VCBH: Unpopular



L. Stop it with the blog hops. You're out of control.

"Some of us have a lot of ideas and thoughts, well probably all of us. So this is your time to shine and really make a ruckus (no really actually let's not fight about this we can all just agree to disagree about stuff).  What is 1 unpopular horsey opinion you have?"

Ohhhh man. I could go on for days about my unpopular opinions! I mean, they're popular with the crowd I generally run with, but for the average h/j people that I find myself surrounded by on a daily basis, they are definitely unpopular.

Favorites include how every horse NEEDS turnout. Several hours, on a daily basis, even better if they can get 12+ hours. Horses aren't meant to live in boxes. I also believe that beating the snot out of your horse does not make them understand what you are asking them to do any better. And I also think that if your horse needs drugs or excessive lunging to show, you should pack it up and take it home until it can go in the show ring without any of that. 

But what I'd like to write about today, is my opinion that every horse, no matter what discipline they are used for, needs to have good flatwork as an integral part of their training program.

Flatwork. Not just for DQ's.

If you're thinking, "But I'm a hunter/western/trail/jumper/whatever rider, I don't need to do that stuff. Dressage is for losers." please be quiet. Yes, you do. Let me tell you why. 

The moment we sit on our horses' backs, we put physical stress on them that God and Nature did not design them to sustain. To maintain a comfortable, sound, willing horse, we need to educate their bodies to carry OUR bodies in the most efficient way possible, and help our horses strengthen the muscles they need to carry weight on their backs. This is done through proper flatwork, or dressage, if you will. If you cannot feel whether or not your horse is appropriately carrying your weight over his hind end, lifting his back, using his neck, and propelling you both forward with his hind legs, you need some educating. And your horse likely needs some educating, too if you aren't doing proper flatwork on a daily basis. 

If you "don't care" about this, you are doing your horse a disservice and your horse is probably uncomfortable and is most likely inappropriately muscled, and is not performing to the best of his ability.

This isn't about putting the horse in a "frame" or making everything go like an FEI dressage horse, it's about making sure our horses are physically comfortable and strong enough to do what we're asking them to do. A good horse only gets better when ridden correctly from back to front. A hollow horse can't do its job as well as a round horse can. 

ALL horses need a good flatwork education. YES hunters. YES jumpers. Just because your time in the show ring isn't spent flatting doesn't mean that it isn't important to the overall athletic development of your horse. The more elastic, rideable, and strong they are on the flat, the better they jump. End of story. 

There is absolutely no reason why "flatwork" should only consist of cruising around the outside of the ring a few times in each gait to get ready for jumping. That's not beneficial to anyone. 

Obviously, if a person is still at the point in their riding career where they're learning how to control their own body parts, I wouldn't expect them to be able to influence their horse's way of going, but eventually everyone, ESPECIALLY those who teach other riders, needs to learn how to at least feel when a horse is going correctly, and encourage roundness in a frame appropriate for their discipline, and riders who aren't capable of producing good flatwork on their own horses should ideally have a more experienced rider flat the horse from time to time. 

Horses that are ridden correctly on the flat develop better toplines, stay sounder, move better, and are better equipped to do their jobs, whether that job happens to be racing the clock in the jumpers or loping around a hunter course.

Flame suit on. 






Comments

  1. I agree with basically everything you said. No flames from me on any of it!

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  2. First off, amen on the turnout thing!! It drives me insane to see so many horses cooped up 24/7/ They are big animals and need to MOVE and play and be with other horses and nature!

    I also agree with the flatwork thing! I just trail ride, I'm western, but I do a lot of "dressagey" training and we do a lot of flatwork. It's so important.

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  3. No need for a flame suit, I agree with you!

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  4. Well said! I thought this was pretty common knowledge - but it's definitely a concept that's lacking at my current barn.

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  5. Agree on all points! I'm always explaining to massage clients about how much stress it puts on a horse to simply bear the weight of a rider; In addition to all the postural muscles that horses work just to hold their own weight while standing, there are muscles that take a lot of stress as soon as a rider sits on their back (I have some great images and drawings explaining that, I should show you sometime!). Another great thing you can do to keep your horse in shape is to lunge fully tacked, especially if you just changed anything with equipment (saddle pad, etc). Pretty much everything needs to be taken in increments, and continue to work on those less challenging parts some days instead of just always going to the maximum work a horse can do (exactly what you said about flatwork)

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    1. Yes! I know some riders who just get on, walk/trot/canter around a couple times, then jumpjumpjump for at least 20 minutes straight, and then wonder why their horse isn't making it down the lines/is stopping/is knocking rails/isn't adjustable/etc. And TRAINERS who don't care and encourage that kind of nonsense. Another thing I like to do is lunge in a chambon or side reins to get the horse stretching over the back to strengthen those muscles without a rider.

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  6. Flat work is the foundation for jumping so idk how people think that you can have a successful round without a good foundation :)

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  7. I agree! And it's a great reminder! I make sure Ellie gets a few flat rides a week from the trainers so she learns how to carry herself!

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  8. I can't even begin to agree with you on absolutely everything more! Thank you!

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  9. Turnout, agreed, but not always possible, though ideally yes. The snot beat out of the horse, don't know what HJ people you run with but yikes, but most definitely agree, flatwork is KEY.

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    1. Yeah, I know for you guys out on the west coast turnout is a luxury! We are spoiled here in the east. Um yes I find myself amongst some rather uneducated and ignorant people who would rather beat a horse when it makes a mistake or drug it instead of teaching it how to do things the right way...

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  10. I've ridden too many hyper horses to like the idea of more than 12 hours of stabling per day. Perhaps I'm just cowardly, but those trainers who out of choice (not necessity) keep their horses in all day except for half an hour of exercise strike me as a little suicidal.
    As for flatwork - yes, yes and yes. Sometimes it can be overemphasised (a horse learns to jump by jumping) but even in a showjumping ring, your horse spends a considerable amount of time on the ground compared to the time he spends in the air. Those flying changes, perfectly balanced tight turns and instant responses to the aids that one sees in top level showjumping didn't just happen all by themselves.

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    1. The best is when people wonder why their horse is a nutcase when it never goes outside and gets stuffed full of grain! GEE I WONDER.

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  11. Jumping is what happens in b/w the flatwork, right? Sadly, can't stand hearing people say they "hate flatwork" or "hate dressage".

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    1. It makes me cringe to hear that, too! If you think flatwork is boring you're doing it wrong...

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  12. I was always told "Jumping is flatwork with jumps in the way." Therefore, work on your flatwork and save your horse's legs. (It's not about JUMPING the jump, it's about getting TO the jump so that the horse can jump it in the best way possible. Which is rhythm, balance, impulsion, all of which you'd better be able to establish between the jumps.)

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