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Stepping up the flatwork - Perfecting Training Level Dressage Test A

Leo and I had a flat lesson with Courtney yesterday which went really well! The focus was on loosening up Leo's back. By the end his trot was absolutely lovely, but it was a lot of work and Leo definitely spent some of the time snarling. Leo's got a long back and engaging this hind-end is really hard for him. He pushed through it though!

To improve his gaits and steadiness in the bridle, Leo needs to first loosen up his back and swing more through his hips. He is very reluctant to use his hind end and step under himself and then move forward from behind (versus falling on his forehand and rushing forward). Courtney had us work on a progression of exercises to try and get his back looser.

Warm-Up
  • At the walk during warm up, we first worked on getting him on the outside aides. He must march forward around the ring and be straight. I have to be careful not to grab the inside rein and overbend to the inside. Leo has yet to learn that my leg is primary command, not my hand. And this is true whether we are going forward or slowing down. 
  • We practice lots of walk-trot transitions during warm-up, always concentrating on keeping Leo straight and on the outside rein. We also make a point of going into the corners with square turns. This helps get him on the outside rein. 
  • We then move into asking for collected trot; but using just my seat, no reins and Leo must still stay straight. When he throws his haunches one direction or the other, I have to correct with my legs not my hands.
  • From collected trot, he must move back into working trot and then back to collected again. 
After warm-up, we introduced lateral work. Courtney agreed that Leo is not the type of horse who can mentally and physically handle lateral work early in his workout. 
  • We took a short break, then moved into a leg-yeilding exercise. While walking down the long side, I asked Leo to move his haunches in off the rail to about a 45-degree angle and then move down the wall. 
  • With this exercise, my inside rein became my "outside" rein. My outside leg moved the haunches in while my inside leg and rein kept the angle and kept Leo moving forward. 
  • This was very hard for him going around the arena to the right, which forced him to use his left hind leg (his weak leg). He got sticky at one point, but Courtney is a big fan of using lots of vocal encouragement to keep horses going. I think that helped us avoid one potential blow-up. Couple of loud "Good boy! Good Boy!" and Leo pushed through. It also helped to have Courtney tell me when to use which leg to make what correction so my communication to Leo wasn't muddled. 
  • Courtney said to practice this exercise at the walk for a couple of weeks before attempting it at the trot. 
  • Interestingly, Leo got very steady in the bridle after this exercise. 
Canter work
  • At the canter we practiced shoulder-fore down the long side. This was another exercise to get Leo's back looser. The shoulder fore required him to bend around his ribcage, which helps loosen the muscles over the topline and at his hips. Because he typically likes to canter with his haunches in, it also helped with straightness.
  • After each shoulder fore we would lengthen into a medium canter on a large circle. 
  • Then we practiced crossing the diagonal and trotting at X. I couldn't keep control, balance or straightness through the trot transition, so Courtney added 2 10 meter circles into the mix, as I neared X, I would do a 10-meter circle, then go straight, do a second 10-meter circle and then trot. This got Leo to sink down into his haunches for the trot transition. 
Medium Trot and Lengthenings
  • We tool another break and moved onto working on the medium trot. Courtney says I have to make this fun for Leo and play with it. It should be a move he'll enjoy once he gets the hang of it. 
  • When asking for the medium trot, I alternate squeezes with each leg and post higher - not faster. Leo needs to stay straight and stretch his neck out - so hard! 
  • We just trotted around the ring, changing directions across the diagonal and asking for more lengthening each time. 
  • Courtney said medium trot is something to practice on the trail. Find a nice gradual hill and ask for a medium trot up it. She said its ok when he breaks to canter. This is just because he looses his balance; part of training is letting the horse figure things out too. 
Courtney said Leo's capable of scoring 8s and 9s on his gaits because he moves like a warmblood when his back is loose and his hind-end is engaged. But getting there is hard work and I need to push my schoolings further and ask for more. It's easy with Leo to back off when he gets resistant or tense, but he preforms better if I can break things down into simple instructions and push him to use his body more then he is naturally inclined. It's a balance with him for sure - pushing him but still keeping him on your side.

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