# losing stirrups on pony & problems riding on a tiny pony



## Jolien (Aug 19, 2019)

Lately I am somewhat frustrated. I learned to ride on the horse of a friend (and I keep on taking lessons.) I also ride in a horse school on a riding... pony... They matched me up with a pony because he is old and docile and experienced. He is basically a good pony. But the problem is that I am very tall and so my feet hang far below the belly of the horse. They gave me spurs to ride, but I still have to literally lift my leg and feet for giving aids so I either lose my stirrups or my feet slide too far in it (when applying heel pressure not to lose the stirrup.) I read that more experienced riders use their upper legs to apply pressure, but this is a school horse and he does not get the signal for galloping when I only apply pressure like that. 



Also it seems to be impossible to sit the trot because he takes tiny steps.Because of that I bounce and hurt him and I don't want to be that kind of rider! So I try to go to a gallop directly from just stepping, but he also does not get that and first starts to trot (and then I am already bouncing and feeling guilty and then I want to quickly tell him to gallop and then everything goes wrong because I lose a stirrup, my feet get too far in the stirrup, I bounce and get frustrated... I know part of the problem is that the horse is a bit dead to certain aids, but I am just a client that rides once or twice a week and I can't retrain a pony that is ridden by so many people. 



I will tell my trainer that I want to learn to do light riding while galloping and that I want to learn different (sensible) things that I can learn on the pony. I can by the way perfectly sit the trot without coming out of the saddle and perfectly gallop and stick to the saddle on a horse. I also have never had the problem of losing a stirrup while galloping on a horse. Of course I requested a horse, but they don't have one for a beginner. I already decided the pony and I are not a good galloping match, but I just wanted some advice from experienced riders. What can I do differently to make it a more pleasurable experience for both me and the pony? If it continues like it is now, I am gonna request that we refer from galopping. Let's be real, I would never purchase a pony... So I am not really motivated to learn to sit the trot on a tiny horsey. But I am very much motivated to be a rider that does not hurt the horse.


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## BHRST (Nov 9, 2019)

How tall are you?
How tall is the pony?
Unless your knees hang past the equine's barrel, then you can cue with your calves. I have seen people 6+ ft. (183+ cm) on cute, tiny little ponies, and they both do just fine.

You are from Europe. For clarification, when you say "gallop" do you mean the three beat gait (10-17 mph (16–27 km/h); "canter"/"lope" in the U.S.) or the four beat gait (fastest gait)?

It sounds like you have been receiving some misinformation from the riding school and/or your trainer. Why are you wearing and using spurs? I have been riding over ten years and still feel like I do not have the leg control to use spurs. An inexperienced person should not be using spurs. If the horse is properly trained, the rider should not need to use spurs to cue a canter/gallop. Although spurs can be used as a "pay attention" cue, they are not meant to be used as a forward cue on a dead-sided equine.

When cueing for the canter/gallop from a trot, you should sit. Meanwhile, depending on your experience level, you can either post or two-point.


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## Jolien (Aug 19, 2019)

BHRST said:


> How tall are you?
> How tall is the pony?
> Unless your knees hang past the equine's barrel, then you can cue with your calves. I have seen people 6+ ft. (183+ cm) on cute, tiny little ponies, and they both do just fine.
> 
> ...



Gallop: I mean the fastest a horse can go. We only have one word for that in our language it seems like English has two? 



I can't use my calves because they are below the horse, my whole feet and a part of my lower leg hang below the belly of the pony. I am 1m82 cm. I don't know how tall the pony is, he is significantly tinier then a quarter horse (which I normally ride). 



I also agree with you on the spurs. I told the instructor I don't want to wear and use spurs so they gave me kids spurs/some kind of training things. In my opinion the horse is willing to work, it is confused by inconsistent training so I don't think using spurs is legitimized. I am also gonna refuse to wear the spurs next time.


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## Jolien (Aug 19, 2019)

When cueing for the canter/gallop from a trot, you should sit. Meanwhile, depending on your experience level, you can either post or two-point.[/QUOTE]


I know you should sit to cue from trot to gallop, but I can't sit the trot on this pony because his movements are so tiny and fast... (that's why I try to make him go from stepping to gallop at once so I can at least not annoy him in the trot) I do sit during the gallop, I never did the two point during gallop, I can perfectly do the two point during trot but the horse doesn't understand more leg pressure means 'transition to gallop', he thinks it means: more schwung/faster trot.


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## loosie (Jun 19, 2008)

If they be given you a too small pony because that's the most suitable they've got, if they give beginners spurs... is there anywhere else you can go for lessons?


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## Jolien (Aug 19, 2019)

loosie said:


> If they be given you a too small pony because that's the most suitable they've got, if they give beginners spurs... is there anywhere else you can go for lessons?



Yeah, I was thinking about that too. I don't get that a horse riding school doesn't at least have some beginner horses. I am gonna try some different horse riding schools... But it is hard to find western riding schools where I live... I already looked into it and I am gonna book some lessons elsewhere (it is further away and really expensive)...


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## Horsef (May 1, 2014)

Jolien said:


> Yeah, I was thinking about that too. I don't get that a horse riding school doesn't at least have some beginner horses. I am gonna try some different horse riding schools... But it is hard to find western riding schools where I live... I already looked into it and I am gonna book some lessons elsewhere (it is further away and really expensive)...


This school doesn’t sound ideal. Do you have any English schools nearby? From your other thread I gather you are a beginner. At that stage, English vs. Western doesn’t make much difference. Riding is riding. Go to the English school, get a lot of hours in. You can easily switch to Western later. It really isn’t very different until you get to higher levels of a specific discipline.


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## Jolien (Aug 19, 2019)

@Horsef Well erm... English is more popular so there are lots of English riding schools, but I have some issues (hard to explain) with my motoric movements. The problem is that automatisation of things take a lot of time and once something is ingrained it is really difficult to forget/overwrite it... I specifically chose western because I would not have to have contact with a bit and would be able to focus on my seat, neck reining and leg cues. I found that I can easily follow the movement of the horse with my body but have to think actively and hard about specific leg and rein cues. I am afraid that riding English will mess my learning proces up and I am almost certain riding with contact will be impossible for me.  I cannot coordinate hand movement whilst remaining in contact + legs + seat.) Seat comes the most natural to me. I actively think about legs, feet in stirrups and the properly holding of the reins while neck reining. 



If I would try to ride with contact it would probably take me 10X more time then an average rider. I would also cause the horse to suffer. Not okay.  So I am gonna try to find a good western school... Even if I have to pay much and have to travel far. 



Maybe I can switch to English when I can do all the rest very good (because then I would only have to focus on the rein contact??)


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## ACinATX (Sep 12, 2018)

How about you just take the stirrups off? I don't know if that would work, given what you said about your issues with movement, but I think it could solve both of your problems.

1. No stirrups means no stirrups to lose.
2. I personally find it a lot easier to sit the trot without stirrups, and most people I've talked to have said the same.

Riding with no stirrups is generally considered to be really good for you.


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## gottatrot (Jan 9, 2011)

We have two words in english for canter and gallop because they are two different gaits. I am guessing you perhaps are meaning the canter when you are talking about the gallop. In english we call the same gait canter as they call the lope in western.

You know what walk and trot are, and the canter is the third gait which is a three beat gait and is faster than a trot. The fourth gait is gallop, which is a four beat gait. When the horse transitions from canter to gallop, the three beat smoother motion becomes a rougher four beat motion.

The canter is not the fastest gait a horse has, but is usually the fastest gait that horses are ridden in an arena or during lessons. The gallop is the fastest gait a horse has, and is what racehorses are competed in. Sitting the canter is nice on most horses. Sitting the gallop is not nice on many horses, since it is rougher. Many riders get up in two point for galloping. 
This horse is galloping.









This horse is cantering (loping in western).


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## duskexx (May 8, 2019)

I think it will depend on what school you go to, but generally, I've found instructors don't really care if you have contact or not. I mean, you won't be able to have your reins as long as western riders, but you won't need constant contact for while (I've been riding 11 years and only just started riding with contact).


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## Jolien (Aug 19, 2019)

ACinATX said:


> How about you just take the stirrups off? I don't know if that would work, given what you said about your issues with movement, but I think it could solve both of your problems.
> 
> 1. No stirrups means no stirrups to lose.
> 2. I personally find it a lot easier to sit the trot without stirrups, and most people I've talked to have said the same.
> ...



My instructor says I am not a good enough rider to ride without stirrups...


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## Jolien (Aug 19, 2019)

@gottatrot We us the word gallop for canter (in my language) and rungalop for galop (so we use practically the same word). The cantering on a horse is easy for me (I almost never come out of the saddle and rock steadily with the motion). The cantering on the pony = disaster.  I never did the rungalop since there is no place for it in the riding school. Also it is not a custom here to do that... Most riders are afraid of the rungalop, so I have been told.


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## Jolien (Aug 19, 2019)

@ACinATX I think you might be right, I will be able to cue the pony by lifting my heel quickly and give him a little bump... Now I struggle to keep the stirrups on my feet and give a quick que and in the meanwhile stay in the saddle (and then I sometimes grab the pommel and according to my instructor this hurts the horse...) what a mess. I think I am gonna try one more time and if the problem isn't adressed properly I am gonna have to find a solution. The pony should not suffer because of a rider mismatch.


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## Horsef (May 1, 2014)

I think that since you do have additional challenges you shouldn’t be adding more difficulty in the form of an unsuitable horse. You will learn bad habits for sure.

My best advice is to find a different school. You could even speak to English schools around you and the might be able to accommodate you. We often have lessons or parts of lessons without contact. Most English trained horses know how to be ridden without contact - you just ride with your seat.You might even get a horse which is comfortable being ridden without a bit. All the school horses at my yard can be ridden bit-less, for example. I don’t think our instructors would have any issue with a student riding without contact or even neck reining.

Sorry, I didn’t mean to push the idea. I was just throwing possible solutions out there and something might help you.

Best of luck!


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## Jolien (Aug 19, 2019)

@Horsef
Yeah, you might be right... I don't want to learn bad habits! I will try to inform myself further and see if I can find a good solution...  Thanks for the ideas!


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## SilverMaple (Jun 24, 2017)

Jolien said:


> My instructor says I am not a good enough rider to ride without stirrups...



Many old-school instructors will tell you that until you are a decent rider, you don't get to use stirrups. They're not doing you any good on a too-small pony, and could well be dangerous if your legs can swing under the barrel-- should you fall, the horse could hang a leg in the stirrups easily. Stirrups with a novice rider on a small pony will not put you in the right position anyway. 

I would look for a new riding school for lessons. Any decent instructor should be able to help you learn even with your challenges, whether English or Western. The basics are not that different. A horse suitable for a beginning rider should be ok with some modifications for your learning styles, and suit you much better than a pony with your feet down around his knees.


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## jaydee (May 10, 2012)

You are paying for a service and they aren’t fulfilling their side of things.

The pony is possibly too narrow as well as being too small, you shouldn’t have to be doing things like riding without stirrups to try to make an unsuitable pony work for you.

Look for another riding school.


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## Acadianartist (Apr 21, 2015)

I agree with finding a new riding school. However, I will also add that yesterday, I rode a pony in a lesson. She's a tall pony (just over 14hh) and I'm short, but it still felt different than riding a taller horse. I ride English, and my coach is a jumper coach, so my stirrups are a bit higher. I just found that by pushing my leg under myself (which is where it should be anyway), I was able to keep my leg against the pony's sides and cue as needed. Of course in a Western saddle, it would be very different. 

There are a couple of other things you have mentioned that I'd like to bring up. Choosing to ride Western because you don't want to have to worry about riding with contact is a bit of an odd choice in my view. Just because you don't have contact doesn't mean you don't have to pay attention to your hands. Furthermore, it is completely normal for a beginner rider not to be able to use the different aids independently. That's why you have lessons. In time, your goal is to be able to use your hands, seat, and legs independently. There aren't any shortcuts, and it rarely happens easily. Riding is hard! You just have to put in the time and be patient. It took me a while to ride with contact, but now I understand that it's a way to keep constant communication with your horse. 

The other thing I want to bring up is the fact that you are struggling to go from trot to canter (or galop in your words -- in French we also use the word "galop" for both the canter and gallop, but we say "petit galop" for canter, "grand galop" for gallop). First, you are saying you can't sit the trot very well on this small pony because it takes tiny steps. I completely understand, but that's why you need to ride many horses. Some have short, choppy trots. You just have to learn to ride it. You also mention that the horse is not understanding the cue to canter (galop) and is just trotting faster. I understand that it's hard for you to cue with your leg hanging so low, but this is also a common beginner problem. You have to ask, then demand. In other words, if the horse is not listening, you have to demand that it does. Are you using a crop? Sometimes these lesson horses require a little more push. What does the instructor say you should do to ask for the canter (galop)? It is likely that you can get this horse to canter even with your legs hanging a bit low, you just have to make it very clear to the horse that it has to listen to you. When riding a new horse (like the pony I rode yesterday), I sometimes hesitate to use a lot of energy when I ask for the canter because I don't know how the horse will react. As a result, the first canter I did on this pony was a bit pathetic. It did not have enough momentum, and broke into a fast trot, so I had to work really hard to get it to canter again. Knowing this, the second chance I got to canter, I asked with a LOT more energy. I got a canter immediately, and was able to keep it going. That said, my legs are very, very sore today from constantly pushing this pony to be a little more forward! Some horses are just like that, they make you work hard. 

So while I agree that maybe you could find a better instructor, I feel like a lot of your comments are indicative of the fact that you are still a beginner because these are beginner problems (I still consider myself in that category btw). I think you just need lots more saddle time. 

One more tip I got from the coach yesterday when the pony I was riding wasn't going very fast is to apply pressure with my legs by alternating from side to side. It worked! Not sure if it would with the pony you were riding, but it was a new tool for me, so you could always ask the instructor if this is something you could try. This is not easy to do, for sure! Especially when thinking about your seat, posting the trot, alternating leg pressure, and working on flexion using an indirect rein (that was the exercise we were doing yesterday). But with enough time in the saddle, you'll be able to use all your aids independently.


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## SteadyOn (Mar 5, 2017)

You shouldn't need to lift your heel to apply leg pressure on the pony. And putting spurs on you is only going to reinforce that habit.

Leg pressure can come from using the inside surface of the calf to squeeze or bump the sides of the horse/pony. You can do that without lifting your heel. Use whatever part IS touching the horse, rather than trying to contort yourself.

This video demonstrates it pretty well (starting around 2:00).


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## SteadyOn (Mar 5, 2017)

And here's another video showing how to squeeze/bump with your calf muscle instead of lifting your heel:


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## JoBlueQuarter (Jan 20, 2017)

SteadyOn said:


> And here's another video showing how to squeeze/bump with your calf muscle instead of lifting your heel:
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YMIExCbYWA


I love the "dumbing down" in the title of the video :rofl:


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## SteadyOn (Mar 5, 2017)

JoBlueQuarter said:


> I love the "dumbing down" in the title of the video :rofl:


The comments on it are pretty amazing, too. All about how "KICKING IS CRUEL." (They obviously didn't watch the video!!!)


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## JoBlueQuarter (Jan 20, 2017)

SteadyOn said:


> The comments on it are pretty amazing, too. All about how "KICKING IS CRUEL." (They obviously didn't watch the video!!!)


LOL wouldn't expect anything else. :icon_rolleyes: Funny cuz that dumbed-down version was for just those ignorant people :lol:


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## tinyliny (Oct 31, 2009)

I think it's admirable that you want to focus on getting a good seat before taking up a contact. The best thing for that is lunge line lessons, and no stirrup riding, from time to time. The nice thing about lunge line lessons is that you don't have to worry about the horse's direction or speed, the handler takes care of all that. you ONLY ride. you only focus on being a good passenger on the horse.


Once you can be a good 'passenger' on a hrose that is controlled by someone else, you can start to be a bit of a 'pilot' and a passenger on a horse you control on your own. 

As you have seen, if you are bumping all over the place, it's hard to control the speed, and direction, of the horse. One that that can help you is to be able to take up enough contact to ask the horse to slow the trot, gather her energy, and step into a canter WITHOUT rushing into it. This is all about balance, and you being able to ask the hrose to depart into a canter in a relaxed, balanced manner.


So, like it was said earlier, there really is not shortcut. To learn how to sit this kind of rough, bumpy trot you just have to learn how to be relaxed, and let that action flow through you. It's hard to do. I know I find it very hard to ride a small, quick footed horse. But, with the kind of strong will that you have, you can do it! just takes time.


Once you can sit it decently, you can influence the horse with the reins and get her to slow down, get ready for a change to canter, and step into the canter without trotting so fast that it's miserable for you.


I almost forgot to say that you might consider using a crop to ask for a canter depart, instead of spurs. it will help you keep your leg long, and in the stirrups.


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## Jolien (Aug 19, 2019)

@Acadianartist


I don't use a crop. Also, I understand what you are saying about riding different horses, but I am not interested to ever buy a horse with a short choppy trot, nor am I interested to ever own a pony... If I can choose I am gonna ride a bigger horse with an easier trot... I ride for fun and I don't aspire to enter competition so I'd rather get a better horse/rider fit. If I want to ride difficult horses I want to be able to ride the easier horses very well first. Then we can see about levelling up. 



I do pay attention to my hands, I am just not willing (yet) to put in all the tremendous extra effort (for me) to ride with contact. Neck reining works just as well if the horse is trained like that. I understand that you don't understand. Most people don't because they don't know how it is to have a motoric problem. I am happy for you that you are able to ride with contact, but I know myself and I don't want to explain any further about this but for now my decision remains: neck reining, seat and legs. After that I can still see 



That being said you are absolutely right about my riding hours. Those are 20 something. Not nearly enough. You are probably also right about me being too kind. I have to insist more. But on the other hand: the private horse I ride immediately responds and I have no problem transitioning on him. I guess the pony has gotten a bit lazy or confused about the aids.


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## Jolien (Aug 19, 2019)

SteadyOn said:


> And here's another video showing how to squeeze/bump with your calf muscle instead of lifting your heel:
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YMIExCbYWA





This is how I ride: I squeeze my calf muscle against the horse. I never ever nudge the horse. I always use that kind of muscles (leg muscles/leg pressing), but my instructor told me to lift my heels from underneath the pony and kick it. I am like totally confused now.... 



I normally just do it like the person in this video. I never twist my feet so my leg comes of my horse. I just squeeze and when I squeeze longer or harder the horse goes into trot. When I put my leg behind the girth and kiss the horse goes immediately into canter. The pony doesn't... So maybe I can try to rhytmically squeeze???


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## Jolien (Aug 19, 2019)

okay, I am gonna try the bumping part without lifting my heel (caus that clearly isn't working). the next time. 


thanks for the videos and the aid!! Lots of people tell me different things... Some tell me to kick, some tell me to nudge, but my friend (the one that owns horses herself) always learned me to NOT kick, NOT nudge, but use your calf muscles to apply pressure.  I learned to ride like that on her horse.


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## SteadyOn (Mar 5, 2017)

Is there a reason you're not using a crop or a dressage whip with this pony? Given the difficulty in reaching him with the spurs, it would seem easier. And given your coordination issues, I'd recommend a dressage whip rather than a crop, as you just have to turn your wrist to use it, rather than having to put then reins in one hand and reach back. Used correctly, they don't hurt the horse. You're bascially tapping them to get their attention and saying "AHEM!!" It's actually milder than using spurs.


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## Jolien (Aug 19, 2019)

@SteadyOn No reason, I am a beginning rider and they just didn't propose to use a crop... I can't estimate myself when I should use what aids so I just listen to my instructor...  I have nothing against the proper use of a whip or other stuff. My instructor holds a long whip and she whacks the ground if the pony doesn't listen. I guess she also does this to give me the opportunity to try and focus on my seat instead of legs (?)


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## SteadyOn (Mar 5, 2017)

Jolien said:


> @SteadyOn No reason, I am a beginning rider and they just didn't propose to use a crop...


I find that really bizarre! I would have no problem whatsoever handing a whip to a beginner rider, in a lesson, but I would never, ever, ever put spurs on a beginner rider. Ever. They're so much harder to use, and to control, and they can create bad habits.


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## loosie (Jun 19, 2008)

Appreciate very much OP what you said about being a beginner getting so much conflicting opinions. All I can say is, follow your gut and keep learning & don't knock yourself if you later learn you were wrong to do... whatever, just be happy you can do better when you learn better! 

Now my (further) opinion... Agree that I would much rather a beginner have a crop - or you could use the tail of the reins - than spurs. Especially with long legs/small pony logistics.

To say you're not experienced enough for no stirrups - I'm of the idea that riding without stirrups, &/or bareback is very good for beginner riders. If you're bouncing all over the place at a trot, you need to learn how to sit that first - perhaps with stirrups to start with, but soon without, so you don't get to rely on them for your balance, so you can sit comfortably & securely(well, as comfortably as possible on a too small, bumpy pony) and be in full control *before* you start to canter. On a too small pony, esp if you're bouncing & imbalanced, it's uncomfortable for him, even if he can easily carry you at a walk. He may be too uncomfortable/imbalanced with you to feel he _can _canter. To actually kick him with spurs on, aside from the logistics of your too long legs, is pretty harsh, especially if the reason he's not cantering is because he's hurting.

Re English/Western riding, if you can 'direct rein' - as in, one rein in each hand, putting pressure on to ask for something, rather than neck reining, then it shouldn't need to be an issue. You can ride a well trained 'English' horse on a loose rein too.


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## Jolly101 (Jul 2, 2018)

HI op  

I'd also suggest considering switching riding schools either to an english or western one. From what I've read, It doesn't sound like your current school is providing you with the best tools to succeed. A good school should have safe lesson horses that can go with or without connect, no matter the discipline (english or western). Additionally, I also find it odd that they would have you ride with spurs and not a crop as a beginner. 

When considering other riding schools, I'd suggest auditing a few lessons and discussing with the instructor about whether or not they can accommodate for you and how they would do so. You want to make sure that they will have a safe beginners horse available for you and that the instructor's teaching is a also a good match. Also, don't be afraid to try out a lesson at different places to see which one fits you best. You may pleasantly surprise yourself on a different horse and with a different instructor or find out which methods do and do not work for you. Either way, I don't think you'll be disappointed by trying. 

As for the sitting trot...it is actually a skill that takes a long time to correctly develop, which sounds strange considering it is one of the first movements we teach. However, It actually requires certain muscles to be toned and well, relaxed at the same time. In order to do that, you also need to be sitting on your seat bones properly and have correct leg and upper body posture, which becomes more apparent on bouncier horses. Eventually, our muscle memory is able to do this and the sitting trot does become a lot easier.


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## tinyliny (Oct 31, 2009)

I agree with @loosie; if you are not able to sit or post the trot of the pony, then you should not be moving on to cantering around the arena only to escape the rough gait.


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## Jolien (Aug 19, 2019)

@*loosie* I have thought about the problem and I have come to the decision that I will not ride that pony any longer since I have no problems balancing on a horse and sitting the trot on a horse and also cantering and remaining in the seat (I do not bump at all) on a horse the logical choice would be to practice futher on a horse instead of messing around on a pony... The comments of all the more experienced riders made me think and decide that it is probably best for me and the poor pony that we say goodbye. 


What you said about the stirrups: my friend (who also teaches me and is a very good teacher according to my opinion) told me my seat (on her horse) is balanced enough to go bareback for the trotting and walking so we will be adding this to our practicing soon.  We also ride without stirrups on her horse sometimes. I do trust this horse and so I can relax and try different stuff. 



@Jolly101 The weird thing is that I can sit the trot on my friend her horse perfectly (also other experienced riders told me I have a very good seat and use the right muscles). In my third riding lesson I sat the trot and it went really well. But he is a quarter (and they are known to have a nice 'seat'), also this horse listens very well to seat aids. When I sit a bit deeper (even a tiny bit) he adjusts the tempo of the trot, so we can communicate very well and make it comfortable for the both of us. But sitting the trot on a pony or on a friesian is difficult, I admit!! Probably because I don't have enough experience. This experience will come with more riding hours, I am sure of that. My muscle memory indeed has to develop!  



Today I spoke with one of my horse riding friends (that really knows what she is doing and taught green horses) and we decided to look for another riding school together. She is gonna help me and even swing by some lessons so she can see how it goes  (Best friend ever!). We will probably also take some classes together so we can have a cheaper price (hehe ) and she can help me look for a good instructor.  She is gonna prepare me for the more difficult skills on her (very well trained) horse so I can more easily do the difficult parts on a school horse! (Like prepping me, and setting me up for succes).


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## Jolien (Aug 19, 2019)

@SteadyOn Yeah you are right. It's not right. Since I am a beginner and I do notice the pony trying really hard. It is unfair because someone mistrained him and now he does not understand... I know he wants to do what I ask (I see him thinking).
I spoke with someone that did endurance with her arabians and I consider her a very good rider! She told me she has never ever (!) used spurs on her horses and that I should ditch them immediately.I think if every good experienced rider thinks this way my gut instinct was right: no for spurs.


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## Acadianartist (Apr 21, 2015)

Jolien said:


> Today I spoke with one of my horse riding friends (that really knows what she is doing and taught green horses) and we decided to look for another riding school together. She is gonna help me and even swing by some lessons so she can see how it goes  (Best friend ever!). We will probably also take some classes together so we can have a cheaper price (hehe ) and she can help me look for a good instructor.  She is gonna prepare me for the more difficult skills on her (very well trained) horse so I can more easily do the difficult parts on a school horse! (Like prepping me, and setting me up for succes).


This is an idea situation - a type of mentoring with someone who has a lot of experience and lives in your area is ideal! Go out of her way to help her out, especially if she is letting you ride her horse. Offer to help look after her horse when she needs help, do chores for her, go watch her ride, groom her horse, whatever you can think of to return the favor of her time. A person like that is a precious resource! She will be able to better assess a riding instructor for you, and give you tips that an instructor might not think of because they are at a different place in their riding ability. This has the potential to help you improve a lot faster!


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## Jolien (Aug 19, 2019)

@Acadianartist She is a friend of a friend (and has become my friend too ) , I have known here since we were 12. I do give here something in exchange for riding her horse because I know how expensive horses are and she has to retrain her horse because of me. I think it is only decent to compensate, you shouldn't take advantage of friends.  I help her out a bit and try to tag along while she trains other horses. I learned a lot from her already. My fast progress in riding is because of her and her really trained horse. I just rewatched a video of me and her horse. The moment I said 'easy' to the horse he almost tripped trying to obey my command as fast as he possibly could. That horse is golden...


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## Jolien (Aug 19, 2019)

@*loosie* I forgot to mention I did not try to use the spurs because I was hesitant. I felt really bad about it so I didn't wanna bring my heel up to bump the poor pony and spur it (further adding to the problems because now I was 'handicapped' with the spurs caus I could move my legs even less)  Haha, what a total mess. Sjeezzz... I have riding boots (english because western are too expensive for me) and those have tiny rubber square bumps on the sides. I always thought those are enough to communicate when leg pressure did not work. Since a horse can feel a fly on their skin I am pretty sure they are aware when I purposedly put my little rubber squares on them.


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## keelan (Jan 5, 2010)

Try English. A trained dressage horse takes most of it's cues from the seat. Hands and legs add finesse.


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## Jolien (Aug 19, 2019)

update: one of my horse riding friends (that is very experienced) found me a new trainer in western riding. They have a beginners horse and she will take advanced reining lessons while I can ride the beginners horse. We are gonna go together so I can videotape her and she can do the same for me.  I am really happy that she helpes me out so much! She also looked into the other trainers in my area and figured out which ones have had a decent training themselves.(All info I would not have known without her help) I am stoked!


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## Acadianartist (Apr 21, 2015)

That's great news @Jolien! Keep us updated on your progress!


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## Jolien (Aug 19, 2019)

@Acadianartist I will! For now we are prepping to go bareback on her own horse (first working some more on riding without stirrups). We are also gonna start practicing going over some poles on the ground (to prepare for jumping when I am more advanced, but first I need to know how it feels and need to be able to sit correctly to do a jump).  Update in a few weeks when I have (hopefully) progressed a bit!


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## Jolien (Aug 19, 2019)

update: I had my first private lesson with a top trainer and I am really happy about her! She is great and a kind person! She has been world champion reiner and she has a ton of experience. She gave me a lot of sensible feedback and paired me with a beginners horse that I feel safe on. I am going to keep on riding under her guidance because I think she can learn me alot! 



I also took another riding lesson in the riding school and they gave me a horse instead of a pony, but I find that me and the trainer are not a good match, we ain't working together and since they let me ride a pony with spurs and I saw some crippled horses been ridden I decided to leave that barn forever. 



I also watched a more experienced dressage rider get a western lesson from a toptrainer that works with top athletes and he told me he can also teach me, but I think I am not good enough yet. He seems to be very technical and I didn't understand what he tried to tell the other rider. I am more someone that rides instinctively and then asks for feedback so I know what kind of muscle memory I have to work on and he seems to be the type of trainer that gives a lot of explanation first.


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## Jolien (Aug 19, 2019)

next weekend me and my friend are gonna take some private lessons with some other trainers too! So we can compare and look for the best match for me. But I am gonna keep on training with the reining champ.  She's great!


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## SueC (Feb 22, 2014)

I've not read anything else yet, just some thoughts! 



Jolien said:


> But the problem is that I am very tall and so my feet hang far below the belly of the horse. They gave me spurs to ride, but I still have to literally lift my leg and feet for giving aids so I either lose my stirrups or my feet slide too far in it (when applying heel pressure not to lose the stirrup.)


I bet other people have already said this, but it's kind of pointless having spurs when your legs hang below the horse, and puts you in a crazy situation as regards stirrups. I'd ditch the spurs and go for a short riding crop to wave around with aplomb if the pony needs encouragement. 



> I read that more experienced riders use their upper legs to apply pressure, but this is a school horse and he does not get the signal for galloping when I only apply pressure like that.


I mostly cue with my seat, but then I've got goey horses who like to move. This may not be so persuasive for horses with the opposite inclination, which is why I suggested flourishing a crop. Sometimes, in cases like that, it's even more effective to use a branch with leaves on it that rustle! 

Also you can try singing. I'm serious. It can take all sorts of manoeuvres to get some horses to wake up, especially riding school horses...




> Also it seems to be impossible to sit the trot because he takes tiny steps.Because of that I bounce and hurt him and I don't want to be that kind of rider!


The real reason I jumped in to post before reading anything else was because I wanted to share the thought that riding a little pony at a trot is a bit like riding a sewing machine!  I remember being invited to ride a friend's little Welsh Pony bareback as a kid, when I was on a 16hh horse with long strides normally. :rofl: I well remember that feeling. It helped me to lean back slightly and to really, really focus on being elastic - not to tense up. Leaning back slightly doesn't work for every horse and rider, but try adjusting your position and seeing what works better (even if it's not textbook!). Try various degrees leaning back and leaning forward to see if any variation like that improves things for you. Good luck! inkunicorn:

And not that it's the same, but here's a guy bareback showing various body positions while entertaining a crowd at a dressage do!


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## Jolien (Aug 19, 2019)

@SueC


I ditched the pony... I am gonna stick to bigger horses for now. If I am a better rider I can try to ride more difficult horses.  But thanks for the tips, I already tried the leaning back, but I don't like that...


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## Jolien (Aug 19, 2019)

last update in this older thread: I went to the other trainer today and it was great! He gave me a lot of explanation and a highly schooled horse that reacted to very fine aids (my friend that also gave me riding lessons used to be assistant trainer in that barn and she did a good word for me, she attested that I am soft in my handling and that I give soft aids).  Today I learned alot and I did my first three little spins on a horse! (learning western & reining still...)  I am gonna keep training with this trainer!


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