Young horse diary: Aid responsiveness and rider staility

It's been 5 months since Baz came into my life and in that time, we've started to build the foundations for what I hope to be a great partnership. Most importantly, our trust in each other is growing daily. At only 4 years old, he has a happy and chilled demeanor, peppered with an element of cheekiness, which I love; because it stops me from becoming complacent! Here is an update on what we've been working on in our schooling with the help of  my instructor, Gail Allum.

Baz's responsiveness to the aids is something we've explored recently. A fundamental aspect of this is my position in the saddle so that I'm able to give Baz clear signals. I had become a little defensive in my position, only because of my inexperience of riding a youngster, Baz and I are still getting to know each other after all and I wanted to be ready to anticipate any unexpected moves on his part! The defensiveness has manifested itself as a tendency to grip the saddle with my knees, which then results in greater movement of my lower leg and a lack of suppleness in my lower back. These factors restrict Baz from being able to move forward freely and mean my aids are less clear.

How have we resolved this? One exercise we've done is to take my legs out and away from the saddle for a few strides in all three paces while keeping my feet in the stirrups. This not only frees up your horse's movement, but that of your lower back too. It certainly tests your balance as a rider and makes you work your core muscles! You then bring your legs quietly back so they drape round your horse's sides.

Sally Swift, author of Centered  Riding, has a great analogy for helping you improve your leg position and lower leg stability. She encourages you to imagine your legs are growing longer until your feet are resting flat on the ground. This results in a softening of your legs, knees and ankles and deepens your seat in the saddle. Your lower leg will be more stable because your knees will be less likely to grip the saddle flap. The added bonus of this analogy is that imagining your feet are touching the ground has a grounding effect on you as a rider. Any nervous energy is dissipated. The resulting calmness is particularly useful when riding a youngster or a horse who feels a little fresher than you'd like because your horse will pick up on your calmer, more centred energy.
.
Having practised the exercise from Gail and used the visual aid from Sally Swift, I've been encouraged by the feeling of greater stability in the saddle and how much quieter I can ride. My leg aids are clearer and, therefore, more effective because there is less 'noise' caused by the constant movement of my lower leg. Meanwhile, Baz can move forwards with ease as my lower back moves with him. Try it yourself and let me know how you get on in the comments.

Kathryn White is owner and director of Cathean Ltd Medical and  Copy Writing Services. She is a published medical, copy and equestrian writer with a passion for creating compelling text in collaboration with her clients. Her customers include pharmaceutical, healthcare and equestrian businesses across the world.