# Newbie: Rubbing and Holes in Pants.



## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

Welcome to the Forum....

Your daughters sound to be riding in a English styled saddle from your description of up down {called posting} and 2 hands holding the reins.
Riding attire is important for comfort of the rider.
Riding pants, called jodphurs or breeches are the true riding pants of a rider and are made with a second layer of material to cushion and protect the area just above the knee joint, the inner calf from the rubbing and pinches that can occur because of a saddle design.
If your daughters are rubbing holes in their clothing in 2 rides, something is seriously wrong either with how they sit and the saddle adjusted to their height or I don't know.
Most pants have a inside seam that is what rubs, abrades our skin and makes us sore, especially jeans.
I've been riding for more than 40 years and have never made holes in my clothing...
I've sored myself when a child and learning, but once you know how to post, sit a horse better that is not perfectly gone honestly.
I would suggest wrapping the part of the body with something soft and cushiony and wearing of thick knee socks or tights under their pants so there is another layer of protection between them and the saddle offending.
Sores can become infected if you keep irritating and not allowing healing and they can also leave forever scars too.
Depending upon how severe those marks are, they may need to just stop the lessons till true riding clothing is acquired and their legs heal some, a few weeks at most.
These are riding pants with a inside second piece of material made of leather that would offer much better protection and comfort because it not bind but moves{as in stretchy}..















As you can see, there is a piece of material that covers a good part of the inner leg from pinch, soring...
I don't know what type of riding apparel stores are in your vicinity but these pictures were from Dover Saddlery who has internet shipping worldwide as do many other places besides Ebay and Amazon.* https://www.doversaddlery.com/*
Personally, I do not ride in "tights" as many today do because they just don't offer the protection and longevity I require of my clothes nor the fit I desire....that is a personal choice.

What you want to search for for your daughters is riding breeches or jodphurs. 

_{Pictures on the left are breeches worn with a tall boot. On the right is jodphurs or jods and worn with either a paddock boot or low-heeled boot.}_
Till you can provide proper riding pants, suspend the lessons and maybe when resumed they build up to riding so often as skin also does need to callous a bit, done over a few weeks time.
Good luck.
:runninghorse2:...
_jmo.._


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## ACinATX (Sep 12, 2018)

One time when I rode I got some nasty rubs that bled a little, but it was in my lower leg, and that was due to not having half chaps. It was the leathers rubbing on my leg because they were twisted. That COULD be your problem, but really something in that part of the leg, being that bloody, sounds like the saddle is wrong or they are sitting wrong. I'd give them a week or two off, to heal up, then go back and tell their instructor what happened. She should be able to look at the injury and the saddle and figure out what was causing it.

ETA: for clarification, since you said you're not really familiar with the terminology, "leathers" are those belt-like things that the stirrups hang off. I feel like this is more likely to be a problem in English riding than Western.


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## gottatrot (Jan 9, 2011)

I have this problem sometimes and I believe it is from riding english on horses that are wider in relation to your height.

I wear half chaps over my lower legs, which helps almost all of the time. However, I was still having that issue with rubbing a sore in that area you describe just above the inner knee sometimes.

What solved the problem for me was putting compression knee sleeves under my pants. I saw runners wearing them and realized they might help.









I'm not sure what is available in your country, or what the temperature is like. I use the sleeves because I don't want to wear two pairs of pants, but you can also put a pair of tighter, thin leggings underneath a pair of regular jeans and it will also eliminate the problem. 

The knee patch breeches also will work, and the fact that they make those pants show it is a common issue with certain size riders on certain horses. I don't rub holes in my legs on every horse or ride, but certain combinations of saddles and horse size/movement with my leg length will cause the problem.


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## bsms (Dec 31, 2010)

I think it is primarily too much grip with the knee. I think we should loosen our knees and let our weight flow freely past our knees and into the stirrups. We tend to think security on a horse comes from squeezing with our thighs or knees. I think it comes from our lower leg, and to do that, we need to pry our knees apart and let our weight go into the stirrups.

My wife likes cargo pants for riding. I prefer jeans, and my jeans DO have big seams along the inner leg. Never had a problem. But then, I also ride narrow horses and try to let my stirrups take my weight. Not my thighs. Less weight in my thighs means less pressure along seams.

PS: I'm a guy who has jogged since 1972. New running shoes can rub. An old trick to break in the shoes without blisters is to wear ankle-high women's nylons under the sock. Something like since since I'm not sure of the right words:

https://www.amazon.com/Womens-Ankle-Stockings-Socks-Hosiery/dp/B01CIMSJHI

The sock and shoe cannot find a grip against the foot because of the slick nylon. So maybe something like that only higher...if they have them for young girls. They work well for running in the desert - don't get hot at all. Slicker than snot on a doorknob and no heat.


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## Avna (Jul 11, 2015)

English style:

If they are not riding in "riding tights", breeches, or jodhpurs with suede inside knee patches, that is certainly the first thing to change. 

If that doesn't help enough, add half chaps, which are knee-high zip or velco fastened gaiters very commonly worn by english riders; they go with ankle-high boots. I never ride without them myself.

Western style:

buy riding jeans without inseams, those are available from online riding supply companies.

Meanwhile, stick moleskin over the raw spots before lessons. You can get that at any pharmacy or outdoor store. It's used on blisters. No moles are harmed in the manufacture of moleskin ...


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## SilverMaple (Jun 24, 2017)

Perhaps cut down to lessons once a week until their skin gets accustomed to riding, in addition to finding them riding breeches if they're riding an English-type saddle. Just like anything else, sometimes a new activity means some callouses need to be acquired, and you can't toughen the skin if it doesn't get time to heal properly.

Sometimes wearing a wrap or tights under the pants can help protect a chafed spot from further harm. Also, mention to their instructor what is going on so he/she can keep an eye out for something they may need to change-- not gripping so much with the knees, readjusting the stirrups, or simply cutting back on trot work and then slowly building back up as they become accustomed. 

I primarily ride Western now, and the key to not getting any rubbing on long days in the saddle is jeans that fit closely in the knees and thighs and are a few inches too long. That 'stack' down at the ankle keeps them from riding up and soring your calves against the stirrup fender. There's a reason 'cowboy cut' jeans are popular. Jeans that are too short or too loose and baggy will wrinkle and chafe on longer rides. If riding English in jeans, a pair of chaps will protect the lower leg from the stirrup leathers and help increase grip while preventing chafing. The only time I've ever had a raw sore when riding with jeans was on a horse who moved so oddly I found myself gripping with my knees more than I should have, and voila! Sore spot on the inside of the knees. Back on a different horse, not a problem even riding 14 hour days. 

What's likely happening is that rather than letting the horse's motion lift your girls out of the saddle while they post, they are standing up and down and pivoting at the knees rather than leaving the leg flat and relaxed and letting the horse's movement and their core muscles do the work. As they learn to be more comfortable and feel the horse's motion, that will improve, but you're right to want to ease their discomfort in the meantime. It's hard to enjoy riding if you're wearing holes in your pants and have sore, raw spots! It may simply mean they don't do much trotting for awhile and then build up slowly as their balance and strength increases.


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## 4horses (Nov 26, 2012)

Want you should buy is chaps. Usually made of leather. 

https://www.statelinetack.com/item/...zYa3rTpD_1DGthk7ADu0B8Rt6GALyzTMaAtlzEALw_wcB

Those will protect the legs and prevent rubbing. 

A better saddle on the horse should not rub the rider. I ride in shorts. I rode 2.5 hours today with lots of trotting and not a single rub, bump, or bruise. I ride in a western saddle though. English saddles always rub so you will need at least half chaps, if not full chaps. One of the main downfalls of riding English, in my opinion, is that they pinch. Some leather western saddles rub as well. I'm really particular about what saddle i use for that reason.


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## Christopher Wong (Sep 6, 2019)

Thank you everyone for your responses.

My girls have gone riding two more times since I posted. They are doing better that last two times. For my oldest daughter, I bought her a pair of riding pants, and she changed horses, and she hasn't had any complaints. Well, at least no physical body complaints. She's still having problems directing her horse to move and go straight.

My youngest who had the most problems is doing better. We observed that it was the strap attached to the stirrup that is rubbing against her leg. We bandaged up her leg and wrapped, and it's been much better. We asked the instructor why that would happens. He says jokingly "ah maybe she's sitting a little to one side. Or maybe you'll just need to buy more pants." This is a very typical Tunisian answer. She seems to be doing much better. But the last time they went out riding, they just learned to gallop. After that day, she has these two sores and both sides of her buttocks. It was so painful that she couldn't even sit problem or even lie on her back to sleep. 

We come to the theory that she perhaps just has extra sensitive skin. She's had a few days off, but she will be riding again. I figure once she starts building up her callouses, it should be fine. Currently they're riding 3x a week. But once school starts next week, they'll be going down to once a week and allowed enough time to rest their wounds.

Thanks again, everyone.


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## bsms (Dec 31, 2010)

I've never tried them, but maybe these:










https://www.ridingwarehouse.com/JMS_Sheepskin_1_Stirrup_Leather_Covers_Pair/descpage-JMSSSLC.html​


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## tinyliny (Oct 31, 2009)

She may have very sensitive skin, and if the weather is hot, and she is sweating, then the rubbing can become really bad. Could she use some corn starch to 'powder' her lower body before pulling on her pants? might reduce chafing.


To some degree, a person has to 'toughen up' their body to the demands of riding. In no other action of daily life do we use the same muscles much, nor do we usually have strong contact to the skin in those areas. It's hard at first, but the body adapts. It does sound, however, as if the lessons are progressing at a speed that is perhaps outstripping their ability to catch up.


Galloping , already?


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