Renata practices keeping wiggly worm Jay together on figures. 😊🙌
Love this video my working student Marit made of the fun time her and Gem had when we went schooling cross country on Sunday!! Gem has become a total powerhouse! This was Marit's first time out on XC and at first she was just hanging on, but as the session progressed, she made a lot of progress in feeling and timing so she could go with Gem much more. What a team!❤️😃
Once a week, I also teach music.
Music and riding are so similar. They are both an art and a skill with their foundations being in hard science. For music that science is math, and for riding that science is anatomy and physics.
The science part of the art can feel very complicated. Both music and riding theory can be heavy to digest; made up of seemingly abstract concepts that only make sense when you finally discover them as real through your practice. Not only is there a dense mental level of understanding, but there is also a long, slow process of developing your physical ability. The magic happens when your unconscious mind starts to focus and participate efficiently even without your conscious input... when you're truly "in the zone."
In my riding teaching business, I overwhelmingly teach adults, while when I teach music, it is mostly to kids.
In both arts, adults consistently have the habits to:
-Disempower themselves before they even start: "I'm not musical", "I'm not coordinated", I'm not very good"
-Treat mistakes as failures: "I'll never get this", "I can't do it"
- Assume that proficiency is from natural talent instead of the result of time and effort: "I'm not talented", "I'm not gifted", "I wish I was a good as _____"
-Treat theory as only comprehensible for experts:
"I wasn't good at school, so I probably can't understand that," "That's too complicated," "I'm not even good enough to need to know that,"
Luckily, most kids haven't yet been conditioned to think they are so incapable. Kids usually think they can do it all and then some!
Typically:
-They feel empowered to try new things and are excited to see how they do.
-They think of mistakes as annoying little challenges that spur on their motivation to improve.
-They think they could be just as gifted or talented as anybody else!
-They have no reason to think of theory as incomprehensible and ask questions when something isn't clear.
Kids are still new to the planet, and the desire to l
First show of the season for me and Gem! 💎❤️🔥
So grateful to have so many well-organized, welcoming schooling shows here in Florida! We ended the spring season with Gem feeling really confident and honest at Beginner Novice (2'6") height out and comfortable rocking 2'9" at home. Here, we just did the 2' round at Sweet Dixie South.
This year, our goal will be to actually feel we can ride competitively at 2'6". It is so easy for riders to get wrapped up in height and level, but no particular level or fence height makes you a good rider. Proficiency of the basics and keeping a calm, confident mount of any natural ability is what represents good Horsemanship and Equitation. To have a winning round that looks like a walk in the park is a worthy challenge at any level. This is really the original point of competition: an exhibition of skill; not a race to the top strewn with struggle, injury, and panicked horses.
Thanks @mvwgraphics for making this super flashy reel for us!! 😍🥰🙌
The natural state of the horse isn't to be reactively fearful but to be cautiously curious and adaptive.
If you allow your horse the space to investigate and the choice to leave or avoid all on his own, you'll find that he does a very good job establishing his own boundaries. Here, Phish is curious about the big upright bass and then promptly decides that actually, he knows all he wants to about it and would rather eat grass: self-soothing avoidance.
Did he learn to confront a new, odd, suspicious thing? No, and while that's still a valid lesson to learn, I can't control every new, odd, suspicious situation we will ever encounter. So it is also a good experience for him to see that a new, odd, suspicious thing:
made an appearance,
was harmless,
resulted in no confrontation,
and the day carried on.
❤️
There are three areas of the horse's spine with the highest degree of mobility: the area of the poll, the area of the base of the neck, and the lumbosacral junction.
They are constantly compensating for one another, so what seems like a problem you need to address in one area is frequently just a symptom of somewhere else that is actually the issue. Help your horses as much as possible with veterinary medicine and bodywork, but also help them by riding them gymnastically!
It really doesn't get much better 🥰🙌
Trail day!
I'm not sure why Instagram isn't automatically sharing my posts onto Facebook anymore 🤔
Nice trail ride today at River Rise. ❤ We love taking 2 out while another 2 wait in the trailer and then swap. So good for their brains and great for creating calm, confident trailer experiences.
Sami is learning to self load and she's just about got it!
Enjoying that Florida Horse Life!!!
Neira is a total badass! She is a living testament to the fact that when you put time and care into a horse's education and fitness with a priority on relaxation and correct movement, as Shelbie ( @bodhiequus ) has done, you create a healthier animal with a longer life than would have existed otherwise. Why would anyone want to work horses in any other way?! Not only does Neira still have that rockin' bod at 26, she's a better teacher than most humans! Here she is with one of her students.❤
Practical, holistic horsemanship
