Confident Training

Riders can be confident about staying on yet lacking confidence when it comes to training their horse. Sometimes as we noted in the previous post, they may not even be aware that this is happening. It can be very subtle and almost at a subconscious level.
 
How much easier is it for an Olympic rider to feel and know exactly when to give and release an aid for a piaffe or a flying change compared to someone who has never done either of these movements!  A rider new to this level of training may continually second guess themselves, for no reason other than lack of experience. This lack of confidence can result in hesitation and lack of clarity in the timing of their aids. They may take their aid off too early, thinking that they must have done something wrong when in fact, the horse just needed a split second longer to react. Or alternatively they may bring in an unnecessarily strong back up aid. Both of these situations will result in the horse not learning the new exercise easily or at worst, becoming confused.

When considering confidence in context with training, riders need to know

1. what they are asking of their horse is not an unfair question,
2. they have prepared their horse for this question both physically and mentally,
3. signs that their horse is beginning to understand
4. signs that their horse is not understanding and that they need to reassess the situation (perhaps break the question down into smaller parts or talk to someone more experienced to work out a reason why this may be happening)
5. how long is a reasonable length of time for their horse to a) understand and b) become physically strong enough to perform what is being asked. 

Only when riders have this knowledge can they be confident in what they are asking and be patient enough to know that eventually the horse will understand. This prevents a rider from changing how they are asking the question too soon or perhaps even worse not changing the way they ask soon enough. Both of these scenarios can really confuse a horse.

Both horses and riders can lose confidence and we mostly think of this with respect to jumping. However, it is very apparent in dressage when riders become over-zealous with young, talented horses and also with horses learning new movements. Always err on the edge of less, rather than more, both in regards to quality and quantity as horses become stronger mentally and physically in their training. Make it fun for horses! Play games with them and as I always say,
 
"train for the reactions, not the movements"
 
The entire Equest Connect Program has been developed for riders of all disciplines to think and understand how they communicate with their horses. From becoming more aware of their own bodies and how they affect their horses in both a positive and negative way to understanding horse biomechanics to help with timing of aids and ease of movements, this knowledge will enable riders to be sure that they are asking correctly, not blocking their horse and that their horse is ready and well prepared for whatever they are doing. Rider React, Horse Aware and Horse Respond Clinics are great for helping riders break down the questions they ask of their horses and to start to train in a more horse-friendly manner.