tips for novice on how to rise to the diagaonal

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narkymare

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please!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i tried it for the forst time yesterday and my god - so confuisng!!!!!!!!!!!1
i was tryign to keep him going, keep him on edge of school and rise properly
i so lost it - hes not a school horse, i need ot work to keep hiom going and on track - doing that and watching his shoulder as a novice is soooooooooooo difficult
i want to practice on my own before my next lesson - deal with spooks, the whip - not leaning on reins - any tips please!!!! i think my instructor thinks im a numpty cos i just couldtn keep in the beat x
 
I haven't worked out how it feels yet but a quick look at his outside shoulder confirms whether I'm on the right diagonal. I was alwats taught to sit when the outside leg is on the floor and moving back. Not sure if that helps though...
 
The only thing I can suggest until you get 'the feel' is to look down the horses outside shoulder, and as the outside leg comes back you need to be sitting.

Good luck! x
 
Rise and fall with the leg on the wall :)

Basically, whichever leg is by the outside wall, go up and down with it. So when it goesforward, you rise, when it goes back, you fall :)
 
You rise as the outside leg is going forward and sit as the outside leg is going down and touching the ground. Don't worry! It is one of those things that once you've got it, you won't lose it. Practise sitting for two beats to change your diagonal regularly. This will start to give you a feel for which diagonal you are on
 
Practice, practice, practice! You sit as the outside shoulder comes back towards you and if you change the rein sit for one extra beat at X to put you on the correct diagonal for the rein change.

You can practice by doing sitting trot - rising trot, sitting for one extra beat, or three or five extra beats, and even by changing by rising for one extra (although that might make it more confusing at this stage!) Edited to say it helps initially if you can shout out 'back' or 'sit' each time the shoulder comes back, helps you get into the rhythm ;)
 
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Dont beat yourself up about it, you will get it in no time at all - its just practice. If you're worried about keeping the horse on the straight then see if someone will lunge you.
 
I think you are trying to deal with too many things at once. Can you ditch the whip for one thing? Get a neck strap so you aren't hanging on to his mouth, that is 2 things you don't need to worry about.
Once you are on the correct diagonal, the outside leg comes back you need to be sitting, you don't need to look all the time, perhaps every now and again if you think you have been bounced out of it.
Don't panic and the instructor definitely won't think you are a numpty.
If you have been 'bounced out' of it, your instructor will tell you and then you just have to sit for an extra beat to change. It can only be right or wrong, so if you were on the wrong diagonal and have then sat for the extra beat, then you will automatically be right again.
Maybe a lunge lesson could help too, then you only have to worry about the trotting.
Don't worry, it will fall into place. You only tried it for the first time yesterday.

Is he your horse and can you ride often?
 
the other thing is to practice in walk to get it right in your head which leg you should be moving with. lunge lesson might be helpful as someone else is worrying about controlling the horse you can just concentrate on what you are doing. its one of those things that you think you will never be able to do then one day it clicks & you cant understand how you ever couldnt do it. just keep trying, it will happen one day!
 
It took me a couple of sessions to get it too when I first started :) Has your instructor got you on the lunge, as then all you need to concentrate on is what you are doing while they control the horse.
 
All you need to remember, is that once you've established the trot and have started rising, have a quick look down when you sit, and see if the outside leg comes back at the same time. If not, sit twice. Takes 2 seconds.

(says the girl who had to be told about 5 times in tonight's lesson as I kept forgetting to check :D)
 
After you practice a lot you can feel when youre on the wrong diagonal and if you work on the right one a lot the wrong one starts to feel uncomfortable. I would work on getting an active trot first until you dont ahve to work to keep it, once you've taught him that you can worry about diagonals. That''s what i did cos too much at once just confuses me and then confuses the horse!
 
I think the trick is firstly making sure you can ride to ANY rhythm, right diagonal or not. When you're going up and down correctly (and only did this down the long side, not round corners, sit for them so you dont unbalance the horse) and you're really in the swing, then its pretty easy to look down and rise to the outside leg.

I have to think about it as rise when the leg is "going forward" and sit when its "coming back". Otherwise I get confused! xxxx
 
thank you everyone - brilliant tips - tomorrow i wil practice
chestnut - bit of a long story but i bought this horse for me and my daughter to share -
he was a bit of a handful so put her off (we didnt know this before)
- im having lessons with the lady who broke him in - she knows him inside out and has been wonderful - he was very spooky - scared my daughter so i took lessons to try and sort him out -
i was just a grrom lol but fell in love with him -
he has improved so much - shows how good my instructor is - a bolshy 7 yr old cob with a novice -
but even in hand he is better behaved now which my daughter has seen so now shes wanting lessons on him again too -
again ty everyone xxx
 
Ehmm, can I make a suggestion? Whilst not doubting the importance of good work in the school, and no doubt you have excellent instruction, but it just feels like you might need to free yourself up a tad, and do something a bit different - such as go out on a hack into some nice open country if you can find it, and basically just chill out for an hour or so. There's nothing like riding out in the countryside for improving your confidence - and of course you will need to be guided by your instructor in this as it might be a bit early for you.

The other thing you could do (drastic!! ;)) is to ask your instructor if you could have a lunge lesson; where you could do plenty of work without stirrups without needing to worry about being in control of the horse. Work without stirrups will give you a really deep seat and also develop the deep core muscles you will need for riding.
 
for some reason it took me weeks to work out diagaonls, i could trot and canter fine but just cudnt get my diagaonals right then one day it just clicked and now i cant work out why i thought it was so hard lol-just practice and it will come, dont stress too much.On some horses its harder to see when the shoulder comes back for you to sit to because of a long mane in the way, so maybe do a few plaits to make it easy for you to see. good luck and you will get it-promise :)
 
narkymare said:
please!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i tried it for the forst time yesterday and my god - so confuisng!!!!!!!!!!!1
i was tryign to keep him going, keep him on edge of school and rise properly
i so lost it - hes not a school horse, i need ot work to keep hiom going and on track - doing that and watching his shoulder as a novice is soooooooooooo difficult
i want to practice on my own before my next lesson - deal with spooks, the whip - not leaning on reins - any tips please!!!! i think my instructor thinks im a numpty cos i just couldtn keep in the beat x
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Do you know what - I've ridden all my life and still don't give a sh*t. Had leasons with fairly decent trainers and done lots of (Eventing) dressage tests. Not one of them have ever said anything about me being on the wrong diagonal! Not sure if I just naturally end up on the right one (doubt it!) or what!!
 
starbucks that would be a crimonal offence in one of my lessons lol-though have had one instuctor who said they wern't important hmmm
 
I just kinda ride how I ride and never had a lot of lessons when I was learning.. was much more a hunting child!

I'm not even sure what it is!! Are you suppose to sit when their inside leg is back? I don't even know what I do!
 
I agree with starting in walk for sure! but.... even while in stand try rising in your stirrups and sitting back down again in a rhythm without holding the reins or anything (if you cant do it at a stand still you wont be able to do it when he's on the move!) and make sure you don't thud back down into the seat or your legs are swinging about! I had no leg muscles or balance WHATSOEVER when I started riding and fell all over the place, and even in walk then I nearly fell off. Bit tragic really :P you'll catch on :) its just about feeling the paces. As for feeling the right or wrong diagonal, I used to trot in circles on each rein (NOT looking down) and had to yell out without looking down whether I was on the right one or not (can feel it better on circles). Quickly learnt!
 
i guess if you mainly hunt,hack-(unless you school whilst hacking) its not important think it helps the horse balance trotting on circles ect. im no expert though. say you're troting round the menage and the outside shoulder comes back you sit at that moment. like i say im no expert thats just what ive been told :)
 
sori starbucks just noticed you said you do eventing dressage tests-i have no idea then maybe you do just get it right then or maybe they arn't as important as i am led to believe-any one else know?
 
Think it's probably just a natural thing that I do... like knowing if they are on the right leg?

Sorry not much help.
 
The good thing about learning to change diagonals is that a rider and horse can often become used to riding on just one diagonal - some horses can 'throw' the rider on to the diagonal that they are most comfortable with.

It also means that the riders weight is taken onto the inside hindleg when schooling, making it easier for the horse to balance and to send the horse forwards from the inside hindleg when applying the aids.

I was always taught that the diagonals should be changed regularly, even when hacking to prevent the horse favouring a diagonal.
 
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