When your horse is unbalanced, unsure or trying to avoid something difficult, they will often times increase the tempo of their movement. We as riders get sucked into "riding faster" to keep up with our horse. Unfortunately, this just reinforces the horse's behavior. We need to be aware of when our horse is getting into or stuck in "fast forward ". When this happens we need to move in slow motion. We have to slow our thoughts down. We must slow our seat down. Our hands need to move quietly and slowly as if stuck in molasses. We need slow, soft legs. We can't be increasing pressure or activity. Sometimes getting into slow motion means we need to halt or walk away from the exercise for a bit. Sometimes we need to present the horse the information in smaller pieces or a more positive way. One thing is for sure, whatever we ride forward we accept and we have to change for the horse to change.
Trainer’s Tip Tuesday
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