Horse Rider Biomechanics

As riders we all want to achieve a perfect partnership with our horses, working as a team, complementing each other rather than it becoming a constant struggle to get results. A horse is not designed to carry a rider, so we need to make it easier for them by working on our own posture, balance and stability, so to not hinder their natural free movement.

Your riding position has a huge influence on how your horse moves underneath you and also how relaxed and happy they are when ridden. Your alignment impacts every aspect of your riding, from where your legs are positioned, how soft & consistent your rein contact is, to how you apply the aids.

If you are finding certain aspects of your riding difficult, then this also affects your breathing pattern. Trying to stay relaxed and supple is very difficult whilst holding your breath, can you imagine how unnerving that would feel if our horses did the same!

Poor alignment, together with a lack of flexibility and stability will affect how well you can absorb the movement of the horse. A crocked, stiff, immobile rider will produce the same effect in the horse they ride.

Due to our lifestyles, we all have postural issues and are misaligned, favouring one side of our body to the other when carrying out daily tasks. That could be carrying water buckets and haynets, sweeping and mucking out with the same repetitive action or sitting at a desk for many hours a day, which all cause some muscle groups to be tight and short and others long and weak. We can easily become fixed in a certain posture, which can then make it very difficult to ride with ease and be as one with our horses.

The horse may of course, have their own postural issues which need attending too by a professional, but if you are both improving and working on becoming more supple and comfortable in yourselves then the results can be excellent.

Rider Position

The aim of achieving an imaginary line from the ear, shoulder, hip & heel whilst riding, may have been around for a very long time indeed, but still holds true today.

Ride with your mind coach, Mary Wanless, explains that if the rider is in the correct alignment the horse could magically disappear from under them and the rider would land on their feet. You can imagine where the rider would land if they were perched forward or leaning back?

Maybe your instructor or trainer is always remarking on your position or a postural habit you have whilst riding, gripping up with your lower leg, always looking down, constantly losing one stirrup or not being able to maintain your position in canter or years of “heels down” being drilled into you. However hard you try, you cannot make lasting changes and frustration is setting in.

Rider specific assessment and massage treatments.

Caroline, your therapist has 40 years riding experience in many equestrian disciplines as well as a being a qualified equine sports massage therapist, so understands exactly what your blocks and difficulties can be and which body work techniques make the world of difference to your riding and therefore the comfort & performance of your horse.

There are a number of options to help you with your riding, these can incorporate a visit to your yard to watch you ride or to send me a video of the areas you are finding difficult. Or you can come into the clinic where I can assess your posture, range of movement and carry out a number of simple exercises on the static horse, Pilates ball or wobble board and then formulate a rider specific massage treatment to really make progress.

If you suffer from anxiety or nervousness whilst riding or handling your horse this will impact on your posture and breathing, which in turn effects how your horse behaves, so this is something we can work on too.