The Rider's Training Scale

"A rider will either hinder or enhance the horse's movement, depending on their ability to sit correctly, leading to working with the horse instead of against the horse."

-Tanja Mitt on

A rider should never underestimate the importance of their seat and the impact their position has on the horse. If the rider is lacking physical ability they will often hinder rather than help the horse. Therefore, riders should be prepared to take responsibility to improve their own personal fitness and flexibility before expecting too much from their horse. Most riders tend to focus much more on their horse's physical fitness and flexibility rather than on their own.

We all know that a horse can feel a fly landing on their body and they respond by twitching their skin. That also means that the horse feels every movement the rider makes in the saddle. When the rider is stiff, uneven or sits more to one side than the other, the horse is not only uncomfortable but also has to compensate for uneven weight distribution.

Imagine you are carrying a child on your back and the child sits crooked. How would you feel and how would your body react? What if the child does not only sit uneven but also starts moving around? How would you feel now? I think we can all relate to this example and it is easy to imagine how we would stiffen up, lose balance and brace our back to avoid injury.

It is important to understand that the more the rider expects of the horse, the fitter and more flexible the rider should be. This is where the difference lies between a recreational rider wanting to have fun and asking very little of the horse and those wanting to compete, expecting higher performance. Both the horse and the rider should be athletes to achieve cohesive performance.

Let's have a look at the rider's position and what you can do to improve your part of the team performance.

Step 1: Breathing to create relaxation

Breathing is very important, it will create relaxation. Where there is a lack of breathing, tension develops. This is because breathing is part of the autonomic nervous system and happens automatically. Most people do not really pay attention to how and when they are breathing.

Breathing has an instant effect on the body: when we breathe calmly, taking long and deep breaths out, our bodies relax. We can think more clearly and therefore make more rational decisions. When our breathing is rapid, short and shallow, we are automatically tense and tend to make more reactive decisions from a state of stress.

Many riders suffer from nerves and anxieties whether competing or just generally when riding and in both cases breathing will be compromised.

Riders who suffer from competition nerves will often be sabotaging themselves and their riding outcomes by the way they feel and what they think.

Typical thoughts are:

• I hope I don't make a mistake.

• What are others thinking?

• What if I stuff up?

• I am not good enough.

• Everyone else is so much better than me.

• I don't want to let my horse down.

Many riders at all levels and in all disciplines have thoughts such as these when it comes to competition riding. Most riders don't understand these are not simply words they are using, but that each of these words has a negative impact on their riding and ultimately the competition outcome.

Be careful what you wish for!!

There are a number of factors to consider here; firstly, the brain doesn't understand or recognize the words

• NOT

• DON'T

• WON'T

The brain only hears and focuses on the key words in a sentence. For example, when a rider thinks, 'I don't want to make a mistake' the brain only recognizes the words 'make a mistake'!

The brain doesn't recognize the difference between 'perceived' danger (I always forget the dressage test and the judge hates me!) and life threatening, 'real' danger (there is a shark in the water and he looks really hungry!); The body responds to both with an increase of adrenalin and rapid shallow breathing, producing an increase in strength and fighting power.

We are ready to take on whatever threatens our life (shark attack or judge attack).

This situation creates tension in the muscles and affects our energy, of which horses are very sensitive to and able to pick up on, no matter how small.

Horses are unable to differentiate the tension from the rider in relation to 'real danger' or 'perceived danger': a lion that is in the bush ready to pounce or the fear of what other people think of them when at a competition.

So, think twice before you think!

A horse's instinctive response to danger is to take flight.

Breathing therefore comes first on the Rider's Training Scale to allow the rider to relax their body and let go of tension; only then can the rider expect the horse to relax and work softly.

Exercises to develop the correct breathing technique:

• Take a normal, short breath in through the nose and a longer slow breath out through open lips. The rider starts to relax the mind and body when focusing on the breath out. A relaxed body is vital to develop a good position.

• Rather than breathing into the chest the rider must learn to breathe into the abdomen: breathing in, the rider's tummy needs to expand and relax. Breathing out the rider's tummy needs to tuck in and engage. This will also lead into engaging the core.

• When breathing out the rider should have a clear intent of what they are asking the horse to do. The breath out with the intent of relaxation is used to calm the horse and lower the energy in high-energy situations, whereas the breath out with the intent of forward and more energy is used in upward transitions and an increase in energy. The intent is crucial.

• It is very important that the rider engages their core on the breath out. This automatically happens towards the end of the outward breath. Thinking about 'breathing out from your core' can be a good focus.

Blowing bubbles!

A great exercise to practise correct breathing is to blow bubbles. Remember...