Equestrian's riding posture

Horses are very sensitive to the slightest changes in our voice , body, weight and even our muscle tone or breathing. We can use this to teach our horses to change direction, slow down or even stop simply by adjusting our body and exhale with intention.

If we want to guide the horse with our seat, we need to learn how to transfer weight correctly. The initial stage of weight transfer takes place in the rider's torso and centre. The seemingly simple act of transferring your weight can often lead to miscommunication between horse and riders. Very often we see an incorrect posture of the rider, called breaking at the waist. It's a common habit of losing balance and straightness especially when the rider tries to guide the horse along curved lines or in lateral work. Instead of putting extra weight on the seat bone on the side to which we want to turn, we break at the waist and lower our shoulder on the same side. This causes our pelvis and lower back to shift away from the direction in which we want to turn. This is very confusing for the horse, which makes us use stronger aids with our legs, our reins and making our shoulders compensate for everything that's going on, adding to the confusion.

If you want to avoid this miscommunication and would like tor ride half-pass and canter piruette smoothly without disturbing and putting harmful pressure on your horses muscles, joints and ligaments, feel free to contact me for equestrians's physio session.