Three Ride Plans to Transform Your Riding
Structured exercises from the Stay in the Saddle book — give your ride purpose, build real skills, and have more fun with your horse.
Better Contact & Steering
"Rein handling needs to become an unconscious skill in riding. There is no fixed length that is 'correct' — maintaining an effective rein length is a series of adjustments."
Soft Hands — Improve Rein Contact
Practice this on the ground — in the barn or at home. Use a rope or a set of reins looped around a chair or attached to the wall.
Without looking at your hands, practice feeling the reins, shortening them smoothly, and maintaining an even, relaxed contact.
The goal is to develop quiet, confident rein handling before you ever get in the saddle.
Shorten the Reins — Maintain Consistent Contact
As you ride, allow your reins to lengthen slightly, then shorten them again. Repeat consistently throughout the ride — not just once or twice.
Let the reins slide through your hands, then shorten back to your desired length. With repetition, this becomes easy, smooth, and unconscious.
Ride a Square — Improve Steering Aids
Focus on riding clear, balanced corners. Initiate each turn from your body, using your outside leg and outside aids — not just the outside rein.
As you ride the square, practice shortening your reins and notice the difference it makes. Feel how rein length and contact affect your horse's balance and responsiveness.
Combining Your Exercises
Ride your square pattern while actively shortening and lengthening your reins through each side and corner. Notice how rein length and contact quality directly affect how your horse moves through the turns.
When in doubt, end a little early and end on a good note. One or two good repetitions is often enough.
Improve Your Feel of Your Horse's Footfalls
"When you close your eyes, your other senses become stronger. You may notice your movements become smaller as excess movement is reduced — and the connection to your horse deepens."
Upper Body Limber — Improve Your Contact
This exercise relaxes the shoulders, upper back, and arms to help you release tension before a ride. It will also improve your quality of movement, for better contact.
Hold a riding crop or stick between your two hands and move it slowly in a figure eight. Try moving the stick higher, lower, to the side — play with all the different ways you can move it, feeling the motion through your whole upper body.
Close Your Eyes — Improve Your Balance
Closing your eyes improves your balance by training the other balance systems of the body and sharpening your feel.
Close your eyes for just a few steps at a time. Increase gradually as you feel more comfortable, and notice the difference in what you feel and how you move.
Turn on the Haunches — Improve Steering Accuracy
This exercise improves the accuracy of your steering cue to move your horse's front legs, and helps improve your horse's balance as they shift their weight slightly back to freely move the front legs.
Begin with just one step, then gradually build. A slow, rhythmic movement is the goal — pay close attention to each weight shift under you.
Combining Your Exercises
Close your eyes as you do a few steps of the Turn on the Haunches — and clearly feel the weight shifts from your horse as they move each front leg. This combination is a powerful way to develop feel, one of the most important and most rewarding skills in riding.
A Ride Plan for the Trail
"A good ride plan gives your practice direction — even when the exercises are simple. These are exercises you can do on the trail to build real skills beyond the arena."
Long to Short Reins — Quick Rein Response
As you begin your walk, practice shortening your reins quickly from long — all the way from the buckle. Adjusting the reins quickly is a key response skill that many riders lack.
Hip Hinges — Prepare for Hill Work
On the trail, hinging at the hips to go up and down hills is essential. Many riders bend forward from their back or push off their stirrups — unbalancing both themselves and their horse.
Weave Cones — Steering, Bend & Softness
Weaving helps develop bend and softness, which are just as important on the trail as in the arena. You don't need cones — look for bushes, rocks, and trees and weave between them.
Combining Your Exercises
Practice Long to Short Reins as you weave — shortening and lengthening your reins while maintaining soft, accurate steering through each obstacle.
You can also layer in Hip Hinges alongside Long to Short Reins, developing rein adjustability in any situation, including when your position is shifting on varied terrain.
Get the Full Stay in the Saddle Book
104 pages of exercises plus a video demonstration for every single one. Structure every ride. Build a real toolbox of skills. Feel the difference.
- 104-page printed book shipped to you
- Video portal with demo & troubleshooting for every exercise
- Problem Solver Index to target your biggest challenges
- Bonus: ABCs of Riding Mini-Course ($197 value)
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