How to Get a Good Seat on a Horse

This rider shows correct heel, hip, shoulder and ear alignment in the saddle.

The most important piece of knowledge any equestrian will ever acquire is how to stay in the saddle, writes Heather Moffett in "Enlightened Equitation -- Riding in True Harmony With Your Horse." Finding a good, solid seat means riding in a soft, balanced way and moving with the motion of the horse. It takes years of training and practice, but learning how to work with your horse, and find your best seat, can provide both of you with enjoyable, safe riding experiences.

Things You'll Need

• Longe line
• Round pen

Instructions

1. Attach a longe line to your horse's bridle and allow a helper to move your horse in a circle in a round pen while you sit in the saddle. Drop the reins on the horse's neck and place your hands on your waist.

2. Square your shoulders, open your chest muscles and relax your arms and hands. Drop your heels, tuck your pelvis toward the front of the saddle, relax your thighs and ask your horse to move off at a walk.

3. Position your body so that your ears, shoulders, hips and heels form a straight line on either side of your horse

4. Continue at the walk until you feel comfortable and relaxed in this position and then ask your horse for a trot or jog.

5. Begin posting if you ride English, ensuring that your body comes out of the saddle with the motion of the horse in a balanced, aligned posture and your inner thigh muscles are relaxed. If you ride Western, drop your heels deep into the stirrups, relax your buttock and thigh muscles, and sit the lope by allowing your hips and pelvis to follow the motion of the horse.

6. Continue at the trot until your posture is secure and you feel perfectly balanced, then ask for the canter or lope.

7. Drop your seat into the saddle, sit deep, stretch your heels down into your stirrups, open your chest muscles and keep your heels, hips, shoulder and ears in line as your horse moves off at this faster pace. Allow the movement of the horse to flow through your relaxed seat and thigh muscles, and follow the movement with your hips. If you feel yourself losing your balance, grab some of your horse's mane or the horn of your Western saddle to stay aboard your horse.

8. Work on the longe line until you feel comfortable at all three paces, then grab the reins and try it on your own on a circle in an enclosed arena. It may take several weeks of consistent training to get to this point.

Tips & Warnings

• To sit your horse's bouncy trot, pretend you are riding in a car on a bumpy road while your body works as the wheels to absorb the bounce, recommends trainer Sally Swift in "Centered Riding."

• To ride the canter or lope, imagine the front of your body as an elastic band as you ride your horse down a little hill and back up again. Open your chest muscles and reach for the sky with your sternum as you slide down an imaginary hill

• Keep your head up and your eyes looking where you want to ride. Looking down or between your horse's ears tilts your upper body forward and throws you off balance, which can cause you to fall off your horse.

• Practice finding a good, secure seat on a well-trained, spook-proof horse. Learning to ride well on a young, untrained mount leads to falls and possible injury.

References

• "Enlightened Equitation: Riding in True Harmony With Your Horse"; Heather Moffett; 2002
• "Centered Riding"; Sally Swift; 2006

Resources

• Stock Horse Show Source: Horse Riding Tips
• Horsetalk: How to Get the Correct Canter Lead Every Time
• Equisearch: Common Horse Trot-Walk Transition Mistakes