Do your hips feel stiff? Do you have difficulty folding at the hips when in light seat or two-point? Do you have trouble absorbing the motion at the sitting trot? Whether you ride western or English having the ability to move at hips (not the waist) is important to an effective seat and a solid position. Here’s a quick tip you can do off and on your horse to improve your awareness of your hips.
dressage
Elbows By Side
Do you have trouble stopping your horse? Do you brace against your stirrups while pulling back on the reins? Does your horse fall forward when you move off? You may be doing too much with your arms and not enough with your seat. Stabilizing your elbows by your sides may be the answer.
Elbows Sticking Out
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 benefit of having your elbows in the right place.
