So that is why I had a bad back ..............

O

Orangehorse

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Another saddle saga, I'm afraid.

Wasn't happy with my GP as I thought it was a bit tight. Had a saddler who agreed that it needed some adjustment and I asked him what he thought about my dressage saddle that I had hardly used. Said that the dressage saddle was a better tree for my horse than the GP.
So while the GP was being altered I used the dressage. Horse went very well, I found it quite comfortable, so decided to use it more and keep the GP for only when I needed it.

So a few weeks on, I noticed that my back was very painful, at the bottom of the spine, not int he small of my back where trouble usually shows up. Went on for several weeks, so I wondered if it was the saddle and decided to monitor when I had ridden. Yes, it was the dressage saddle. I used the GP last time I rode and no back pain afterwards or since.

I think that maybe the saddle is too wide for me, yet the horse goes really well in it.
I guess it is going back in the tack room!
 
A saddle is not going to be too wide for you - it could be too deep say if u were a size 6 and the saddle an 18', however this still shouldnt cause you back pain. My guess is you are trying to sit in a chair position in a dressage saddle.

Surely though if the horse goes better in it and has more freedom of movement, the saddle fits him better so you need to find a compromise?

You could try a seat saver on the dressage :)
 
TigerTail said:
That would effect hip flexors not back, and its not so much the saddle being too wide as rider too inflexible.
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Not necessarily - every person will have a different shaped pelvis, some narrow, some wide. Flexibility in the rider would mean that they could ride usefully in a range of saddle widths but there would come a point when a saddle seat would be outside their physical limits - either too narrow or too wide.
 
TigerTail said:
A saddle is not going to be too wide for you - it could be too deep say if u were a size 6 and the saddle an 18', however this still shouldnt cause you back pain. My guess is you are trying to sit in a chair position in a dressage saddle.

Surely though if the horse goes better in it and has more freedom of movement, the saddle fits him better so you need to find a compromise?

You could try a seat saver on the dressage :)
Click to expand...

They can be too wide. When I got my new saddle recently I went for a narrow seat option (on a wide saddle) as the standard size was too wide for me.

ETA this is my saddle - http://www.albionsaddlemakers.co.uk/saddles/dressage-range/platinum-royale.html - as you see it is available in two seat sizes. I'm not saying this is OP's issue, but they can come in different widths (for riders, not just horses!). :)
 
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Agree with tt. I'm tall but small boned with a very narrow pelvis, & can't say I've had back problems from too wide saddles. Used to ride an 18.2 hw hunter, who was stupidly wide with a specially made saddle to accommodate his breadth. No doubt if I'd hunted him 4days a week I'd have walked like john Wayne, but even schooling daily wasn't an issue, despite the fact a few of me could have fitted in the saddle. Likewise plenty of slight people ride natives & cobs with xw saddles. Assuming you haven't been doing high level endurance in the last few weeks, I'd look elsewhere for the cause.
 
Not sure about the width, but my straight cut saddle makes me sit straighter, with my pelvis tilted slightly more forward than it does in a gp. This makes the muscles around it ache more because they aren't used to me sitting up properly - its the same in a normal standing position too, or if I've been concentrating on my posture when just walking - my muscles ache. So could it be that your dressage saddle is putting you in a better position, but your body needs to get used to it?
 
I have had a hip replacement and have to ride in a saddle that is narrow in the twist I suspect your saddle is too wide in the twist for you and you are compensating in some way and that is giving you pain.
I know now the brands that suit and don't suit me in both jumping and dressage saddles .
 
If you have tight hip flexors or adductors (inner thigh) then it will tilt your pelvis and put strain on you back. Maybe take up pilates to strengthen your core muscles to support your back and stretch the long muscles on your legs!!
 
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