I have a philosophy that at least 50% of learning to ride has nothing to do with horses. 🤣
After 20 years of teaching—and a lot of reflection over the past year—I realized I’d spent most of my time teaching things that had little to do with riding itself. Here is what came up:
•why it matters what students think and say to themselves
•why exercise is important
•how to put yourself in the horse’s position, being empathetic to his or her view
•why Mindfulness is key
Horses live in the moment & need us to be there with them. They are prey animals, they don’t do things wrong on purpose (although finding a local trainer to say that is near impossible)
Most trainers find it easier to teach riding skills—and of course those matter. But leaving out everything else isn’t doing horses or riders justice, in my opinion. It’s just not the generally accepted way to go about things and people don’t want to lose clients.
I’m out in the great big online world sharing my message. I’d love for you to join me.