Perplexing

My trainer said I was one of her most perplexing students last night.  Achievement unlocked!

Perplexing is as perplexing does.

Connor was awesome last Thursday and Saturday (both Dressage rides), and then a complete rat for Tuesday's Dressage ride because Sunday's ride in between there had been a conditioning ride.  It was an honest temper tantrum that I didn't know how to handle, I mean, eventers have to be able to switch gears like that, right?

When Thursday's lesson started out like Tuesday's ride, my trainer correctly diagnosed that I had let him go on his forehand for the conditioning ride, and the temper tantrum (head tossing, turning his entire head and neck to look outside the arena, overreacting to aids, generally being anti-submissive, a horsey 'No, I don't wanna') was in response to being asked to carry himself in a Dressage manner again.

I want my horse to be a willing partner and all, but sometimes you just have to stamp your foot and yell, "CONNOR, YOU'RE GOING TO CLEAN YOUR ROOM NOW!"  Which my trainer helped me achieve through quiet, relaxed 10m circles until the gerbils returned, and he was focused and relaxed from there on.

I let him out for some post-ride rolling afterward.

It was then that she slowly and tactfully (like she could possibly offend me after 3.5 years!) said I was one of her most perplexing students.  On to the lesson!  She said she has a hard time figuring me out, because it would appear that I'm doing everything right, all the right exercises, but there's something holding me back on Connor that doesn't hold her back, so there must be something in my position, and she thought she knew what that was now.

Looking at the trot, she says she thinks I do two things

1) I work too hard.  My fitness works against me, because I am strong enough to do the wrong things easily, where most people would relax.  So when I post, I do a lot of the work for Connor and do not relax my joints and lower back, rather than sitting deeply on Connor and letting him toss me up.  "He's got off easy for too long," she semi-joked.

2) The first direction of my post is actually slightly backward, because I do what my CrossFit trainer would call a "booty wink" or duck butt.  The first motion of my post is my hips tilting forward and going slightly back, before going forward.  I never would have noticed it if she didn't say something.  I'm conducting Connor's energy from his hind feet in the wrong direction by doing this.

She had me halt and post at the halt, and made some major position changes in my post.  It felt like my glutes were firing more, but my lower back was more relaxed.  When we got back to trotting and she corrected me every time I went back to my old ways, Connor moved in a brand new way.  More suspension, less jarring of a motion, and I was able to sit the trot easily.  It was really good, and she was just as delighted with herself for cracking the code as she was with me for getting it.

Who knew, you sit on your horse and your horse sits more too?

Gratuitous adorable tiny Husky picture