I am back from my riding lesson which is all about the sitting trot, I wanted to share this with all till I finish them successfuly, i hope so

Before going to the lesson, I have been watching lots of trot videos and reading few guides on sitting trot, however, today, i was confused alot with some contradictions between that and my trainer instructions.

He told me that what gonna keep me on the saddle is my knees and my inner thigh muscles, though, most of what I read is saying that no muscles are involved in the sitting trot, it just comes with a good balance and relax!! how much different from my lesson today !!!, totally different.

In the beginning before he started giving my instructions, I started a trot myself, and thought of seeing how it gonna be without stretching any muscles, and here we go, a very hard bounce that caused me severe pain which is still here till now in my back, i really feel pain even when i walk or go downstairs with every step that rocks the ground.

He then told me that i am totally wrong! hold with your knees and inner thighs too tight, i have to develop those muscles for better control and sitting well on the horse during a trot.

I tried, but i couldn't and lots of bouncing again.

He then told me to ride with stirrups free, this will make me hold my knees and inner thighs tight to avoid falling down, and hence it will push me to use those muscles.

He was right in this I guess, coz once I started a trot without stirrups, I really found myself using my knees and thighs to avoid bouncing or falling off the horse.

now I am back home, with a very serious pain in the back, hope this won't last for long, could anything wrong be there in my back from this? What do you all think about this? is knees and thighs are important for better control and staying still during a trot? I am confused, how can I understand both directions, what I read? and what i was told today about the sitting trot requirements?

Hi

I don't think you should grip during sitting trot, but as you'll have gathered from my last post, I'm no expert...!

I am actually much more confident sitting than rising though, probably because I have been trying to improve my seat by doing a lot of riding bareback - in fact I now prefer bareback riding because I feel so much more 'in touch' with my horse. I think you should really relax and try to 'absorb' the movement. Try bareback and see how you get on...? Do you know anything about Parelli, which really emphasises the importance of moving 'with' the horse...?

Hope this helps...

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Hi Stiltskin,

It's great to know that you feel better at sitting trot more than a rising trot, I really wonder but you should feel like an expert then, sitting trot stability and staying in a good seat without bouncing looks too much hard to me, at least for now

How you keep intouch and stay still in seat without gripping? is it really possible?

I can't imagine staying in my seat during during a trot and not bouncing without gripping with m knees, even with a bareback, how you avoid bouncing without knees grip? still can't imagine it.

What's your technique or exercises that you tried to succeed in absorbing the movement?

Hi again!

I have studied Parelli a lot - it is really difficult to summarise the ideas/techniques in brief, but do check out the website (Parelli :: Home). Basically though, their riding philosophy is called 'Fluidity', and encourages movement, which is in contrast to traditional methods which expect/require the rider, even the beginner, to keep very still. The idea is that rider movement absorbs the horses movement, whereas trying to force yourself to keep still causes tension/stiffness which leads to jarring/bouncing/being 'at odds' with the movement of the horse.

This 'movement' would look unsightly to begin with, but as riders become more experienced the movement in their bodies becomes so practiced, natural, and 'sublimated' that, if you ever see a Parelli Professional riding, they appear as still as a classical rider!

In brief though, some of the recommendations for sitting trot are:

• lean back
• 'pedal' with alternate feet, along with the rhythm of the trot
• allow arms to 'swing' naturally, almost as they would if you were jogging

I know these things will sound wierd, and probably contradict everything you have ever been told before. I am sure your trainer wouldn't agree with them! However do at least experiment and give it a go! I discovered Parelli about two years ago, and I can't emphasise enough how it changed my relationship with my unridable Haflinger!

Let me know how you go. Private Message me if you like

Donna

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I have only just read this thread, so apologies for coming in so late!

Sitting trot is definitely one of the harder gaits to master. In my experience, it is better to think about relaxing rather than gripping. Gripping with your knees and thighs just make you tense up and your bum muscles to become hard - it will make you bounce more, rather than less.

Try sitting further back on your bum than you currently are (despite the fact that you will undoubtedly be being told to sit up, what you need to do is relax your lower back so it almost feels like you are slumping - but you won't be I promise, and by sitting further back on your bum, you won't lean foward which is a typical beginners mistake) and relax into the movement of the horse. If you watch a dressage rider you will notice how much they move in rythym with the horse, rather than forcing themselves to try and sit down into the saddle.

Working without stirrups is a must - it allows you to lengthen your leg and draw the weight into your feet which provides stability that you are probably taking from the stirrup at the moment.

Stiltskins advice on Parelli is definitely endorsed by me (I haven't studied Parelli in depth, but he has great ideas on connecting with your horse).

One last thought is - all horses have different trots - some (ponies for instance) have short, fast choppy strides which tend to be really hard to sit to. A huge horse will tend to have a longer slower stride which is usually easier to sit to! You may want to ask your instructor if you can ride different horses so that you can experience this - some will feel easier to you than others!

Please feel free to PM me if you want any advice, I adore talking about horses!!!

Above all, keep at it. Sore bums, thighs and backs are pretty much 'de regeur' for any rider unless they ride most days - I still suffer from time to time and I've been riding for 28 years!

Good luck!

Thanks Cody for your helpful reply, sorry for being late too I have been busy the past few days, and didn't check the forum, just now.

Now I am back from my intensive sitting trot lesson with no stirrups, I have been through this for four consecutive days till now, here is what I got:

It's not good to tense your thighs or knees, though you still use them to prevent bouncing on the horse back, it's like you are minimizing the distance between your bum and the saddle through gripping somehow, anyone agrees on this?

for horses with short trot, it's very enjoyable to sit the trot since you can feel the horse trot and hence move in harmony with it, but still, it's a MUST to use your inner thighs and knees gently, otherwise you will bounce for sure.

It will be my pleasure to get your opinions.

Hellooo iv been riding for 6 years now and to stop you from getting back pains while sitting trot you just need to relax and sit up staright and if your horse is going to fast pull the rains back a little (:

One thing I found with sitting trot is once you get into it and the horse is relaxed with you doing sitting trot you have so much more connection with the horse.

The 1st thing that my instructor told me to do was find my seat bones!!

She got me to sit in the saddle, hold onto the pommel, pull my knees both at the same time up to the pommel, this then gets you sat on the correct part of your bum. I then had to take my legs away from the saddle and lower them. At 1st this felt very weird but is really did help get the correct position and there is alot less bounce when your sat correct.

1st of all I would get the feel of the horse in walk, keeping relaxed and sat up tall with long legs and keep an eye on my position, make sure im still sat on them bones!!

Once Im ok with walk I move onto trotting. To start off with, with the inside hand just hold onto the front of the saddle and feel the movement of the horse for a few strides, then once you have it you can let go and try and keep it like that. You will find once you feel it you will know what to look for next time. If you do start bouncing about then just hold the front of the saddle again for a few strides to regain the feeling.

If a horse isnt use to sitting trot they can tense up so by you being relaxed will help the horse relax and then its much more easier.

It may not work for you or anyone else but this has really helped me with my sitting trot.

Hope its of some help.

Good Luck