often watched Mark Rashid teach. It seems to me that the knowledge you have from riding western, and the balance you have learned and the skills of communicating with the horse are all valid riding European.
Just a few things are new to you, but though it may take a bit of thought and practice, you will get them in the end. And a golden rule is to learn them in walk first.
Riding rising trot or forward seat puts more wheight down into your feet and legs, but your joints should stay supple. You should still be able to feel the horse's barell swing from side to side between your legs, and feel one foot drop and then the other. Nothing you already know about riding and horses will be wasted.

[LMS]

When I gave english riding a try after riding western & the occasional bareback after about 8 yrs, it was like starting all over again.

Don't feel discouraged, I found that in english style riding, the rider has a better developed balance. Once you adapt, you'll see that you'll progress much better.

Relax! Actually that is probably why you were a bit better in your group lesson, it may be because the spotlight wasn't directly on you.

Is your RI good at making you feel at ease & relaxed? When everything is so serious that all you can think of is how to do things perfectly, you tense up & mess up more because you're not focusing on the right thing.

Don't worry, you'll get there & then have a good chuckle on your first tries at the new style.;)

[HorseLuvr]

thanks everyone...your advice to me meant a lot...i think that the more i practice the better i will get at it :) i just got to keep trying and relax!

[BeachRiding]

I know how you feel, I have been riding western for four years and I am just switching to english, while it is not very different it is different. Hang in there!