Riding in balance, is a balance between mental conditioning and physical
positioning.
The mental awareness is the person’s frame of mind, attitude or emotions.
Fear is a big factor in influencing your mental state. Because of the fear of
being unseated and falling, the rider does whatever it takes to prevent a fall.
He ultimately holds his breath, tenses up his muscles, and then panic sets in.
This panic, and tension, has an effect on the riders physical balance.
The rider starts to bounce, leaning forward, backward, side to side.
The neck becomes like jello, the head is like a ball balancing on a stick, and
all this movement has an effect on the horse. Another unintentional response
when you feel unseated, is to grip with your legs, applying pressure with the
calf and thigh muscles, pushing down in the stirrups, banging the horse’s barrel.
If that isn’t enough, we start yanking and pulling back on the reins, grabbing
and putting a death hold onto the saddle horn. Does any of this sound familiar?
Now just imagine what the horse is thinking and feeling. Do you really
belong up there, what the -*?!_*- are you trying to do, and what do you
want!! I know, you must be a predator, and I need to get into my fight or
flight mode.
Now that you know what the problem is, how do you fix it? First, start
with proper placement of the saddle on the horse’s back. Now sit balanced
or centered in the saddle, not arching forward or leaning back. You are now
sitting and ready to ride, in the horse’s center of gravity. This helps the horse’s
balance and yours. Never hold you breath, as this causes you to tense up.
Many people are not aware they are holding their breath, so focus on this point.
Doing good so far standing still, now it’s time to ask him to move on.
Balance is moving with your horse’s movement. You need to be relaxed,
flexible and limber, but not too loose like a spagetti noodle. You need to match
your horse’s movement, so you don’t interfere with his stride and gait.
Practice matching the horse’s action, so as he walks, pay attention to his
hind end movement, and match his sway side to side. Now you are in balance
with him and moving as one. As you progress, this same technique can be used
in all the gaits.