Rockin M Performance Horses

09/01/2025

I am my biggest critic and always the one standing in my own way. Self-criticism is the habit of judging yourself harshly. It’s that internal voice that points out your mistakes, downplays your progress, and holds you to often impossible standards.

The way a horse performs is often a mirror of ourselves. Their try, their patience, their resistance, and their heart all reflect the way we show up. Training isn’t just shaping a horse: it’s shaping us. When we evaluate them, we’re evaluating ourselves - whether it’s our timing, our tone, our intention. What can we do better? How can we better guide our horses? And just like we offer them grace while they learn, we owe the same to ourselves.

Give yourself some grace....

2 Timothy 1:7 says, "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind".

It encourages us to work with a clear, rational mind, free from fear or frustration, which helps build trust with the horse.

08/23/2025

Every 𝐬𝐞𝐭𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 is a setup for a 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤. Keep going.

In this sport, progress isn’t always a straight line. The tough days, the missed marks, the runs that don’t go as planned — they all build the grit it takes to keep moving forward.💜

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08/23/2025

I've been sick as a dog for the past week...no clue what it was but it kicked my butt and had me down for the count!! I'm feeling better... not 100%, but better, so the girls got some groundwork today.

08/20/2025

✨ Ride the horse you have today – and love the lesson! ✨

Not every ride will feel like a highlight reel. Some days your horse is distracted, some days you’re off your game. But every single ride is a chance to learn, grow, and connect. 💫

⚡️The magic happens when we stop wishing for the “perfect ride” and instead embrace the one right in front of us. Because those little lessons – the patience, the adjustments, the small wins – are what create the rider you’re becoming. 🐎

So today, ride the horse you have. Tomorrow, you’ll thank yourself for loving the lesson. 💛

👉 What lesson has your horse taught you recently? Share it below – your story might be the encouragement someone else needs today!

08/17/2025

Laramie has been delivered to her new foster home. While the journey of working with her was fun and gave me a challenge....I am happy to be back focusing on my girls to get them ready for the 2026 show season!

08/09/2025

Good stuff here!!

What if one of the best things you could do for your horse… was nothing? 🤔

Most riders think of the walk as a break, and I at one time thought the same.

Fewer see the halt as a tool, yet stillness can be one of the most powerful moments in a ride. 🧘‍♀️

Standing still is not just a mark of a quiet well trained horse. True stillness is intentional, and it gives the horse’s body an opportunity to process and integrate the movements and improvements made during the exercise.

It should be less about taking a breather and more about allowing the nervous and musculoskeletal system to catch up to the work that was just done.

From my post few weeks ago - working at speed can hide a horse’s struggle. If a maneuver cannot be done with ease at the walk, it is almost certain that it is being done in dysfunction at the lope.

Slow, mindful movement at the walk is the baseline. It develops muscles at a deeper level, the way Pilates or yoga does for people, and often requires more strength and coordination than it appears. 💪🏻

When “a break” between exercises happens in at the halt, the horse’s mind has space process, tense fascia has a chance to release, and the body can realign its kinetic lines. These moments help reset posture, free up restricted movement patterns, and support muscle memory that is built on balance rather than bracing. 🩼

This is also where the roots of true riding and horsemanship lie. It is supposed to be about leaving the horse’s body better than we found it, with each ride contributing to long-term soundness rather than chipping away at it.

Stillness is not wasted time; it is where the body organizes itself for better movement ahead. 🧩

It can feel uncomfortable at first. Boredom may creep in, and there can be a temptation to wonder what others in the arena are thinking. But standing still is also a chance for the rider to recenter, adjust posture and breath, and plan the next maneuver with intention.

The next time the urge comes to simply walk out a break, try standing. Allow the body to learn in those quiet moments, and watch how that superpower shows up in motion. 🦸🏼

08/06/2025

Make the “first” signal you give, one that you would be proud of in the pattern, even if you’re 1000 % sure it won’t work. Wait 3 seconds and correct!
One day, the horse will respond and it will find out no correction came!
If you’re too fast to correct, he never understands that he has a choice.
This can be applied to every maneuver you do.
Your horse will become more relaxed and confident!

08/05/2025

The morning got away from me prepping the house for painters, and it was already hot by the time I made it out..so the girls just got a light roundpen workout.

✨️Make the Most of the Time You Have✨️

Life happens and some days we have more time than we planned, while others we have less. Don’t let reality get you down, just roll with the punches and make the most of the time you have. If you are short of time, you are better off reducing your expectations than trying to rush and cram in too much. Rushing rarely works well with horses.

Horses don’t operate on human time; horse-time is altogether different. Horses can get very irritable when you get in a hurry and it’s far too easy to make mistakes, cut corners and do unsafe things. If you find yourself short of time, cut back your plans and do something meaningful and positive with your horse—less is often more. Do a little ground work instead of riding. Take your horse on a relaxing walk; give him some extra spa treatments—enjoy some quality time with your horse and be happy with that. Hurrying to cram in more often ends in a frustrating and aggravating way, for both you and your horse, and neither one of you will look forward to next time.

07/30/2025

07/28/2025

❤️

𝐅𝐨𝐜𝐮𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟, 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟.

Back home with a grateful heart — and right back to work. Just enough time to catch up before we head to the pre-futurity.

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07/25/2025

Horsemanship isn’t about asking your horse for the big things, it’s about asking the smallest ones with consistency. Consistency in how you ask, and what you expect from them.

It’s easy to get caught up in the big moments, the fancy maneuver, the fast stop, the perfect ride. But true progress is built through the little asks, repeated with clarity and patience.

Can you stand still?
Can you back up softly?
Can you easily be caught in the pasture?
Can you follow a feel today… and tomorrow… and the next day?

It’s not the size of the question that shapes your horse.
It’s the consistency with which you ask it.

Never underestimate the power of doing the small things well, again and again. That’s where trust is built. That’s where horsemanship lives. It’s too easy to skip over it all, but at some point it always catches up with you. If you want to be a great horseman or woman one day, focus on mastering the simple questions day in and day out.

-Michael Lyons Horsemanship