Sitting in the Saddle

[Excess]

I have issues sitting in the saddle correctly. I discovered this on Monday. Usually when I ride my coccyx starts to get a tad sore. I thought this was because I have broken it so many times. I was reading True Horsemanship Through Feel last night and was reading the part where Bill said a lady was interning at the ranch he worked at and she was talking about riding in the right position. Bill kept asking her and she finally told him how. He then tried sitting that way and he felt completely different.

After doing some clinics with Julie Goodnight and working with some trainers I am often told "open your pelvis" and "lift your torso." However one thing that I have noticed is that I have a much longer than average torso length and I feel gangly. I was reading up and the average torso length (shoulder to crotch) for women is 23.6". Mine is 29".

While on my ride yesterday I sat up more and I felt my seat bones "plug into" the saddle. I felt super boney too and I could feel them rolling. I could feel my lower back acting like a pivot and moving with the horse easier. But I find that I have difficulty finding my center of gravity when I sit this way. I feel like my spine is a long noodle and it just wiggles and can collapse easily. Or like a stack of books or plates and I'm trying to hold it up straight so they all don't fall over. I feel like I just have all this length to work with and I don't know what to do with it.

I also find that if an unexpected move happens like a stumble I tense my pelvis and close it.

I guess before I slouched slightly but not immensely but I slouched enough. It helped with all this torso/spine length that I have. I have gotten so used to riding this way but it's not the right way. I could sit spooks and bucks and just about anything that way, but again it isn't the right way. And I LIKE riding the "right" way but I feel insecure in it and I can't hold it as long as I get tired. I'm sure I have to build myself and my muscles up to it.

I remember reading that women have a lower center of gravity than men because men have longer torsos than women. And that men have a little more difficulty finding their center because of this. I think I have a similar problem. Granted I am not big and muscular like a man so I don't have all that weight but I do have ::ahem:: other things weighting me up there.

I'm not really sure what I'm asking here. I'm just thinking out loud. Is there something I can do to get more comfortable sitting the right way? Any exercises? Or just ride, ride ride to build my muscles up?

[rahfie]

Read this article from Dr. Deb. I think you'll find it helpful:

http://equinestudies.org/knowledge_base/built_to_ride.html

[lmullen]

I'm 6'4" 180lbs - Long Also.
Try Sitting Up Straight, Draping Your Relaxed, Lengthened Legs
With Slight,slight Calf Contact, And Really Relaxing Outer Thighs.
Then Lean Forward And Back To Find Best Point Of Balance, Should Be Just About Upright , But Feel Back A Little. Yes, It Takes Practice To Do Less....but If You Are Longer, You Will Look Even
More Elegant. Think Regal.

[fritzi]

I have some of the same problems as you do, Excess: extremely long torso and I tense us around the pelvis and hips when I feel a stumble or get nervous in any way, thus reducing my ability to go with the flow.

I've been helped immensely by yoga - specifically anusara yoga. My yoga teacher's horse is my horse's best friend, so she's way into riding, too, and she started a yoga and horsemanship class at our barn, which is doing wonders for my riding! One of the things we practice a lot is something that boils down to "plugging" our legs into our hip sockets. This involves both making sure the thighs are back - not thrust forward - and also kind of sucking the leg (with the psoas and leg muscles) into the hip socket. This really helps with avoiding that feeling of not being connected to your own body, much less the horse's.

There are lots more little tips that Tasha or (to a much lesser extent) I could give, but it would probably be even better to look for a yoga class, or to read a book about yoga and horsemanship.

Check out Tasha's website, and maybe email her from there - I know she'd be delighted to suggest some resources. Tell her Gail sent you!

http://www.sunfloweryoga.net/index.html

[BuckarooMan]

I have found that the long I am in the saddle the easyer it is to slouch a touch if I tried riding all equitation style for 10hrs I dont think I could walk after that. Thats defantly one of the things I would like my self to get in the habbit more of is staying a touch more strait. One of the things they did to me when i was younger was stuff a boarddown the back of my pants LOL kept me up right for sure.