When trying to eliminate a bad habit in your riding, try exaggerating your bad habit momentarily to the point that it seems ridiculous. This will increase your awareness of what you have been doing. After that, practice exaggerating the opposite for a while to change your behavior.
When working with fresh horses that want to look around and be unfocused, do yourself and your horse a favor, and let them have some free time to relax at the beginning of a workout. Either a short time lunging or free schooling, or simply a 10 to 20 minute walk on the buckle to let them gawk and take everything in. Then, when you pick up the reins and go to work, you will usually find that there is less resistance.
If your training is truly progressive, you will always have a strong base to fall back on when you run into any difficulties. This is a very important goal to have for your training program.
Be careful not to move to the sitting trot too early in a ride. Doing so before the horse is fully warmed up and truly moving through his topline can often be detrimental, as the horse will be more likely to stay stiff and tight through his back muscles.
It should be a big red flag to you if your instructor is the type to say that all jumps should be treated the same. It can be a sign of lack of knowledge or teaching experience in a trainer. Riders should be aware of every question posed by each individual jump, and should not treat all jumps the same. Things that need to be taken into consideration are the shape of the jump, the footing, the terrain involved before and after the jump, the lighting, the kind of approach you are given, and what is on the landing side of the jump.
Focus on the horse's hind legs in both upward and downward transitions. Look for the feeling that your horse begins to step into the new gait with their hind feet first.
Dressage is a natural activity for horses, but that does not mean it is always easy for them. Since we cannot explain to them why we are asking them to do things that require increased effort, and go against their natural instincts to do things in the easiest way possible - we must handle any inevitable resistances that might show up with patience in a quietly persistent and empathetic manner.
Ride smarter, not harder. If it starts to feel like you are working hard, look into learning how you can use a more intelligent technique to make yourself more effective.
"Suppleness of the back is a very central topic. The natural gaits of the horse have been the way they are for a million years. For example trot – two beat, a swinging phase and diagonal movement. In trot the right forearm should be parallel to the left hind cannon bone. If you don’t allow the long back muscles to swing and allow the movement to get through the poll to the horse’s mouth, then you destroy diagonal movement. If you block the loin area, then the front legs come out and the hind legs don’t follow. Then my question is – is this trot?" ~ Gerd Heuschmann
"My family’s approach for all of our horses, no matter which career we have chosen for them, is to do the same versatile basic training in the first years. The more systematically a horse gets strengthened in his musculature and the more carefully he gets suppled in his youth, the stronger he will be to start his specialization after this basic training and this sufficient capability means that the horse will remain healthy despite increasing requirements." ~ Ingrid Klimke
"In the plague of disinformation that has engulfed our culture, there seems to be a whole new generation of rider-trainers who have some serious misunderstandings about the significant role longeing with side reins plays in the training of the dressage horse." ~ Paul Belasik
If you come into a triple combination with a canter stride that is too short for the distance inside the combination, you will have to really drive to the B element to get out. And the action of your horse having to reach for that second element will make it MUCH more difficult to jump the third element cleanly.
Remember to take advantage of any hills you may have to build your horse into a stronger athlete. Progressive hillwork done several times a week, with days in between for muscle recovery, will build your horse up to a peak level of strength... which of course will make his job easier for him.
"In training you have to be very honest. You cannot lie to your horse or your trainer or the dressage judges. If you only can do something one out of 10 times at home, then you know you have to be lucky at the show—and we know we’re not always dead lucky." ~ Kyra Kyrklund
When you come down the center line in your Dressage test, briefly think about something that you know will make you smile. You and your horse will both relax, which will make for a happier performance. The judge will see the difference!
How do you prepare for transitions? Try thinking "active hind legs” into the connection of the outside rein, one to several times as needed, in rhythm with the horse's stride.
"Learn from each and every horse you ride. Every horse has something to teach you, and sometimes you don't realise what that lesson is until years later!" ~ Carl Hester
When a rider hangs on to the inside rein (with anything more than a light connection), it very often creates stiffness, resistance, head tilting, and the loss of control of the horse's outside shoulder.
Note to anyone who is in a hurry with their horse’s training: Using quick fixes and skipping basics will only slow you down in the long run. It will take you FAR longer to get to the same good end result, then someone who is truly committed to taking the time to do things right. And if you do not go back and fully fill in any holes in your horse's education, you may never have a good result.
It is a common mistake for novice riders to give the rein when the horse does the wrong thing, such as snatching at the rein or pulling on the rider. If you give when the horse does this, you are rewarding that behavior, and it will surely continue!
When mistakes happen in the show ring, try to put them behind you immediately in your mind. Ride the next Dressage movement with confidence in front of the judge. If jumping, think positively forward and ride the next fence on course with enthusiasm.
"Incorrect training is as if you buttoned a sweater wrong. In order to fix it you must unbutton it and start over again." ~ Reiner Klimke
This is SO important! You can not just add another layer over top and expect it to be right. And this is true for the training of both horses AND riders! This is why I feel so strongly that even beginner riders need high quality instruction. Don’t think that because you are only a beginner, that just any riding instructor will do. Do your homework! Figure out who is the very best instructor that you have available to you. And be prepared to pay extra for that expertise. It will be worth it, in the long run.
Think of letting your hips move towards the back of the saddle as your horse begins to jump. This will allow your horse's jumping motion to smoothly and naturally close your hip angle over the fence.
