Does this sound familiar? You mount with the best of intentions, but from the very first step you can feel it. You ask yourself: “Why is my horse so tense? He has a comfortable saddle, gets enough grazing time, and I’m taking it easy, aren’t I?”
We often look for the solution in a different bit, a calming supplement, or walking even more slowly. But in 90% of horses, the real cause of tension is not mental, but physical.
Tension due to imbalance
Imagine having to walk across a narrow, slippery tree trunk with a heavy backpack. If that backpack keeps sliding to the left, you have to tense your whole body to avoid falling. Your muscles become stiff, your breathing becomes rapid, and you become mentally stressed because you are afraid of losing your balance.
This is exactly what a horse experiences when it is not straight.
The vicious circle of natural crookedness
Every horse is born with a natural crookedness (a ‘concave’ and a ‘convex’ side). If we ride without correcting this, the following happens:
- Imbalance: The horse cannot distribute its own weight and that of the rider properly.
- Muscle strength: In order not to fall over, the horse will ‘lock’ its muscles.
- Mental stress: A horse that does not feel physically safe (in balance) goes into survival mode. It becomes skittish, jumpy, or wants to run away.
Tension is therefore often nothing more than a horse trying not to fall over.
Why riding more often doesn’t help
Many riders are advised to “just ride through it” or “tire him out.” But if a horse is tense due to imbalance, more exercise will only lead to more compensation and ultimately even injuries.
In Academic Art of Riding and straightness training, we don’t look at how we can suppress the tension, but how we can remove the cause. By teaching your horse how to shift its center of gravity and use its hind leg correctly, you give it back its balance.
Conclusion
A relaxed horse is a horse that is in balance. Would you like to know how you can help your horse find that physical calm? Then take a look at the principles of straightness training. It is the path from frustration to harmony.