# How to canter?!



## Milking Moo Moos (May 4, 2012)

Well, first off most people think that the canter is a back-front motion. So at the canter, many people push back to front. This causes you to slam down on the horses back and bounce around, then you are unable to relax the hips. Really the canter is an up-down motion, you can't really tell its an up-down motion until you sit the canter up-down. Once you start moving up-down instead of forward-back it because much easier to relax your hips instead up bunching up. Also as a side note, try relaxing your whole lower back instead of focusing on just your hips.

(Hope this helped!)


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## usandpets (Jan 1, 2011)

I dont ride English but as you start out it will look ugly and feel somewhat unnatural. What you are doing I think is right to start with. As you practice, you'll develop your muscles where you don't "flop" around. I ride western and sit back, more on my pockets. I started leaning back to help getting bounced. As I did more cantering, I'm more able to sit upright but not bounce. Granted I'm more of a horse trainer than a people trainer, this has worked for me.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Skyseternalangel (Jul 23, 2011)

Honestly you should ask your instructor (and if you don't have one, get one for sure) to put you on the lungeline and help you figure it out.

It's an upward motion of the hips, not a forward back motion. Same as trotting, an upward motion. Where most people mess up is they push with their hips which causes their butt to get some air and slam back down on the horse or lose its timing. Then you aren't with your horse at all and it's hard to get back to that.

Hence lungeline work.


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## calicokatt (Mar 5, 2012)

Do you know that your leaning back, or does it just feel like it? Maybe ask someone to video you so you can see. I had a rider with the same problem, but she was just always leaning forward when she rode, so she _felt_ like she was leaning back to sit the canter, but actually wasn't. 

If the video reveals that you are truly leaning back, but your leg is still and your seat is following the movement, focus on how your seat feels when you're leaning back and work on adjusting your upper body while keeping your seat in place. 

The other option (which generally works very well) is to ride with no stirrups for a while, focusing on your canter. You may want to do this in a round pen or other small area where you can be more assured that your horse will continue on the path you've set for it and not dart out from under you.


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## tinyliny (Oct 31, 2009)

Somebody on here said something that really stuck with me, and upon trying it out, I found it to be extrememly helpful. it's this:

Think of the down portion of the canter, and really focus on going down with the horse. So, go out and canter around the arena, and feel for the beat in the three beat pattern that is the down beat; when the leading leg is hitting the ground,. it's One, Two, Three, and one , two , three, and . . . . the "three" is the down beat. Start counting the down beat , like this: Down, . . . . down . . . down. . . . down. 
when you feel the down beat, really think of your pelvis (pubic bone to belly button), as going down with the horse, into the little "valley" it goes down into with each canter stride. Of course, if you pelvis goes down, you will need to lean back a tiny bit in order for your body to stay vertical (just as a tree stays vertically oriented on a slightly downhill slope.)

Also, think of you feet going downward in the stirrup. NOT pushing the foot down, but letting the whole leg kind of slide further down as if you are trying to go past the stirrup and drag your heels on the arena. So, the whole feeling is of going down with the horse, when he goes down, and then being relaxed enough to let him carry you back up again.

try this way of counting and thinking the canter and see if it doesn't help.


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## DressageDreamer (Feb 29, 2012)

Longe line lessons......the best way to learn to sit the canter. Don't use your hands....use flying arms...and ride, ride, ride. It feels amazing and will also help you learn to keep balanced.


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## Spirit Lifter (Apr 23, 2012)

A lot of good advice. I would add something that worked for me. Not saying it's for everybody but it did help me personally. Canter bareback. I love the freedom and the way the horse moves. Awesome.


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## mildot (Oct 18, 2011)

Fall enough times and you'll figure it out, like I did.


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## waresbear (Jun 18, 2011)

mildot said:


> Fall enough times and you'll figure it out, like I did.


 
This is why lessons & instructors are so important. Do it safe and do it correctly and have fun.


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## attackships (Jan 12, 2012)

Skyseternalangel said:


> Honestly you should ask your instructor (and if you don't have one, get one for sure) to put you on the lungeline and help you figure it out.
> 
> It's an upward motion of the hips, not a forward back motion. Same as trotting, an upward motion. Where most people mess up is they push with their hips which causes their butt to get some air and slam back down on the horse or lose its timing. Then you aren't with your horse at all and it's hard to get back to that.
> 
> Hence lungeline work.


I've been riding for a long time now and even though i'm confident at the canter i felt like my seat was never quite right. compared to others i felt like i was moving too much in the saddle. and i noticed the more i thought about my seat while cantering the worse it would become!

i kept this reply in mind today while riding and it helped me so much! thank you.


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## Enderous (May 24, 2012)

This might sound totally retarded but it worked for me ...

I rode from more of a "racing" point of view so when I got back into an English saddle, when it came time to canter I was bridging my reins, leaning over the pommel and out of the seat. It took me a couple of weeks and some reading up to a) stop myself instinctively leaning forward, b) keep my butt in the saddle and c) really ride my horse forward with purely my seat (as opposed to using my legs and/or hands on his neck).

So, what I did was "sat" on my tail bone. This automatically made me sit up straight and prevent myself from leaning forward. I have really good leg placement from racework, so that was never a problem that they might go forward. 

The second most important thing is to understand the horses movement, expecially when travelling on a circle or into corners. Our natural reaction, or what MANY of us have been taught at ridding school, is to turn your shoulders to where you want to go. WRONG. In the canter, forget your shoulders and think purely about your hips. It's hard to explain without pictures ... When a horse is cantering on the right lead, his left hip sits behind his right hip and you need to match this. So your right hip(inside hip) should sit slightly in front of your left. Because your are moving more easily with your horse, it becomes easier to sit to his canter.

I really hopes this makes sense, haha. I hope it helps.


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