I unsuccessfully tried to find someone to go with me to my lesson yesterday, but my instructor was kind enough to teach and take a few photos. So here are the first photos of me riding since September of 2010. Critiques are absolutely welcome and encouraged. First, a comparison photo from September of 2010, in which I was riding Dillan for Lisa:
What I see in this picture: I'm tense, my position is artificially produced, my heels are jammed down hard and I am very "clicked into place" as my trainer described my riding when she first saw me. I'm tipped forward a bit and arching through my back.
Now on to yesterday's photos:
First, a photo at the walk. Mac doesn't look the greatest in this photo, but it's a good shot of my position. Everything about my position is less tense in this photo compared to the one above. My leg is relaxed and against the horse the whole way down, I'm sitting up tall and I'm not "perched" on the horse's back. My hands look like they're uneven, and they could be, but I think it's because she didn't take this picture dead on.
And a trot photo. My heel has gone down a little more and my toe has rotated out just a bit, which makes me pinch with my knee just a tad. This is a fault of mine that we're working to correct. Compared to the 2010 photo which is also a trot photo, though, I'm sitting up taller, arching my back a little less, and again, none of that tension. I look like I'm in control of my ride rather than just sitting there. My hands are funky here and I'm definitely doing a pitty paw with that outside, though in my defense we spent much of this lesson working on widening my hands and I felt like a five year old learning to ride again.
We didn't canter yesterday due to the oppressive heat, which is disappointing because I've made the most changes to my position at the canter. Anyway, what do you see? What do you think? I have no local horsey friends, so you all are all I've got!
Finally, a gratuitous "look at how fit I am now!" shot, because I'm damn proud of those arm muscles and the effort it's taken to develop them!
You look much more relaxed and with your horse in the recent lesson photos. What does your instuctor say?
ReplyDeleteWe haven't really discussed it too much, but she basically says that I have a much more natural position that isn't forced or "clicked into place" like it was when she first saw me.
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