Exercises to engage hindquarters

J

Joyous70

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Apr 6, 2009
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la la land
what exercises are best for getting a horses hindquarters engaged? and also when you manage to acheive this how do you know? :rolleyes: how does it feel? i know its difficult to explain feel but if any of you out there could try i'd really appreciate it :D
 
How does it feel. Like the motor is not only running but well oiled and revved up.


Excersises to get it going, first 15 to 20 mins in warm up walk are very important, lots of changes of direction/rein, get the horse to limber up, round up to you and carry you correctly.


Leg yields, shoulder in, scatter poles, transitions between the gaits (using half halts).


When you achieve it, you wont help but notice it, the horses way of going to very different.
 
:rolleyes: what are the aids for shoulder in?? and how does it work, we can do leg yeilding but he struggles with it mad considering he will side up to a gate and rein back, go sideways and anyway you ask him to open and close them when out on hacks or entering and leaving the school.
 
No so much an exercise, but good for the same muscles as I understand it is riding downhill. My mare really struggled with walking downhill (no problem uphill though), but as she learnt to engage her hind quarters more this has become much easier, not sure which helped which - the schooling or the hillwork.
 
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Joyous70 said:
:rolleyes: what are the aids for shoulder in?? and how does it work, we can do leg yeilding but he struggles with it mad considering he will side up to a gate and rein back, go sideways and anyway you ask him to open and close them when out on hacks or entering and leaving the school.
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Do you have an RI, it sounds like a good one would bring you on leaps and bounds at the moment.:)
 
I have started using a pessosa and harbridge reins to get him working from behind, and although have only been using them a few weeks they def support this, lots of hill work also will develop his hindquarters, gradual at first and then developing steeper hills, thats going up and down, helps with their balance too, being help to canter up and down hills in the same consistent rhtymn
 
Miss Maximo said:
I have started using a pessosa and harbridge reins to get him working from behind, and although have only been using them a few weeks they def support this, lots of hill work also will develop his hindquarters, gradual at first and then developing steeper hills, thats going up and down, helps with their balance too, being help to canter up and down hills in the same consistent rhtymn
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That is interesting as I was thinking of getting a Pessoa, but have read mixed reports.
 
Personally I wouldn't bother with a Pessoa, IMO they're mnore about teaching fancy headcarriage that correctly engaging the backend. If you look at pics of most horses in a pessoa, they're in a lovely outline but still not engaged.

If you need to use gadgets to establish this on the ground I've always found sidereins and double lunge lines work best.

Whilst riding, a good warm up is essential, lots of changes of rein, loops and serpentines, get your horse suppled and listening. Lots of transitions. Then introduce Leg yielding and shoulder in's. Out of the school hill work is highly beneficial. :)
 
unfortunately funds are very tight at the mo so a RI is not an option plus i don't know of any decent ones in my area, the only one i know of is out of action. As for a pessoa again funds are too tight and im a bit anal when it comes to my schooling and would rather get there with sheer hard work than use too many gadgets :rolleyes:

Hills when out hacking are few and far between and i need to be careful with boo, he has road nails in his back feet as he has a tendancy to slip without them would he slip more if he was using himself properly? :confused:
 
Hi
I had a share of a welsh D who was very much on the forehand at the start of lessons. I would therefore spend 20 mins just doing different transitions walk halt, walk trot walk trot halt etc at varying distances I would then introduce canter & do the same with that he really came back under himself once I had done these & then produced some great work! Good luck.
 
I have been using pole work for my boy-ground poles & slighty raised poles of different distances & at all paces.

Loads of transitions especiallt trot-halt, halt-trot is very good for this as is walk-canter or even halt-canter if you can.

Good luck!
 
I am also tyring to build up my boys back end as he's got really big shoulders but nothing at the back! Had a chiro out and he had a slightly twisted pelvis which probably explains this.

I have started using him again in the school trying to build up his bum. I have been lungeing with bridle on and side reins. He seems to hold his head up high and pulls on the bit due to being a bit stiff etc. Am I better doing this with a canvasson as I dont want to spoil his mouth.

Also can you use side reins and bridle for going over poles ok?
 
joey_olop said:
I have been using pole work for my boy-ground poles & slighty raised poles of different distances & at all paces.

Loads of transitions especiallt trot-halt, halt-trot is very good for this as is walk-canter or even halt-canter if you can.

Good luck!
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I've been doing a lot of this lately and it works wonders. This time last year I never thought we'd be doing halt to canter:)
 
we can do halt-canter and canter-halt :D must be doing something right then :cool: i'll try the trot-halt halt-trot as well and see how we go!

struggle with pole work think we have 4 poles and then about 6 grey drain type plastic poles which aren't very good if neddy steps on em :o
 
kookoolaalaa said:
I am also tyring to build up my boys back end as he's got really big shoulders but nothing at the back! Had a chiro out and he had a slightly twisted pelvis which probably explains this.

I have started using him again in the school trying to build up his bum. I have been lungeing with bridle on and side reins. He seems to hold his head up high and pulls on the bit due to being a bit stiff etc. Am I better doing this with a canvasson as I dont want to spoil his mouth.

Also can you use side reins and bridle for going over poles ok?
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Hi:) You sound like you're describing my mare;) her pelvis too was slightly out before it was realigned, she wa stiff and went around impersonating a lama haha!!

Alfiecanalandhorses045.jpg


As you can see mahoosive shoulder and no backend:p

Lunging didn't really help us, what did however was focusing our schooling around a lot of collection and lateral work. Transitions, serpentines, circles, leg yeilding, shoulder in, turn on the haunches and on the forehand.

Don't worry about pushing the horse forward into the contact; keep the rythm collect the energy and the horse will drop into it themselvels - speed does not = impulsion:)
 
Speed doesn't equal impulsion, but you can't have speed without it.:) I find it much easier to get speed, which usually brightens up my horse, then back it down, while keeping the energy. But I wouldn't do it this way with a horse who is nervous or rushes.
 
Ace87 said:
Personally I wouldn't bother with a Pessoa, IMO they're mnore about teaching fancy headcarriage that correctly engaging the backend. If you look at pics of most horses in a pessoa, they're in a lovely outline but still not engaged.
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i dont like pessoas prsonally, and wouldnt try one on my horse for this reason.

Instead I use Draw reins through a roller and an elasticated bandage around their quarters, works absolutly perfectly on my lot, really works their hind end without dropping their head carriage like the pessoa does (which from whaat I see can put some horses back onto the forehand)

xxx
 
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