Couldn't be truer with anything horse based 
Having sat down and analysed videos (pulled them apart, groaned a bit, tutted a lot) today's lesson was focused on me and my weaknesses (of which there are many!) 
Chiro and physio have worked blooming hard to get me mobile in left side of neck, shoulder and hip, I am definitely stronger, fitter and more mobile but the same old things keep cropping up...my inability to move left leg back independently of right leg, a tendency to collapse/concertina through the right side, a very strong right hand and a tendency to drop head to right side...could go on, is good for a starting point 
I also chatted to trainer about not feeling like I 'know' when I am twisted or shifted, the only way I know my left leg is in the right position for lateral work for instance is that it hurts!!! Feel is a work in process for definite! 
Today we spent the warm up in walk, working on those basics, the 'feel' of hindlegs moving into the tracks of the front legs, can I 'feel'both seat bones? are my shoulders rolled back and down? am I tall through my core? Is the core engaged with that feeling of forward? Am I sitting deep? Am I moving with the horse, not against him? Is the weight down through my elbows and into my hips? Are my hands forward? All before I even think about the wonderpony!!! 
Many, many changes of rein later, I began to 'feel' a little more...pony became a wriggling racing snake in an attempt to get me back to how he is used to be ridden....only then did I know I was maybe doing something right!! 
Collecting up the walk, encouraging the energy but not speed, we worked on transitions, maintaining the straightness of both myself and him...much, much much harder than it might sound!!Walk to halt so much more engaged, walk to trot, really coming on. If the rider looks up and focuses on the same principles from walk, it goes well, lovely soft active transitions both up and down 
Once we had that we worked on the medium trot. By golly, I can really feel his strength coming on in leaps and bounds. A good trick for us is the slight outside flexion coming round the corner to prepare, that way I know we have absolute straightness across the diagonal or down the long side. Looking up and really swinging those hips forward, hands down and soft, we are really getting one or two nice strides 
as soon as he begins to lose balance, I have to be quick to collect and rebalance and the ask again...really feels like it won't be long before we can manage a good (for us) medium. On and back along the long side, focusing on staightness, collecting on my seat, so really focusing on the softness in the neck, slight outside flexion in the corners, then repeat on other rein. Felt good! 
The the exact same principles in canter. Sit up, engage the core, hands down and together so I cannot rely on them to 'steer', therefore I HAVE to use my legs, seat and core to maintain rhythm, tempo and direction....heavens above my brain was exploding a bit. I have always had more of a problem in canter with all my horses, but I truly believe it is because I have never really learnt to RIDE it, just always asked and sat and hoped for the best!! 
COunter canter today. Fabulous for getting him to engage those hind legs. Asking for counter canter on the straight side, great for ensuring he is on the aids Beginning now to think about riding the counter canter with more straightness than outside flexion. Bizaarly felt better on the left rein today,balanced, controlled with still a little work to do on the true softness in the neck. Right rein was more difficult to pick up, so had to take it from the centre line, but again he worked his socks off, kept the corners a gentle curve, up the long side, round the short and finall across the diagonal to 'true' canter' which immediately felt lovely 
Finally back to the trot, working on an active and forward downwards transition, with more work on the medium trot to finish...soooooooo pleased he still had enough in the tank after that hour of hard work, for it to feel just as good as the earlier trot work.... Lots and lots to work on this week.Hack tomorrow, recap on Thursday, canter poles on Friday and a well earned day off on Sunday
I will tonight, without a shadow of a doubt, sleep very well.The boy and I have had a busy half term...but so much fun!! /> Today was the turn of Merrist Wood. We hired the indoor as it is our nemesis, he hates it with a passion, but really felt this year at rising 8 he HAS to man up and I have to ride better /> As it turned out, with the regionals starting half an hour after we left it was blooming busy,lots going on, lots of people arriving, crashing around, music playing, comings and goings on the balcony and THE FLOWERS!!! /> Perfect, perfect practice really....Stills are here: Merrist Wood albumHusband and child came along...so to give you fair warning, the videos range from shaky, to non existent, to farting and giggling,to actually bits and pieces of our work/> If you are bored enough, please feel free to scroll through our youtube channel....but have picked some bits and pieces for you.Was so so so chuffed with him. Kind lady (harrassed) said we could do 15 minutes outside which was great...more like an actual competition 
/> Went in at alloted time expecting the usual killer flower shenanigans...but NOT ONE.... 
/> So hands up,who took my pony and replaced him with a grown up boy???!!! 
/> We were there really to run through some bits and pieces of the medium work we have been looking at at home...lots to work on still, but very very useful to play with them out and about and under no pressure 
/> Was really chuffed that the outline seems to be coming a little more uphill with more consistency and I am not constantly looking at pictures and videos with utter utter horror /> So here they are: fair warning people: 
/>Wide behind and many moments of wiggly worming, but a start Canter entryA very wobbly attempt at the beginning of M75(I think)...sitting trot a work in progress as is the half pass and the slightly large 10m circle....Travers needs a LOT more control and I am sure the dressage police will be able to pick a lot more apart 
Trot workWalk pirouette...bit of a fail PiriFree walk, to medium to collected walk to collected canter, then the half pass which small child stopped filming before you saw our half pass for a 9...text book I tell you Walk- canterCounter canter: Counter canterAre you bored yet??? And the 'fart'to finish...apologies for my family!!!Oh dearLots and lots of work to do, but hopefully in 6 months time, we will be able to put the elements together and make a semi decent go of it all.... 
And that, is the last post this week, I promise
As you can see the Small Brown wonderpony has had a busy week />/> Teaching means the weekends are filled to the brim, so made the decision this year to try and fill holidays with more intensive burst of training at venues that run affiliated dressage...this was our first clinic with Dan Greenwood. Have to say I was most impressed />/> Apart from being a genuinely nice man, with a great, clear way of explaining things, he too had a lot of little tricks up his sleeve to help with our progression, oceans of patience and I left with a lot of ideas to work on and yet more tools in our armoury />/> There was so much to take away, I was blooming glad I had persuaded OH to come and video and photograph, I think a lot would have been forgotten otherwise />/> In fact, so much to say I am not quite sure where to start, but might just post links to videos and let you watch for yourself. He gives a great, clear commentary which explains exactly what we were trying to achieve I think />/> So warm up was a little different as he was quite keen to get on with trot work. Small Brown had decided the collie dogs hanging around by the door to the indoor school were definitely worth spooking at EVERY time we went past them, but we soon sorted that out. I felt much more able to build on Leanne's work from Tuesday, left leg on, flexion and forward...he quickly realised I was on it and soon gave up 
/>/> We worked on a slightly longer 'working frame' to begin with, really looking at my crookedness />/> position of shoulders, hands etc.Then onto canter warm up: Canter warm upHe was very keen for me to keep my right hand (outside) down to feel the contact on the outside rein and really focus on the weight through my left leg (very bad habit) to ensure it is used effectively. he got us doing a lot of transitions then leg yielding in the canter, which was a great warm up, certainly got the both of us thinking! />/>He got us to start pulling together a bit in order to work towards more collection, as you can see, the hands together in front was a difficult thing for him to get his head round...but certainly made a difference and made me think:Hands togetherOther rein: Canter leg yieldWarmup finished: time for a plan....'More uphill' /> First port of call, engaging the hind leg in the walk, thinking more 'buzzy' Activity important, inside hind stepping under, bringing the poll up: Lateral work in walk to improve the collection Imortant here not to have bend, just flexion....Clearer picture here as we got the idea a bit more...sitting right, not bending...as my concentration fades, clearly it goes to pot /> Canter collection workThe best thing he said to be was think more 'WHoa, not go' in the canter transition ie: our walk needs to be active and buzzy enough to want to feel we need to have a check on the energy (not necessarily do one, but have that feeling) in the upwards transition. definitely one of many lightbulb moments today 
We moved on to keeping that uphill feeling with a more active trot: Trot and from that into some lateral work, shoulder in in particular. I clearly need to get more organised, I do in all honesty find it easier in sitting trot, but he wanted the swing through the back, so rise we did...I am a messy rider I know that, so lots to work on here We were both pretty tired by this point but I was pleased with the energy and shoulder in at the end: Shoulder inLOVED IT!!!Brain aches from all the thinking, but 100% would go again Merrist Wood tomorrow, then we may both collapse in a heap on Saturday
Today was our first session with Leanne Wall via BD Southern training shenanigans.WHAT A LOVELY WOMAN!!She had started at 7.30am,we rocked up at 8.15 for our session, she was bright as a button, cheery and welcoming...did the usual , how old is he, how is he bred,what are you working on at home, what do you find hard, what would you like to look at today??...I did my usual mumbling about not being very good, needing to work on everything, she had a look at us while we warmed up (spooked at all the jumps in the other part of the arena /> )She was very quickly onto my lack of strength in my left leg and the Small brown ones penchant for taking advantage of that, throwing me off his shoulder and twisting me right. Sorted that out quick smart with some straightening of the rider and whip in the left hand /> and then declared him utterly delicious and not much wrong with that swing and softness in the trot 
/> We did some engagement exercises (very much in line with what regular trainer does at home so I was really pleased) riding up and forwards into a soft receiving hand, sitting tall yet deep in the seat, legs long and around his barrel, lifting him up into the halt. Worked on one step at a time forward, focus on control of each footfall, then interpersed with rein back, halt, walk, halt, reinback, trot, trot halt, rein back, canter etc etc. He was a super boy and she complimented him on his quickness to pick things up and listen. /> Quick bit of lateral work in walk and trot, then she asked to see his canter: Not historically a good moment for us /> However! I must have a bit more faith.....he was on it.I think some of it has to do with the pony who had now entered the jump arena and had proceeded to throw itself around with a shrieking little person on board The rein back to canter is really helping that jump, she was very honest and said he needed more than just one of two quality strides of canter (clearly ) We started on our worst rein so he didn't use all his energy before we needed it....into left canter, with me needing to ride the outside a little more and support him with that inside leg. Lifting and giving the inside rein really helped him and he started to come through nicely up and forward. She had us work on a square, so really thinking about control, a good corner, straighten with maybe a little bit of shoulder fore when the pony next door got to be too much of a distraction and ride him upand forward. every so often she had us give our left rein upand forward to test the self carriage and when the rider was relaxed, sitting up and riding, it felt incredible Repeated on right side, which he definitely found easier and then onto half pass work. I have to make sure I am sitting right when moving right...I am a bit of an idiot and get in a flap in canter, especially as we can do it perfectly well in trot. She had me look down at my right ankle before spotting our point to aim for which REALLY helped me with weight distribution and direction and focus. I have to keep the line and steer the shoulders, the quarters must not lead EVER, he can do it, I just need to make sure I keep him relaxed in the neck and not allow him to run into the hand when he doesn't quite understand the question. Alternating half halts with inside and outside reins really helped us...I am all for finding what works for you...she did say, not every trainer would like it, but by golly the boy responded with some lovely steps. Repeated on the left (small child had now fallen off pony and was complaining VERY noisily as pony galloped around arena ) at which point we decided to call it a day Long stretchy trot to finish and big pats I stayed and watched a few of the BYRDS lessons...sooooooooooooo cute And was persuaded to put ourselves forward for teams 
Not sure we are really team material, but I smiled and said of course she could send me the details 
All in all a very positive experience, where we learnt a lot and looking forward to next monthsObligatory pony shot to finish Pony face
