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Always strive to keep the feeling that two thirds of the horse is in front of you. This means staying behind your horse's shoulders, and allowing the horse to have as long of a neck as possible. This allows the rider to have a greater amount of security,
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"The greatest hindrance to driving the horse properly comes from riders stiffening their legs…. The horse cannot monitor tight legs as aids and will sour to the pressure, which he will interpret as a meaningless second girth." ~ Charles De Kunffy
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"The forehand is not to be raised by the rider's hands ! This mania of trying to ride a horse with a 'Grand-prix neck', a horse who moves with Training level hindquarters, is abominable." ~ Charles de Kunffy
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When you look down, your shoulders follow your eyes and begin to drop downward and forward. This makes it much more difficult for you to communicate correctly with your horse through your seat - often causing you to need to use your reins more than you should.
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"When you think you need a half halt, try releasing first....then aha, there's your real half halt. Don't let the status quo be a heavy hand!" ~ Devan Cottrell
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"When my horse tells me he is tired, it’s important to stop and listen to him and not keep pushing so I make him a sour horse." ~ Charlotte Dujardin
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When doing movements like turn on the haunches, pirouettes, haunches in, and half pass, even the most experienced riders have to remind themselves to sit over their inside seat bone throughout the entire movement. Consciously thinking about stepping into the inside stirrup every couple of strides during these movements is
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A horse will respond best to an aid when the rider has the ability to give it smoothy and within the rhythm of the horse's stride.
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You drive your horse heavily into your hands every time you lean back even slightly behind the vertical.
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The old masters learned early on that riding accurate arena patterns is the key for improving a horse's balance and straightness. Always keep this in mind in your training.
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"The rein connection should be like a solid handshake. Don’t have a wimpy handshake. You know what a bad feeling you get when someone gives you a creepy handshake, so don’t give that icky feeling to your horse." ~ William Fox Pitt
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A strong back is necessary for the horse to be able to achieve and maintain self carriage and collection for any length of time under a rider. Make sure you don't ask for too much too soon. And be diligent and proactive about strength training and conditioning.
