# Biggest problem when riding????



## DarkEquine (Aug 29, 2008)

Hey, not sure where this was supposed to go. Please feel free to move it if needed.

What is everyone's biggest bug bear when it comes to their riding position and way of going?

Mine used to be my legs....ugh! I was a happy hacker throughout my childhood before I started proper english lessons about a year ago, and I had some BAD habits.

My legs swung like a sea saw, my heels were HORRIBLE and I was perched on the saddle like it was made from knives!!! 

But I've improved out of sight since then and now my biggest problem is my hands. *sigh*

When I'm riding lazy horses and I'm trying to put a motor under them, I tend to let the reins slip through my fingers and just gingerly hold them between my thumb and forefinger? WTH? What's that called?

My grip improves when I'm holding a crop, or when I'm riding flighty horses whom you HAVE to keep a contact on, but I can't seem to shake this bad habit!!!

Any tips?


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## saint3meg3rlfc (May 16, 2009)

My bad habits

Flat - slouching, picking my hands up
Jumping - jumping ahead 

**sigh**


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## horseluver2435 (May 27, 2009)

My bad habit is looking down. I'm constantly checking and re-checking my diagonal, since Rainy trips up or randomly misses a step, and I have a thing about posting on the correct diagonal. I check her headset a ton too, and that makes me look down as well. =P I thought I did good in our equitation class this weekend, but I guess the judges thought otherwise...


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## BackInTheSaddleAgain (Apr 20, 2009)

Mine is my posture. I slouch worse than anyone you've ever seen and it's really painfull when I sit up straight, especially on a horse. It really throws off mine and the horse's balance ={


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## smrobs (Jul 30, 2008)

Since I have never had any "proper" instruction, I have lots of habits that many people consider bad. I slouch a bit and when riding young or green horses, I am always watching their neck (looking down) and I usually ride with my toes down a bit.

I don't really worry about that because that is just how I am comfortable riding; however, my biggest issue I am trying to fix right now is remembering to make myself use my left hand on the reins. I have always steered right handed and now that I have started roping, I have to use my left. Not an easy change to make after 20 years of riding with my right.  But I am getting better.


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## ivorygold1195 (May 27, 2009)

my worst problam is, because my soulders naturally curl forward, i look like im slouching, and since i recently switched to gaited, i keep my hads to low like you would in hunt set.


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## Xoras (Sep 23, 2008)

I get a little freaked out when I canter, so I sort of hunch forward and I get really tense.

I'm trying to get over that. >.<


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## wintec (Jun 5, 2009)

Ok well when I'm in a hunter lesson I have perfect equitation. However after four years of hunters I started taking Dressage as well. My biggest problem is sitting back in the dressage saddle. Especially at the canter when I want to close my hip angle and sit far up in the saddle almost in a two point as if I was ready for a jump to pop out of nowhere =D


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## RoosterDo (Feb 11, 2009)

my biggest problem is that Im sooo good people hate me because Im perfect!!! Yeah right I tend to be a lazy rider sometimes and my toes tip forward and I slouch sometimes I get off just a little bit on my seat and get very bouncy thank god my mare is forgiving.


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## goldilockz (Aug 1, 2008)

For me, I'm bad about slouching and looking down. I also tend to let my toes drop sometimes.


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## Jessabel (Mar 19, 2009)

Mine is my leg position. I used to sit ahead of the vertical, but I've gotten better about sitting back. Now that my upper body is better, my lower legs are slipping forward into the chair position. It's SO frustrating. I can't even stand watching myself on video because I hate it so much. I tend to turn my heels in, too. And I have trouble keeping my weight down in my heels. As much as my trainer hounds me and as hard as I work at it, I'm still not a solid rider yet. Ugh. :?


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## MIEventer (Feb 15, 2009)

*sigh* where to start?!?!?!?

My TB has become dead to his riders legs over years of being ridden, and being passed from owner to owner. Heck, his previous owner left huge wear marks on his sides because he is dead to the leg...I guess due to loud legs, he's learnt to dumb them out.

Anyways, I've now accumulated a loud inside leg because of this and I really have to work on quieting it down. A dressage friend from Germany told me "When trying to carry on a discussion with someone of a foreign language, no matter how loud you get, they still wont understand you"

I have to keep telling myself this as I ride. I also remember Jim Wofford saying that if horses can feel a fly land on their necks, then they can definately feel the smallest of movements we make while in the saddle. 

So I have to continue to tell myself to quiet myself down. My coach says "baby moves"

I also have too loud of hands. So again, I really need to learn to quiet them down. 

I also have to start working on carrying a crop with Nelson, because he is older and out of shape *we both are* and I can't get him infront of my legs. My Coach says I shouldn't have to push him with my legs every step of the way and that I am doing more work than he - *again, being too loud* so I need to work on giving him a slight tap just behind my leg to get him to move forward...and stop over using my legs.

He said "When you bake a cake and it fails, why bake a cake another cake using the same recepie?" what I am doing is not working, find another way.

When I get it right, it is a lovely outcome. My lessons last night was wonderful when I figured out how to stop doing more work than he. And when I got him to lift his back and drop his hind end, he became much more bouncier and lighter, it was nice!

Keeping that, is the key. My Coach says when you get it right, remember what it was that you did to get that result.

So my issue is * - loud aids. Over Using Aids. *

Aside from that, we need allot of conditioning work - for the both of us.


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## 7Ponies (May 21, 2009)

Look down for me as well. I tend to look down instead of out and over my horses ears. 

Sloppy hands, they are everywhere, sometimes in the right hand, sometimes in my left hand, sometimes in both hands. I'm trying very hard now to keep my hands quiet and use my leg and body to ask for turns, stops, etc. It's very difficult.


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## 1dog3cats17rodents (Dec 7, 2007)

My biggest thing flatting is I sit back too far, I need to remember to stay on my thighs.

Jumping, I have crappy timing. I'm getting better, but... I'm still bad at it


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## mom2pride (May 5, 2009)

I tend to look down a bit more than I should...

Sometimes on an easy going horse I get 'slouchy'...Lol!


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## DarkEquine (Aug 29, 2008)

Hah hah, I guess everyone has bug bears about their position. I know I do!!!
I'm also reeeaallly bad at changing the diagonal...I bounce once and then rise back up on the same diagonal!!! grrrr...
My instructor keeps telling me to repeat the SAME figure 8 over and over again until I get it right. Takes about 5-6 times before I do it!


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## barefoot (Jun 11, 2009)

My inside rein - I have a terrible time letting go. I've been doing much better since riding a calm horse though. I'm even just dropping the inside rein all together. My trainer usually makes me bridge my reins when I get too "holdy"

My old mare was a nightmare to jump - She would merely run at the fences and just stop. It was kind of like I could hear her say "psych". Not her fault, I know, but she just learned to hate jumping. I've never met anyone that could jump that horse without a few refusals. So because of that I began to hold too much when riding towards a fence, I don't let the horse do all the work, I try to do a lot myself. 

I guess I have hand problems.


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## IrishRider (Aug 7, 2008)

My biggest problem is sitting up right after a jump. I also have been having a huge problem with cutting my corners lately, which is also not helped by my not sitting up after a jump.


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## Skyhuntress (Sep 9, 2008)

Hrm, my legs. They tend to fall back too far, and as a result I tip forward, lose the connection with my horse and need to stop to regroup


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## BurningAmber520 (Jan 6, 2009)

Lets see, thankfully I am blessed I guess by what my instructor calls a "Natural seat" I naturally have quiet hands, put my heels down and sit up straight. 

If I don't have half chaps on or haven't ridden in a few days, my legs start swinging, I really need to ride everyday to keep my legs tight. 

I think my biggest problems are with jumping, I always jump to far ahead, even when im conciously thinking about getting my butt back, it still ends up in front of the saddle. I also have "chicken elbows" when I jump, I feel like im releasing but in pictures it looks like im sticking my elbows out, thats something im really trying to work on!!


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## DarkEquine (Aug 29, 2008)

Yeah, I stiffen up JUST before a jump. I might be totally "cool, calm & collected" but I've gotten into this habit of clenching all my muscles (but, my hands still go forward????) just before my horse takes off. It only happens on verticals and spreads but it's still annoying.
My instructor says that I'm trying to "make" him jump (not jumping ahead, but trying to give him some IMPULSION!!!) by almost seeming to jump myself as though I were on foot!


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