Keeping your leg tight.

[emma_equines]

My trainer always tells me that my leg is too loose. Does anyone have any tips on how I can keep my leg on better? Thanks!

 

[ihatework]

What do they mean by too loose? I’m assuming they mean it’s unstable and moves around a lot.

That is fundamentally about balance, your position, using your core and seat. No quick fix, good training needed and if your instructor isn’t helping you with a) the understanding and b) the application, you probably need to look elsewhere.

You do not need ‘tight legs’. It’s not really about clamping your legs on to stop them moving about.

There can be a number of small quick fixes that can help, stirrup length, saddle type etc, but ultimately it’s just a training journey

 

[LegOn]

Your trainer should be able to give you better tips seeing the overall picture of you ride but usually people can grip with their knee which makes the lower leg loose. Also if you are not absorbing the motion through your hips - and when they say put the weight into your heels, you actually need to open your hips, and drop the weight of your body into your lower leg, not just your heels and it will stabilise your leg a bit more!

 

[sbloom]

If your saddle doesn't "smooth" the interface between you and the horse it can be the cause of leg instability, as can crookedness. You may need a trainer who can assess you biomechanically and work out why your leg is unstable. Adding a small piece of felt/fybagee etc under the skirts of the saddle can be an interesting experiment, sometimes it stabilises the leg.

 

[Widgeon]

I was also going to chip in and mention saddle - a saddle that doesn't fit you can play havoc with your lower leg. I know this very well But unless your trainer has mentioned that it's probably not the root cause of the problem. Might be worth asking them to have a ride on it though, that would at least help you rule one thing out as an issue.

 

[sbloom]

I was also going to chip in and mention saddle - a saddle that doesn't fit you can play havoc with your lower leg. I know this very well But unless your trainer has mentioned that it's probably not the root cause of the problem. Might be worth asking them to have a ride on it though, that would at least help you rule one thing out as an issue.

Not many trainers (any?) would be able to identify the sort of issue I talked about, not dealt with by many fitters to be fair. I have used the basic step I talked about for many years, but am currently doing CPD looking at many other factors in flap/seat interplay and the support of the leg.

The trainer riding in it won't necessarily show anything to do with how it affects the OP, different anatomies need different saddles. With the skirt padding, someone with more of their own padding on their inner thighs, or possibly someone with a narrower pelvis so their legs sit differently, wouldn't have an issue, whereas someone with a wide pelvis but slimmer legs would.

 

[Velcrobum]

My trainer always tells me that my leg is too loose. Does anyone have any tips on how I can keep my leg on better? Thanks!

Hello and welcome to this forum. Perhaps you need to ask your trainer exactly what they mean about too loose a leg. If they cannot explain what they mean perhaps look for a new trainer that is able to explain more clearly what they are seeing and how to correct it.

 

[Widgeon]

Not many trainers (any?) would be able to identify the sort of issue I talked about.

Sorry - I obviously phrased that badly. I wasn't suggesting a trainer would be able to identify anything subtle, but I've just spent the last eight months thinking I really have forgotten how to ride, because I just couldn't seem to keep my lower leg from sliding back. Eventually, an instructor got on my horse and immediately commented on what a difficult position my Wintec puts a rider in, and how hard it is to ride effectively in it. This was coming from someone who is quite a different shape from me, so this wasn't a subtle issue by any means. So, all I meant was, ask someone more experienced to have a quick look and a sit on your saddle just to make sure there's nothing super obvious about it that's hindering you.

 

[sbloom]

So, all I meant was, ask someone more experienced to have a quick look and a sit on your saddle just to make sure there's nothing super obvious about it that's hindering you.

No worries, I'd just hate for anyone to have their instructor ride in the saddle, find it's fine for them, and discount it. Saddle fit for the rider is a subtle art.