I recently had the pleasure of teaching in Oregon; two riders stuck with me as examples in which very small changes in spine alignment and posture made a world of difference in their sense of self and effectiveness. (These cases are fictionalized).
Roberta is an accomplished rider with a bold and focused approach on horseback. She is currently schooling second level with a 7 year old warmblood gelding. I noted that the position of her pelvis was in a slight anterior tilt, that is, the top part of her pelvis was tipped forward, causing her seat bones to point behind her. This pelvic position caused tightness in the hip flexors and adductor muscles of her legs.
I coached Roberta to use her abdominal muscles to lift the pubic bone of her pelvis up toward her sternum, bringing her pelvis into a more neutral position with her seat bones pointing down. When she did this, the tight hip flexors and adductors of her legs released. The change was hardly visible, but with this release, she could feel her horse come much more underneath her in both the walk-trot and the trot-walk transitions. From her seat bones being more underneath her, she could feel the horse’s pelvis tuck under, and she could ride the transitions from back-to-front. She was able to carry this feeling into walk-canter and canter-walk transitions.
That this small change in body position could have such a large effect on her horse’s way of going is a testament to Roberta’s experience and acute sense of feel. But it reminds me that posture matters! Very small changes in body alignment can block the horse, or let it through.
The second example is Judith, a middle-aged rider working riding a training level Friesan mare. Judith struggles to keep the 8 year old mare in front of her and sometimes ends up working harder than the horse. She has a postural tendency to round her upper back and jut her chin forward, putting her behind her horse’s movement.
We practiced some exercises to help her keep her upper back less rounded (including the exercise “scarecrow” and some shoulder stretches), and adjusted her head position so she stretched the back of her neck long, bringing her chin down slightly. However, there was something about taking up the reins in that put her back in the rounded posture. By keeping her hand position quite wide for a few minutes, Judith was able to improve the alignment of her upper back and neck. Almost magically, the image of the pair being earth bound changed to one of being lofty, forward, and energetic. The small change in posture not only improved Judith’s function as a rider, but it also changed her mindset. From a picture of little confidence came one of pride, determination and elegance. And her horse heard her.
Posture matters for function AND attitude!