Stretching a Horse: Free Horseback Riding Lessons

Series Summary

Man has enjoyed a unique relationship with the horses on this planet. Horses have carried us into battle, brave and without fear. They’ve helped us travel over long stretches of terrain. In some parts of the world they still pull our farmer’s plows and carry our loads. They’ve been indispensable in herding and driving our cattle. And the police have mounted horse patrols for crowd control situations in urban environments. No question, horses have proven to be well-suited for human life, expressing qualities of loyalty and bravery, responding to commands, and usually having a calm, docile demeanor.

Since they are wild animals, all horses need some sort of training before they can work side by side with humans. Especially in horseback riding, the relationship between horse and rider must be cultivated over time and with the proper techniques and equipment. In these free horseback riding lessons on video, learn how to lunge your horse, a warm up routine that will stretch and prepare your mount for a brisk ride. Our expert will give you tips on the different gaits to run your horse at, how to use a lunge line and whip, and how to make the horse stop on command.

It is important to warm your horse up before you ride. Horses require special care to stay healthy and happy; and happy horses tend to be easier to train and to ride. Watch these videos to learn some of the specific methods for lunging your horse.

Video Transcript

" Hi my name is Sarah Stetner I'm a expert horse rider on behalf Expert Village. Today we are going to lunge a horse. First off I'm going to show you how to stretch a horse because he is a little older than most horses so I'm going to stretch him so then he can get all warmed up. So what I'm going to do is I pick up his front foot. Bend it back. Stretch it up. Stretch it all the way back. Now have him hold it. Holt. Which he didn't hold it but we will try that again just for about 10 seconds. Holt. It is kind of like you are stretching before you are running. 10 seconds is up. Holt. We do the other leg. Stretch up. Stretch back. Have him hold it. "