tipping to the side

[shire horse gir]

i find that my saddle is slipping over to the left , the saddler has checked it and has said , in her opinion, i am bracing myself with my right leg which causes the imbalance. My instructor can only suggest i ride with my right stirrup longer than the left which hasn't worked . Any ideas ? My horse is 17hh and is a shire X with quite a "flat back" her saddle is a wintec and appaers to suit her .

Silly comment to make to alter stirrup length to compensate. Solve the problem, don't ignore it. Saddle probably moves when you mount and you don't correct it and check girth soon enough. Most people do not sit centrally either, so you need to be constantly aware you are central. Your position is probably collapsing to the right, which would make you send weight left. Change your instructor and maybe get some lunge lessons.

[lynnemh]

i have had the same problem with someone who rode one of mine, a different rider, and the saddle sat square....if your horses saddle fits correctly, are you sat absolutely square in the saddle? get someone to watch from front and behind both in walk and in trot. then get them to position you first and then check you after movement. if you are not sitting absolutely square in the saddle, then trotting without stirrups may help you to get a better position. if your stirrups are too short it can throw you to one side, even if they are equal length, and finally, most people have one leg shorter than the other, but ussually not so much that it would throw you to one side-- have you had any falls which may have altered your pelvic bones on one side, or foreshortened the muscles on one side of your body? i hope any of this might help.

[Fab filly]

Originally Posted by shire horse gir

i find that my saddle is slipping over to the left , the saddler has checked it and has said , in her opinion, i am bracing myself with my right leg which causes the imbalance. My instructor can only suggest i ride with my right stirrup longer than the left which hasn't worked . Any ideas ? My horse is 17hh and is a shire X with quite a "flat back" her saddle is a wintec and appaers to suit her .

I am trying to solve the exact same problem!! I think its my back....an old injury that gives me jip.......had saddle check....horses back checked too!! So decided i need mine checking now!!

[lynnemh]

fab filly- shiastu and mc timoney chiropractic worked wonders for me and my back!

[Riley Roo]

It could be that you don't sit square in the saddle - after all we are not asymetrical - but it could also be that your horse is one-sided as they are not asymetrical either. If your horse is right sided - ie their right hind is stronger than their left hind they'll push more from the right and this in turn will make your saddle sit to the right instead of central as that is how their muscle is built up and vice versa for left sidedness.

Have a look at this website - Joni Bentley looks at ways to straighten your horse's and your one-sidedness to help prevent injuries, improve balance, suppleness etc - and it will also explain more clearly what i am trying to say

http://jonibentley.co.uk/

[Fab filly]

Originally Posted by lynnemh

fab filly- shiastu and mc timoney chiropractic worked wonders for me and my back!

Thanks lynnemh I will get on the case x

[Smartie Pants2]

My daughter is having this problem and is going for physio on monday and a Mctimoney lady is coming out for TJ on monday, hopefully things will improve

[eventerbabe]

first, sack your instructor! then get yourself looked at by a sports therapist. I have a knee injury which means when i'm in the saddle, i feel my right stirrup is always shorter than my left. I spent years hiking the saddle to the right and hence into a squint position for the horse. I had sessions involving BOTH the sports therapist and my RI. I'd gotten so bad i was collapsing through my hips and was really wonky. I now have mental notes on what physical adjustments i must make to keep myself straight. Because my RI was heavily involved in the sessions, she can help remind me too. The result? my saddle doesn't budge an inch now because i'm sat straight.

[Joyscarer]

I do that and went through the altering stirup lengths thing and even doing lots of work without but it wasn't working really.

The cause of my issue was that I was putting too much weight on one seatbone and this had nothing to do with stirups and everything to do with feel - it was the last thing I started to fix before my break from riding. Wonky felt right and that was wrong

So my advice is to get on and shut your eyes. Think about how you arrange yourself in the saddle and whether this is your issue too. It might be useful if you can have someone look at you too. If it is then keep this in mind and every minute or so reassess. You need to be able to identify that your normal feeling is unbalanced and then do it long enough to identify what the right feeling is and form that habit!

[shire horse gir]

Thanks for all the suggestions have an "old " back injury and hadn't connected the two things . will be making an appt next week to check evrything out

[sarahandbronson]

Can you get someone to video you riding?
I used to get written on dressage test sheets that I tipped slightly to one side, but they never said which, and by persuading my mum to video me riding over a period of time we worked out what the problem was, and fixed it

Also, you could try schooling with no stirrups (for all the session ) and see if your saddle has slipped then.