Daily Strides Podcast for Equestrians

Whether it comes down to circumstances, weather, or location, finding yourself without a flat, good-quality, horse arena to train in, can often derail everything. It can feel like every single exercise you see or hear about requires acres of space and dozens of poles! And, maybe even more frustrating is when you begin to feel things coming together, only to slip or unbalance due to questionable fo...

Rhythm is genuinely one of those things that can seem so simple on the surface.  And, don't get me wrong, rhythm is a fairly simple concept. However, when we begin applying it to horses and riding, it is truly eye-opening just how deep we can go with the idea. A little like groundwork for horses... And, because rhythm is something we can approach from different perspectives and filters, the possib...

Contact can often look effortless for some horses and riders. And yet, for many other riders, consistent contact can seem like an enigma. Any efforts at consistency tend to lead to heaviness. Or a complete lack of any contact!  So where is this fine line between consistent, quality contact and washing lines? In order to develop contact with your horse, I feel that you must first understand what a...

So you are a place in your canter where you want to begin to do a little 'more'.  After a quick 'google' of all the different exercises, you see a canter to walk pop up a few times. Canter to walk?! Without a handbrake?!  Yes, and even better, this will begin to prepare you and your horse for so much more to come.  The canter to walk transition can seem daunting when we begin to think about it fir...

This transition is a personal favorite of mine.  To ride and to help other riders as well. I really do believe that the walk to canter transition can help you and your horse to connect more to each other.  It can help you to have more clarity over your canter aids, and your horse to become more responsive. And you both to develop so that your training can progress forward. In fact, the walk to can...

The transition into canter is one that always gives us opportunities to develop and improve as riders. And it can do the same for our horses as well. And yet, for many riders, improvement is frustratingly slow! The good news is that it doesn't have to be this way. Canter and transitions into the canter are one aspect of horse riding that can improve quickly, often with just the smallest of tweaks...

Are all the months starting to look and feel the same for you and your horse? Especially if you have been training your horse alone! Have you been experiencing a case of 'same ride again' on repeat, over and over again?  If so, here are 5 tips to help you to achieve more when training your horse.  Especially if you are working alone without a trainer or a coach to help. More Success When Training...

Getting into canter on an easygoing or lazy horse can be exhausting!  And while we do love our laidback equines… Can we all be honest in admitting how, sometimes, just a little more enthusiasm would change everything?  The good news is that you can quickly begin to change this in your horse. You see, often, the trot to canter is often a symptom of a bigger issue – a lack of responsiveness. Increas...

Riding, just like life, is about enjoying the journey rather than just the destination.  However, when you're transitioning from the trot into the canter - and your horse seems determined to show you just how fast he can actually trot beforehand; well, the journey is not all that enjoyable! I don't know of a single rider who enjoys the 'rush' of a horse running from trot to canter. It is bouncy, u...

Every time you interact with your horse, there is the possibility of improving your communication and understanding.  However, planning and intention must be present for each ride to be an actual stepping stone.  Having one without the other will not give you the outcome you are hoping for. Creating the plan and setting the intention is key to each ride becoming a valuable link in the chain of pro...

There is a point in every rider's journey where balance becomes less about staying on and more about increasing overall effectiveness. However, in order to positively influence the horse, the rider needs to begin working on developing better balance. I feel that one of the best ways to do this is by developing independent aids.  Independent from both the influence of each other's movement.  And in...

We all have talents. Things that seem to come naturally to us and that we excel at. Your horse is the same. And, in my experience, when we approach training our horses with the idea that we are helping them develop their talents, everyone is happier. Unfortunately, it is common practice for many people to focus on weaknesses. Both in the human and in the horse! And so many riders create training p...

I find it a little mind-boggling how, the longer we spend developing ourselves as riders, the more we need to unlearn. Especially when it comes to those first one or two initial horse riding lessons! Using your hands and arms to 'steer' the horse is one of those things. And, flexion is often one of the best concepts to help riders become clearer on this. And more open to other possibilities when i...

Have you noticed how, for many people, the longer they spend in the saddle, the less curious they become about a lot of things 'riding related'? Now, other riders are the exact opposite, they want to go deeper and further in all aspects of riding. Which is fantastic. If you have found yourself doing something for the sake of just doing something with your horse, I want to challenge you today. I wa...

Can changing one thing really help you to improve your riding? I think so, and the great news is that regardless of how well you ride, you can begin to implement this the very next time you're in the saddle. This exercise is suitable for you to ride in walk, trot, and canter. It is also something you can use for lateral work and even grids and jumping. Read More... Get Support & Guidance in Your R...

Time, or the lack thereof, is often the number one thing that keeps riders from training their own horses.  And while time is an essential part of the puzzle in order to develop and grow your horse successfully, often we overestimate how much of it we actually need. In fact, one of the reasons riders often don't have enough time to work with their horse has more to do with a lack of planning and l...

I am all for intentional, relaxing hacks with your horse. And I also think that it's worth remembering that not all hacks have to be for 'doing nothing'. In fact, there are some things that may actually happen more easily when out of the arena. Working contact is, for some riders and horses, one of those things. We are always working towards soft, intuitive, and responsive contact when we ride. Co...

Why is it that, as equestrians, we often want to immediately have what we see others with?  And I'm not just talking about saddles, boots, and gloves… But the actual 'horse', exercises, movements, training, and level of performance.  We 'know' that time is required, but gosh, time can mean a lot of things to a lot of different riders! When you are working alone riding and training your horse, stra...

It can be frustrating when you know exactly what you want to achieve when training or retraining your horse, but it seems to be taking 'forever'!  It seems that no matter how much you explain your horse, he's not 'getting it'. Training or retraining your horse is something that takes time.  And, sometimes, it is our own impatience or actions that actually keep things stuck where progress is concer...

Anyone who has ridden in an arena for a prolonged period knows how different the energy feels when they finally get out on the trail.  What may have been feeling a little flat and, even, deflated, suddenly comes back to life.  Both horse and rider seem to become more keenly self-aware.  And more responsive to external elements. Rather than being afraid of this energy or worried about it, you can r...

Jumping is one of those things most riders love or hate.  In my experience, their personal preferences depend on how well they can use the space between jumps. If every jumping track feels like a tug of war from start to finish, it's easy to see how jumping itself won't be all that enjoyable.  The same applies if the rider feels like they are doing the work for both themselves and their very unint...

Accuracy can seem like a dull and boring concept when riding horses.  Sure, if you are going to compete in dressage or show jumping, accuracy can become really important.  But what about if you are simply a rider, working alone with your horse, trying to improve your overall skills?  Is accuracy still as important? I'm going to say yes, accuracy is important. And it is an excellent way of actually...

It's probably safe to assume that you want to improve as a rider, right? That, if becoming a better rider in 90 days was guaranteed, you'd probably follow the plan and do the work?  Well, the good news is that, regardless of where you are in your riding right now, you can indeed improve over the coming 90 days (or 3 months).  However, it will involve a little planning, preparation, and commitment...

Here's a confession; for years I used to think of cantering while on the lunge as just something I did to 'finish the session'. It was like something that I could check off a list. There was no intention behind it (only to get it done), And with any cantering happening while on the lunge, there was definitely no thought put into using the time or gait to develop the horse. Which, now, seems so biz...

It can seem like something that only novice or beginner riders would worry themselves with; revisiting the basics.  After all, surely there's a point where, as riders, we can 'set and forget' a couple of things in our riding? Basics like position and the aids.  Or trotting and cantering... And I think a lot of this stems from the fact that we see the basics as being, somehow, for beginners.  For r...