Jessica Bryce

Tag: dressage

  • Lateral Work and The Young Horse

    Lateral Work and the Young Horse

    How soon is too soon to get started?

    My answer to the question of ‘can lateral work be introduced to the young horse too soon?’ is: yes! In most situations it most certainly can, but there’s one exception to the rule. Let’s look at the three most common scenarios so that you can make an informed decision about what’s right for your horse.

    Scenario 1: The Traditionally Trained Horse

    Almost all the horses I come across these days have been trained the Traditional way, meaning using methods riders and trainers have learned directly, from in-person experience (lessons/clinics etc) with their instructors/trainers. The ‘tradition’ of riding, and horse training ‘know-how’ being passed down through the generations directly.

    As you know, this usually means sending the young horse off to an expert to be started under saddle. The trainer normally does some groundwork as part of the process, but s/he has the horse for only a short amount of time, often just a matter of weeks, so the focus is on getting the riding happening.

    In this scenario, the education of the horse is entirely left to the owner/rider and there is a lot to cover before lateral work should be attempted.

     Dressage is a progressive training system, meaning key building blocks need to be in place before we can move on to the more difficult movements.    

    Freely forward movement

    The horse must be willing to travel freely forward in all gaits, he must be ‘in front of the leg’ before lateral work can begin. This means when you ‘rev the engine’ you get a response straight away.

    A horse with a good work ethic is one that complies with the rider’s requests with no brace or tension. Tension shows itself in many ways, from the obvious tail swishing, ear pinning, head shaking, napping and baulking, to the much less obvious red flags such as breath-holding, braced back and tense jaw.

    Free forward movement requires an absence of tension in the physical, mental and emotional. This can take a long time; many, many months and sometimes years. In fact, some horse and rider combos never achieve it.

    Acceptance of contact

    In order to sculpt our horse’s body into the shapes we need him to learn for lateral work, the horse must be accepting of our use of contact. Whether bited or bitless, if the contact creates physical resistance in the horse’s body our efforts will be lost before we’ve even got started. How can I influence the horse’s hind leg with my hand? If there’s brace anywhere along the fascial chains from the jaw to the limbs then I can’t.

    The horse’s jaw is intrinsically linked to the rest of his body through chains of muscles. Most riders are familiar with the concept of the dorsal chain, otherwise known as the ‘topline’. These chains are like a string of sausages; each sausage may be its own individual, but they’ll all joined by a casing of facia that allows them to work as one. Any tensions or blockages anywhere along the chain will rob the horse of this ability to move in a whole-bodied way.

    Only when the horse is accepting of the contact can the bit be used for the subtlest form of communication and become a training tool of great refinement.

    Adjustability

    It’s too soon to start lateral work if we haven’t first got the ability to show the horse straightness. Right now I might hear you saying, ‘but, Jessica, true straightness is a long term goal and impossible for the young horse.’ That’s right, but in order to show him what straightness is like we need to have the adjustability to put him back on course when he strays. Not to say that there’s any expectation of him maintain that straightness, just that we can influence it by adjusting his vertical balance.

    Scenario 2: Not a Dressage Horse

    Not all riders have dressage aspirations or even ride the Equestrian disciplines, but the physical benefits of lateral work can help every horse learn to carry their rider in a healthier and less tiring way, keeping them sounder for longer.

    Lateral work has a big role in many working horse disciplines and is a big focal point in Western training as well as in Dressage. Having been exclusively an Equestrian rider myself, a couple of years ago I was surprised to discover there are actually quite a lot of similarities between the highest form of western riding and Classical Dressage. Different gear and different terminology, but physiologically and philosophically the same thing.

    All the same pre-requisites apply to non-dressage horses (free forward movement, acceptance of contact and adjustability) they may just be known by different names.

    Scenario 3: The Classically Trained Horse

    There are a small number of Classical Masters to be found around the world today (if you’re in my neck of the woods you may be familiar with Manolo Mendez). However; the majority of our learning as modern Classical riders come from the legacies left behind from the Great Masters of the (Neo)Classical times; through their books, theories and philosophies. If we’re really lucky we might have access to someone who has been studying Classical Dressage for a lifetime, but many of the living Masters are held closely behind the walls of institutions like the Spanish Riding School.

    If you’re a classically trained rider you will have introduced work in-hand to your young horse well before starting him under saddle. In this case, you can start riding the lateral movements much earlier as your horse already understands the aids and has learned how to carry himself, so all you need to do is translate your ground training to aids from the rider.

    Confidence

    The horse’s confidence in being ridden is the second to last pre-requisite because asking him to alter his balance in this way before he’s truly comfortable carrying the rider and has learned how to adjust himself to a dynamic load is unfair. No matter how well we prepare our youngsters for riding, it is a worrying thing for the young horse in the beginning and he needs plenty of reassuring and short sessions so that we stop before he becomes tired.

    A relaxed rider

    Finally, for our lateral work to be successful in its aims of improving the horse’s suppleness, stability and way of carrying the rider we need to be the kind of rider that’s not getting in the way. A ‘moveable’ rider is one sharing the qualities we desire in our horse of calmness, partnership, suppleness, independent balance and the absence of tension. For example, there’s no point asking our horse to move sideways if our outside leg is blocking the very same movement. It’s a life-long journey becoming the kind of rider that walks the fine line between influencing the horse and giving him room to move freely and I encourage all riders to undertake some form of ‘lateral work’ in their own training regime, such as yoga.

    Conclusion How soon is too soon to get started with lateral work with your young horse? No matter which of these three scenarios is most like your situation, if you’re wanting your horse to perform to a high level you can’t beat lateral work as a building block for your training. I’ll leave it up to you to decide when the time is right for your horse, but if you’re looking for more guidance just reach out to me

  • How bush bashing on a Standardbred accelerated my dressage riding!

    You’re probably already thinking “whaaaaat?” but hear me out, and it will all make sense by the end!

    Over winter I started doing some bush riding (aka trail riding) with a friend on her spare horse and loved it! I loved the early morning, yes it was cold! The crisp air, the birdsong, the smell of the bush and the notion that I was doing this purely for my own enjoyment!

    As an Equestrian Rider with some pretty big ambitions, riding has always been purposeful for me. I’m training this horse (my own or a client’s) I’m working towards that, striving for something… it kinda has a “work” feel about it.

    Riding in the bush is a stark contrast to “working my horse” in the arena… because it’s just for fun.

    As dressage riders we’re quite “busy” and by that I mean, we’re micro-managing the horse. Constantly monitoring his bend and straightness, influencing his way of going, correcting any deviations from the ideal that we’re aiming for.

    As a leisure rider, on a horse that’s never set hoof in an arena, it’s a completely different picture. In fact, it’s the total opposite. As a rider completely inexperienced with bush riding, on a horse that’s being doing it for practically his whole life I had to learn to be the follower in the partnership rather than the leader!

    We “sand dancers” are so finely tuned to feel what the horse is doing under us so we can maintain perfection, that any alterations to equilibrium instantly raise red flags in our nervous systems.

    There is no uphill and downhill in our manicured arenas, we don’t have to think about the next best place for our horse to put his feet as the surface is all the same.

    A good bush horse on the other hand, is constantly “on the job”. He’s watching the terrain, he’s thinking about where he wants to put his feet and choosing the best path. A good bush rider simply has to get out of the way and let the horse do his job.

    During our rides together my friend explained a few things to me, like how to choose the high side of the track where it’s wet as the low side will be more slippery, and how to push off the trees with a soft elbow to protect your knees.

    The most profound things I learned though, I learned from the horse.

    From getting out there and experiencing it.

    Letting the horse pick his own path was completely foreign to me, letting go of the responsibility of steering took a whole lot of getting used to! Trust in the horse, I told myself, he won’t put himself at risk, and in looking after himself he will look after you.

    Let him use his judgement and trust in his judgement.

    It’s so much bigger than just handing over the rights to the reins though, it’s about what I now think of as “rider self-carriage” or “riding like a feather”. Being free enough in your body that when the horse needs to take an extra large step, to avoid standing on a wobbly rock for example, that this unexpected bigger movement is permitted by your nervous system and your body just goes with it.

    Instead of getting left behind, or the sudden movement causing your hips to tighten up or your legs to grab on, you just go with it. You let the horse move you; unconditionally.

    You are then no longer a burden to the horse because you’re taking care of your own posture, your own self-carriage, and you’re not getting in his way. You’re sitting and riding in such a way that allows you to sign your pelvis over to the horse and let him move how he needs to move without putting the hand-break on him.

    It’s not dissimilar to what we are of our horses, to be honest. We expect them to hand over their free will to us and to let us dictate their every movement. Moreover, we expect them to do it calmly, consistently and without objection. Can we offer the same in return?

    I see many riders with holding hips in the canter. They aren’t able to relax their hips and allow the full movement of the horse to travel through their bodies. Instead they grip on with their legs, often losing their stable lower leg position and even then stirrups; knees creeping up and drawing the heels up with them.

    It disturbs the horse; it interferes with his balance and he has to try to compensate. It creates worry for both parties. Many riders have fears around the canter, particularly the transition, and many horses are “naughty” through canter transitions too.

    Next time you’re sitting on your horse, I extend the challenge to you, to think about to riding “like a feather”. Think about letting go of all the tension in your legs, hips, lower back. Think about breathing and releasing all the tension in your pelvis and legs while maintaining your posture and self-carriage through your torso. This rider self-carriage is critically important; it’s what provides the stability that allows you to hand control of the pelvis over the horse.

    It’s what gives great riders that impression of effortlessness on the horse’s back, and it’s what allows our weight aids to become so meaningful that they’re all we need.

  • Disappointment

    a horse rider’s silent stalker

    Yesterday I rode my horse for the first time in the New Year… and it was a real letdown.

    I’d been really looking forward to the ride. I’d barely had time to do anything with him lately. We’ve just come through the longest spring I can remember and I’ve been thoroughly exhausted from the strict regime of laminitis prevention management enforced upon pretty much all of my horses, due to the seemingly interminable grass growth we’ve had. (What a hay season though!)

    The beginning of a New Year is my favourite time of year. It’s a time of hope, planning and looking forward with renewed enthusiasm.

    Enthusiasm beware, because disappointment is silently stalking.

    It’s lurking just around the corner, watching and waiting to ambush you when you’re not looking. Sometimes you’re expecting it; as riders we all get those gut feelings. We’re taking a gamble with the unknown when something just could easily go one way as the other. We accept that the illusions of safety or success can be gone in the speed of a horse’s heartbeat.

    Yet, sometimes the veil of disappointment settles over us completely unannounced.

    The last time I rode was our best ride so far, and the time before that was too! I’d been pretty consistent for a few months with our Equine PT exercise program and the results were impressive.

    While I hadn’t been riding my horse I sure had been learning! I’ve been gobbling up a Classical Dressage book by one of the few trainers in the world making the highest levels of dressage training accessible, and I’d watched him giving lessons through online streaming of a clinic with his regular (and very accomplished) pupils.

    I was full ideas, things that I wanted to try and things that I’d read about and was keen to see if I could feel too. To complete the picture of understanding.

    I get on my horse and in rolls disappointment. It’s been a while since it last visited, but it’s still a familiar feeling.

    Once again we can’t bend to the right, and we’re so far down on the forehand that I feel like I have to hold the horse up myself. Goodbye lightness. Farewell balance; it was nice to have you but now you’re gone.

    All I can do is start the re-building process. All over again.

    Hello square one. Well, to be fair it’s probably square two, because at least this time we can still bend to the left!

    This is what happens when your horse is on grazing restrictions and has been living in small paddocks and yards for months on end… and you haven’t been walking him.

    I’m disappointed for my riding goals, but that’s the least of it, really. I’m disappointed in myself, because theoretically I knew this would happen but didn’t realise in time to do anything about it. I’m disappointed for my horse because his body has stiffened up again, and he has to live in that crooked and tight body every day.

    I can’t dwell on these feelings though, no sense indulging in self-pity. I’ve already booked my favourite equine therapist to come to see him and I’m hoping that with what I learned the last time we went through the process that the results will come quicker and easier this time.

    Obviously some of the goodness has stuck as we can still bend to the left, and I’ll take whatever small victory I can get right now! These feelings will pass and I’ve got the whole rest of the year ahead of me, including winter which is always my most productive season with my own horses.

    Time to do what we all do when the silent stalker strikes… pick myself up, dust myself off, and start again.