how do u get used to trot?

[lovechick]

I just started my riding lessons and I love them but the hardest part for me now is getting a hold of trotting, it feels really uncomfortable and I feel like I'm gonna fall off the horse because I'm jumping up and down its back and I cant keep still its really hard, in a horse book it says its only temporarily, that it needs to getting used to.. How long does it take really? also when I trot my horse will only go like half a lap the it starts walking, I cant tell whats wrong, maybe my arms are too tense? so yeah I'm learning but its kinda hard...:agree:

[MagnoliaFly]

Trotting for a beginner as old as you can be scary and frustrating. I also started at 16 and it was terrifying for me as the first time I trotted I hadnt developed the muscles yet and I bounced right off the horses back (he was a horse with a bouncy trot).
Relax your hands, you cannot balance with your hands so dont torment the horse by tugging on the reins trying to balance. Its better to learn to trot with your hands on your thighs and your instructor keeping your horse trotting on a lunge line until you get your correct seat and balance.
Posting correctly will keep you from bouncing around all the time. (Dont post using your feet to push you up and down, use that inner thigh to help bring your butt up out of the saddle and gently back down on the horses back, you'll learn the rhythm it requires.) It will get easier as you build muscle.
Your horse is probably stopping because you arnt keeping your leg on him, your just kicking enough to get him going and then your calves relax and dont stay on his sides behind the girth where they need to be, because you dont have the muscle built up yet. Do ALOT of lunge line work and you will get those muscles. It took me a few months, alot of bareback work, alot of corral work, work without stirrups and work on the lunge line to get a good sturdy seat. Dont give up. Ask your trainer constantly what your doing wrong.

Good luck and keep me posted!

[lovechick]

Thanks a lot for the info, its kinda hard to actually do it what you say but I'll try, anyways my instructor never did lunging with me before, is it really necessary? and I do feel really tense when I ride even when I try to relax its hard. Also is it important to ride few times a week? to maybe gain more muscle or something, cause I only ride once a week..I hope thats fine..
I also wanted to ask does wearing right boots and pants make a big difference, does wearing chaps or jodhpur pants make the riding easier maybe less tenser?
and which are better to ride in long boots or those short jodhpur boots?
Thanks a whole bunch!!:D

[MagnoliaFly]

When your a beginner wear jodpur boots, or tennis shoes. You need to build that muscle. Wearing "cheater pants" (chaps as some people call them) won't allow you to build that muscle you need to grip in to the saddle. Breeches or jodpur pants will probably make you feel less secure in the saddle than what you already feel because they make the saddle feel slippery. Just wear jeans or whatever your wearing right now.

Riding once a week will make things harder for you. To really develop and advance in riding, 3 times a week would be ideal. Once a week just doesnt provide the training you need, especially if your only riding for 1-2 hours. 3 times a week, 2 hours at a time will help advance you tremendously.

Lunge work will help you build a better balanced seat. Even advanced riders have to go back to lunge work without stirrups or reins (or both) to work on a balanced seat and fluid movement with the horse. Its the best thing you can do as a beginner to help build a proper foundation. The more you ride, the less tense you will feel. Its as simple as that. My trainer told me the more I was around horses the less nervous I would be in the saddle. Especially spending time with the horse you ride. Groom it, talk to it, play with him in a corral (lunging) along with spending time around other horses. Lunging horses will give you that self confidence you need also, if you dont already have that. Talk to your instructor about learning how to lunge. Watch other advanced students lunge their horses in a round pen and see how their body language is used to move the horse around. It will help you be less tense on a horse. Horses can feel your nervousness when you ride them. Be conscious of that. They want to trust you to lead them to the safe, correct place to go and they need that bond. If you feel nervous, they dont know if they can trust you to lead them to a safe place and will often become more nervous than you. Breathe deeply and just be happy that you get this wonderful chance that so many people want and not alot get to have!

[lovechick]

Thanks Magnoliafly this is really helpful, ok about shoes , before I started taking lessons the teacher gave me an information sheet about their school and it also says there what is allowed to wear and tennis shoes are not acceptable(I read in a book that if you fall off the horse, you leg can get trapped in stirrups(is it?, the thing you put your leg in) and you will be dangling from the horse) so I can only wear boots or jodhpurs, but those are really ugly looking shoes(sorry) the ones with rubber sides. I have a lesson tomorow and I'll ask the teacher which ones does she think are best for me.
About riding, I only ride 1 time a week for 1/2 hour, so its pretty short, I dont even get warmed up yet when we finish, so i dont like that, but theres nothing I can do about it really, I might be riding 1 more day soon, I'm not sure yet.

Thanks so much for taking your time to read all these and answer.!!
:heart: :flower: :girl:

[MagnoliaFly]

Well some tennis shoes have a higher risk of getting caught in the stirrup, but jodpur boots, dress and hunt boots will get caught in the stirrups. If she doesnt want you to wear them for safety reasons thats fine, I just know that I've even had my tall boots get caught in the stirrups falling off and been hanging there before. There was only a few falls I had that totally launched me out of the saddle without getting caught on something.
Jodpur boots would probably be the best thing for you right now.

30 minutes once a week wont be enough to train you. 8-10 Hours/week would help you out more and let you get more used to the trot. I've heard of 30 minute lessons before and it appalls me to think that trainers actually believe that students can learn and feel the horse enough in 30 minutes worth of a lesson. Not to mention they probably tack up your horse for you. If they do ask to see if you can learn how to do it. It sounds like you dont really know the parts of a saddle/bridle yet. I'm assuming they didnt teach you how to properly saddle and bridle a horse. You need to learn this.

I hope you can work out having some more time horseback.

[MagnoliaFly]

Lovechick I just wanted to know how your riding was going!
Please give me an update!

[PyscoFalcon]

Learning Rising Trot is quite hard but I found it easier if I held the reins in 1 hand and the pommel of the saddle with the other - that way I'm not only using my legs to push me out of the saddle but also my arm.

Another way is to stay standing in your stirrups for 1 lap, sitting for another, standing again for another etc and slowly shorten the amount of time sitting and standing.

You'll be doing rising trot in no time at all. :D

[lovechick]

Thanks guys for advice, my lessons are great!! i love them, and yes I'm learning both sitting&posting trot, i'm so much better now, and dont feel as tense... we just started learning canter so its kinda scary but fun, for now its just 2-point canter. I feel pretty confident around horses, i learned how to tack them up and also help young kids to tack their horses. I also rode bareback once and we went trail riding at night, that was soo cool!!! and another good thing, my lesson is 1 hour long now, yeah!!!:D so that great.... Ok theres one thing, the horse that I ride is really slooooow, and I mean it, he cant even trot without stopping every 2 laps, so the horse on the back of me always bumps in his behind..lol...now that we started canter he wont do it at all, even if I kick hard and use whip, it doesent work,my mom was watching the horse and she says that his eyes are half closed and his lip hanging like he's sleeping...lol...but its not funny and really frustrating.... but he will canter if theres a horse in front of him.. but the teacher wants me to be a leader, so I dont know what to do, I might ask her if I can ride someone else, theres this nice horse and he's pretty fast, but before me he is ridden 4 or 5 times, so i cant use him.... and other horses are kinda small, I'm worried that I might be too heavy, maybe even for the horse I ride now.... what do u guys think? Thanks:agree:

[PyscoFalcon]

The horse needs waking up - instead of constant kicking some sharp squeezes with the legs should help - if not then grab reins in 1 hand and with the whip so the horse it (like a race horse) but don't actually hit it. Squeezing with the legs at smae time helps as well as roaring at it.

[Nevertoomany]

You seem to be getting some good advice.

There are things you can do at home to improve your legs....

stand on the edge of a stair -- with your heel hanging over -- and bounce. This is actually the position your foot should be in the stirrup and will add strength to your calfs.

Also if you want to wake your hose up try singing...

not loud -- but when we are training we use silly songs -- sesame street ones, row row row your boat, stuff like that -- the faster you sing the faster the hose will go . It also helps to regulate your breathing so if you are nervous it helps you too.

I am not a 'Natural" rider and found every step of learning to take a lot of my concentration. When i FINALLY understood what I was supposed to do it was like a light bulb went on....
But it was all worth it.
Now if all this white stuff would go away I might even get on one of those furry things outside !!!! you guys make me want to ride ---

I personally like bareback -- but it seems the ground is further away now than it was 20 years ago LOL

[lovechick]

thanks a lot, I'll do that...:angel5: but I think I will freak out my teacher if I start singing.lol THANKS!!!!:D

[PyscoFalcon]

Just remebered something else I used to do - straddle a chair and try to "rise" from that without holding on. Not is it only a good way to learn rising trot but also strengthens the leg and lower back muscles.

[Nevertoomany]

now that you say that I remember that too.......

and I had a friend with bad posture who had to walk and ride with a book on her head so she didn't look down -- that causes your shoulders to slump atc.....

boy that was a LONG time ago --- that's for reminding me that I am old PycoFalcon ... just what i needed this am <G>

Is it spring yet??????

[PyscoFalcon]

LOL! I feel old with this stupid back. Spring is just round the corner for us - nice and sunny here but still very cold.