Wow!!!

What a revelation! My seat changed completely tonight, and for the better!

What exactly made the difference? I went in thinking of my "seat" as a sort of two-pronged single part of my anatomy that included both my thighs and acts as a single unit that "slots onto" the horse.

Suddenly, everything was better. I could sit the trot at just about any speed. Most of the bounce was out of my canter (and all of it at times when everything really clicked). But the sitting trot was the biggest thing; it was the best sitting trot of my life! Everything was locked in with minimal effort of interference. And my feel, even at the walk, was amazing. I could follow so much better!!

So what exactly happened?

I had a lesson in North Bay, on Saturday, with the jumping instructor I'd had three or four with back in February. I did a semi-private with my best friend, with whom I rode a ton and took lots of lessons as a teen. At the end of the lesson I was a little disappointed that we didn't do a bit more and felt like I didn't get much out of it other than a pleasant ride in the sunshine.

Well... HA!!

We did this thing called "exercise position" which consisted of dropping the stirrups, bringing the thigh down vertically, and bending the knee so that the lower leg was horizontal to the ground. Then, trying to roll back on your seat into its usual three points of balance while lifting chin and chest and engaging lower abs. WELL. It was an incredible hip opener and something really jogged in my brain. My brain and body took notes. Because, while I didn't change anything immediately that ride... it definitely was percolating in my brain since then, and I was able to take that "Aha!" into this ride with AWESOME results.

I THOUGHT I had been riding with my hips open. I had not. NOW I get it!!

I rode around doing mostly sitting trot tonight, at slow and medium and occasionally a bit faster, and just marvelled at my ability to do it almost effortlessly. I rode most of the evening on as loose a rein as possible, trying to continue to address my rein-reliance-and-tension problems, but I felt really secure and balanced and like I didn't need the reins so much.

I shoudl also mention, I discovered a really interesting exercise that helped immensely and that I will definitely do again. I dropped my stirrups and, at a walk on a loose rein, used just one leg at a time to push her over into a little leg yield off and then back onto the rail. I tried to do as little with my leg as possible. I want to stop tensing and lifting my leg when I apply it. I want to train my body that I can apply it while keeping it mainly relaxed. So I practiced practiced practiced moving her over at the walk with a bit of calf pressure inward and NOTHING ELSE. And I could do it, too! It didn't require tension or a shortening of the leg to be effective. Unsurprisingly, I was able to keep my left leg longer and more relaxed than my right -- it's habitually the one that has more tension and lifts more on me -- but I was starting to get somewhere with it. It also helped me to keep my leg long, relaxed, and further back during applied aids.

So, the recipe for my success(es) tonight:

My seat is a two-pronged unit that includes both thighs
My legs do not exists below the knee unless I apply them
My hands are of no consequence while I develop my seat
My calf presses inward without pressing upward
My calf can be applied without being a source of tension