How can you fix your balance on a horse?

Question

I have been riding horses for about 10 years. I have my days where I am right on point and nothing can shake me. But when I ride one of my horses, he seems to have a very bumpy canter. i try to get back in the middle of the saddle and when i do, the bumps throw me to the other side. He is about 4 and is the most well behaved horse and beautiful horse i have. so what would should i do help myself stay in the saddle? I ride westurn, so i sit deep and find the grove of the stride. But i need help with riding this one out in an arena. I dont ride in shows, but i need to find a way to balance better with it so i can also cut cattle. Thanks for your help!!!!!!

Answer 1

try to rise sorta up in the air like ur posting. also try and get into the rhythm of his stride to help balance urself out. hope this helps. i'm just giving suggestions for i am not an expert at that kind of thing.

Answer 2

Once you acquire a balanced seat, you will always be prepared for whatever happens.  I will attempt to explain to you here in the forum how to do it.  What I tell you will sound stupid and pointless, but there is a point to it and once you follow through the the directions, you will understand.  After you do understand what I mean, you will need to ride this way all of the time.  I will add that you will have muscles that hurt, muscles that you never knew that you had, just ride through it, it will just become part of you.   Now, try this with some one  holding your horse, but you holding your reins.  Adjust your stirrups to hit you right at the ankle if your legs are hanging free down the side of your horse...while you are standing up in the stirrups, hold on to the saddle horn and push your feet, toes down...yes, I said down, as far back as you can get them, hold them there, then sit "straight" down on that bone that is your riding bone...it lies between your girl parts and your whatsis...sit there, feels funny...drop your heels and sit up straight and level your head, looking out between your horse's ears and beyond.  Sit up tall, but don't hollow your back.  Now, this balances you from front to back...next, put equal weight (50/50) between your seat and your feet, now divide again, the weight between your feet...now, you are balanced from front to back and from side to side. Keep your heels down and if you keep the correct amount of weight in your stirrups, you won't lose them, and if you keep the correct amount of weight on your seat, you won't lose that either...I hope that I haven't confused you, if I have, you may email me and I will try to make things clearer.  If you keep this balanced seat, it will help your horse have a better ride as well, thus making it easier for you all of the way around.

Answer 3

First, what type of western saddle are you riding in?

I have a solid paint with a HUGE canter/lope stride and for a while I was riding him in a barrel type saddle and getting bounced front and back. I got rid of the saddle for one with a wider and more open seat and am now able to move with him better.

Try just putting him in a lope on a big circle in a closed arena on a very loose rein and just sit back and try to relax... you can even grab the pommel/horn as long as you don't lean forward.

Also, have someone experienced watch him canter with you in the saddle. He could be counter cantering or cross cantering, even trotting behind, etc... Also check for any soundness issues. That could throw you off balance.

Is he cantering relaxed with his head low(ish) and back rounded, or tense with head high and back hollow? That will also make a difference.

If he's only just 4 he's still pretty young and you may want to find some exercises to work on HIS balance at the canter. If he is unbalanced cantering with the weight of a rider that could be why he's bouncing you around.

Hope some of this helps. Good Luck

Answer 4

Ride without sturrips

Answer 5

I've given riding lessons for, well more years than I care to say.  Easiest ways to balance are to ride bareback (just a trot or jog will do) or in a saddle where you can really feel the horse through your thighs and butt and ride while closing your eyes.  Obviously with supervision.  An added note, a neat trick is to ride with your eyes closed and have someone walk up and stop the horse.  After a couple times you'll feel him stopping even before he looks like he is to the observer and you'll ask him to move forward before he has a chance to stop.  You need to know this to feel sudden stops or spooks right as they happen; gives you a better chance of sticking on.  

But back to the point at hand.  At a stand or walk, sit a nice straight "horse show style" in the saddle.  Take a deep breath, and while keeping your shoulders back, let it out and slump.  You won't look like your slumping to the observer.  Stay relaxed like this and remember, trots move your hips side to side, and lopes move your hips forward and back like an activity I can't discuss here.  I've won many a horsemanship class doing this, it gives you a great seat.

Answer 6

Can you have someone lunge you?  That way you don't have to worry about controlling the horse and you can just focus on balance and getting in tune with him.

He might be throwing you off balance because he is off balance himself.  Young horses take awhile to figure that out sometimes.  If you can do some exercises in an arena with him to help him learn balance, that would help a lot.

Answer 7

I practice riding without stirrups and bareback. That helps me find my center on the horse as well as with myself. Since you have been riding a while you know each horse rides different. That is why I work on no stirrups and bareback. It also help you feel what your horse is doing when he is under saddle.

Good luck!

Answer 8

practice a lot of standing in your stirrups at the canter and all gaits this will help strengthen your legs and balance.

Answer 9

My technique for that is to ride bareback for a while. That way you can learn the strides  of the horse and feel how he moves. I too ride western and its a lot differnt from english....

Anyways, usually whenever i get on a different horse it takes me a while to learn its stride but after i do it like i always did. But bareback does help a whole lot if you grab on the mane and squeeze your knees it works pretty good,.=]