who uses lateral work in their schooling sessions

[ex racer rider]

So just out of curiosity how many of you use lateral work in your schooling sessions?
I personally use it in most sessions but im curious to see how many others do.
If you do/dont, why?
what do you do?

Leah

 

[throughtheforest]

I voted always, simply because it is extremely beneficial for suppleness, engagement and concentration. I mostly use; turn on the forehand, turn on the haunches and leg yield.

 

[bakewell]

Spanish types; they love it and it focusses them. Extension we have more problems with!

 

[Charlie007]

Yes I use it every schooling session which is currently 20 mins x2 a week. He is an ex racer and needs to become more supple to enable him to become stronger. At the moment it's leg yield but as he becomes fitter and stronger we will add more lateral work in.

 

[eggs]

Every session from leg yield and shoulder in for the novice horse to half pass and pirouettes for the more advanced horses. Great for suppleness and getting the hind leg working.

 

[JillA]

Every session from leg yield and shoulder in for the novice horse to half pass and pirouettes for the more advanced horses. Great for suppleness and getting the hind leg working.

^^^^^ This

 

[Dizzydancer]

Can't vote as on phone but yep every session gets him thinking which is essential for him and engages his hind leg to help with just about everything else in the session! Only doing leg yield and shoulder in at mo tho as he is in retraining from race horse mode!
Also do lots of neck swinging in walk and trot right and left to loosen off the base of the neck- not lateral work as such but helps!

 

[JFTDWS]

Who the devil doesn't use lateral work in schooling sessions?! Other than on a complete youngster (literally just backed), if you're not doing some lateral work, you're surely not actually schooling?!

 

[littleshetland]

All the time - ultimately it helps towards straightness, aids concentration, and gives the clever clogs Friesian something to think about..

 

[Captain Bridget]

Mostly just leg yield at the moment with an attempt at shoulder in every so often. He's arthritic and find it really loosens up his hind legs and gets him working more from behind. I can tell when I haven't done any.

Forgot to say, I do this in every schooling session, although that's only once or twice a week at the moment.

 

[Tiddlypom]

Yes, and always when hacking too, (leg yielding to the middle of the road and back, traffic permitting).

 

[Marydoll]

As above ^^^^

 

[cundlegreen]

Who the devil doesn't use lateral work in schooling sessions?! Other than on a complete youngster (literally just backed), if you're not doing some lateral work, you're surely not actually schooling?!

I do it with just backed youngsters out on the road. Just leg yield them from verge to verge, then the schooling comes easier later.

 

[amandaco2]

Yup
leg yield every session at minimum

 

[JFTDWS]

I do it with just backed youngsters out on the road. Just leg yield them from verge to verge, then the schooling comes easier later.

I literally meant first few sits on I install basic lateral work as soon as they have reliable forwards / stop buttons

 

[Goldenstar]

Who the devil doesn't use lateral work in schooling sessions?! Other than on a complete youngster (literally just backed), if you're not doing some lateral work, you're surely not actually schooling?!

Why ?
It's perfectly possible to have a session teaching say the changes without going sideways .

 

[JFTDWS]

Why ?
It's perfectly possible to have a session teaching say the changes without going sideways .

Really? An entire session just doing changes, never using SI or HP in warm up or as prep? It's not how I'd do it...

 

[Goldenstar]

Really? An entire session just doing changes, never using SI or HP in warm up or as prep? It's not how I'd do it...

Perfectly possible horse don't have to go sideways every session .
And yes I will work a whole session teaching the changes it's easier with some horses to work like that you are of course not doing the actual changes the whole session .

 

[NZJenny]

Was thrilled to finally find an instructor who regarded lateral work as a means to an end, not just an end in itself. Shoulder-in was a revelation and so useful for straightning and to learn half-pass was a total buzz.

 

[Tnavas]

I voted always, simply because it is extremely beneficial for suppleness, engagement and concentration. I mostly use; turn on the forehand, turn on the haunches and leg yield.

Not entirely necessary to use lateral work. If suppleness and moving off the leg is established well lateral work is a coddle!

You can achieve a hell of a lot by riding good circles, loops and serpentines. One horse I had I didn't even try teaching him lateral work, but he had done a lot of circles, loops, serpentines and transitions between and within paces. I had a Pony Club kid about to sit A certificate come and ride him and I was stunned to watch my horse performing quality lateral work, Shoulder in, Renvers, Travers and Half Pass and with some Demi pirouettes thrown in.

 

[planete]

Lateral work can also be the only thing that will keep on the ground the feet of a ready to boil over horse when any straight movement would enable the sweet little horse to do his worst!

 

[Tnavas]

That's where circles, loops and serpentines come in to play. Too many people just ride aimlessly around the outside of the arena. My coach many years back always said "Never go around the arena more than once without doing something different" and another of her sayings, "If it's going really wrong, change the subject, then go back and try again" Wise words!

 

[blitznbobs]

Yes all the time - lateral work doesn't have to be big and fancy but I'm not sure how you teach a horse to bend correctly with out it ... My horses learn to leg yield before I ever sit on their backs...

 

[Tnavas]

Yes all the time - lateral work doesn't have to be big and fancy but I'm not sure how you teach a horse to bend correctly with out it ... My horses learn to leg yield before I ever sit on their backs...

Read my first post! My horse had not done any lateral work but had been taught to move off the leg both forwards and bend. If the horse is supple from quality circle work it will find lateral work easy. Thats why it does not get ridden in a dressage test until you get to Elementary. You need to establish the basic work correctly before going onto lateral work.

 

[ihatework]

Many roads to Rome, but I would imagine lateral work (of varying extents) is key to training the majority of horses.

 

[PolarSkye]

I've checked the "mostly" button, but there's a caveat - not recently, because he has just come back into work after six months off so we've been doing lots of stretchy stretchy, long and low . . . next step will be to introduce some lateral work . . . in a week or so . . . but, ordinarily, he does leg yield, shoulder in/shoulder fore as part of a standard flatwork schooling session.

P

 

[Nutsaboutnags]

Yes absolutely, without lateral work you def aren't schooling IMO!!

 

[Goldenstar]

Yes absolutely, without lateral work you def aren't schooling IMO!!

Of course you can be schooling without doing lateral work a horse does not need to be doing everything every time they are schooled .
Many horse thrive on session working on one thing sometimes.
Once the horse has learnt to be obedient to the positioning aids it's not necessary to do lateral work every session .
It also can help to do a very short intensive session on something then stop .
This sort of very focused work can really help sometimes .

 

[JFTDWS]

Of course you can be schooling without doing lateral work a horse does not need to be doing everything every time they are schooled .
Many horse thrive on session working on one thing sometimes.
Once the horse has learnt to be obedient to the positioning aids it's not necessary to do lateral work every session .
It also can help to do a very short intensive session on something then stop .
This sort of very focused work can really help sometimes .

I just can't see me ever not putting the horse shoulder fore at least at some stage during a session. I might not "work" on lateral work every session, but I definitely use it - either during warm up / loosening up, stretching out to cool down or as a tool to improve the other work. I'm not even saying doing every piece of lateral work during a warm up, but I always spend a few minutes putting shoulders in/out, quarters in and out at least.

 

[Baydame]

Um, just going to throw it out there, but, circles/bending etc are lateral work. You are developing lateral flexibility in the horse when you ride a straight circle. The inside leg stepping in and under the horse on a proper circle is not different from doing a leg yield.
Inside leg to outside hand....basis of a circle....leg yeild......shoulder in....etc.

So, to those who are saying they don't do lateral work......from what I've read you all do do it.