# First Canter Lesson



## Endiku (Dec 6, 2010)

6th lesson in seems a little hasty for cantering to me, but I'm glad to hear that your instructor starts you on the lunge for new gaits, and if that was your first time trotting, I'd say you're doing quite well! Just remember to relax your body, sit up straight, and let the horse move you. Don't work against him, or it will be that much harder!

You have quite the lazy lesson horse though xD I was sure he'd fallen asleep while 'trotting' a couple of times, there! Ask him to step it up and move forwards more, and it will be a lot easier for you to stay with him at the trot.


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## Skyseternalangel (Jul 23, 2011)

Don't over think the canter. That's my advice to you


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## SlideStop (Dec 28, 2011)

Not to shabby. Try to anticipate the motion instead of waiting for him to give you the little "pop" upwards. Think about a forward and back motion instead of up and down. You look very mechanical up there, but that should lessen with the more lessons you get under your belt. 

As for the canter, sit and relax your hips. I try to tell myself to make pretend your "scooping ice cream" with you with your pelvis.


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## Skyseternalangel (Jul 23, 2011)

I watched your video (since Slidestop did, I felt I should too) and agree about the mechanical posting. The only TRUE posting you did was at 1:03 when you were trying to transition back to a walk. 

You can definitely sit the canter but you aren't quite ready to ride it by yourself off the lunge w/ reins yet


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## Bckz14 (May 29, 2013)

Thank you for your replies - I will try tonight!

The video was of my first trot lesson....I have had three more lessons since...so I hope I am a bit more natural looking now. 

 B


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## Bckz14 (May 29, 2013)

Complete and utter disaster

I turned up ready for my canter lesson. Except it wasn't a canter lesson anymore but a group hack...don't ask me how that happened! 

I then find out that I am riding a horse who I had a week or so ago....who I could not control, who tried everything to do the opposite of what I wanted her to do, etc. 

So we set off....all is fine - until she decided she wanted to be at the front of the line and breaks in to a very fast canter (I have never cantered in my life and have only had 7 lessons) I lost a stirrup and nearly fell off.....safe to say I am now slightly shaken. For the rest of the hack my trot felt disjointed and tense 

The whole incident was frustrating as my RI told be before that no-one wants to ride this horse because she is so unpredictable, young and needs more training....


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## Corporal (Jul 29, 2010)

So sorry to hear about the bad lesson. **hugs**
I learned to ride before I took lessons, as many people do.
Real riding lessons are learning to stay on and control the horse in a controlled environment. You are a paying customer and need to complain that the horse does not listen to you or the instructor.
When I taught I used my own horses and I controlled THEIR movement from the middle of the ring. I could stop, start, cue forward and faster or slower, and that is probably why my lesson horses were pretty much bombproof and babysitters when we loaned them out to others at CW Reenactments. Even when I rode ONE of my horses, all of the others would take their cues from ME.
You've had a bit of a fright. I say, sit the trot for a few MONTHS, especially without stirrups. _That_ will teach you how to balance and to move with the horse. When the time comes to canter, remember what MY excellent Hunt-Seat teacher taught us, which was "to brush the back of the seat with your fanny."


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## Skyseternalangel (Jul 23, 2011)

Bckz14 said:


> Complete and utter disaster
> 
> I turned up ready for my canter lesson. Except it wasn't a canter lesson anymore but a group hack...don't ask me how that happened!
> 
> ...


Then she shouldn't have put you on him! 

That's a sign of a bad instuctor.


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## PinkStella (Feb 1, 2013)

I'm new to riding, so take my opinion for what it's worth (considerably less than two cents)...don't rush into anything. You have all the time in the world to learn and get stronger. Take your time and work through the process. I'd be shaken, too, if I were in your shoes. While she challenges me and has taught me (literally) everything I know about riding, my instructor has never pushed me beyond my ability. Part of being about to canter properly is about having the leg and core strength to stay on even if you do lose a stirrup and the ability to do it all calmly. You will get there, but it takes time. It sounds as if she put you on a horse and in a situation that you weren't ready for. Riding is not without risk, but you shouldn't have to feel shaken or scared going into it.


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## Bckz14 (May 29, 2013)

Well I had another lesson today and it was great....not exactly what you guys suggested I do though. I had the horse I normally have and I went on a hack and learnt to canter.....(a very rough around the edges type of canter) but it was amazing!!!!! We spent the lesson in a large field and did posting trot, walking, and then sitting trot to canter then to posting trot etc. Was a really exciting lesson and I felt really comfortable!


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## Bckz14 (May 29, 2013)

So I had a second canter lesson today....out in a large field again. It was great. Hoping to do some lunge and stirrup work tomorrow...

but...

Has anyone else found that their shoulders really ache after? Maybe I am tensing up? But man, my shoulders are killing me!!!!


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## jinxremoving (Apr 6, 2009)

Bckz14 said:


> Has anyone else found that their shoulders really ache after? Maybe I am tensing up? But man, my shoulders are killing me!!!!


You probably are tensing up! Make sure you breath and let your body roll with the canter.

I would also suggest spending 5-10 minutes before you mount to stretch and get your body all loosened up. I've been doing that before every ride and I forgot once and ended up pulling a muscle shortly after... could have been a fluke, but I am now a huge believer in stretching often.


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## Bckz14 (May 29, 2013)

Here I am trying to canter....the horses at this school are not trained to canter in the arena so it was hard work...we normally go to a large field but due to a large amount of mosquitoes we stayed and tried in the training arena instead. Graf did not want to canter.....


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## tinyliny (Oct 31, 2009)

cannot view your video.


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## SlideStop (Dec 28, 2011)

They are trained now to canter in the arena?! That's odd. That's where people should be learning to canter. Learning in a larger field can be dangerous... There is LOTS of room to pick up speed. 

You horse probably doesn't want to canter because you are leaning forward, your hands a flopping all over and your not balanced. Also, your stirrups are pretty short, I'd let them down easily two holes. I think its nice to give a student a taste of what a canter is like in a controlled environment to give them a fighting chance if something happens. If you were mine we'd be going to no stirrups, no hands, pole work and posting patterns. All these will help steady your hands and improve your balance.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Bckz14 (May 29, 2013)

Thanks - I'll try to work on those things!


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## Bckz14 (May 29, 2013)

I'm not even sure they have training poles at my stables....I am learning in a tiny stable in Riga, Latvia... It's also tough to with translations and understanding my trainer and her understanding me!


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## bsms (Dec 31, 2010)

Given your location, it may be tough, but...

Maybe learn to trot using a rope halter instead of a bit? It isn't fair to the horse to expect him to go while his mouth is used roughly. One of the nice things about a rope halter (sidepull halter) is that you can work your balance without being hard on his mouth.

Trooper in a rope halter:










Get a grabstrap to help you with your balance until you can feel the horse's movement and be lighter on the mouth.


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## Skyseternalangel (Jul 23, 2011)

Why is she running after the horse with the whip...while it is on the lungeline with a student ontop?

I don't feel that this person knows what they are doing. At all.


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## Bckz14 (May 29, 2013)

@bsms I will ask my instructor if I can try that - thanks 

@Skyseternalangel :-( I don't know enough about horse riding to know if she is doing/teaching me the correct way :-(


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## wetrain17 (May 25, 2011)

While I think you have made a lot of progress with your riding in a very short amount of time, I think that you are moving too fast. Your instructor should slow it down and really break things down for you. You're going to end up with a lot of holes in your training at the pace you're going at. That will only lead to lots of falls and injuries along the way. Your instructor should be working on getting you to relax your entire body, allowing it to move with the horse, rather then being a stiff board. Again, I know you just started, but these are the things your instructor should be teaching you BEFORE moving to the canter. If you're stiff/tense at the canter you can easily fall.


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## Bckz14 (May 29, 2013)

Okay sorry - Thank you....


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## DuckDodgers (May 28, 2013)

Haha, during both videos I found myself clicking to get the horse to move  You do appear to be blocking him from going forward, and that does not help make a lazy lesson horse move! I'm sorry to hear that your first canter encounter was unpleasant, but glad that you got right back to it! 

While you do seem to have a more steady seat than many just starting out that I have seen, I agree that you are moving too quickly. When I started cantering it was on the calmest lesson horse (not the one I usually rode) on the lunge line and I did not have reins. I had been riding with a cruddy instructor for about a year (one who basically ignored me in a huge group lesson), and probably another several months with my old trainer. Certainly not in a large open field! I would also be very wary that your instructor is willing to put you on an unpredictable horse, especially when going out of the arena. Are you paying for group or private lessons? If you are paying for private, then it does not seem fair that she could just say "hey, we're going on a group hack!" unless you were on board. I don't know what other options are available around you, but you may want to look into taking lessons with a different instructor if possible. In this sport you want to be training with someone who will set you up for success- your trainer may be a lovely rider, but not every great rider is also a great teacher!!


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## DuckDodgers (May 28, 2013)

Also, like folks have said, relax!! I would guess that your sore shoulders are from a combination of stiffness as well as possibly holding the horse's mouth with your hands. It's definitely easier said than done, but try to loosen yourself and your hold so you can move with him. Soreness after riding is not uncommon, but you can help prevent it!


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## tinyliny (Oct 31, 2009)

For a real beginner, you are doing well and will become a good rider, I feel certain.
If you are going to work on canter, it would be best for you and the horse if you continued to work on the lungeline, and that you do not hold the reins, but rather just put your hands on your thighs, or better yet, on your tummy (helps to keep you sitting up straight). Right now, you are not steady enough to avoid bopping the horse in the mouth with the rein/bit. Once you are more steady, you can hold the reins.


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## SlideStop (Dec 28, 2011)

Bckz14 said:


> @bsms I will ask my instructor if I can try that - thanks
> 
> @Skyseternalangel :-( I don't know enough about horse riding to know if she is doing/teaching me the correct way :-(


Go to another local stable and take a lesson there, like getting a second opinion from a doctor. Keep in mind one person's teaching style may not mesh with some people. It's not that its wrong, it just doesn't work for everyone. My sister and I were taking jumping lessons with the same instructor. I was doing well and she was stand still. Now she found an instructor who's methods work for her. She is finally progressing along!*It's not that one was wrong, their methods were just different!
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Bckz14 (May 29, 2013)

Thanks for all the help. 

The trouble is there are not many english speaking stables here. I am heading back to the UK in two weeks for the summer and then am moving to Qatar....So I will have to change trainers soon. 

I had another lesson this evening and spent a lot of the time trotting - sitting and posting. I was trying to post on the correct leg around the training area. Then my RI asked me to try to canter on my own...which is in the following video. I still couldn't get him to do it.....so she put me on the lunge. I tried to keep up straight and relax.....it felt okay....


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## Bckz14 (May 29, 2013)

Some teenagers are just so disrespectful and rude!!!

On a hack today with a group of about 8 other horses. We were transitioning from walk to posting trot and out of nowhere appear these two 13/14 year old boys with music blaring from their phones....Poor Grafes panics and attempts to bolt and I try and calm him and manage to stay on! But I end up having to shout at these kids to turn the music off as they find the whole thing really funny! And then just as I got past them they started it up again and Grafes had a second panic!

Grrrrrrrrr!!!!!


:shock::evil::evil::evil::evil::evil::shock:


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## tinyliny (Oct 31, 2009)

I sure would have had you hang on to the saddle instead of the reins druing the lunge portion of that lesson.

I hope you find good lessons and riding opportunities in UK and then Quatar.


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## Bckz14 (May 29, 2013)

Can you be my new RI?  I need to move to the USA!


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## Bckz14 (May 29, 2013)

I will make sure I do lunge with no reins next lesson.


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## Bckz14 (May 29, 2013)

I did canter on the lunge today with no stirrups....feeling much better I think...any more suggestions on what I could do better?


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## EdmontonHorseGal (Jun 2, 2013)

while i have no advice, i just wanted to say....... your instructor was on the wrong lead cantering alongside you in the one video. lol!


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## Bckz14 (May 29, 2013)

I'm sorry - I dont understand?!


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## EdmontonHorseGal (Jun 2, 2013)

Bckz14 said:


> I'm sorry - I dont understand?!



the one video where your instructor is moving in what looks like a human 'canter' gait, she is leading with her outside leg, not the inside as a horse would when being ridden in the canter.

sorry for confusing you, i just thought this was amusing, especially considering when i was a kid i used to 'canter' like your instructor and pretend i was a horse, lol.


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## Bckz14 (May 29, 2013)

Ah! I understand! LOL


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## Saranda (Apr 14, 2011)

Sveika! Arī esmu no Rīgas - kurā stallī jāj un varbūt varu ieteikt arī citas vietas treniņiem?


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## Bckz14 (May 29, 2013)

sveiki es braukt pie Zirgzandales.
I don't really speak Latvian


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## Saranda (Apr 14, 2011)

Oh, I see.

The place you mention does not have a fame of a good equine facility, regarding the education they offer, so, if you wish, I might be able to suggest something else, if that is needed when you visit Latvia.


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## Bckz14 (May 29, 2013)

Ah thank you


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## tinyliny (Oct 31, 2009)

I don't know about the reputation of the place you are at, but it isn't that bad from what I see . maybe not what you'd need as you got better.

I see improvement already. you are a quick learner and someone with a good natural balance. these videos will be precious to you in a year, when you will have forgotten how hard it was just to canter.

you are doing well and working yoiur way through all the things that have to be learned by time and practice. 
as for a tip or two, learn early on not to look downward, or too far into your turn. your weight, and thus the horse's, tend to go where you are looking. Those times that the horse kind of circled really small, and leaning inward, YOU were leaning and looking inward. if you can develop the habit of looking upward, and a ways in front of you early in your riding, you'll never have to deal with unlearning the bad habit of looking down.


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## Bckz14 (May 29, 2013)

*Last lesson in Latvia*

Thank you for your comments. 

Flying to UK on Friday so will have some more riding lessons there over the summer and then to Qatar in August where hopefully I will find a good stable!

But I think I did okay for my final lesson in Latvia and 16th hour of horse riding ever...


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## xlionesss (Jan 30, 2012)

I'm by no means experienced, but I would say during the trot instead of picking your reins up each time you rise, try to keep your hands a bit more stationary. It looks a bit like you're popping them up each time.
Congrats on the canter though!

Like someone else said, it is VERY important to look where you want to go. Look up and in the direction you're moving. I know everyone says it and it seems like a load of crap...but it really really does help! You want to make that a habit for when you move onto a more difficult horse.


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