How to fix the seat position in the saddle
One of the common mistakes in riders’ seating position is sitting in a chair seat.
In this position, the riders’ legs are in front of them, as if they were sitting in a chair, instead of maintaining their balance on the seat bones and with their legs under the body.
Here, Stephany Fish Crossman, a certified LEVEL 3 Ride With Your Mind instructor, biomechanics specialist, and Team Prac dressage trainer, offers helpful tips on how riders can adjust their position to get out of the chair seat and achieve balance on their horses.
Q&A Question: What can riders do to keep their legs under their bodies and not in front in a chair seat?
Vivian M.
, Virginia Answer: Great question, Vivian!
First, think of the hip, knee, and ankle joints as your seat suspension system.
Just like the truck that carries your horse trailer, it has a suspension system under its structure.
It is the ability of that suspension system to move up and down that makes the ride in the truck cab smoother.
With that in mind, learning how to allow the ankle, knee, and hip joints to be bent and flexible is the first part.
Think about how your foot meets the stirrup, more like standing on a trampoline rather than on a hard floor.
Can anyone stand on a trampoline?
Yes, but you always keep your joints a little mobile, bouncing and adapting to the unstable surface.
This is what equestrian biomechanics instructors want you to use your joints for in the saddle.
The stirrup should be where you regain your balance, not where you push for your balance.
As another example, if you sit on a hard chair, you can place both feet evenly on the ground and push your feet into the ground.
You will feel how this lifts you out of the chair.
If you push enough on the wheelchair, your seat will move backward, which puts you in a chair seat.
But if you lift your feet and transfer some of that weight to your thigh, you should feel that your legs are no longer pushing forward.
So, riders can use their joints as a suspension system and use their stirrups as a trampoline, not as a hard floor, to avoid sitting in a chair seat.
For more information: For more articles with Fish Crossman, click here.
About our expert: Stephany Fish Crossman Stephany Fish Crossman.
©Sunsoar Photography Stephany Fish Crossman, one of the hosts of the Dressage Today podcast, began riding in the state of Maine as a child and has not been away from horses since.
Except for a brief period in the hospitality industry, she has worked with trainers at all levels, from local pony clubs to several different Olympians.
She studied at the International Academy of Equestrian Studies in Warendorf, Germany, and received her national trainer’s certificate there.
She is also a USDF bronze and silver medalist and is one of only two LEVEL 3 instructors worldwide for the Mary Wanless biomechanics system called Ride With Your Mind.
He conducts training workshops across the country and runs a small educational business called Serendipity Dressage in Okeechobee, Florida.
Source: Practical Horseman – Training