Tips on how to keep your butt in the saddle ?

Question

ok. really need help keeping my butt in the saddle at a canter. I know about being on the lunge line and the head, knee, and toe thing. I was talking about imagining things like waxing the saddle with your butt. Those types of things. Tanks alot =)

Answer 1

first of all do u ride english or western? If u ride western u need to move ur hips with the motion. go with the flow. just relax in the saddle and move ur hips not ur whole body well u kinda move ur body too but not that much. any way please answer my question do u ride english or western? i ride wetern si i dont know much about english

Answer 2

i had this same problem. when i first started, i was exhausted after cantering.

ride without ur stirrups and sit the trot. then take off the saddle. even if you dont ride bareback. get the walk and trot perfect then put the saddle back on. try cantering. if you're riding english, open up your shoulders and tip forward. grab some mane if you want. you don't have to stay glued to the seat english. it's supposed to be like you're gently rising and falling in the saddle. but if you're western, lean back a little, make sure you're back's straight, and your shoulders out. move your hips with the saddle and feel the movement of the horse. just relax and don't try too hard.

good luck!

Answer 3

Lean back (but not too much). I was taught, that imagine that you're wearing jeans (or just wear them) and lean back so the pockets on your bum are on the saddle.

Answer 4

Make sure you are relaxed. Let your back and hips go with the rhythm of the horse and don't force it. Keep your weight in your heels, sit up straight (don't lean forwards) and relax. It takes time to get it perfect. You need a strong seat and your horse needs a good canter to make it easier. I recommend cantering several strides and then trotting for a few before cantering again. When you are first learning you need to do it a little at a time or you will tire and lose your seat.

Answer 5

hey!

you want to keep your feet heavy in the stirrups..

you also need to ride alot.. i know it sounds stupid but i have the roughest horse ever! ahh! i used to get soo frustrated.. and a month later of riding her at least 3 days a week im perfectly fine in the saddle... also when you ride try not to lean forward.sit back and sit deep.but believe it or not.. the main thing is.. is that you need to ride and get some miles on that horse..did wonders for me.. good luck!

Answer 6

Generally, practice makes perfect. The more you canter, the quicker you can sit it. I've also heard of this product, though I'm not sure if it works: http://www.sadl-tite.co.uk/

Answer 7

check your sturrip length, sometimes they're too long and it throws you off balance.

Theres a saying Sit in your pockets. Meaning the 2 back pockets on your pants need to be against the cantle (back) of the saddle as best as you can. For cantering I was at a show when the judge said to look at the front of your saddle. The saddle should be secured to the horse, which means when the horse canters  it'll be in rythem with the saddle. Look at the front of the saddle and rock with that

Answer 8

Just put your weight in your heels, and that should help keep you in the saddle. Practice your sitting trot A LOT, and soon sitting in the saddle will feel natural! = )

Answer 9

curl your pelvis under...sit on your butt bone, not your girl thing.

Answer 10

Roll your shoulders back (like you're sticking out your chest) This will help put the weight in your seat instead of in your shoulders. Make sure your heels are down, and have your hips go with the movement of your horse.

Answer 11

Well when i first started cantering i couldnt do it either. no matter how hard i tried. so what my trainer did was put me on an older/more experienced horse, with a lunge line, on soft ground.....but i was bareback.

there is just something in your mind that clicks when you try riding bareback....its like "if i dont stick to this horse im gonna hit the dirt"

and anyways thats how i learned. the first time around i was sitting and sticking to that mares back.

GOOD LUCK!

Answer 12

The best way to gain your seat is to do a LOT of sitting trotting WITHOUT irons...

In the words of my old Cuban riding instructor, "Keep on trrrrotttinggggg!".

Answer 13

Put your butt under you. And make sure your shoulders are back and heels down. But, as long a your butt is under you, your pretty much set. If the horse is bouncy, try a smoother horse. Practice sitting up and stuff.

Answer 14

My grandpa always told me to "keep your butt glued to the saddle". When he rode, he never left the saddle for an instant. Just imaging you are really stuck to the saddle. It always worked for us.

Answer 15

what my trainer always tought me is to put a bill down like  a dallor or a pice of cardborad the size of a bill and put it underneath you, and you cant loze it. it worked for me and my people to train it works for them

Answer 16

If you ride western you need to move your hips with the horses shoulders. Keep you heels down and feet pointed.

Answer 17

i have the exact same problem and i've found that working at the canter without stirrups is the best way for me to keep my butt in the saddle.  even just working without stirrups for like 5 minutes during my warm up helps tremendously.  also, visualize your butt lightly sweeping the seat of the saddle and relax your ankle joints.  hope this helps!!!

Answer 18

You have to be relaxed or you'll pop out of the saddle, in any gait. Along with some of the other good advice you've already gotten here, I've found the key to sitting a canter is in the hips. Your hips can't be tight or stiff, they have to be flexible and elastic so that they roll forward and backward with the motion of the canter without any resistance (i.e., the waxing of the saddle). If you find you're tight in the hips or hip joint, try out a yoga video for riders. You can find some less expensive ones at overstock.com. It'll help loosen up certain areas riders use the most (and that many other exercise/flexibility programs that aren't designed for riders don't address). There's an aerobics move that is very similar to what riders do when cantering and keeping their butt in the saddle successfully. I can't think of any PG way to say it...smooth rolling hip thrusts. Visualize that, it helps ;)

Answer 19

Sounds like you just need to develop a better seat, and one of the best ways to do this is by going bareback. Many riders, even experienced ones, learn to rely on their stirrups, not their balance, to stay on.  Take the saddle off (use a bareback pad, if you want to), take off your spurs, replace your horse's shank bit with a mild snaffle, then start riding at a walk.  You don't want to grip with your legs, rely on your balance to stay on.  Keep your toes up and heels down, like you would in the saddle, and lean neither forward nor backward.  Once you feel comfortable, move to a slow trot.  Keep your back fluid, and try to sit the trot while keeping your butt on your horses back.  Try holding a glass of water while you do it.  Once you feel comfortable there, go to a fast trot, and then to a canter.  It is especially important to keep your back fluid at a canter, to be able to sit all three beats.  Make sure you are not gripping with your legs, and are sitting straight.  Again, hold a glass of water while you canter, or put a dollar bill under your butt and try to keep it there.  Once you have a solid seat at the canter, the saddle will be a piece of cake.  Good luck!

Answer 20

I ussally dont sit in the saddle when im cantering. I just stand up in it.

Its way funner. I always thought thats what you were suppose to do to. Oh well thats what every one in my family does.

So try standing, just on the stirups though not on the saddle lol