HOW WE BREAK DOWN A HORSE’S POSTURE
Howdy Friends! How do riders break down their horse’s posture? Well actually in many ways.
But the biggest culprit is bracing, conscious or unconscious.
When a rider braces its knees, thighs, pelvis. Or even neck or shoulders, it instantly blocks free movement throughout the rider’s body. And indeed impedes all fluidity throughout the body. Causing the body to transform from softness, to blocked rigidity. The enemy of horse health.
This rigidity is automatically transformed to the horse.
This bracing rigidity forces the horse into an unnatural movement paradigm. Fighting its own rider. Imposing blockage by distorting its natural soft, fluid movement into a stiff, out of balance, hurtful and damaging gait.
To compensate the horse is forced onto its forehand dragging from the front. Instead of propelling from the rear. This contributes to topline break down. It causes damage to the thoracic sling. Propelling from the front end breaks down structural integrity.
When a horse moves in this motion, it loses connection with its hind end. More and more is demanded of the front end. And this is exactly contrary to natural horse health. And sets the stage for overall degeneration of the horse’s health.
Brakes down the horse’s ability to balance
Some horses begin to stumble, and or hurry. Often people then use discipline, thinking it is a “training,” or discipline issue. When all the poor horse is trying to do is to keep its balance in this broken, unnatural posture.
As time goes on, and this or any kind of rider bracing, shoulders, neck, pelvis, hips continue, the horse is forced into a downward spiral of degeneration. In structure, movement and emotions.
Proper posture is paramount to a horse’s health and contentment. Sadly many equestrians don’t even know what correct equine posture looks like. Or understand how little amount of rider bracing it takes to brake it down.
If I could have one wish granted me, it would be I could teach every rider how not to brace. Teach ‘em the correct way to, “sit a horse.” And why.
Find many practices, and exercises to restore your horse to proper posture in my book, “It’s For The Horses.”
Read More here – Dead Weight Of A Bracing Rider — — And — — The Equation is Backwards
