| By :
Josie Amani
Sitting at the trot is perhaps the exercise most novice riders struggle with. Building core strength and abdominal muscles can greatly help you achieve the sitting trot and there are some exercises you can do on your horse as well. You should aim at strengthening your back and abdominal muscles through exercise to achieve great posture and balance in the sitting trot. The best time to start your training on the sitting trot is after you've mastered the classical seat. As the classical seat allows you to sit deeply and securely on the horse you should first try to master this seat before attempting the sitting trot. Here are a few exercises that will help you master the sitting trot: 1. Cross the stirrups over the horse's withers and ask a friend to lunge the horse. This way you can concentrate on your riding and seat and not have to worry about steering the horse. Tie the reins in a knot over the horse's withers so they are neither too tight nor too slack. Now think about your seat, focus on achieving a classical seat but don't worry too much about dropping your heels. Concentrate on sitting deeply and keeping your legs far apart. Lightly hold the pommel with your outside hand and rest your inside hand on your thigh. Ask the person lunging the horse to get the horse started on a slow trot and concentrate on maintaining the classical seat as much as possible but do not allow yourself to tense up. Do not grip the saddle too tightly with your hand as this will cause you to become rigid. Try to focus on the horse's natural rhythm and keep breathing. Try to relax as much as possible. 2. Once you begin feeling more confident about sitting to the trot you should start holding your hands as if they were holding the reins. Keep your upper arms to your side and your forearms should feel like the natural extension to the reins (even though you are not actually holding the reins). If you begin to tense up concentrate on relaxing. Breath, enjoy the ride, focus on how good the sun feels on your face and enjoy the scenery! Try to actively remain relaxed at all times but do not allow yourself to slouch. 3. Once of the best exercises to perfect the sitting trot is to ride bareback. The classical seat will still apply but relax your heels and don't try too hard to keep them down. Use a neckstrap to help maintain balance if you feel insecure. Instruct the person lunging your horse to cue the horse to gently trot for 4-5 strides then to walk a little, then to trot for 5-6 strides and return to the walk. Alternating walking and trotting helps your body relax if you've tensed up during the trot. Practice makes perfect and if you work on this you should be able to sit the trot easily with time. Learning how to sit to the trot will dramatically improve your balance and riding skills as you will learn to balance and easily control your horse at the trot.
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