Tip/Quote of the Day # 4654
Check for self carriage often throughout your work. Each time you do, you will get clear and accurate feedback as to whether or not your horse is carrying himself properly.
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Tip/Quote of the Day # 4653
"Remember, the conversation between you and your horse must never be dull or inert. It should be, 'Ask, receive, give. Ask, receive, give.' Ask with your body and legs; receive through your body into your hands; give primarily with the hands, but also with your body and
Tip/Quote of the Day # 4652
Remember that whatever you are used to usually feels right to you. You will often have to step out of your comfort zone if you wish to improve.
Tip/Quote of the Day # 4651
“Thoroughbreds tend to thrive on physical movement, and they are, like all horses, hypnotized by their own rhythms. Repetition of success creates a sense of peace.” ~ Steuart Pittman
Tip/Quote of the Day # 4650
Your horse's stride can only be as long as his neck is long. So try not to shorten the neck, but rather look for the feeling that your horse is reaching forward into your connection with his head and neck.
Tip/Quote of the Day # 4649
"Good riders land over an obstacle, go to the next jump and make a good arrangement. Great riders land with their horses already arranged for the next obstacle." ~ Bill Steinkraus
Tip/Quote of the Day # 4648
When you ride powerfully forward to the base of your jumps you allow your horse to jump in such a way that is actually the easiest and most natural for him. Building the horse's power right to the base of the jump means that he stresses his hocks
Tip/Quote of the Day # 4647
Competitions are a test of our progress as horsemen. They are not an end in themselves.
Tip/Quote of the Day # 4646
Riders who get the best out of the sensitive type of horse are usually especially good at being tactful.
Interval Training For Conditioning the Event Horse
In the sport of Eventing, ensuring that our horses are truly fit for our level of competition is one of the best ways to prevent unnecessary injuries.
Tip/Quote of the Day # 4645
Control the tone of the voice in your head when you are riding, as if it becomes irritated or harsh, your horse will feel it and become tense. If it becomes timid or uncertain, your horse will feel that and may either become timid and uncertain himself, or he may
Tip/Quote of the Day # 4644
"Ride around the corner in an active, short canter, and let your horse do the jumping." ~ Andrew Nicholson
Lesley's Corner
An Ian Stark Jumping Exercise (For the Very Brave!) That Will Sharpen Up Every Horse!
Lesley's Corner
One Sidedness in Riders
We riders spend a lot of time working on making our horses more ambidextrous. But what about ourselves? How can we ride our horses straight if our own bodies are one sided? It will definitely be much easier for them if we make an attempt to be more even and ambidextrous. Learn how here!
Lesley's Corner
The Horse That Carries Tension in its Back
Tension in the horse's back is very paralyzing to the rest of its body, inhibiting the hind legs from coming underneath to balance itself. It can cause back soreness, spooky, and disobedient behavior. Let's talk about how to tell if your horse is tense in the back and what you can do about it.
Lesley's Corner
Exercises to Improve Your Horse's Suppleness
Lateral suppleness is the horse's ability to bend easily from side to side. Few horses are naturally ambidextrous, so a major goal of dressage is to make the horse more even on both sides & truly straight. Here are specific exercises to improve lateral suppleness, from most basic to most difficult!
Lesley's Corner
A Little Trick That is Helpful in the Training of Hot or Nervous Horses
The hot or anxious type of horse can be challenging to ride and train, but if patiently handled, they can be the very best competitors! This exercise will help you get better results with your nervous horse. And it’s so simple, you’ll wonder why you haven’t been using it!
Lesley's Corner
The BEST Exercise to Loosen Up Your Horse's Tight Lower Back Area
Lesley's Corner
Making Related Distances Work For You
With a little planning and forethought, you CAN make related distances work for you. You just have to focus on these key points!
Lesley's Corner
The Responsibility Exercise
Your horse will never truly be in self carriage if you give constant aids. Train him to take responsibility to maintain the gait or movement with minimal input from you. It must become a state of mind, so that he truly understands this responsibility. Learn how to teach this here!
Lesley's Corner
Square Exercise # 3
One of the most common problems riders face when turning is losing control of the horse's outside shoulder. This exercise is a great way to get more control over that outside shoulder to help make more accurate turns - which will help you come out of the turns straight and in better balance.
Lesley's Corner
3 Distinctly Different Ways of Controlling Your Horse's Shoulders in Circles, Turns & Lateral Work
Did you know that there are 3 related but distinctly different ways of controlling your horse's shoulders?? Many riders are in the habit of using only one of these 3 methods. So they continue to struggle to accurately control their horse's shoulders in turns, circles, and lateral work.
Lesley's Corner
Introducing the Counter Canter
Counter canter is simply one of the most beneficial exercises you can do for your horse! In addition to building strength, improving balance, & increasing hind leg engagement, it also improves the horse's ability to be straight in the canter. Which will improve all of your canter work.
Lesley's Corner
An Exercise to Help Improve Your Horse's Connection Over the Back
This is a great exercise to break through the tension or stiffness in this area, and improve the level of throughness over your horse's entire topline, and the overall quality of your connection. You will see an improvement in ALL of your scores when your horse moves more through their topline!