Using your hip in english riding?

Question

I've always had a bit of a problem leaning into turns, or turning my torso to face the turn before I actually do it.

I've been told I should bring my outside hip and thigh back to turn to the inside, and vice versa.

For some reason, this has been ridiculously hard for me to figure out. I don't understand the motion. Do I bring my thigh and hip backwards, towards the rear of the horse? Do I swing my knee out away from the horse, so there's space between my thigh and the horse? Do I bring my whole leg back?

Also, what does open and closed hip mean?

(This is all english riding!)

Answer 1

I ride english and when I turn i do something like that with my hips. To do a right turn, I pull my right arm in and give with my left arm. i pull my right hip back and look at my horse's tail. to do a left turn it is vise versa. always turn into the fence

Answer 2

When I initially took lessons, it was "right rein - don't lean - left leg - right leg back - lower your hands  and heels - squeeze - don't squeeze " nag-nag-nag.  So you are sitting on a 1300 lb. horse trying to stay focused and remember all these things at once.  Finally, I shook it all off and started "riding my horse".  Think about it?  What are you trying to do with your horse?  If you do in your body what you want your horse's body to do, he will get the message without a bunch of technical jargan getting in the way.  If you want him to bend in his ribcage, you bend in your ribcage and support him with your inside and outside leg if he lets you know he needs some help.  It's like you and your horse become one entity.  Your body moves with his body and his body will mirror the movement in your body.  So many people used to tell me about canter aids.  Just so not necessary.  When I want a transition from a walk or trot, I follow his movement and when the correct hind is going on the ground, I begin to canter in my body, and he immediately goes with me - never misses a correct lead.  Works beautifully.  Try not to get mired down in the technicality.  "Ride" your horse and have fun.  A few basics is all you need to build on and the rest will come.  You already know that you need to "look where you are going", it's just the first thing you ask when you want to change directions.  Really pretty simple stuff.  And it is to much fun when you don't make it too much work.  Have fun and enjoy.  You might be surprised how good your horse is at reading your body language.

Answer 3

My instructer says the same thing but has a cupple good explanations for it. one is unlock your hip. it kind of feels like you sliding you leg back but from your hip. the other one is exactly as before but you imagine that your leg is in plastar cast, begining at your hip.

i know what you talking about. it's taken me 6 months to learn how to propelly turn( this may seem wierd but there's a difference from turning and doing it well and understanding what the horse has to do to get round the corner) . but now the key is to keep practicing until it becomes completely natural! which is my next venture.

don't forget that your horse can't come over unless there is a space for it to move. remember to relax your inside leg but not so much as if it's a limp fish! finding the balance between the two things is very hard but it will eventually come!!!!!

sorry if the spellings bad!!!!!!

Answer 4

Haha this took me forever too. My instructor is CENTERED RIDING and only that.. ok if your riding and your circling left bring your right hip forward making your left hip come back but at the same time turn your sholders..   Try it on a chair first make sure you feel your seat bones or its pointless.. If you just do your sholders your hips will follow most of time..

Also its not something you are going to see you can only feel it but it will take time and practice if your trotting when you post turn yourself compleetly side ways and that is doing what you need to do with your hips to do that when your in the saddle. and turning you want to face away from the rail so your horse bends into the rail.. http://youtube.com/watch?v=FJwnvICGrXk&f... this is of leg yeilding and  if you watch the lady has her horse bend to the center  of the ring but hes moving away from it thats kinda what you need to do but you need the whole hip thing first before you will get this. I have been riding 3 years and cant leg yeild on my mare...I have only had her 1 so..

Answer 5

This is riding...not English or Western.  The upper body and lower body function as separate entities.  Your hips do not connect to your shoulders.  Your hips connect to your horse.  When you learn to use your hips correctly, you will stop leaning into your turns.The open and closed angle of your hip is the same as the open and closed angles seen in your horse's stride...an open angle is less flexed at the joint, and closed is more flexed.  No don't make space between your thigh and the horse...you bring your leg back when you open your hip angle...it is less flexed.  If you move your thigh straighter, the rest of your leg follows.  I don't know if this is helping you..I hope you get what I'm trying to say.  Your instructor may want you to rotate your hip to "open" the angle, so rotating it away from the horse would be open, and rotating it toward the horse would be closed...you need to firm up your communication with her.

Answer 6

i don't know about the hip and thigh, but if your leading with your shoulders you need to think about lining them and your eyes up with your horses ears and shoulder.  remember, you and your horse are supposed to move together! and you don't need to drag your horse by your shoulder, your legs should push him into a turn.. you can't drag him!

now, from what i can assume with the thigh thing, you need to stretch your leg down and back, but not peel it away from the saddle. Kind of the same way you ask for a canter, with the outside leg back and the inside leg at the girth-i think its the same idea.   there shouldn't ever be space between you and the saddle.  

But personally, i don't think your legs are going to help leaning.  you need to work on walking and trotting and focusing on your upper body. doing straight lines will help you understand what straight is so you'll be able to tell when you NOT straight.  

Try and keep your bum centered on your saddle.  My saddle has fairly obvious stitching on the seat so i keep my bum centered over it, that's exactly what you have to do.. keep everything centered.  I can feel the stitching and therefore can feel whats straight, but when your riding think about how much of your leg is on each side of your horse, how much of your leg is touching the saddle, anything that allows you to feel whats straigt.

sorry if this doesn't make sense, its 1:45 in the morning for me, so i can't guarantee what I'm saying makes sense!  I'll check back, but if you had a video it would be easier to understand your problem.

hope i help (and make sense!)

good luck [=

and sorry, i don't know what open and closed hip is.. i've been meaning to ask myself!

Answer 7

I think you are thinking about this too much!

The most basic way to do this correctly is sit up straight, then look where you're going and your body position will follow correctly!

Therefore, if you are about to circle to the left, turn your head and eyes to the left, looking where you are headed.

This should turn your shoulders, torso, and hips just enough.  You don't want much movement in your hips, it shouldn't be noticeable, there absolutely shouldn't be spaces opening up between you & the saddle.

So forget trying to figure it out and just remember to always look where you heading!