Whether you're an amateur or a professional rider, improving your riding skills is a goal you're looking for. Confidently on horseback, obedient and easy on horseback. No matter what kind of project or style you practice, what position you are at your riding level, improving your riding posture and improving your riding quality is the only way to grow.
In today's article, we'll look at what the right riding position is, common riding mistakes and their effects, and how to correct them.
"Most of the problems in riding can be solved by improving the riding position. ”
If your horse is always reluctant to move forward, it may be because some movement of the rider is preventing the horse from moving forward, and if your horse is always unable to maintain stability and rhythm, it may be because the rider has lost its balance. Proper riding posture allows the rider to connect with the horse more effectively and also allows the rider to be more stable in the saddle.
What is the correct riding position?
Although the requirements for riding form vary from event to sport, the basic principle is the same:
- Ears-shoulders-hips-heels keep in a straight line
- The elbow-bridle-muzzle remains in a straight line
- Overhead of the rider - Spine - The horse's spine is in a straight line, i.e., the rider sits on the horse's back in balance
If one of these lines is broken, the rider will be in an unbalanced state, affecting the effectiveness of the connection with the horse.
01
Hunched back while riding
One of the most common mistakes in riding is arching your back. Riding in this position for a long time can easily cause back pain to the rider, because the force caused by the horse's back movement will be exerted directly on the rider's lumbar discs, lower back muscles and spine.
The best way to relieve and avoid low back pain during riding is to keep the pelvis in a neutral position on horseback, i.e. keep the ears, shoulders, hips, and heels in a straight line. In this riding position, the rider's pelvis and back are in a neutral position, and the body's natural structure can better help absorb the forces of the horse's back movement.
Demonstration of wrong movements: Do not imitate the arch of the back during riding
Solution(s):
How do I find a neutral pelvic and back position? You can put your hand under the ischial bones and feel the direction of pressure on the ischia, whether it is directly downward, forward or backward.
Another way to ensure that your back remains in a neutral position is to tighten your core, which can be found by imagining sucking a thick milkshake. Tightening the core is the most important in the transition of footwork, especially in the downward transition, this is the time when the horseback transformation is the largest, by tightening the core, keep the upper body stable, and not collapse the riding position.
If you have back pain while riding, most of them are problems with your riding position, find the correct riding position through the above two methods, and exercise under the horse to improve your core muscles, so as to help you maintain a more stable riding position on horseback.
02
submit
Bowing your head is also a very common problem. It's human nature to ride a horse with your eyes rather than with your senses, because what your eyes can see, brings more security and reliability. But the truth is that if we learn to ride a horse with our senses, it will give us faster and more accurate reactions, which will greatly improve the efficiency and safety of riding.
When we lower our head, we will break the straight line of ears, shoulders, hips, and heels, and it is easy to lean forward and put the center of gravity forward. When you raise your head and look forward, look at the horizon and the direction you are going, and your head will naturally be raised.
Demonstration of wrong movements: Bow your head during riding, do not imitate
Solution(s):
During the ride, keep absolute concentration, always look in the direction you want to go, and at the same time train your ability to use your afterglow to see the six roads, and use your afterglow to observe everything around you, such as you can use your afterglow to look down at your hand from time to time to see if it is in the right position. In addition, do not look down at the horse's head, and do not look down at the horse's head when you are walking fast to determine whether you are following the right leg, start with a slow step, carefully feel the movement of the horse's legs and limbs, and feel which leg it is stepping on now.
Another trick that is a bit "cheating" is to buy a pair of glasses and stick the bottom half with tinted tape so that the rider can't look down. This method also gives the rider a clearer idea of how often they are looking down. This method should not be used frequently, but can be used once in a while, so that you have a clear understanding of the frequency of your eyes looking down at this movement, and then return to normal training and correct it by improving your habits.
03
Sitting chair resemblance
Chair-like riding is common for beginners who don't know how to properly control their muscles on horseback, and in this riding position, the rider's feet are in front of the straight line of ears, shoulders, and hips, and it looks like sitting on a chair from the side.
This wrong riding posture will disrupt the rider's center of gravity and balance, will make the rider's legs ineffective, and at the same time the stability of the riding and upper body will also be destroyed, making the rider's whole body command to the horse ineffective and unbalanced.
Demonstration of wrong movements: Sitting on a chair is like a riding position, do not imitate it
Solution(s):
The most effective solution is to go back to the basics, start with slow walking, find a coach to keep an eye on your riding position, change it in time, form correct muscle memory, and then slowly enter the practice of fast walking and running.
In addition, this wrong riding position is most likely due to tension in the quadriceps, hip flexors, or back of the calf muscles. Doing some muscle stretching exercises when the horse is under the horse, fully stretching the muscles on the front of the thigh and the back of the calf, can help the rider improve this wrong riding position to a certain extent, but the most basic thing is to return to the back of the horse to form correct muscle memory.
文/Amelia Newcomb 图/Kinemere