A few days ago I gave a lesson where the rider got to practice the reverse half halt. I love giving this lesson since most riders are very sceptical at first but then get all excited when it works. The aim of the exercise is to get the horse to trot only using a specific giving action with the hand.
The hand can create impulsion. Yes! I mean it! How is this possible?
”The hand is the primary aid”. This means that the hand should act first, before the legs and/or seat. But it also means that neither legs nor seat is necessary at all. If the horse is attentive, and if the rider sits on the horse in balance and with a supple seat without hindering the horse's movements.
The father of classical equitation, François Robichon de la Guérinière (French, 1688-1751), wrote in his book “Ecole de Cavalerie” that: “The hand ought always to begin the effect, the legs to accompany it: for it is a general principle in all the paces, as well natural as artificial, that the head and shoulders of the horse must go first”.
One more thing – the hand should never ever act backwards. The reason for this is that the horse's reflexes are 6-7 times faster than human reflexes. It is therefore impossible, from the horse's point of view, to yield a hand that acts backwards at the proper moment. A hand that acts backwards usually makes the horse protect itself in other ways, for instance by not bringing the hind legs under and/or overbending the neck.
So, how does all this add up to the horse trotting by the action of the hand alone? It is simple (but not always easy to do), a well schooled horse follows the bit. If the bit is allowed forwards, so the horse should go forwards.
Tuesday, 29 June 2010
Wednesday, 23 June 2010
Fitness training for rider - a misunderstandig?
In several horse magazines they have published articles about riders who are now actively into fitness training to cope with their riding. And I can agree that you need to be in good condition to ride several hour a day, if nothing else you will be in good condition after riding several hour a day… But fitness training??!!
Regardless of background all authors below agree that the rider's contact with the horse's mouth should be light, this will be selection of quotes from Swedish and foreign literature.
--- They (the hands) must be elastic and delicate, not strong, harsh or brusque.
Eric Herbermann
--gentle and soft touch of the rider's hands---
Alois Podhajsky
No strength in the arms or hands is ever needed.
Udo Bürger
Hands should be soft and springy.
Lars Lithander
The rider must have a light, supple hand.
Bengt Gustavsson
The rider should have a light touch with the horse's mouth.
Gehnäll Persson
The connection between the rider's hand and the horse's mouth should be soft and elastic
Nils Ankarcrona
Bengt "Blomman" Blomqvist discusses in his book "Driving" the issue about horses that lean into the reins. He makes it clear that it is his belief that that the strength of the arms and back are better trained anywhere else than on the driver’s seat and he stresses that he wants a light contact with the horses.
When the rider cannot cope with his own riding, when the body feels tired and exausted, it is easy to assume that it is the strength that fails you. But it is the tug of war with the horse that tire us, considering the fact that horses by far outweigh us.
More logical, and more in line with the above given quotes, we should strive to do less in order to cope more.
In the words of Nuno Oliveira
Actually, the horse schooled with maximum finesse, may be directed with the “reins attracted by the concept of gravity” as expressed by La Guérnière.
How tiring can that be?
Regardless of background all authors below agree that the rider's contact with the horse's mouth should be light, this will be selection of quotes from Swedish and foreign literature.
--- They (the hands) must be elastic and delicate, not strong, harsh or brusque.
Eric Herbermann
--gentle and soft touch of the rider's hands---
Alois Podhajsky
No strength in the arms or hands is ever needed.
Udo Bürger
Hands should be soft and springy.
Lars Lithander
The rider must have a light, supple hand.
Bengt Gustavsson
The rider should have a light touch with the horse's mouth.
Gehnäll Persson
The connection between the rider's hand and the horse's mouth should be soft and elastic
Nils Ankarcrona
Bengt "Blomman" Blomqvist discusses in his book "Driving" the issue about horses that lean into the reins. He makes it clear that it is his belief that that the strength of the arms and back are better trained anywhere else than on the driver’s seat and he stresses that he wants a light contact with the horses.
When the rider cannot cope with his own riding, when the body feels tired and exausted, it is easy to assume that it is the strength that fails you. But it is the tug of war with the horse that tire us, considering the fact that horses by far outweigh us.
More logical, and more in line with the above given quotes, we should strive to do less in order to cope more.
In the words of Nuno Oliveira
Actually, the horse schooled with maximum finesse, may be directed with the “reins attracted by the concept of gravity” as expressed by La Guérnière.
How tiring can that be?
Tuesday, 15 June 2010
Walk - the mother of all gaits
This weekend I teached at a clinic in Piteå. There were 10 riders who rode one lesson each Saturday and Sunday. It was a mixed group, ranging from beginners to those I have followed for many years. The youngest participant was 10 years old and started riding with me in Stockholm this past winter and we have focused on seat training in walk and trot. Ronja trotted and steered the horse all by her self for the first time in the clinic and was mighty proud of the achievement! For me it is a privilege to follow her development. Thanks to the seat training Ronja could ride her horse in trot without hanging in the horse's mouth or lose adherence in the saddle. Nice job Ronja!
But, what I mainly want to address in this blog is the walk. I sometimes get the question if riders do anything else than walk when riding with me. Well, yes. In this clinic, there were several participants who practiced transitions between walk, trot and canter, and flexions in trot and canter. But I see no advantage for either the horse or rider to start adding speed if not both rider and horse have the basic understanding of communication (that is the aids), and proper balance and posture. And it's not for nothing that the walk is called "the mother of all gaits".
The walk is the one gait that is most easily influenced by the rider. Modern research has shown this. Perhaps that is the reason that in traditional dressage it is said that you should not work the horse at the walk, since this will destroy it. That is not true. It all comes down to how the rider uses his/hers hands and what is perceived as a good "support".
If the rider uses his/hers hands backwards the horse will most likely hang on the bit. The horse can do this either by leaning with his weight forward, or use the muscles in the neck to push on the bit. When this happens, the walk will deteriorate. The same will happen to the trot and the canter, but it will not show as clearly.
Returning to the horse, which hangs or push on the bit. In the first case the horse must be made to balance himself and in the other the horse must be made to relax the neck muscles. The key to the solution for both problems is how the rider uses his/hers hands. The half halt (raising and lowering of the hand) re balances the horse and vibration will loosen the tense muscles.
In order not to invite the horse to lean or hang on the bit again, the rider have to follow and allow the natural oscillation of the horse's neck. If not the walk will deteriorate and in the worst case the horse will start to pace. This is where the rider's idea of what a good "support" is will be important. The contact between the horse's mouth and the rider's hands should not be much more than weight of the rein. Any more than that means the two are hanging on each other, which does not just make it hard for the rider's arms, it also means that the horse does not have a good posture.
The horse's posture is most readily seen when the horse is standing still. Look at the feet. Imagine that you look down at your horse from above. Usually the horse stands uneven. "Square" means that the horse's feet are evenly spaced so it formed a square rectangle. When it does, the horse have the beginning for a correct posture, i.e. the spine is straight seen from above.
When the horse is in motion and the hind feet track directly behind the front (which corresponds to the horse being "square" but in motion) AND also has the proper rising in the neck corresponding to its degree of education, AND is light in the hand. Well, then the horse is virtually guaranteed in good posture and balance. What you feel as a rider is that the horse in motion is as easy to turn to the right as the left, can do right shoulder in as easy as left, will back up straight, etc. It is a proof of good balance and posture that the horse can easily carry out whatever you ask. For both horse and rider, it is easier to find those good posture and balance in walk than trot or canter. The walk is the only gait in which both rider and horse have time to really explore and find good balance and posture. When the foundation is laid, trot and canter is not a big problem, but to train the trot and canter before the basics are in place is just a long detour back to the start and a waste of time even if it feels like you have trained when you merely exercised the horse.
Classical dressage is not primarily about fitness, but practicing posture and balance.
But, what I mainly want to address in this blog is the walk. I sometimes get the question if riders do anything else than walk when riding with me. Well, yes. In this clinic, there were several participants who practiced transitions between walk, trot and canter, and flexions in trot and canter. But I see no advantage for either the horse or rider to start adding speed if not both rider and horse have the basic understanding of communication (that is the aids), and proper balance and posture. And it's not for nothing that the walk is called "the mother of all gaits".
The walk is the one gait that is most easily influenced by the rider. Modern research has shown this. Perhaps that is the reason that in traditional dressage it is said that you should not work the horse at the walk, since this will destroy it. That is not true. It all comes down to how the rider uses his/hers hands and what is perceived as a good "support".
If the rider uses his/hers hands backwards the horse will most likely hang on the bit. The horse can do this either by leaning with his weight forward, or use the muscles in the neck to push on the bit. When this happens, the walk will deteriorate. The same will happen to the trot and the canter, but it will not show as clearly.
Returning to the horse, which hangs or push on the bit. In the first case the horse must be made to balance himself and in the other the horse must be made to relax the neck muscles. The key to the solution for both problems is how the rider uses his/hers hands. The half halt (raising and lowering of the hand) re balances the horse and vibration will loosen the tense muscles.
In order not to invite the horse to lean or hang on the bit again, the rider have to follow and allow the natural oscillation of the horse's neck. If not the walk will deteriorate and in the worst case the horse will start to pace. This is where the rider's idea of what a good "support" is will be important. The contact between the horse's mouth and the rider's hands should not be much more than weight of the rein. Any more than that means the two are hanging on each other, which does not just make it hard for the rider's arms, it also means that the horse does not have a good posture.
The horse's posture is most readily seen when the horse is standing still. Look at the feet. Imagine that you look down at your horse from above. Usually the horse stands uneven. "Square" means that the horse's feet are evenly spaced so it formed a square rectangle. When it does, the horse have the beginning for a correct posture, i.e. the spine is straight seen from above.
When the horse is in motion and the hind feet track directly behind the front (which corresponds to the horse being "square" but in motion) AND also has the proper rising in the neck corresponding to its degree of education, AND is light in the hand. Well, then the horse is virtually guaranteed in good posture and balance. What you feel as a rider is that the horse in motion is as easy to turn to the right as the left, can do right shoulder in as easy as left, will back up straight, etc. It is a proof of good balance and posture that the horse can easily carry out whatever you ask. For both horse and rider, it is easier to find those good posture and balance in walk than trot or canter. The walk is the only gait in which both rider and horse have time to really explore and find good balance and posture. When the foundation is laid, trot and canter is not a big problem, but to train the trot and canter before the basics are in place is just a long detour back to the start and a waste of time even if it feels like you have trained when you merely exercised the horse.
Classical dressage is not primarily about fitness, but practicing posture and balance.
Tuesday, 8 June 2010
Three pair of words to devote your life to
This is a description of three pair of words which play an important role in the Alexander Technique.
First out is inhibition and direction.
Inhibition, to cancel something, can also be summarized in the word no. Direction is what you consciously choose to do instead. For riders, the ability to inhibit is crucial. In practical terms this means that if you give the horse an aid you sit quietly and inhibit all impulses to do anything further and wait for the horse's response.
If you work the horse from the ground and would like to make a "join-up” inhibition is necessary. It is when you remain silent and still you give the horse space to make a choice - join up or await. And the horse's response will determine your next move - not your own impatience or desire for a specific outcome.
And that automatically leads to the next pair of words; means-where-by and end gaining. Our proverb "the end justifies the means" sums it up pretty well. What do you do to achieve your goal? Is the goal primary and how it is reached secondary? Do you make your horse sacrifice himself, his health, his life for you to reach your goals? Or do you let your horse have a say and take account of it? Are you taking account of yourself?
But, as it is said in Alice in Wonderland, if you don’t know where you are going you can go either way…So a goal give our directions something to aim for.
And finally, use and function. How you use your body affects how well it can function. Muscles that works tense up, tense muscles become tight muscles and that means that all blood vessels inside the muscle is squeezed together. If you constantly have high muscle tension in your body the circulatory systems within will have a hard time working properly and that means that oxygen, nutrients and waste products have difficulty travelling inside you.
For the rider the high muscle tension affects your ability to be flexible and pliable on the horse. Tense muscles will lead to less mobility in the joints and that is detrimental because it is through having access to freely moving joints we absorb the horse's movements.
Now you have a task to train you in all three word pairs.
Take a pen and paper. Grasp the pen, as if you were to start writing,
say NO to the impulse and
check whether or not you have leaned into the paper by rounding your back, check how hard you hold the pen.
Now straighten your back, keep a certain distance to the mission. How hard do you need to hold the pen to keep in place? How light can you hold it between your fingers and still be able to write? A light touch generates less tension which in turn leaves freedom for movement in the joints.
Take that light touch and straight back with you to your next ride and see what happens...
First out is inhibition and direction.
Inhibition, to cancel something, can also be summarized in the word no. Direction is what you consciously choose to do instead. For riders, the ability to inhibit is crucial. In practical terms this means that if you give the horse an aid you sit quietly and inhibit all impulses to do anything further and wait for the horse's response.
If you work the horse from the ground and would like to make a "join-up” inhibition is necessary. It is when you remain silent and still you give the horse space to make a choice - join up or await. And the horse's response will determine your next move - not your own impatience or desire for a specific outcome.
And that automatically leads to the next pair of words; means-where-by and end gaining. Our proverb "the end justifies the means" sums it up pretty well. What do you do to achieve your goal? Is the goal primary and how it is reached secondary? Do you make your horse sacrifice himself, his health, his life for you to reach your goals? Or do you let your horse have a say and take account of it? Are you taking account of yourself?
But, as it is said in Alice in Wonderland, if you don’t know where you are going you can go either way…So a goal give our directions something to aim for.
And finally, use and function. How you use your body affects how well it can function. Muscles that works tense up, tense muscles become tight muscles and that means that all blood vessels inside the muscle is squeezed together. If you constantly have high muscle tension in your body the circulatory systems within will have a hard time working properly and that means that oxygen, nutrients and waste products have difficulty travelling inside you.
For the rider the high muscle tension affects your ability to be flexible and pliable on the horse. Tense muscles will lead to less mobility in the joints and that is detrimental because it is through having access to freely moving joints we absorb the horse's movements.
Now you have a task to train you in all three word pairs.
Take a pen and paper. Grasp the pen, as if you were to start writing,
say NO to the impulse and
check whether or not you have leaned into the paper by rounding your back, check how hard you hold the pen.
Now straighten your back, keep a certain distance to the mission. How hard do you need to hold the pen to keep in place? How light can you hold it between your fingers and still be able to write? A light touch generates less tension which in turn leaves freedom for movement in the joints.
Take that light touch and straight back with you to your next ride and see what happens...
Tuesday, 1 June 2010
3 P: Perception, position, precision
Perception, position and precision. These are three words that Maria and I have chosen as a recurring mantra. We often mention these words when we teach and you can see them in our ads. Here I will present the words and explain why we have chosen them. We have fond that it is fun and interesting to play with these words since they have multiple meaning and can stand for different meaning in different contexts.
Perception
The Swedish National Encyclopedia explains perception like this: "perception, take notice, mental interpretation of the sensations produced by stimuli from the outside world, the basic function by which living creatures are informed about their surroundings. Perception results in an inner image of the outside, which is organized so that we can develop appropriate actions. The ability to perception has developed in connection with the capacity for movement. "
We perceive things around us through our senses (eyes, ears, touch). Often we receive so many impressions that they have to be sorted. The sorting takes place in the brain. My brain and yours choose in any given situation which impressions that it should focus on. This means that two people can experience the same situation quite differently, and that they can come up with entirely different "appropriate actions".
Position
Position can stand for both positions in my own body, that is posture or non-posture. The Alexander technique have tools with which I can explore just what my ideal position is where only the postural muscles are involved and nothing else. Position can also mean the horse's posture. Like humans, the horse can have a good posture, or be disconnected or tense. Position can also stand for my relative position to the horse. Both in work from the ground (whether it is work in hand or (free-) longing), as well as in riding, my relative position to the horse is of importance.
Precision
Precision hardly needs any further explanation in itself. Both perception and position can be made and maintained with more or less precision. I see precision as the result of perception (I perceive that what I need to control a given situation), and position (my own, the horse's and the relative position between our bodies).
But not perfection
A word we have deliberately chosen not to focus on is perfection. Sure, perfection is something to aim for, but we believe that the path to perfection is not made easier by focusing on being perfect. It becomes too easy to focus on what is missing, and then it is to easy to start judging yourself. Instead, we suggest that you (and we) just focus on perception. Perception means that you strive to become aware of what is happening in your own body, the horse's body, with your communication, in the surroundings etc. It is impossible to focus on all at this at once. To educate one self as a rider consist, among other things, of learning to focus on that what is important in that particular instance. This of course is easier if your seat is good so you don't have to think about it, or that you are so used to handle the longe line you don't get tangled up in it.
Maria and I also thought we are extra clever for choosing perception, position and precision since these words are spelled the same in both Swedish and English. Imagine that :)
Perception
The Swedish National Encyclopedia explains perception like this: "perception, take notice, mental interpretation of the sensations produced by stimuli from the outside world, the basic function by which living creatures are informed about their surroundings. Perception results in an inner image of the outside, which is organized so that we can develop appropriate actions. The ability to perception has developed in connection with the capacity for movement. "
We perceive things around us through our senses (eyes, ears, touch). Often we receive so many impressions that they have to be sorted. The sorting takes place in the brain. My brain and yours choose in any given situation which impressions that it should focus on. This means that two people can experience the same situation quite differently, and that they can come up with entirely different "appropriate actions".
Position
Position can stand for both positions in my own body, that is posture or non-posture. The Alexander technique have tools with which I can explore just what my ideal position is where only the postural muscles are involved and nothing else. Position can also mean the horse's posture. Like humans, the horse can have a good posture, or be disconnected or tense. Position can also stand for my relative position to the horse. Both in work from the ground (whether it is work in hand or (free-) longing), as well as in riding, my relative position to the horse is of importance.
Precision
Precision hardly needs any further explanation in itself. Both perception and position can be made and maintained with more or less precision. I see precision as the result of perception (I perceive that what I need to control a given situation), and position (my own, the horse's and the relative position between our bodies).
But not perfection
A word we have deliberately chosen not to focus on is perfection. Sure, perfection is something to aim for, but we believe that the path to perfection is not made easier by focusing on being perfect. It becomes too easy to focus on what is missing, and then it is to easy to start judging yourself. Instead, we suggest that you (and we) just focus on perception. Perception means that you strive to become aware of what is happening in your own body, the horse's body, with your communication, in the surroundings etc. It is impossible to focus on all at this at once. To educate one self as a rider consist, among other things, of learning to focus on that what is important in that particular instance. This of course is easier if your seat is good so you don't have to think about it, or that you are so used to handle the longe line you don't get tangled up in it.
Maria and I also thought we are extra clever for choosing perception, position and precision since these words are spelled the same in both Swedish and English. Imagine that :)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
