How are you supposed to post on a trot?

I'm a total beginner rider, and have only had two western lessons. One was 1/2 hour, and the last one was a little over an hour. On my first lesson, I had a lot of fun. I felt comfortable, and loved the horse that I was on. I was a little afraid of the fact that the horse is a 9 year old, but he seemed mellow and sweet. I felt confident in handling the horse.

When I found out that I would be riding the same horse for my next lesson, I was excited. We were just walking, working on turning and stuff. The instructor asked us if we wanted to trot, and so we were doing that for a few minutes. She showed us how to post, but really I have no clue how you can do that...I was bouncing up and down so much..Any tips for that?

Think of bringing your hips to your hands or bringing your crotch (for lack of a better word:)) toward your horses ears! Just come up/forward ever so slightly and allow the horses movement to help you.

Shouldn't take much work at all and you should stay totally relaxed and NOT push off your stirrups. Relax and just go with it.

Make sure your on the correct diagonal! Remember "rise and fall with the leg on the wall". Every time the horses outside (leg on the wall) is forward you should rise, when it's back you should sit! This will make it way easier for you. At the beginning it's OK to check the horses shoulder to see if it's forward or back. But don't worry too much about it and don't loose control looking. Just take a second or two to check. If your on the incorrect diagonal sit (or bounce) twice. Then start rising and you'll be good.

I just re read - Didn't see you were a total beginner... It will take practice and jut getting used to. One day you will just get it! Don't worry too much about it right away.

It will take quite a few lessons before you've finally mastered it but do just as Paint Mom said.

Also, try and pick a song that has a steady beat that is similar to your horses trot. You can practice at home standing up and sitting down on a chair to the beat, just to help your sense of rhythm.

I agree. I've been in lessons fro 10 weeks after not riding for over 15 years and I'm still working on my posting. It takes time.

Your posting should also feel natural, not forced =] you should go up as your horse's back sort of 'thrusts' you upwards, and down as his back sinks back down. If you're doing it right, often the horse's momentum will boost you up and bring you down, making almost no work for you. It takes practice, but once you get to where you let the horse help you- its very easy. Soon it will be second nature. I've been riding for years and now I have to actually think about NOT posting when I ride x] good luck, and don't give up!

Thanks for the tips everyone.
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So are you saying I've been taught wrong these past 3 years?
I've always been told that when the horses outside leg is forwards I should be sitting. Dang, now I have to get myself out of the habit before tomorrow's show.

You gotta start from ground zero again. All of it. NOw!

Yeah, you should be going UP when outside foreleg goes forward. Wanna know why? Because when you are circling , say to the left, when the right fore reaches forward the left rear has just pushed off the ground and is going back and the horse is in a brief moment of suspension, right before the front right touches down and the rear left coils under the body , takes the body weight and pushes forward. So, as the outside hind is pushing, it will rise (any leg that bears weight will cause that part of the horse's body to go up more than the unweighted side, (rear leg/hip, frontleg/shoulder) and it will literally "push" you upward.

Now, you can say, why don't I rise on the inside leg pushing? You can, but because on the circle (left, in this instance) the outside of the horse's body is stretched out longer and there will be a more dramatic push and reach with the outside hind. It is more comfortable for the horse and the rider to post on the outside diagonal.

Make any sense?

Knowing that it takes more energy for your horse to lift you with the hind that you are posting off of will tell you something about possible soreness or lameness in your horse if it tries to always shift you onto one diagonal , preferring that over the other. Might be sore in the hip or leg of the rear leg that should be lifting you when you post to the correct diagonal.

I've never hear of anyone being taught that way... Hmmm. I learned to rise when the outside leg is forward and sit when it comes back. Does anyone know why that seems to be the norm?

Never mind. We posted at the same time .