Let's move onto the rising trot.
The first practice which novices find difficult might be the rising trot.
The rider counts one-two-one-two in time to the beats to co-ordinate the corresponding sitting and rising potions.
Have you ever wondered why the riders sit and rise on the horse in turn? I have!
This is because the rider needs to ease off the impact from the movement of the horse as the trot makes the greater up and down moves.
The trot without standing motion is called the sitting trot.
The rising trot is pretty straightforward for everyone but it is not so easy to well balanced and continue riding in the exact same position.
However, a great rising trot works really well as a warm up and very good exercises for both the riders and the horses.
Although we are going to say 'sit' to describe the movement of the trot, it doesn't mean the ride should sit down completely each time.
The tip for the great posture is to contact your seat bones to the saddle and do not sit with your entire hips.
The trot is a "two step gait".
This means that the horse moves its legs in diagonal pairs, that is it lifts the left foreleg and right hind leg together and the right foreleg and left hind leg together.
This is called the trot, where the two legs diagonally opposite from each other move forward together.
Unlike the walk and the canter, the horse does not move its head forwards and backwards in the trot and there is a moment that all four legs are off the ground at the same time.
The speed of the trot averaged about 220m per minute, 13.2 km per hour.
Although the trot is more common, some Japanese native horses naturally prefer to pace.
The pace is a lateral two-beat gait. In the pace, the two legs on the same side of the horse move forward together.
You didn't need to worry about this when you walk but if you are practice rising trot, the rider should ride on the outside diagonal.
This means when the rider is on the correct diagonal, the rider sits as the horse's inside hind leg and outside foreleg are on the ground and rises as the outside hind leg and inside foreleg are on the ground.
Illustrations below show where risers should be on each anticlockwise and clockwise rising trot.
Riders can check for the correct diagonal by a quick glance at the horse's shoulder, sitting when the outside foreleg is on the ground and the shoulder back.
Why are diagonals important?
This is because the rider won't always be putting their weight on the same set of legs; as they rise, they take some of the weight off of the horse's back for that moment, helping him make those adjustments in stride a little easier.
You may have already experienced that the instructor let you and the horse practice trotting in clockwise and anticlockwise.
This is to avoid using the same set of horse's legs. Even you are on your own, you should follow this rules.
If you are on wrong diagonal, you can tap the horse's hips twice to correct it.
In trot, rising and sitting in turn is the standard count but you can change this rhythm.
By practicing with different counts, for example, rise-rise-sit, rise-sit-sit, rise-rise-rise-sit, you can control your balance better.
Ensure to rise at the same position with the same balance each time.
If you are a novice, you may be able to rise well at first but failed in the second and third time.
Like this:
Practice until you can always balance yourself in the same position.
Be aware of the position of your legs.
Always keep your legs towards the back, around the girth; otherwise they will let your upper body lean backwards.
You don't really need to move your legs when you are sit and rise.
When you rise, push your hips forward harmonising with the movement of the horse, rather than standing up with your legs.
You should be able to keep a good posture by pushing the reins straight down at the same time.
Ensure to relax your knees and legs.
You can master the trot when you feel confortable with these movements.
Novices tend to raise their hands together with their body, however, this hurts the edge of the horse's mouth each time the rider moves.
Therefore make sure to place the hands down and keep them in the same positions.
If you see the world championships, the rider's hands and legs barely move from the fixed position.
This indicates that you can send riding aids without making it obvious from the audience.
The key to control the speed through reins is to use the grip of your fingers, rather than the grip with hands.
The hands raise with your body means that you are still relay on your hands too much to take a balance on the horse.
Rising trot without the reins is an effective training way to get rid of this habit.
Although you may feel frightened to start with, this is a very effective method.
It is better to practice this with a calm horse to avoid any injuries.
If you find it too difficult to keep the both hands off from the reins, hold it in one hand and keep one hand off.
The image below is showing another example, which novices tend to do hold the reins too tight and keep the elbows straight.
If you straighten your elbows, it will be stiff and won't be able to follow horse's move quickly enough.
Ensure your elbow bent and keep them flexible otherwise you will bend forwards when the horse put down his head a little.
In order to co-ordinate your move with the horse, you'd better think your body and arms are separated.
