Better Balance with Trotting
Back to the salt mines as they say. I don’t really know what that means. If you know, leave a comment for me to enlighten me. But I digress. Today we will be back in the saddle and working on gaining better balance in the saddle with trotting.
I don’t know about you, but I love to trot. I would rather trot around on my horse all day instead of cantering. Maybe because I spend so much time in trot, it is the gait I am most comfortable in. And did you know that by trotting around on your horse you can burn as many calories as you would if you went to work out at the gym during your lunch hour? See, there are benefits to trotting!
Trotting Exercises
It can get repetitive and boring just trotting around the arena aimlessly. So lets make it fun and challenging and Have some different exercises to focus on to keep our trotting fun.
Rising trot seems to be the easiest on your horses back, so this is the exercise I like to use the most.
Work Without Stirrups
Riding the trot without stirrups is an excellent strengthening exercise for the rider. To get the most benefit of riding without stirrups, concentrate on your form. You should maintain the same position you would ride in with stirrups, with your lower leg resting lightly against the horse, not gripping your horse’s sides with your thighs or knees. This is a tough exercise, so only do it for a few minutes at a time at first. As you get fatigued, your form will suffer, with your legs creeping up and your shoulders rounding forward, creating bad habits in your riding.
Change of Speeds Within the Trot
To improve your horse’s responsiveness, make transitions between a regular working trot and a sitting trot. When you begin this exercise, do several circles of each gait between transitions. As your horse becomes stronger and better at listening to you, complete one half circle at the working trot and one half circle at the sitting trot.
Trot Poles
Trot poles help strengthen your horse’s hocks, improve his flexibility, and teach him to be more responsive to your aids. You benefit from working over trot poles by learning to stay off your horse’s back and follow his motion in a relaxed and natural manner. When working with trot poles, it is helpful to have a person on the ground to make sure the poles are properly spaced and to straighten them if your horse accidentally kicks one while trotting through. Place the trotting poles between four feet and five feet, three inches apart. Expect to make some adjustments initially until you learn what distance works best for your horse. He should trot through the poles easily, neither mincing his steps or having to stretch to put his feet down between them. Start with three poles, adding more as he becomes more comfortable.
Trot-Walk (or Canter) Transitions
You can use the trot to improve the walk, and the canter. Start by establishing a working trot in a large circle. If you are in a riding ring, use half the ring for your circle. If you are in a field, a circle about 20 meters is a good size. Once you have established a rhythmic trot, ask for the canter. Canter for approximately half of the circle, then move back down into a trot. Wait until your horse is established at the trot with an even, steady stride, and ask for the canter again. Repeat the trot-canter transition several times in each direction.
Trotting is a fun speed to work with your horse. It can be slow enough to have greater control, and you can increase the speed of your horses trot to really get the most out of the work out. It must be that I spend so much time in trot that’s why it is my favorite pace. How about you? What is your favorite gait?
Ok, now that we have completed our work out, it is time to cool out, untack and groom. And once our tack and horses are put away go and draw a big red “X” over day #22. Oh yes, and don’t forget to do your plank exercise and write down how much time you were able to spend in plank.
Until tomorrow my friend, stay passionate and enjoy your ride!
