This tip will blow your mind.... // Rider position

I am so thankful I found this video, I have always been taught to ride in such a fashion that my lower leg is very far in front of me. While I was preparing one of my barn owner’s new horses to be used in the lesson program, I found that he responded to my leg much better when it was farther back, where it was supposed to be, though I didn’t know this at the time. My barn owner was watching me one day and asked if he went better with my leg in that position, I said yes. She told me that it was incorrect and just to tap his side behind my leg with a crop. Perhaps this is because I rode him in a forward cut jumping saddle, I’m not quite sure.

Omg! Your horse looks like my horses twin😂😂

I have a three year old horse he’s still learning how to jump

This was really helpful! I've gotten a bit of a habit of keeping my heels so far down... like really really down! It just feels normal when they're like that haha cause its a habit! Im working on making them a little flatter ;)

My instructor yells at me to force my heels down even more than the already are and it always messed me up :/

Where state can I move to where there’s a lot of land trying to move to some place where there’s a lot of barns near so I can ride more

谢谢！clear，and easy to understand。thx！

My physiotherapist was telling me that I should think about toes up rather than heels down in order to have my muscles engaged in a way that encourages my lower legs to lie quietly at the horses side. She used the term ' reciprocal inhibition'.

Oml thanks so much

I have been told numerous times that I have a natural posture but yet last time I rode I was told to keep my feet in line with the horses shoulders? I am so confused.

I have been told numerous times that I have a natural posture but yet last time I rode I was told to keep my feet in line with the horses shoulders? I am so confused.

When you ride, do you have to put your hands on the front of the saddle? Because if I don't than my hands start jumping around and I can't keep them in one position

I recently started riding English after riding Western my entire life. This video helped me SO MUCH in getting my leg in the correct position! Love your videos. They are so helpful!

I showed this to my instructor, and pointed out that he teaches everyone to put their heels down but he doesn't do it himself. Guess who earned 2 hours of alone time with her horse- this gal!

As a hunter jumper... I just try to think about pushing my legs as long as possible. Rather than forcing the heels down, i almost imagine that the stirrups arent even there and think about reaching as far down with my legs as possible. Coming from someone who notoriously loses their stirrups, its been really helpful for me!

Can u make a video on how can we tone our bodyy and lose fat during riding

One instructor tell me to move my legs back and I just had a different one today who was telling me to move my legs further forward and to lean back more and I came here to find out wtf I’m meant to do :(

I know this was posted in 2017 and no one will like ever see this but in my lessons my instructor is always telling me to put my heels down. Before we lunge i always have to stand up and get my heels down. By the end of the lesson my feet are in so much pain. And then gives me homework to 'walk on my heels' but it isn't helping. What do I do?

Today I fell from my horse now I have no confidence

I have one big mistake I hold the saddle while riding

Yeh that's right! My instructor tells me to keep it down and move it forward when the horse is cantering, it is really hard, I lose my balance and jump on the saddle in a weird way 🙄 I really dont understand how some people do it.

My leg tends to go the other way and I end up pushing my saddle to the opposite side trying to keep my leg on and my leg goes further and further back

Have some balance issues on my first riding lesson. I give it a shot because we work with the same sattle. Thanks for that tip!

When I’m riding trot canter am I supposed to NOT use the stirrups as a crutch? It’s just I keep telling myself not use it as a crutch and then I keep on losing the stirrups, which is doable because I’m ok without them but how do I stop losing the stirrups because I’m not sure what’s right and what’s wrong.

I have a BAD chairseat and i realized i sit back into the saddle with my heels down. So i should sit more forward in the saddle? And heels back, not down?

Aka just foot strai

Heels down and back, toes in

Your suppos to keep your heels down and if you have no ballance Squeeze the sattle pad a little bit , so dont hurt these kids your hurting them like this

Heels down is actually a very advanced concept. It can only happen when the hip joint is stretched open which is never evident on novice riders, so its time for riding instructors to stop saying put your heels down because it is this action that is closing the hip joint which is why so many riders take a long time to develop a good seat and the flexibility in the hip joint which is of course what is required for any level of dressage. Sadly it is still taught, thirty years on.

thanks for pointing out i figured out my feet have been too far forward and now i can fix it. i haven't been riding for long this really helps

No wonder I’ve been having trouble posting!!! 😲😁This is so helpful!!!!!!!

how about heels even? cos my old instructor used to yeall at me and say HEELS DOWN!!! and i developed a bad habit of it😑😑😑

I'll definitely try this at my next lesson. Last week though, I tried to keep my heels in position but twice my feet slipped out of the stirrups and I had to stop my horse. Are there any exercises you can recommend so that I can maintain a good position?

I've been told to shoot my heels back and down towards the horses hocks and that helped me a lot!

My mind was blown so hard that it scared the hell out of my horse, LOL! Now I have to go watch another video on how to calm down a spooked horse, LOL!

I hope this works. I’m going to try it tomorrow.

I feel like the best rides are focused on oeness w the horse, not on heels down. When I am balanced w my horse, my body is naturally where it should be.

Just started riding and went into trot and they where yelling heels down and I am it just confused me

Had this VERY issue ALL throughout my lesson today! I even worked a sore on my butt!
Thank you 😊 I think I need a longer stirrup too as I am 5'10" with 36" inseam!

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The way I feel it is increasing contact between the ball of my foot and the stirrup. This seems to have the effect of greater activation and control of my whole leg, but without any need to squeeze with my knees or thighs (which are signals I want to reserve for communicating with my horse). I was taught heels down too, but when I went to longer stirrups, that no longer worked.

I am 100 % sure that this works for literally known one only if they have that problem so this did not help me but thank you for posting this video anyway.☺️

Tysm for this.

I’m grateful my instructor doesn’t tell me to put my heels down. It tightens all your joints and is pretty bad for you.

Softer heals are better it’s very uncomfortable with them hard down, I am working on that at the moment

You helped me improve my whole riding journey from this vidio!! My teacher only screams to put my heels down…. Looks like your right! Thanks so much you made this vid!❤❤❤❤

Sooo helpful, thanks

When i trot i cant keep my heels down as i can feel my heels going up and its hard when i am trotting i have only been riding almost 2 years and this is still a problem lol 😂 how do i keep them down when i trot

MIND NOT BLOWN. I thought every rider was taughtt this??

Hello and thank you for posting this video! I started riding in a dressage saddle last year. I've had some lessons and repeatedly hear "heels down!". What happens when I try to do that is I actually lose my balance more. I am not relaxed in my bum. When I don't try to force my heels down I feel so much more connected with my horse. Forcing my heels down seems too tense for me. I DO want to keep my leg long, as it were. So that's what I focus on, not so much my heels. Thanks again! Like your videos very much!!