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HORSE Magazine
Features : Shake up your schooling sessions
Wednesday 7 January 2009
Hannah Biggs, dressage rider
Finding the time and energy to continue your horse's training during the cold, dark days of winter can be difficult, especially if there aren't many competitions to keep you motivated. Dressage rider Hannah Biggs shares the following advice to rouse you from your schooling rut.
Think things through
Take some time to think about exactly what you want to get out of each schooling session. Remember a comment your trainer made recently about your horse or your riding, particularly one you found accurate or helpful. As you ride, check up on this at regular intervals. Is it happening again? Do you need to make a correction? If it was something that was praised, are you doing it again today? Could you do it more? Be a little more demanding and disciplined with yourself.
Set short- and long-term goals
Setting goals is vital, whether it is day-to-day goals or more long term, such as achieving something by the end of the season. Each goal should be SMART:
- Specific – for example, developing your horse into a supple outline with a good, consistent contact.
- Measurable – get a friend to video your schooling session so you can really see the changes in your horse over a period of time.
- Achievable – be ambitious in your ideals, but keep in mind any physical limitations.
- Realistic – remember schooling is a gymnastic exercise and he won't become a Grand Prix horse overnight!
- Time – your horse can't change in one session, progress will be gradual.
Stay positive
Think about your position and your mindset when you are schooling, and remember to keep a positive attitude. Work on developing your own focus and concentration, sharpening up your reaction time and learning to really communicate with your horse.
Don't be hard on yourself
Don't aim for 100 per cent perfection all the time – this is both unrealistic and unachievable, so you will only end up disappointed. Instead, aim for 'good' 90 per cent of the time, then you know you and your horse always have more to give.
This is an extract from a training feature in Horse magazine. To read the article in full, buy the February issue, on sale from 8 January.
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