# Sitting the trot?



## Endless Journey Girl (Jun 10, 2009)

Ok so I wonder if someone might be able to give me some tips, so I've always had troubles sitting the trot for some reason. I've been lucky i've ridden a lot of horses with smooth trots and my instructor has always put me on horses with smooth quiet trots. But lately my instructor has started switching me to different horses and the one I rode tonight had a really springy trot and I just COULD NOT sit to it. I tried to sit up, move to the motion of the horse and relax but it just wasn't working for me. I took my stirrups away and tried and I stayed on fine but could feel myself bouncing and I don't know what to do about it. Any tips on exercises I could do? Because no matter how hard I try to sit up straight, move with the horse and relax my body it's just not working for me.


----------



## ilovemyPhillip (Apr 4, 2009)

Hmm, sitting trot is hard for me to do, also. What i do is really press my seat down and hold on with my leg minus hittin the horses sides.


----------



## smrobs (Jul 30, 2008)

Some horses, it takes a very talented person to sit the trot. My Perch has a very animated trot and I cannot sit it no matter what I do. Every time I tried, I would end up getting bounced higher and higher every step.


----------



## xxBarry Godden (Jul 17, 2009)

*Learning trot* - buy a copy of the British Horse Society manual ISBN O-872119-33-6 Go to page 31.
Instructions: 1 Find experienced, rythmic, steady horse. Nothing fast skittish, flirty or fancy. A nice broad flat back is admirable. Cobs are great.
Adjust stirrup leathers to allow ball of foot to rest with toes pointing up at 45 deg angle 
Squeeze horse into slow trot
Sense rythm of horse's 2 beat movement (up/down up/down). Don't allow horse to speed up, keep pace slow and gentle
Rise slightly and in tune with the beat, off knee tucked into knee roll and ball of foot resting on bar of stirrup iron. Sense the upward pressure from the horse. 
Don't rise too high. Take care to be in perfect upright balance. 
Incline body very very slightly fowards from pelvis to absorb forward speed. 
When dropping back down into saddle take care to land softly on saddle. 
Keep up and down motion fluid - no hesitations.
Keep very loose contact with horses mouth thru reins to the bit - horses head will move only slightly at the trot. Take care not to jolt bit in the horse's mouth. 
Hands and arms must be kept still despite motion of horse,
Keep head up and still, face direction of horse's movement
At beginning ride horse on lunge line with friend keeping the horse at steady, slowish, speed from the centre of the circle.
Rest and revert to walk on regular basis. When resuming trot, Rise to trot with squeeze of heel against horse's flank. At same instant call out to horse: "TROT ON"
Practice, practice, practice, go round and round in circles.
PS It will help to take Pilates lessons to strengthen stomach & back muscles. The under thigh muscles will take time to develop.
At first you may get lower back ache and even stomach muscle ache. 
Always practice on flat level grassy or sandy surface of a fenced arena - no hills nor slopes. 
The better you get, the easier it will become.


----------



## FoxyRoxy1507 (Jul 15, 2008)

try rolling your pelvis so you are sitting more on the pockets of your butt and remember to breath and relax the bottom part of your back. one of my geldings has a VERY VERY rough trot and after working on it for a while with no stirrups and sitting on my butt i learned how to sit it. it does take time but this will be good for you and def make you a better rider.


----------



## Endless Journey Girl (Jun 10, 2009)

FoxyRoxy1507 said:


> try rolling your pelvis so you are sitting more on the pockets of your butt and remember to breath and relax the bottom part of your back. one of my geldings has a VERY VERY rough trot and after working on it for a while with no stirrups and sitting on my butt i learned how to sit it. it does take time but this will be good for you and def make you a better rider.


Thanks, yea I'm planning on doing lots of no stirrups, like I said I can stay on at the trot with out stirrups I just bounce a lot.


----------



## Endless Journey Girl (Jun 10, 2009)

Barry Godden said:


> *Learning trot* - buy a copy of the British Horse Society manual ISBN O-872119-33-6 Go to page 31.
> Instructions: 1 Find experienced, rythmic, steady horse. Nothing fast skittish, flirty or fancy. A nice broad flat back is admirable. Cobs are great.
> Adjust stirrup leathers to allow ball of foot to rest with toes pointing up at 45 deg angle
> Squeeze horse into slow trot
> ...


Unfortunately this doesn't help me, I am perfectly fine doing the rising trot(other than being on the wrong diagonal the odd time), it's sitting trot that I struggle with.


----------



## wintec (Jun 5, 2009)

Working without stirrups will probably help a bit so good job trying that. Umm you just need to relax. Especially your stomach muscles. They tend to tense up when sitting the trot so you need to train them to relax and after that the trot will feel smoother.


----------



## PoptartShop (Jul 25, 2010)

Ah, at my lesson Wednesday night, we were doing a lot of non-stirrup work, & we had to post AND sit the trot. :O
Daytona's trot can be a bit bouncy to sit to...but what really helped me not bounce as much was to sit back just a little bit (not too much), & just let my legs hang there. If you grip with your legs, then it makes it even worse, I found. Just try to relax, & let your legs hang down- but make sure you move your toes up & down, that usually helps as well.


----------



## moomoo (Feb 21, 2007)

Put a $50 bill under your bum and tell anyone watching if it falls to the ground its theirs to keep - you won't bounce  

Imagine someone has punched you in the stomach, so your bum is tucked underneath you and your stomach is relaxed


----------



## tempest (Jan 26, 2009)

There's a method to it. I had the hang of it on Rocket, but when I got Razz no matter what I do, can't apply it to her trot. I've tried just about everything, too.
Yeah the no stirrups only works if you can ride without stirrups without killing yourself. Long story, don't ask, but what I said is true, no stirrups is suicide on my horse.


----------



## mom2pride (May 5, 2009)

Alot of no stirrup work will help, as can bareback work on a longe line. 

If you can think sitting tall, while 'keep butt planted', that can help alot too. Use your thigh to achieve some 'grip' if you need too, but becareful not to lock your knee or lower leg onto the horse, or he may go faster!


----------



## Endless Journey Girl (Jun 10, 2009)

mom2pride said:


> Alot of no stirrup work will help, as can bareback work on a longe line.
> 
> If you can think sitting tall, while 'keep butt planted', that can help alot too. Use your thigh to achieve some 'grip' if you need too, but becareful not to lock your knee or lower leg onto the horse, or he may go faster!


Haha yea I learned my lesson pretty quickly with that one. Except I did that at the canter. It's like an automatic reaction for me to lock my knee's. I was riding this horse and I lost my stirrup cuz he was going quite fast as it was, then I started squeezing with my legs and he started going REALLY fast lol. I managed to keep my cool though and eventually managed to compose myself and get him to slow down.


----------



## mom2pride (May 5, 2009)

Endless Journey Girl said:


> Haha yea I learned my lesson pretty quickly with that one. Except I did that at the canter. It's like an automatic reaction for me to lock my knee's. I was riding this horse and I lost my stirrup cuz he was going quite fast as it was, then I started squeezing with my legs and he started going REALLY fast lol. I managed to keep my cool though and eventually managed to compose myself and get him to slow down.


I remember accidentally doing that to a Mustang mare that I used to ride alot who was really sensitive to leg pressure...she tossed me! Lol! I learnt my lesson that day!!!Lol! :lol:


----------



## cheply (Jul 27, 2009)

I have a hard time sitting the trot, and so my instructor put me on a lunge bareback. Shes the second person to do that to try and help my trot. Personally I really work hard to try to grip with my thighs (I'm normally super harsh with my lower leg grip) and I find that helps me stay down. Other than that, I don't know.


----------



## xxBarry Godden (Jul 17, 2009)

Think about it.
Sitting trot seems easier without stirrups because the rider is utilising gravity and the full weight of the body against the upward thrust from the horse's movement. Ie the rider's full weight is heavier than the force of the thrust. However without stirrups all the rider can do to absorb thrust is to "crumple" at the waist and perhaps take some of the thrust in the fatty tissue of the butt because the upper skeleton of the human is pretty rigid.

With the aid of the stirrup irons there are additional shock absorbers for use ie the toes, the ankles, the knees and the hips. These joints which are kept under tension by ligaments can bend under the force of the thrust and can thereby absorb the thrust.

It is all bit like skiing downhill - the skis go up and down but the hips stay at the same height.

To sit the trot starts with the correct "seat". Toes up, heels down, stirrups adjusted correctly, toes turned parallel to horse's body,body weight on the three seat bones , sat up straight 90 degrees whilst retaining natural curve in lower back , head upright and looking straight ahead, hands held either side of horse's wither. Stomach muscles held in. Rider in perfect balance and shoulders relaxed yet without slumping. When in this position the rider should feel the horse through the saddle via the under thigh muscles. 

When practising first the rider has to sense the rythym of the horse and the slower the jog the better at the beginning. Up down, up down. A horse with a nice long stride makes it easier - ponies move their legs too fast and too short. The faster the horse moves - the more difficult it becomes. Careful selection of a suitable patient horse is important - because having a learner human bouncing up and down on its back is not every horse's idea of fun.

With practise eventually the silent part of the brain which controls our instinctive reactions starts to learn what to do. That bit of the brain certainly doesn't want to fall off. But it is very important that the rider starts from the correct "seat" - otherwise the silent brain may learn to respond incorrectly.

A shoe lace across the front of the saddle will act as a balancing aid for use by the thumb - but the rider must not tip forwards.

It also helps if the learner rider is sitting on a horse on the lunge - so that the responsibility for keeping the horse steady is with the person in the centre of the arena.

The big enemy of learning the sitting trot is tension in the rider. The brain sends out the message "this is dangerous" and as a result the body stiffens up at a time when relaxation is the key requirement. Keep the work light hearted. Try some music. Wiggle the toes. And work on it for short periods only and steadily build up. Use the same horse every time.

But don't get too fussed about it, unless you want to go in for dressage competitions. It is far more important that you master the rising trot.
Sitting trot will come naturally with time and for some high stepping short legged horses (fancy trotting welsh cobs for example) it is a pace with little use. Big heavy Shires with nice broad backs can be a doddle.

B G


----------



## lauraa94x (Mar 24, 2009)

i used to/kind of still do ride a big stocky shire, and i can sit to her sitting trot really well, however, i've been riding a huge cob for the last month or so, and i have tried his sitting trot and i've got no hope sitting to it.. i'm all over the place.. i think i tense up too much.. im tempted to go into the arena and stick my ipod in and just ride, hopefully then the music will stop me from tensing..
x


----------



## drafteventer (Jul 6, 2009)

moomoo said:


> Put a $50 bill under your bum and tell anyone watching if it falls to the ground its theirs to keep - you won't bounce
> 
> Imagine someone has punched you in the stomach, so your bum is tucked underneath you and your stomach is relaxed


LOL
We have a class like that at horse shows called sit-a-buck, except it's with $1 bills.


----------



## riccil0ve (Mar 28, 2009)

Quit gripping with your legs. If you lock any of your leg muscles, it will lock your hip, and therefore stop it from moving with the horse. Your legs need to be relaxed, and lean back. You'll feel like your leaning a lot further than you are, but you probably aren't leaning back enough. =] Imagine you are doing sit-ups, but instead of your upper body moving to meet your lower body, allow your tummy to crunch and let your lower body come up to meet your upper body.


----------



## smrobs (Jul 30, 2008)

^^ Really good description Ricci.


----------



## Endless Journey Girl (Jun 10, 2009)

I think my instructor babied me for too long, she's always put me on the horses with smoother trots so I never really had a problem. I didn't really think I had a problem sitting the trot until I got on a few horses with a bouncier trot and I was all over the place. I think with some more I will probably get the hang of it. I really do think no stirrups does help me It takes away that safety of the stirrups and I can no longer depend on them to keep me in the tack and forces me to relax more and sink deep into the tack and move with the horse. When I have my stirrups I get uncomfortable and tend to resort back to posting trot.


----------



## kathryn (Jan 16, 2009)

I've always felt like from easiest to hardest its posting w/ stirrups, then sitting w/ stirrups, then sitting without, then posting without haha. After posting without for a few minutes posting with is like heaven haha

But I have been working stirrupless with my giant TB and its really been helping me a lot! Just make sure to stay on your two butt bones at all times.


----------



## ragazzabella023 (Aug 8, 2009)

my suggestion would be is to relax and sit deep. if you grip with your knee's it makes things worse...you are going to want to sit up straight, pretend there is a string attached to your belly button and its goes straight up to the sky, follow that line in straightness with your upper body, and put your shoulders back then when you are trotting you are going to want to have your ankles support the shock, by putting your weight down through your legs.

i hope this helps some!


----------



## ChingazMyBoy (Apr 16, 2009)

My advice, some members may disagree but it seemed to help me with sitting Chinga's trot. I can sit all the riding school horses trots, but when it comes to Chinga I can't get it. So I've worked without stirrups and bareback, once I became better without stirrups I would work with extra long stirrups untill I was at my normal length.


----------



## PaintHorseMares (Apr 19, 2008)

riccil0ve said:


> Quit gripping with your legs. If you lock any of your leg muscles, it will lock your hip, and therefore stop it from moving with the horse. Your legs need to be relaxed, and lean back. You'll feel like your leaning a lot further than you are, but you probably aren't leaning back enough. =] Imagine you are doing sit-ups, but instead of your upper body moving to meet your lower body, allow your tummy to crunch and let your lower body come up to meet your upper body.


I agree...gripping too tightly with the legs and being stiff, intentionally or because of nervousness, tension, or 'thinking too much', is the absolute enemy of being comfortable on a horse, regardless of the gait....and it's made worse because people are _told, and therefore anticipate,_ that sitting the trot will be hard.
I like the sit-ups analogy, and have also suggested thinking like you're in a rocking chair...letting your hips roll with the horse's movement.
Relax, shut of the 'thinking' part of your brain, let your body react to the horse's movements, and....have fun.


----------



## xxBarry Godden (Jul 17, 2009)

Look you guys - you don't have to sit to the trot. The simple answer at the beginning of learning to ride English, is always to rise/post to the trot.
Sitting trot is fine in certain circumstances but it is harder on the horse which has to thrust up against the additional weight of the rider. 
When going uphill at the trot, a situation you might think of sitting in to, instead you can post or even stand in the stirrups. Just grab a handful of mane and get up off the horse's back to help with the balance. 
Don't normally choose to trot coming downhill - it can be hard on the horse's front legs especially on a hard surface. 
Some of the smaller horses who have pony ancestors have a very fast short paced trot. (Welsh Cobs for example). They can be devils to sit to. On the other hand a big heavy horse with cob in its bloodlines will be much easier to sit in to because it has a longer stride, a slower rythym and a nice broad back.
The sitting trot will come. One day you'll be mounted on a forward going, steady, muscled up, schooled horse and you'll sit in and feel comfortable but by then all of the centre core muscles you'll need will have been developed as will the coordination to make the action smooth.

If you feel you want to make the posting trot more difficult then try getting the horse to lengthen and shorten its pace and to speed up and slow down its rythym Those are far more relevant challenges. These exercises will involve the subtle use of the hands/reins/bit and the under thigh muscles and other muscles around the pelvis.

Don't forget , riding is all about enjoyment.

Barry G


----------



## Endless Journey Girl (Jun 10, 2009)

Yea I'd much rather post the trot as well, but I'd like to eventually ride my lease horse bareback, in which case it's easier to sit the trot.


----------



## smrobs (Jul 30, 2008)

Some horses, it is much easier to sit the trot bareback than it is with a saddle. My QH Denny, because of the way he travels, is impossible to sit the trot in the saddle. However, bareback it is no problem.


----------



## riccil0ve (Mar 28, 2009)

I don't think it's harder on the horse to sit the trot. I mean, it's still carrying all your weight whether you sit, stand, or two point. You are on your horse and there is no where else for your weight to go. Your balance just shifts and puts the weight in different places.

When my instructor decided to teach me to sit the trot, I was riding a big TB named Spencer [RIP] and he had the biggest, bounciest trot in the whole wide world. I've ridden choppy trots, but his was not choppy, it was just HUGE. When you post, you aren't supposed to post higher than the pommel of your saddle right? Well with him, that was practically impossible. I did manage to sit his trot for like, three strides one time, but that was all I ever got. I was proud all the same. =]


----------

