Exactly What Makes Walk the Most Essential Gait for Horses?

By Charkes Yngson


The way your horse brings himself (his frame) when he is being ridden influences his mental and physical condition. For him as a way to achieve at his finest usually requires that he is flexible, well-balanced and has robust back muscles to pleasantly bear the saddle and rider with no anxiety or strain. Your horse should function in the proper posture or "frame" to be prepared to perform at his best.

A great riding frame starts with a good walk. A good walk is regarded as the challenging gait to attain, the least difficult to ruin, has even, energetic, rhythmical steps with impulsion, could only be performed along with flexible muscles, a moving back and versatile joints. If your horse is anxious or has tight muscles, he cannot accomplish a good walk. In order to develop a good walk, you should motivate your horse to push ahead energetically from his hindquarters to ensure that his hind legs step properly beneath him. It is essential that you relieve any stress in your own body. Alleviate from your neck to your seat bones along with all your joints (shoulders, elbows, wrists, hips, knees, ankles & toes). Continue to keep your core involved. Your horse will reflect what he feels from you. Keep a flexible, subsequent contact on long reins.

If perhaps your horse won't proceed into the contact, hollows his back, takes short "sewing machine" steps or rushes into trot, work him on a 20 metre circle. Using this method you can motivate him to flex more around your inside leg. Feel and keep to the natural swing of your horse's barrel. Continue to keep your legs carefully contacting the barrel and give a more robust push with your inside leg as you feel his barrel swing outward.

Ensure your outside leg is soft so that it follows and does not block the movement. The bend helps your horse relax and lower his neck which helps lift his back to level. At the same time, your seat asks your horse to step forward.As your horse develops a good, relaxed walk with impulsion, swing and suppleness on the circle in one direction then work on the other direction. You may find your horse finds it easier going one way than the other. This is normal because horse's are left or right sided the same as we are left or right handed. If you or your horse get frustrated or tense going one way, go back to the direction where the work was easier until you get relaxed again.

Once you've established a good walk with a few uniformity on the circles then you can begin to do some work on the straight line coming back to the circle to re-establish relaxation when needed.




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