Many times throughout one’s riding lessons you are apt to hear the words “more forward”. Without some effort and forethought we very rarely achieve such a thing and instead manage to create a horse that is just going faster or rushing. So what is it that we must accomplish before moving the horse forward without rushing? The answer is balance.

In its simplest form a balanced horse is one that travels equally on all four feet. Left on their own most horses carry more weight on their forehand – bearing more weight on their front legs. This serves the horse very well unless a human decides to sit in the middle of her back. Before you ever sit astride your horse you need to rebalance her movement with work in-hand and on the longe line. Once mounted your responsibility to correct her balance continues in order to help with the added weight she is now required to carry.

Balance is a two-fold issue. There is lateral balance – turning and bending: and longitudinal balance – lengthening and shortening strides.

Thankfully creating lateral balance under saddle is not all that difficult. Think of a horse as one thousand pounds of clay on four toothpicks – think of how easy it would be to push that structure over onto its side. Now understand that being prone on the ground is the last place a horse wishes to be – in order to avoid such the horse will move his feet under his displaced bulk – selective displacement of this bulk is the true key to riding in balance.

Think again of our clay/toothpick picture and it becomes clear just how easy it is to disturb the horse’s balance. We will use this disturbance to recreate how the horse steps under himself. This is the basic premise for all lateral movement as well as turning the horse in balance without leaning on the shoulder as you so often see when horses are “steered” by the reins only.

The ability to control your own body is of the utmost importance. Once you have disturbed the balance of the horse you must sit and wait for the horse to move his feet where you have directed him. You must be absolutely certain of where you wish to go and not let the horse change your mind or your position..

To begin – look in the direction you wish to go with your eyes, shoulders, hips and elbows all parallel to the ground. Allow your body to twist throughout the lower limbs and trunk but do not lean – keep your elbows free of your body so you do not pull the reins in the direction you are looking. If you are not blocking yourself by grabbing with your knees or any other part of your body you will be in the correct position to displace your horse’s bulk by slightly weighting the stirrup on the side you wish your horse to travel towards – i.e. – step left if you wish your horse to move left. If you have everything correct your horse will step under the weighted side. This is the first step of a left turn or a left bending lateral movement.

If you believe that you are correct in your position and your horse does not respond you may need a touch of the whip or a push of your heel behind the girth on the outside of your bend to encourage your horse to move (in some manner) until he becomes used to the lesser aid system. This is especially true if you or your horse have been used to riding in a more aggressive manner that involves pushing, pulling, spurring, thumping with the legs, jumping up and down on his back and yanking on the reins. Horses are such generous partners that they will do anything we ask even if it does not serve them well and it often takes time to retrain a very distorted pattern of aids. Your goal should be to retrain toward less aids.

Longitudinal balance is created by not disturbing your horse’s back. Your horse’s back cannot physically move as much as the rider's body. If you are moving more than your horse’s back can accommodate the horse stiffens the back to protect the spine and will then move the legs faster to compensate for the continued thrust by the rider to move forward. A horse does not move forward by any action of the back – the hindquarters generate all movement. The horse’s back and rider filter what is asked of the hindquarters. Once you understand that the only influence a rider should create in the back is to support it by being still and that you must generate movement in the hindquarters longitudinal balance is easier to understand.

If you want your horse to shorten the stride you ask the horse forward with your legs and sit tall and still to hold the energy in the center of the horse. If you want the horse to lengthen the stride you need to generate energy with your leg, hold it in the center by sitting tall and then ask for more forward with the leg; energy, hold, release, energy, hold, release until the horse can move forward without falling on the forehand and running faster. The front end will elevate instead of lower, the hindquarters will start to carry instead of pushing and balance is created.