Murdoch Minutes

Do you have trouble getting your horse to go forward? Do you bump or hit the front of your saddle with your pelvis? Do you feel insecure over the fences? The answer may be caused by not having good thigh contact with your horse and saddle.

Do you have trouble keeping your hands steady? Does your instructor yell at you to keep your hands quiet? Do your hands move up and down as you post? Do you tend to drop one hand lower than the other? Unsteady hands are a major problem for many riders. Here are two suggestions to quickly […]

Do you have trouble keeping your elbows by your sides? Does your instructor keep yelling at you to keep your elbows in? Perhaps you have only one wayward elbow that you can’t seem to control. The answer may be in giving you a tactile sense of where your elbows belong and letting you feel the […]

Do you get yelled at to “sit up straight” but can’t seem to maintain your position? Do you have difficulty keeping your head up? Do you have discomfort in your upper back after riding? Do your shoulders round when you are not paying attention? To solve these problems pay attention to your rib cage, not your shoulders.

Do you pull on your horse’s mouth even though you know you shouldn’t? Does your instructor tell you to “give to your horse” all the time? Do you try to throw away the reins after you have used them in an attempt to stop yourself from pulling?

Do you feel one seat bone more than the other? Do slide off one side of your saddle? Does one leg always stick out more forward than the other one? Does your horse always drift or bulge in one direction but not the other? The answer may be that you aren’t sitting level in your saddle. Here’s a quick tip to help you level your seat.