Dressage Position Tips

To ride in good balance when riding your horse be sure to keep a good plumb line with your shoulders directly over your hips and over your heels.

Many riders lean behind the vertical (especially in trot extensions!) because they think they’re driving their horses more forward.

The problem with leaning back, however, is that you’ll end up pushing your horse’s back down.

So if you tend to lean back, here’s a quick tip to give you some muscle memory for keeping your upper body straight.

While you’re standing on the ground, lean back and ask a friend to put the palm of her hand between your shoulder blades. Ask her to gently push your upper body forward until your shoulders are above your hips. Repeat this several times. Close your eyes as you’re being pushed forward so you can really memorize the feeling of bringing your upper body over your hips.

Then when you’re riding your horse, pretend your friend is gently pushing your upper body forward so you can sit up straight.

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Horseback riding is all about balance. You need to be centered and balanced, and you always want to keep your horse in good balance for his stage of training.

So here’s a great image to help you keep your pelvis in a “neutral” position in your quest for good balance.

Imagine your pelvis is a big bucket filled with water. When your pelvis is in a neutral position, you can keep all the water in the bucket.

If you ride with an arched, tense back, the top of your pelvis tips forward, and the water spills out the front of the bucket.

If you ride with a rounded lower back, the top of your pelvis tips back and the water spills out the back of the bucket.

So, help your horse find his balance by riding with a neutral pelvis and keeping all the water in the bucket!

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