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Hunching your shoulders
If you’re feeling a bit nervous or stressed, tension can build up in your shoulders, which can make them stiffen. If they’re hunched it’ll make the rest of your body become tense, too! The answer is to relax your shoulders with these four easy steps...
QUICK FIX 1. As in the first exercise, walk forward and take both reins in one hand. Now give your free arm a shake. 2. Swap your reins to the other hand, and shake out your other arm. 3. Take back your reins then, one at a time, roll your shoulders up towards your ears, then circle them back. 4. Repeat this for one lap of the arena, until you feel all the tension drain away!
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Top Tip
It’s a good idea to practise these exercises on the lunge first, so you can focus on your position while your instructor controls your pony.
Your heels ride up
Heels down is a common phrase that you might hear your instructor say. Even though it’s something you were probably taught in your first few lessons, it’s often easy to forget! Your heels tend to ride up when you’re riding a lazy pony because, if he ignores your legs, you’ll feel you have to use your heels to get him to respond! Here’s how you can teach your pony to be more responsive, while keeping those heels down!
QUICK FIX 1. Ask your pony for a transition from walk to trot by squeezing him lightly with your calves. If he goes forward that’s great, but if he ignores you give him a stronger squeeze with your calves – don’t resort to nudging using your heels! 2. While you’re in trot, make sure you have your calves wrapped around his sides, while keeping your toes up. Keep your legs as still as you can and don’t be tempted to nag him! 3. If your pony tries to slow down without being asked, repeat your light squeeze with your calves. He’ll soon learn that it’s far better to respond to your first ask, so you won’t need to nag him!
PONY magazine
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