# Heels down?



## cmkvc (Feb 5, 2019)

HOW on EARTH do I keep my heels down. 
ten years ago when I learned to ride my instructor told me to imagine a weight pulling my heels waaaaay dooooown and I don't remember ever really having a problem with my heels.
but now that I'm riding again, that is my BIGGEST PROBLEM!! I think one of my issues is that when I re-started, I started to ride bareback so it didn't matter too much where my heels were as long as they were kind of down and in a position where I could use them (I know, I know, I still need to have my heels down riding bareback because it helps everything else, but I'm a beginner so bare with me) but I take dressage lessons and do dressage on my own so now it's a big problem. I have a habit of lifting them up and bracing with my calves to hold on, especially while cantering, and it throws everything off. I'm good about it when I'm thinking hard about it, but then my shoulders fall in, or my hands get too loud, or this or that! I feel like I probably just need to get more secure in my riding, but it also feels like this is really hindering my EQ and my confidence!
I know that the stirrup should be beneath the ball of your foot, and the length of the leathers isn't a problem. I have heard spreading my toes, pulling my toes up, stretching my calves down; and I have a great pair of riding boots that are just the right length for my absurdly long calves that help a bit... but has anyone figured out a good trick for helping you keep your heels down? really anything can help! thanks in advance :^)


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## RidingWithRuby (Apr 18, 2019)

Lifting your toes really can help.

Try imagining that alllll your weight is in your heels, do this at a halt if you need to. Try standing in your stirrups at the walk, or two-pointing at the walk or trot. Your heel is your base.

Are you tensing up at the canter? Gripping with your calves will likely just make you stiff and the pressure could push your horse faster. Again, imagine your weight is in your heels and your legs are long. Toes to the sky, heels to the ground.

Slipping your feet out of your stirrups and making yourself keep your heels down will really make you appreciate stirrups.


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## SteadyOn (Mar 5, 2017)

Doing lots of stair stretches in between rides can help. Stand with the balls of your feet on a stair, and hold a railing with one hand to support you so you don't slip or fall. (We don't need you tearing an Achilles tendon after all.) Let your weight sink gently into your heels and let them drop down past the edge of the stair. Go slowly and relax. Think about letting your calves relax and release.

When you start getting more flexibility with it, you can do gentle little bounces up and down and just enjoy feeling that relaxed springiness in your lower leg. Really think about that feeling, and try to take a mental photograph of it, if you will, that you can reference later. It helps with muscle memory.

The main thing is to take your time to encourage that flexibility and to explore that feeling. Soooo much easier to work on relaxing and dropping your heel when you're NOT on a moving horse!!


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## TXhorseman (May 29, 2014)

The idea of riding with heels down is to prevent the rider’s foot from slipping forward in the stirrup. When riding bareback, this is not a problem. When riding bareback, it is natural for a relaxed rider’s toes to be lower because the foot connects to the leg near the heel.

I think you’ve already realized your problem with keeping your heels down when riding with stirrups since you state: “I have a habit of lifting them up and bracing with my calves to hold on.”

The key is to release muscular tension. If this tension is released, gravity alone should pull your heels slightly lower than your toes because the heel is not supported by the stirrup as the front of the foot is.

If you think about it, much of a rider’s weight is hanging on either side of the horse lower than the horse’s backbone. Therefore, a rider would need to lean quite far in order to fall off. If a rider releases muscular tension, gravity will pull this weight downward giving the rider stability through a low center of gravity. Releasing muscular tension will also allow the rider’s body to more easily follow the horse’s motion so, once again, there is no need to “hold on” with one’s legs.


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## SteadyOn (Mar 5, 2017)

TXhorseman said:


> If you think about it, much of a rider’s weight is hanging on either side of the horse lower than the horse’s backbone. Therefore, a rider would need to lean quite far in order to fall off. If a rider releases muscular tension, gravity will pull this weight downward giving the rider stability through a low center of gravity. Releasing muscular tension will also allow the rider’s body to more easily follow the horse’s motion so, once again, there is no need to “hold on” with one’s legs.


This is very true! 

And I'm going to add to this: the leg muscles that will balance and stabilize your seat most effectively are under and behind you, not the ones that squeeze inwards. What I mean by that is, you use your butt muscles and the backs of your thighs to adjust and correct your balance by pressing slightly down as needed to adjust the alignment of your upper body, but not by clamping to the sides of the horse -- ever. (You also use your abs to control your body's position and stability.) 

Squeezing inwards with the legs to "grip" adds tension and raises your centre of gravity, so you're more likely to pop out of the saddle, not less. Inward squeezes are only for aids, and ideally they happen independently of whatever you're doing to stay on! A rider in good balance can swing their leg completely out off the sides of the horse, from about the mid-thigh on down, and still stay fairly secure, because the balance itself is coming from elsewhere in the body.


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## Feathers7 (Jun 11, 2019)

Here's a video that might help! So much of Natasha Althoff's videos and content are valuable for so much more than just dressage, even if that's what she focuses on.





My suggestion to you is this: 1) follow the advice in that video about not having stirrups too short and not gripping with your knees, 2) try trotting without stirrups to develop the correct muscles and a longer leg, and 3) make sure to STRETCH before you ride (stretching advice in a video below.)

It's about your back and core, not your legs. 'Heels down' has a few different purposes. One is as an indicator of where you are in core strength, and if you're able to use your core strength to keep yourself upright while you flow in motion with the horse. If you aren't sitting up straight and engaging your abs and core (yes, that so rudely includes your groin muscles) then where are your legs? Are they relaxed, but prepared to give cues to your horse?

The second purpose of 'heels down' is as a way for you to allow downward impact energy to flow down through your stirrups, which is a part of moving with the horse and actually 'riding' rather than having every muscle tense up (which I affectionately refer to as 'planking' on the horse.) We work to have everything be very fluid, and our 'core' is what holds us up straight.

(In anything involving fast movement and jumping, heels down has yet another purpose that I think we all know and can appreciate. Those who don't do it end up dusting themselves off.)

Keeping your heals down, in stirrups, during the sitting trot is one of the hardest things you can do, so here's another video that might be helpful:








One of the things she says is to absorb the impact of the trot 'bounce' down through your ankles and into your heels. You can see her do it. And really, that's the secret. Stirrups should have very little to do with keeping you in the saddle unless your horse is having a mental moment. And hey, it happens, particularly if you and your horse are learning together. Don't worry about it too much unless whatever you're doing is causing the incorrect behavior in your horse. Having discipline drives you to be better, having fun is what keeps you smiling in the saddle.

Hope that helps! =)


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## ApuetsoT (Aug 22, 2014)

Heels are really a symptom of what's happening in the rest of the leg. Tight hip flexors, incorrect reflexes, saddle fit, gripping, ect.



As you've said, you get tense, grip, the heels come up. Staying on isn't about gripping, it's following their balance. I'm tried, so I don't wanna type too much. With dressage, your feet drop into the stirrups without any force. They don't need to be down much, but having them down and the leg still correct shows the release of tension in the leg. 



1. Lunge lessons. No stirrups. No reins. Steady horse. Just focus on the seat, pulling yourself deeper. Relaxing the legs and seat and follow through positive tension.
2. Ankle circles. Drop the stirrups (cross them if doing trot+ work) and write the alphabet with you toes. Yes, your toes will be down. That's fine for this exercise. While you are doing the ankle movements, you can't grip with the leg. With your feet out of the stirrups, feel how the leg stretches and the feeling of using your leg while doing the circles. You don't need force to turn. Do this walk, trot, and canter as able.
3. Leg swings. Stirrups crosses, each leg is brought forward and back from the hip. One at a time then both. Don't move the seat, don't wiggle side to side. Just hing the hip. It'll kill your muscles at first. Don't do too much. This will release the tightness in the hip and leg the leg hang longer.
4. No stirrup work then pick them up, then drop once you start tightening again.
5. Forward horse. A lazy horse makes people do bad things with their legs. It's way, way easier to establish a good leg position when the horse is going on his own and you don't feel the need to kick every stride.


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## tinyliny (Oct 31, 2009)

Quite often people in dressage have their stirrups too long. They are trying to get that "long leg" they see on advanced riders. But a beginner riders should gave about a 93 degree angle of opening behind the knee. Of course, the knee is more pointed downward than on a jumper type seat, but there is still reasonable bend behind the knee. When stirrups are too long, the rider ends up fishing for them, which brings the toe down, heel up. 

Try riding with stirrups up a notch next lesson. 

Also, next time you ride, real try to notice if your shoulders are tensed upward, and you neck sort of " turtling" down into them. This will often be part of the riders tensing, and shortening the body, so can help with lengthening if you drop shoulders. ( Think of pushing your elbows down toward your hips).


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## ApuetsoT (Aug 22, 2014)

Yea, very good point. Dont ride with too long stirrups in an attempt to have a long leg. You can have a long leg with shorter stirrups while developing your seat. Too long stirrups makes you reach and tense and is counter productive. Lengthen gradually.


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## kaylaV2019 (Jun 16, 2019)

It depends on your horse and how comfortable you are with your horse


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## buckskinbaby (Aug 16, 2017)

What helped me a lot while learning was doing stair stretches. I would stand on the edge of a stair with my legs straight and let my heels drop, the lower leg relaxing as @SteadyOn said. Once my lower leg was relaxed in this position and I felt quite comfortable, instead of starting with little bounces which caused my calves to tighten back up, I would lower my body into a slight squat which reflected my riding position, still stretching my heels down and keeping the lower leg relaxed. I would focus on everything you were saying such as hip and shoulder position, balance and quiet hands. Usually I would ask one of my friends to sit in front of me and chat for a minute so I could hold their hands as through the were the reins. This would almost perfectly reflect my riding position with a perfect heel drop, and the practice balancing was great for my riding as well. 

When riding, I don't think of my stirrup as my base. I think of my whole foot as my base and allow the front of my foot to press deep enough into the stirrup that it wont slip and I am still fully supported when posting or in a two-point position. This helps me keep my heels down instead of relying too heavily on the stirrup for support. Once your calves are nice and flexible, you'll be able to feel your heels bounce very gently in the canter from the weight you're pressing into them.


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## QtrBel (May 31, 2012)

Stair stretches. Lots of deep, gentle stair stretches. Then alternate between stretching down and raising up which will build strength.


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## Finalcanter (Apr 15, 2013)

Counter that with 'toes up'. 
"heels down" Is horrid for anyone to even give to you as advice and I'm tired of hearing it screeched from trainers. People will force themselves to jam their heels down which throws you off balance as it tightens everywhere else in your body. You grow tense and your focus is solely 'heels down' instead of keeping your attention on your body as a whole. When you relax, everything else falls into place--and it's the same way with horses.

I don't have a clear cut way of teaching you 'toes up' but just keep that as a reminder and try to relax. Do some no stirrup work (often the stirrup is a real hindrance, and having a coach who wants nothing but 'heels down' is as well). I second the stair exercises that have been mentioned as well.


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## bsms (Dec 31, 2010)

Two point. At a walk. Trot. In turns. Slowing and accelerating. Think standing in your stirrups and keeping balanced standing in them. Teaches you how your horse's balance changes and how to keep your stirrups balanced beneath you. And heels down.


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## Rhi (Jul 9, 2019)

First, make sure your stirrups are short enough - it’s so hard to drop your weight into your heels if your stirrups are long. Ride normally for the first twenty minutes and then take away your stirrups and canter/trot without them - allow your leg to stretch downwards. After 10 minutes take your stirrups back - you should find it much easier to drop your weight into your heels after riding without stirrups for a while.


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## Clava (Nov 9, 2010)

Unless Jumping, I ride with my feel level and the heel should be springy, if forced down it will never give you the mobility of position that you need.


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## charrorider (Sep 23, 2012)

I'm not going to tell you to ride any different than the way your instructor tells you. But, IMO, heels down is one of the most useless and persistent advise given. To me, the center of the rider's balance is in the seat, or from the thighs to the back. It seems to me that invariably, when a rider has his/hers heels down, his/her weight shifts forward. Look at photos of dressage riders, or old cowboys. Maybe I missed it, but I don't see too many heels down.


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## Pelhams-and-Snaffles (Jul 4, 2019)

Toes up! Not heels down! 

Ask your instructor to put you on the lunge and take away your reins. I found that when I didn't have to focus on my hands being perfect and keeping contact, I was able to focus on and fix my heels. The most important time for your heels to be down is when you're rising. But as long as your toes aren't down and pitching you forward, you're fine.


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## parider (Sep 25, 2019)

I'm with you. In looking for a new trainer & barn in my area, finally - I'm saying out loud - "If one more young "trainer" is yelling at me around the ring "Keep yA heels Down!!!".. I'm gonna throw up. Even when someone recently shared the idea of "think of keeping your toes up, then...".. THAT even helped. I have been riding for 50 years, since I was 10. All I have EVER heard is a (now) screeching sound of "Keep YA heels Down...". UGH. 
Now, looking for a trainer that will slow down, and get me to do things I have learned on my own online - lunge me and the horse with no stirrups for a better seat, working on balance doing certain things, developing a more solid seat with posture and other suggestions I have learned online. I'm really certain this training season for me, will be about getting a better seat, and position of my pelvis, and more relaxed back, and THIS will likely help with the heels down issue too. Let's see. 
For the first time - I'm interviewing training folks for style and, of course, fit of personality. I like someone to be tough, and direct. But for God's sake, come up with another way to think about it if after 50 years it's not working right!
thanks for hearing my rant!


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## Rtetley2 (Aug 23, 2019)

my trainer said if they feel like you cant push them down anymore push them down further no matter how uncomfortable or how much it hurts. i still have my days were i am having a bad riding day ad they go up but it really helped. basically as your riding really push your heels down as much as you can and than further pick a couple spots and every time you get to the spots push your heels down even further then they were.


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## blue eyed pony (Jun 20, 2011)

A level foot is fine. I have poor ankle mobility so I have never in my life succeeded in having my heels DOWN down, but you bet I stick those hairy moments (even bareback) like nobody's business. I don't understand the obsession with low heels, it just creates tension.

That said with a new rider I will physically place their foot and lower leg (with the horse at a halt) so that they can feel the alignment they need to be in, and that's usually with as low a heel as they can give me.


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## txgirl (Jul 9, 2010)

It helps me to think "toes up" than "heels down"!


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## Finalcanter (Apr 15, 2013)

I will add to my previous comment on here- I am now suddenly having a similar issue, so I believe stirrupless work is in order to help with keeping a relaxed long leg- which I can then easily apply 'toes up, heels down'. That said, I've done all the calf stair stretching in the world. It helps but honestly, the only thing that's really going to help, is being on the horse. This sport/hobby is such a way that although exercises are helpful, being on the horse and putting things into practice is the best way to get the muscle memory. There's just no experience like riding.

And that's both a good and bad thing, especially if you do not always have access to horses.


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