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Step 1
Post in a slow trot. Posting involves lifting your rear each time your horse's back moves downward, between strides to keep from impacting your lower back. Using the natural up and down movement of the horse, allow yourself to rise upwards and forwards with his pace.
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Step 2
Increase the pressure of your feet in the stirrups. Instead of sitting on your rump and taking the impact in your back and ribcage, use your legs and push yourself upwards as if you're standing up slightly in the stirrups. It takes awhile to do this correctly, as it is tiring, but your leg muscles will eventually adapt.
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Step 3
Squeeze your horse's sides with your legs. This is easier on a medium-size horse where you can use your inner thigh muscles to grip the horse with your knees and brace yourself against the bounce of a trot.
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Step 4
Roll your pelvis slightly forward to relieve some of the jolting on your lower back. Horseback riding is smoother when you roll forward in the saddle.
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Step 5
Nudge your horse into a canter or a run, or slow him down to a walk. Of all your horse's gaits, the trot is the most uncomfortable since it involves an up and down movement. As your horse speeds up–his gait changes naturally to a 3-beat canter and his leg movement becomes long and smooth.
