Sitting trot - how easy was it for you?

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Taboo1968

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Many of you know I'm having great fun with getting to grips with my sitting trot! I ride three different horses everyday now, the TB I can sit too, no problem, Odie, well.... we a 1/4 of the way there! One minute I get it and then I tense through my back and end up bouncing, and Gus, well there is absolutely no hope of being able to rise to his trot, let alone ever contemplate sitting to it!

So how did you master sitting trot???? Any tips greatfully received. Am currently arranging a lesson with Partoow, so any tips received before hand will be put to good use, then I might not look like a sack of potatoes bouncing around in front of her!
 
I couldn't sit to Molly at all when I got her. I remember being VERY close to tears in a lesson once as I just couldn't relax my back and the more I got frustrated the worse it became! My problem is I have quite tight hamstrings and lower back, runnign doesn't help this and I was told to stop but I never listen and just make sure I do lots of stretches now and that has helped. Also as Molly has become better schooled she 'allow's me to sit more and now I prefer it. I just kept at it increasing the amount of time each day. Some days I just know I am too tense and she lets me know and we just dont' bother! You'll get there.
 
I've always suffered with a bad back as its not quite striaght!!! At least now when I ride Odie, compared to when I first got him back in December last year, I dont put my back out everytime now! It just seems that once I've mastered to actually sit, my legs become totally useless!!! Someone said Dont try!!! cos if you try too hard thats when you tense! So last night spent twenty mins trotting round and sat for 10 metres then rose, then sat, then rose etc etc
 
No can't sit at all, as you probably saw.
I do try and can sit working/collected trot but when it comes to medium forget it. This is becoming quite a big issue to me now and the more I think about it, the worse it gets. I'm not quite sure what the solution is apart from just losing my stirrups althogher for about 6 months.
 
Lots of work without stirrups and on the lunge was the key for me. I remember doing one exercise where we trotted round, and had to draw legs up like a jockey to find the seat bones and use them to absorb the movement rather than gripping on
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To help improve my mares trot i sit for two rise for one. Dunno if you gradually increased this that it might help with your problem?
Also work with out stirupps so that you relax into the stride. Lunge lessons are good.
 
As said, lots of work withouth stirrups, also have lessons on the lunge - it'll kill like hell but be worth it
 
oh, god, i used to agonise over this. now it's so easy i can't see what the fuss was about... but only on a horse with a relaxed back. if the back's not softened yet, then i can't sit to the trot, and don't try.
umm... rising two, sitting three, repeat, change the number of beats but just keep sitting occasional longer bits until it feels easy, worked for me. very good for improving balance of rising trot, too.
relaxing and just letting it happen helped too. i know what didn't work... being lunged and yelled at to "pull yourself down into the saddle" by holding onto the pommel, trying too hard, gripping.
 
I can sit to one of my horse so easily but he has a very smooth trot and its very rounded and workmanlike. My other horse I cannot sit to at all so have decided to remove my stirrups for hacking and schooling.
 
Superglue just ruins the saddle though!
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Have tried lunge lessons and can do it then, come the next day forget it I just regress.
 
Get yourself a spacehopper... HONEST!!!!
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then balance on it and then hop around keeping your balance etc... then learn to stabilize yourself on it with your feet off the floor and then gentle bounce with it through movement of the pelvis/hips... also sitting trot is soooooooo much easier once you have your horses back up and he is working through.. if not you will find it very difficult... think about your core stability too ie. muscles deep in your pelvic floor.. and dont tense up either!!! Not much to it eh??!!!
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Dont give up...
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I have a gym ball and can sit on that with my feet off the floor, obviously haven't tried to bounce round the room on it though
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Horse's back is up and soft regularly especially in my lessons. Think I am just useless!
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I will come and get a lesson from you at Patchetts! Can you bring your spacehopper with you please?!
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Serioulsy I think it is the tensing thing that is stopping me, which is why I can do it on lunge lessons when I have relaxed but can't do it at other times. I have back problems anyway and I think I tense to try and protect myself but actually cause more damage. My biggest problem is that we can't lunge in our school but have a small arena for lunging hwever the surface isn't that good so I don't like to do it too often.
 
I could never really sit to Bloss's trot as shes naturally quite lazy and on the forehand, so it was really hard for me to ride her up and together when i was sitting.

I do at least 20mins of sitting per schooling session with Archie now to strengthen me up for things to come (!) and to strengthen his back aswell. I find him easy to sit to as hes so comfy and is naturally forward going. I make myself do all my lateral movements in sitting trot on him, and im just working on extended trot in sitting (hes got a huge extend and nearly pings me out of the saddle!) Mum shouts instructions at me if im tense/sitting to one side etc which really helps.

i slipped a disc last year, and always have problems with my back, but as Archie is so comfy i dont seem to get any back pain after sitting to his trot.
 
HA!!! Ok, bring one for the AF ok!!! then have a couple to drink and see if you can stay on... we could have a race too!! LOL!!!

Ok, being serious.. ahhem...yup, I have no synovial fluid in L3 and L4 of my lower spine so know where you are coming from... I have had physio lately and she is reallly concentrating on me using my pelvic floor muscles and strengthening these to help stabilize my "core" as such. I also found before that I was sitting too much on my tailbone which made matters worse.. everynow and then especially in extension I have to really concentrate not to do this. I think that some horses are easier to sit to that others.. I use to bounce all over the place and remember my first lesson with Dan he MADE ME doing sitting trot the whole lesson, I felt blooming sick then he told me to ride without stirrup half way through to try and secure my seat....not something I would highly recommend to anyone, I felt like John Wayne afterwards I gripped so much with thighs.. not the ideal solution!! Having said that it did get easier in time so keep up the sitting... it will click .... honest!!
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My boy has such a big stride that various instructors have commented - I don't know how you're going to sit that! Anyway my leg position has gone to pot recently so on Sunday my meany instructor made me take my stirrups away. I believed it would just for walk but no it was virtually the whole lesson in trot and canter. I spent all of Monday cursing my instructor as every muscle was killing me. I've been taking my stirrups away each schooling since, admittedly I can only manage 20 mins tops. I have to say though already I'm sitting much better. I have found by saying out loud to myself, don't grip and breathe, it is helping. If you feel yourself going then the only place to grip is with your lower leg / ankle. Also I ride to music which really helps, by focusing on the music to relax me and find a rhythm. Best of luck x
 
Right FMC and Freestyler I challenge you both to a spacehopper race round the car park!!!
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In the meantime I guess I am going to have to keep practising and taking my stirrups away.
 
Weirdest thing is, you can take my stirrups away and I could quite happily canter for 30 mins without them, but trot? not a hope! Odie is rather big moving!
 
Now I am exactly the same but I wouldn't call Patrick big moving. Ovidius is a very big mover though(and gorgeous!)
 
SING SING SING SING just sing to yourself, make a song up you should hear me when Im riding something like Milly (very lanky, thin TB) I sing the most stupidest thing

I.E. i was sitting to trot and bouncing everywhere and claire (instructor) shrieked "FOR GODS SAKE EMMA SING JUST SING!" So I did. And it was so funny (am tone deaf) claire was laughing her head off. I was like "ummm... cabbages. hehe milly you're a cabbage yes you are you're a giant grey cabbage and im sitting to your tr-ot ter-ot ter-ot ter-ot cabbages are random ran-dom ran-dom ran-dom cabbages are ran-dom yes they are!" and then I had to stop cos milly was like WTF?
 
Lol it just helps you relax etc. Lunge lessons are, as you probably know, invaluable. Have one like once a week or even twice a week - whenever you have time and just think about your position, while relaxing at the same time.

Also sit to trot down the long sides rise at the short sides.

Have you ever risen to trot without stirrups? Try that maybe?
 
Its not so much about sitting to the trot as learning to swing through your hips as the horse swings through its back. Thats how you can start to vary the pace with your seat.

Lessons on the lunge without stirrups or reins was the answer for me. Also closing your eyes and feeling the horse move under you helps
 
When I first started riding Gin there was no way I could sit to her trot. It was so bouncy. It has taken me 5 years to be comfortable and to be able to use myself when sitting. Thats not as bad as it sounds though as her trot has improved so much. I would just about get to grips then she would offer a bigger trot and I would have to start again. I went through stages where my bum would stay in the saddle but my legs would be useless.

I have to ride my mare deep and round as she doesnt like working over her back. When her head is in the right position its easy. Play around with the position of the haed and neck, once this is correct and hes through from behind it will become easier. Loads of lateral work will get him using himself and get you using your legs.
I never trot without stirrups as most people tense up when you take away their stirrups.

Now the medium trot, thats a whole different ball game!
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