The fix for the lazy horse can be done while doing any riding exercise. The first thing that makes a horse responsive or lighter is having a clear cue. A cue is something that you ask the horse and can get the horse to do. That means a cue to stop will be picking up the reins. That would be a cue to stop. A pre-cue is something you do before the cue. A pre-cue is "ho." If I go forward and I say "ho," and he doesn't stop, I'm going to say "ho" and pick up the reins to say "That meant stop." So pretty soon, when I go forward and I say "ho" the horse stops. So a pre-cue is something you do before a cue that makes a horse lighter and more responsive. It's the same thing with your legs. What do you do before you use your legs? You sit forward, pick up the reins, kiss to them. But what's the first that you do before you squeeze or kick your horse? You take your legs out. You take your legs out, then you bring them together. So practice that. Practice taking your legs off and if he doesn't move, then tell the horse "Hey, that meant move" with a kick. And when you bring them together, be prepared to kick them until something happens. So practice that and pretty soon, when you take your legs away from the horse's side (as if to kick), that'll mean "move forward." So I'm not using my legs to keep kicking my horse. Practice this and remember, when you bring them together, bring them together hard enough to get a change of leg speed. If you kick him and you just kick him to keep him going, then…
You'll start to notice a pattern: Every time your horse correctly moves to the left, he'll first shift his weight to the right. See if you can't release there, when he shifts. Releasing your pressure closer to when the horse "thinks" the correct answer like this will accelerate your training. Always be on the lookout for such clues.
So, the process is this: Take the lead in the left hand, stare at the hip as if to say "move to the left," kiss, twirl with the right hand, twirl faster/nearer, smack if you have to. (Make sure there's a horse there or things could get embarrassing.) Resist the temptation to pull the horse's head toward you, forcing the hips away – we want the horse to figure this out for himself. Regarding motivation, most horses do not have to get thumped more than once or twice – and again, it doesn't hurt, it just applies shock and awe. Be quick on your release and with your praise and soon your horse will be moving his hips when you just "think it." You should move from the left of the horse to the right, repeating the same sequence in order to gain control over both sides of the horse. You want to build a horse that will move it's rear end away without having to touch him.
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Issue Eight, Part 3 of 3
Thought Vs Action
When you think different, you are different. The more you raise your expectations, the better your horse will become. Combining those two thoughts bring us to a concept called "Thought vs Action." Riding an "action" is how ninety-nine percent of the people ride ninety-nine percent of the time. That is to say they ride "a left turn," "a spin," or "a stop." They release their rein on a maneuver. "When the head softens up, we release." That's "riding the maneuver" or the "action." But instead of riding the action, why not ride the "thought"? The thought is simply "Why is the horse doing it?" Then when I ride, it's not so much the action that I release on as the thought in the horse's head. I ask myself: Does he turn faster to the right because the gate's over there and he wants to leave? That's a thought the horse is having. If you're doing a spin and he's drifting toward another horse, is he just trying to get to that other horse? That's also a thought. Ask yourself "Why and how is he doing the maneuver you're asking him to do? If the thought isn't good, then correct the thought, not the action. And, when you start riding the thought, you automatically begin riding one step ahead of your horse. The better you get the thought to be, the better the action becomes.
Controlling Your Horse's Speed
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For instance, if I were to ask somebody to stand up three times, they might stand up with apprehension the first time, curiosity the second – and reluctance the third. But, if I were to offer that same person a hundred bucks to stand up they'd stand up with conviction (and probably a smile). They'd still stand up, but the way they stand up is completely different. Now they're thinking "yes!" instead of simply doing as I ask out of respect, fear, etcetera. The proper motivation makes a huge difference.
If I ride my horse the same way, where I work on the thought, I become an active rather than reactive rider. I stay one step ahead of the horse and that makes me ride better.
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There are certain products that every long-time Lyons fan carries in his equine tool kit. They're the "gotta haves." Here are a few essentials - as recommended by this John Lyons Certified Trainer, Keith Hosman.
