Things You'll Need:
- A horse
- A saddle and bridle
- A helmet
- concentration
- commitment
- courage
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Step 1
The trot is a two point gait and the second of the horse's gaits. One fore leg and one back leg move forward diagonally at the same time. The slow trot is not much faster than the walk, but it feels entirely different! Consider this: the beat of a walk is duh duh duh duh, whereas the trot is dum, dum. There are two ways to ride the trot: sitting and rising, also called posting.
To ask for the trot lean forward very slightly and squeeze the horse's sides (as in asking for the walk,) but slightly increase the tension on the reins. Resume the correct posture and release the pressure on the reins. Keep your hands very still at all times. Bouncing your hands around send a stop and go message to the horse and is confusing. -
Step 2
Sitting the trot:
Maintaining your seat when sitting the trot is challenging and takes some practice. Think downwards and concentrate on keeping contact with the saddle and the horse's back. Time and practice will develop the correct seat. Relax deeply and concentrate on staying in contact with the saddle. Tense your muscles to stop yourself from being thrown out of the saddle, but do not stiffen the rest of your body. Relax while in the saddle. After a little practice you will develop the rhythm and feel you are sticking to the saddle. Riding a very slow trot is recommended at first.
It is not good for the horse's back to allow yourself to be bumped up and down, which is uncomfortable for both you and the horse. Worst of all it can cause the horse severe physical and psychological damage.
The best way to learn to sit the trot is to ride without stirrups. Remove your feet from the irons and cross the stirrups in front of the saddle. You will soon feel the rhythm of the trotting horse. -
Step 3
The rising or posting trot:
This trot is faster than the sitting trot. Ask for it as for the walk or slow trot. The horse's legs will stretch and the bounces will be accentuated.
The purpose of the rising trot is to save the horse discomfort and reduce the burden of your weight. The rising trot requires only timing and can be learned quickly. The correct rise keeps the horse balanced. If the horse is turning to the right and the leg is back when you rise this will reduce the pressure of your weight on that side and keep the horse balanced. Take time to visualise this so you understand the concept and purpose.
Raising and lowering your seat is done in time with the diagonal movement of the pairs of legs. You must practice until you hardly leave the saddle at all and can lower yourself without impact.
Allow yourself to be thrown up very slightly when the offside or right foreleg leaves the ground. Brace yourself with your knees and against the stirrup irons, but DO NOT stand up in the stirrups. You MUST learn to control and minimise the amount of the rise.
Gently LOWER yourself (DO NOT crash) into the saddle when the horse touches his offside or right leg to the ground. Uncontrolled crashing into the saddle will hurt the horse's back and defeat the purpose of rising to the trot, which is to save the horse discomfort.
In the training circle you will be taught to rise on the leg which nearest the wall of the enclosure. This is called rising to the trot correctly. You do this to keep the horse balanced. When you change direction, usually across the diagonal, you miss a rise or sit twice at the centre of the ring, to correct the rise and put you once again on the outside leg. -
Step 4
When trail riding learn to assess which side of the horse is bending most and rise on the outside or forward leg. This will keep your horse balanced. If the path is straight change the rise every so often.
When riding the trot learn to keep your hands still and not pull up on the reins. Your heels should stay in place and your lower legs should be still. While your torso may lean forward a little your bottom should stay tucked under your spine and your pubic bones should be pulled forward.
