SPURS Thought for the day 8
Rhythm and regularity
Each of the horse’s gaits has a particular number of beats to the footfalls. This is the horse’s rhythm. The walk has 4 beats, Trot- 2, canter-3 and the gallop has 4. The beats are counted when the feet hit the ground.
Let’s just think of the paces of the horse are different songs. The walk is Mary had a little lamb, the trot is Row, row, row your boat and the canter is Itsy bitsy spider. I chose those songs only because most people know them and I’m not a musical genius! How fast you sing the song is the tempo.
The gaits are considered irregular when the footfalls are not consistent or the tempo is not steady. The relaxation of the horse can directly affect the rhythm and regularity of the horse’s gaits. (Read SPURS- Thought of the day 7)
For today we are riding the 20-15-10 circles. Place 4 cones as circle points on the circle. Count your horse’s steps on each of the ¼ers of the circle. The number of steps should be the same. If the tempo is irregular or the horse lacks the balance to maintain a round circle, the number of steps will vary. Document the average number of steps your horse takes on each size circle at each gait. Keep track of this as you develop the horse’s gaits over the years. It will be interesting!
Next exercise is to count your breaths on the circles. Breath through your belly like a singer or like in yoga class. Your horse can’t be expected to have more regularity than you do!
Showing posts with label thought for the day. Show all posts
Showing posts with label thought for the day. Show all posts
Sunday, January 25, 2009
SPURS thought of the day 7
SPURS
Thought of the day 7
Relaxation
The thought of riding a relaxed horse is appealing to most of us. In fact, anyone who has ridden a horse that is both relaxed and energetic will understand the point of good dressage.
Let’s concentrate on encouraging our horses to develop relaxation while we work. We can do this by designing our lesson for today around a few simple principals.
1. We all like to do things that we are good at.
Start your ride with simple exercise that your horse can perform easily. Execute this exercise 5 times each direction.
2. When we are bored with our work we do not perform to our best ability.
Introduce a more difficult version of your exercise and execute it 4 times each direction. Take a short break and let the horse walk. Repeat the exercise one time each direction and expand the exercise a little bit more and repeat 3 times each direction. You should finish your work with a simple cool down that includes walking on a loose rein.
3. We all get anxious when we are required to do something that we are unclear about.
If your horse gets anxious at any time during the work, go back to a simpler version of the exercise until they are relaxed about the work.
Your homework is to write back to me about your lesson plans including the figures or exercises used. Tell me how things went and what you will change in the future.
Feel free to e-mail me directly at dressagepeacock@gmail.com.
Thought of the day 7
Relaxation
The thought of riding a relaxed horse is appealing to most of us. In fact, anyone who has ridden a horse that is both relaxed and energetic will understand the point of good dressage.
Let’s concentrate on encouraging our horses to develop relaxation while we work. We can do this by designing our lesson for today around a few simple principals.
1. We all like to do things that we are good at.
Start your ride with simple exercise that your horse can perform easily. Execute this exercise 5 times each direction.
2. When we are bored with our work we do not perform to our best ability.
Introduce a more difficult version of your exercise and execute it 4 times each direction. Take a short break and let the horse walk. Repeat the exercise one time each direction and expand the exercise a little bit more and repeat 3 times each direction. You should finish your work with a simple cool down that includes walking on a loose rein.
3. We all get anxious when we are required to do something that we are unclear about.
If your horse gets anxious at any time during the work, go back to a simpler version of the exercise until they are relaxed about the work.
Your homework is to write back to me about your lesson plans including the figures or exercises used. Tell me how things went and what you will change in the future.
Feel free to e-mail me directly at dressagepeacock@gmail.com.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
SPURS Thought for the Day 6
SPURS 6-Thought for the day
We have been doing a lot of suppling work so we should be ready for engagement. Shoulder-in is the first lateral movement that engages the inside hind leg. Look in the book Advanced Techniques of Riding; the German hand book on page 46 for the aids for the movement.
Your warm up needs to include straight lines, the bend of a 10 meter circle and moving the horse away from the inside leg. These are the prerequisites or the components for the shoulder-in. I like to warm up first by doing the usual 20 meter circles and straight lines and then becoming more specific. I execute 10m voltes at A or C. Then I proceed on quarter line. I leg yield to the track. I do this in both directions.
For the work out phase I execute the 10 meter volte in the corner and proceed down the track in shoulder in. I only do the shoulder-in ½ way down the long side and then I ride across the short diagonal ending with a 10 meter volte in the corner. This volte should be used to rebalance the horse. The first few times that I ride the exercise I ride the diagonal in collected trot. Then I ride the exercise and proceed across the diagonal in medium trot. If you ride the diagonal in medium trot on the diagonal every time, the horse will learn to run or quicken the trot across the diagonal.
You can add asset of canter after you have done the exercise 3 times each direction. The canter work should be simple as it is not the difficult part of the work out. I would suggest riding one 20 meter circle at B or E. Then immediately ride a 15 meter circle. Then ride a 10 meter volte. I end it by making a transition on the 10meter volte before coming back to the track.
You can do this exercise on young horses by making it a bit more simple. The circles can be bigger. The shoulder-in can be done as shoulder-fore or position in. The medium trot can be simplified to lengthening in the trot. The canter can be executed only on the 20 meter circle.
If you are training a really young horse you should omit the shoulder-in and simply ride on the track flexing the youngster to the inside a little more than usual while maintaining the contact on the outside rein.
We have been doing a lot of suppling work so we should be ready for engagement. Shoulder-in is the first lateral movement that engages the inside hind leg. Look in the book Advanced Techniques of Riding; the German hand book on page 46 for the aids for the movement.
Your warm up needs to include straight lines, the bend of a 10 meter circle and moving the horse away from the inside leg. These are the prerequisites or the components for the shoulder-in. I like to warm up first by doing the usual 20 meter circles and straight lines and then becoming more specific. I execute 10m voltes at A or C. Then I proceed on quarter line. I leg yield to the track. I do this in both directions.
For the work out phase I execute the 10 meter volte in the corner and proceed down the track in shoulder in. I only do the shoulder-in ½ way down the long side and then I ride across the short diagonal ending with a 10 meter volte in the corner. This volte should be used to rebalance the horse. The first few times that I ride the exercise I ride the diagonal in collected trot. Then I ride the exercise and proceed across the diagonal in medium trot. If you ride the diagonal in medium trot on the diagonal every time, the horse will learn to run or quicken the trot across the diagonal.
You can add asset of canter after you have done the exercise 3 times each direction. The canter work should be simple as it is not the difficult part of the work out. I would suggest riding one 20 meter circle at B or E. Then immediately ride a 15 meter circle. Then ride a 10 meter volte. I end it by making a transition on the 10meter volte before coming back to the track.
You can do this exercise on young horses by making it a bit more simple. The circles can be bigger. The shoulder-in can be done as shoulder-fore or position in. The medium trot can be simplified to lengthening in the trot. The canter can be executed only on the 20 meter circle.
If you are training a really young horse you should omit the shoulder-in and simply ride on the track flexing the youngster to the inside a little more than usual while maintaining the contact on the outside rein.
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Spurs 4-Thought for the Day
SPURS-Thought for the day- 4
We have had some bad weather so our horses need to get back in the swing of things. That means we are going to do a suppling day.
Suppling exercises are bending lines, straight lines and leg yields. Shoulder-in, Ranvers, Travers and Half pass are NOT suppling exercises they are engagement exercises. Transitions can be both type of exercises because you can do them before, during and after movements.
I don’t feel very creative today… Let’s do decreasing and increasing circles also called the Target. The old stand by. One of the best exercises ever.
Do this both directions the same number of times.
Start on a 20 meter circle Let the horse establish the balance of that circle before you make the circle smaller. Once you have the best balance that your horse can do on a 20m. circle then make it smaller by turning the horse towards the middle of the circle and riding to a 15m. circle. Repeat and make the circle a 10m. circle. Be careful not to stay on the 10 meter circle too long as it is difficult for the horse to do many rotations at that size.
Now you need to leg yield out to the 20 meter circle. The best way is to pause on the 15m. circle for a full rotation of the circle then continue to the 20m. circle.
After you do this exercise 4 times at the trot; add a canter transition after you leg yield out to the 20m. circle. Lower level horses just canter around the 20m. circle a few times.
The first part of this exercise can be your warm up to supple the horse when you are going to have an engagement day the higher schooled horses. You can spiral in at the half pass and out in leg yield. You can also do this at the canter. Horses that are 3rd level and above can spiral down to an 8m. Volte/ small circle. Horses that are schooled to PSG and above can canter the 8m volte in haunches in as a working pirouette.
Make sure that you let the horse stretch on the 20m.circle both directions at the trot ( Like in the first level tests) and if your horse is capable at the canter. You do this to release the lactic acid build up in the muscles. It’s very important!
We have had some bad weather so our horses need to get back in the swing of things. That means we are going to do a suppling day.
Suppling exercises are bending lines, straight lines and leg yields. Shoulder-in, Ranvers, Travers and Half pass are NOT suppling exercises they are engagement exercises. Transitions can be both type of exercises because you can do them before, during and after movements.
I don’t feel very creative today… Let’s do decreasing and increasing circles also called the Target. The old stand by. One of the best exercises ever.
Do this both directions the same number of times.
Start on a 20 meter circle Let the horse establish the balance of that circle before you make the circle smaller. Once you have the best balance that your horse can do on a 20m. circle then make it smaller by turning the horse towards the middle of the circle and riding to a 15m. circle. Repeat and make the circle a 10m. circle. Be careful not to stay on the 10 meter circle too long as it is difficult for the horse to do many rotations at that size.
Now you need to leg yield out to the 20 meter circle. The best way is to pause on the 15m. circle for a full rotation of the circle then continue to the 20m. circle.
After you do this exercise 4 times at the trot; add a canter transition after you leg yield out to the 20m. circle. Lower level horses just canter around the 20m. circle a few times.
The first part of this exercise can be your warm up to supple the horse when you are going to have an engagement day the higher schooled horses. You can spiral in at the half pass and out in leg yield. You can also do this at the canter. Horses that are 3rd level and above can spiral down to an 8m. Volte/ small circle. Horses that are schooled to PSG and above can canter the 8m volte in haunches in as a working pirouette.
Make sure that you let the horse stretch on the 20m.circle both directions at the trot ( Like in the first level tests) and if your horse is capable at the canter. You do this to release the lactic acid build up in the muscles. It’s very important!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)