Great Video On Working Your Horses Back

I found this video very informational and helpful! I wasn't sure whether to put it under Video's, Training or English Riding......

It helps you to see how important it is in putting all the pieces together.

How To Engage Your Horse's Back - YouTube

This was so helpful!

Thank you for sharing :)

You are welcome. Very informative. It helps you see how important it is to ensure that all the puzzle pieces are put together, before you start asking for a "headset".

It is very important to ask the horse to lift their back up into your seat.

They have some really nicely done short videos in their series.
That was really great. I wish he had had time to focus on the difference between just reaching down, and reaching down in a connected, back raising manner. And how one gets the hrose to reach down and do the descente des mains.

Yes that would be very nice, I actually began to notice it in my riding pictures.. when he's engaged and when he's not. Also I can feel it when he gets it for a few strides or so.

But what a great start!

I liked the video a lot. But I going to be an evil advocate here and say that while yes, I think it's very helpful, but it's helpful only if done correctly and horse can still stay connected and travel round even with lighter contact on rein. If one tries to go "long and low" on horse that doesn't know how to go on contact and use the hind end the "long and low" will become "cool, there are no reins lets just mess around however I wanna to".

I disagree Kitten. A horse will only go "oh I don't have to work" if the rider doesn't know how to ask the horse to work correctly.

It isn't about whether the horse knows how to reach into contact or not while doing Long And Low, but it whether the rider knows how to ask the horse to work accordingly to achieve the stretching, with the lifting of the back and the engagement.

The horse will not work, if the rider doesn't know or understand to ask the horse to work.

I do long and low work on horses ranging from 5 to 22. Horses who know how to reach for contact, and horses who do not. Long And Low is very beneficial for all horses of all levels and ages.

I would far rather see a rider asking the horse to stretch down, track up and lift their backs up into their riders seats - even if for just a few nice moments - than someone asking for their horse to get into some false headset, back dropped and not moving under themselves.

Start at the walk, and then merge into the trot. One step at a time.

I think you both are actually agreeing with each other, just not realizing it. Val is saying that the rider has to know how to get the horse to work correctly when it is in the long and low position, rather than just having it's head down and dallying around, the rider must know how to get the horse connected and pushing while still keeping its' head down.

That was what I would have loved to hear more about from this instructor. I know it's a short video, and pretty general, only wish he'd do more on this subect as it's very hard to describe without images.

You are absolutely right, tiny, that's exactly what I was trying to say. This video (and exercise itself) is helpful if you understand and know how to ask for "long and low". And that comes with practice and help of the good instructor (not just watch, get on, here we go have it riding "long and low" because there is no contact and horse's nose in groung ).

I know exactly what you mean..

But that's where a good trainer comes in.. one that can communicate the aids to you.. or to help your horse understand.

I do it in kind of a backwards way... my horse enjoys being in his little frame because he thinks that is what he should be doing.. so when I feel him seeking that bit.. I slowly give him more rein and he keeps seeking.. so I give him some more.. until his nose is almost on the ground, but he's still connected as well as he can at this point. Maybe not to the point of collection but he's getting there slowly. When he stops seeking.. I slowly take rein until I feel him seeking, and then feed it out to him. He's better at the walk now.. before his head was up in the clouds so I'm pleased at his progress :)