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Dunbroc · Sep 22, 2018 3:16 AM

Okay so I figured where better to ask this question than on a website with hundreds of horse lovers and riders! Haha.

Okay so here we go real fast backstory, I am 19, I will be 20 in December. I rode a horse for the first time a few weeks before my 18th birthday. After that I only had the opportunity to ride a handful of times, until last March. In March I started taking weekly lessons with a local trainer, who I unfortunately discontinued doing lessons with for several reasons, one reason being that I felt I was doing joy rides instead of being taught. So in June I found another trainer who I feel is the perfect balance of push and critique, but won't make you break down. Currently I can do walk, posting trot, sitting trot, canter,and two-point at the walk, trot, and canter. I am starting to tap more into cues like leg yielding and whatnot. Obviously everything can always improve, I am not perfect in anything, but I have the capability to do those things. I ride a 9 year old warmblood, and I have the intention to jump.

Anyways, I can have my hips and shoulder line up good, but ALWAYS, my leg and ankle is in front of me. Like WAY in front. My friend took a photo of me during my lesson today and I literally cringed lol. What are some things that helped you sit lined up, shoulder, hip, ankle? My trainer is working with me and trying to tell me as many different ways to do it as she can, but I just CAN'T get it!

Another thing I have an issue with is being locked in my knees and ankles. I don't allow my knees to flex, so I pump my leg. And I have issues with using my ankle and allowing it to drop and hinge. I try to stretch my ankles out daily to get them more use to the position, but they are just very stiff. And apparently when I get a few laps into trotting or canter or whatever, I stop using my knees, and close them in and lock them in place.

What are some things you think of or exercises you do to help you with those issues? My trainer always tells me that I naturally have a good sense of balance and a good seat, and that you'd never guess I've been regularly riding for less than a year, but DARN I HAVE SOME ISSUES, hahahaha. I've had a few other issues like curving my back or leaning into turns that I've been able to correct pretty easily; but my leg forward and my locked ankle and knees are just giving me a problem! Suggestions?

SandycreekFarm · Sep 22, 2018 4:05 PM

One exercise I recommend for helping with the heel position is to stand with your feet spread and the balls of your feet lined up with the edge of the bottom step of a flight of stairs. Hold on to the railing, bend your knees, keeping your back straight. Then drop your heels as far as you can and hold it a count of 5. Raise your heels and then repeat the drop and hold as many times as you can stand it. Doing this frequently should help your calf muscles get used to the stretch of bent knees and dropped heels. If you straighten your knees between the heel stretches that might help counter your tendency to locking both knees and ankles when in the saddle, but I'm not sure about that part.

The exercise may also help with keeping your feet in line with your shoulders and hips, since if you get behind the ball of your foot, you're likely to feel like you're falling backward.

RunFarAway · Sep 22, 2018 6:01 PM

That is quite interesting, and I'm not sure how much help I'll be as my training is almost completely western. The only thing I can think of is that it may not just be a flexibly issue. Stretching is great and I would definitely keep doing it. There could also be a slight strength issue and it could be something you don't even realize.

When I stopped riding in college, I ended up with a pretty bad injury that the doctors said happened due to a lack of stability in my knee. Basically riding had hidden the fact that I lacked the natural strength to keep my knee tracking correctly.

Without knowing more, I probably won't recommend the best exercises. But there's a pretty versatile one for ankles that is both for strength and flexibility. If you have a theraband, you take one end and tie it to a table and tie the other in a loop. You just sit with your foot in the loop, placed on the ball of your, and write out the alphabet (upper and lower case) with your toes.

Hopefully that helps or at least gives you some different ideas to look into.

HTRanch · Sep 22, 2018 6:08 PM

Lol the last time I asked for horse advice online I ended up in surgery for a broken wrist... so take everything with a grain of salt. It sounds like you have a great trainer! Hold onto them and never let go! It's great that you are trying to address these issues early on. I learned to ride by goofing around on retired cowhorses and didn't learn to correct a lot of my riding issues until years later. It was so much harder than if I'd learned the right way the first time!

I sometimes take a break in the middle of a ride to let my horse walk along the rail so I can relax my muscles. I start with relaxing my toes, take a few deep breaths, then move to my feet, breathe, etc all the way to the top of my head. Once my muscles are relaxed with my core engaged, my position normally fixes itself. With your trainer's supervision, you could also try riding without stirrups or reins, which forces your body to find the proper balance and rhythm. I always tell myself if at first I don't succeed, I need to do it again without stirrups! Don't give up, riding is challenging, but it is so rewarding when you overcome challenges you've been working at for a while.

Cheers · Sep 22, 2018 8:35 PM

I strongly second RunFarAway’s assessment that there may also be a component of strength involved here. Holding the correct riding position requires different muscles than we use in normal every day life! It take a lot of hours to build up the strength required...so at this point I’d say knowing your leg is in the right position for a few laps of the arena is awesome! Keep concentrating on that, working on holding it for an extra half lap at a time and you’ll eventually get there! You’re probably locking your knees when your muscles start to give out on you...it just takes a lot of time.

One thing you might ask your trainer for is longe lessons or round pen lessons or something similar where you can not have to worry about holding the reins and directing the horse but just focus on balance and your leg position. I remember I hated longe lessons when I was younger, but now I would pay very good money to get a series of them...

Remember to also do some stretching exercises in the saddle—as you are warming up, do shoulder rolls and windmills and rope climbs, and also drop your stirrups, stretch your leg as far down as it will go and let it hang, and do ankle rolls and flex/stretch motions. These will help you warm up all those ligaments and tendons and might help with keeping your heels down without strain.

Willoway · Sep 22, 2018 9:07 PM

Too throw in my 2 cents, I can't say for sure without seeing you how do feel riding bareback? If your saddle doesn't fit you, this could be causing or at least exaggerating your problems, forward cut jumping saddles/stirrup bars can cause this. If your weight isn't centered because your leg is too far forward, sitting/rising is harder and you could be overcompensating or creating tension in other muscles.

Of course the other suggestions given are very very good, I found huge improvements in my control and awareness in the saddle after starting yoga.

levesel2 · Sep 30, 2018 2:29 PM

I would check your saddle fit. Quite often the wrong fit will throw you into the chair seat that you described. You shouldn’t have fitghting the saddle. The saddle should help you maintain the proper position.

supersarah · Sep 30, 2018 5:39 PM

All the above stretch exercises will help :)

One thing to remember is that stirrups are a tool ,not a stool. Your legs are going forward because you are pressing down on the stirrup all the time. It is ok to lose a stirrup now and then, but they should not be your balance point. Any force , like clinging, that you use will create stiffness through out from head to toe. Think toes up, not heels down, lift your thigh up wards often to supple your seat.

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