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Riding/Training TipsMotivation from Moshi 90, by Jane Savoie
“You are really smart. You are very talented. You are a good rider.” All those things make you feel good right? I used to think so. I used to compliment all the other horses in the barn, thinking I would be helping their self-esteem by reminding them how great they are. But, new studies indicate that this may not be the case. An article by Po Bronson, posted in New York Magazine, states that certain types of praise can have a negative effect on the behavior of people. (For the entire article, go here: http://nymag.com/news/features/27840/.) A study was done that indicated that if a child is constantly told they are “smart” or “talented” or “the best,” it can create a situation in their minds that makes them “risk adversant.” They become so sensitive to any task that isn’t immediately easy, that they stop trying. They won’t take risks that might prove to their parent(s) or teacher(s) that they don’t have the natural talent or brains with which they’ve been labeled. In equestrian terms, it takes away their “try.” Motivation from Moshi 88, by Jane Savoie
A friend of mine in Australia wrote to me this week, expressing her excitement about learning dressage after a career on the race track. She had been a bit discouraged at her progress because she was used to being successful on the track mostly by her strong will and a strong hand. Neither is very conducive to an artful picture of riding. Once she realized that she could break dressage down into small, understandable pieces that fit together like an elegant puzzle, her sense of self-worth soared. She didn’t have to force her way into success… she could gently finesse her way to success! The level of worthiness we feel makes a huge difference in how we live our lives. It’s true that we can never rise above nor outperform our own self-image. So if you want to improve your life, the first order of business is to improve your view of yourself. Motivation from Moshi 83, by Jane Savoie
Responsibility. It’s a big part of life. Jane tells her students that their horses should be responsible for their own gaits. They shouldn’t repeatedly ask or nag at their horses, or they’ll just get tuned out and ignored. She says your horse should respond to the first request, and should maintain his or her gait until asked to do something else. It’s pretty easy for me to get lazy about being responsible for my job. How about you? Have you ever avoided doing those things you know you should be doing? Perhaps it was because you became lazy, or because no one seemed to care one way or another if you got it done? This tendency is why we have leaders or bosses. We often need someone to keep us on track. A good leader or boss is someone who inspires you to do your best without nagging or shaming. A good leader finds ways to help their subordinates feel important and valued. A poor leader uses punishment or embarrassment to force compliance. A good leader creates a desire to do well. A poor leader makes people unhappy, and is often looking for replacements when their subordinates leave or quit. How to Connect the Lazy Horse, by Jane Savoie
This month I’ll explain how to use the “Connecting Aids” with a lazy horse to put him on the bit. Next month, I’ll talk about connecting the hot horse. Here’s a review of the connecting aids: (1) Close both calves to generate power from behind. (2) Close your outside hand in a fist to capture, contain, and recycle that power back to the hind legs. (3) Squeeze and release (vibrate) the inside rein, like squeezing water out of a sponge, to keep your horse’s neck straight. Apply the three sets of aids for approximately three seconds. To an observer, it will appear that you’re giving the aids simultaneously, but in reality the legs slightly precede the closing of the outside hand, which is applied just before the vibrations with the inside hand. In order to get the desired effect from these connecting aids, it’s important that your horse responds obediently to your aids. This is often overlooked, as many of us have a very lazy that seems to ignore our aids. Here are some tips to help you. Motivation from Moshi 81, by Jane Savoie
There’s a whole lot that goes on in this world that we never hear about. Some of it is bad, but a lot of it is good. If you could measure the bad against the good, you’d find that the good stuff far outweighs the bad stuff. How do I know? As a horse, I’m very connected to the energy of the planet. I can feel what’s going on because I am totally present. I spend little or no time in the past or future, I’m just NOW. And I can feel the positive pulse of the earth. Well-being abounds! What if well-being isn’t showing up in YOUR life as much as you like? Then I’d ask, what are you thinking about? Where are you putting your mental energy? Are you looking for the things that are WRONG in your world, or are you looking for the things that are RIGHT? Which is it? You get MORE of whatever you put your energy into. So if things are bad, well… Think about that! Just for today, look for something that is great about you or your most pressing situation. Then spend some time feeling the wonderful feelings that thought brings to you. Motivation from Moshi 80, by Jane Savoie
Fall is so beautiful in Vermont, USA. We have lots of trees, and they turn the most incredible colors. I only see yellow, green, and blue, but the many shades of yellows are amazing. I hear red and orange are really striking, but I have no way of relating to that. Like all horses, my eye structure doesn’t let me see red. I heard a fellow at the barn say an interesting thing: “If you’re a hammer, everything looks like a nail.” That reminded me of how everyone sees the world through their own filters. What’s good in one person’s eyes may be evil in another’s. It’s why we have wars. It’s why we have prejudice. It’s the cause of most of man’s (and woman’s) suffering. Is there a solution to this? It’s not possible for us to all see things the same way, but knowing that fact is a big help in releasing the judgement of others. When we can acknowledge that we’re all doing the best we can with what we’ve got, it’s a lot easier to let go of any anger or frustration we feel. Just let people be who they are, protect yourself if you have to, but let the rest of it go. If you really look at it, there’s very little in this world that’s worth fighting about. Motivation from Moshi 78, by Jane Savoie
I’m a people whisperer. A Moshi Level Five People Whisperer, to be exact. Fellow horses come to me when they are confused by their people and ask what their person really meant by their crazy people language. These poor confused horses say things like, “my person says she’s the boss when on my back by directing where we go, but then moves her feet and backs away from me on the ground, which says I’m the boss instead of her. I’m confused!” I remind them that people have a different language than we do, and we horses need to learn to be “people whisperers.” That means we have to do our best to learn to listen to human commands with our ears, and to ignore the loud body language people scream at us. It’s very hard for us to do, as we naturally listen to body language much more readily than noise. People are very confusing and incongruent to equines, and sometimes the mixed signals make us a bit crazy. To help, I am posting this message to all my horse friends: Dear fellow equine: When your human freely gives you lots of treats or lets you push her around with your nose, that means she loves you, not that you’re her boss. I know it is uncomfortable and confusing because to you this behavior means you’re in charge, but you need to learn to tolerate this and not take over. Try not to get confused when she then turns around and asks you to yield your feet to her direction and control. Motivation from Moshi 77, by Jane Savoie
Two brains. That’s right, I have two brains. So do you. The difference is you have a bundle of nerves called the corpus callosum between the two halves of your brain that lets the sides chat. My brain doesn’t have that. It’s true that my brain, or brains, have a very difficult time talking to each other. For a horse, this means I have to be trained to do things from both sides. What might be easy for me to understand through my left eye may be difficult to understand through my right eye. It’s a pain, but it’s the price I pay for having eyes on the sides of my head like a prey animal. Humans can have binocular vision, so you can see things with both sides of your brain. That means your left brain hemisphere, the logical, linear, thinking side, can analyze things and explain that to the right, the more artistic, big picture, emotional side. That corpus callosum is very handy, as long as it’s working. When humans are under extreme stress, the corpus callosum shuts down. Communication stops. That means you could get stuck in responding to the situation from only one side of your brain. If it’s the logical side, you’ll probably analyze the situation and handle it without emotion. If it’s the emotional side that takes over, you may find yourself hysterical or locked up and frozen. Speech is located in the left, logical side, and if the emotional side takes over, that’s why you get tongue-tied if you get upset. Have you noticed that when you’re stressed and can’t think of what to say, but then calm down and the corpus callosum starts working again, suddenly the perfect words for that snappy comeback show up in your mind? Frustrating, isn’t it? What Are the Aids to Ask My Horse to Stop or Slow Down? by Jane Savoie
It’s important to know you can slow your horse down or stop completely (your brakes) so that he’s a safe and obedient mount. With a young horse, your outside hand is your primary speed control aid. Give a quick squeeze and release on that rein as if you’re snatching a fly out of the air. For example, if your horse is going too fast in the trot, give a quick squeeze and release on your outside rein to slow him down. When you first use your brakes, combine the squeeze on the outside rein with a voice command that your horse knows, like “slow” or “whoa”. The voice command helps him make the link between the rein aid and what you want him to do. As your horse becomes more educated, you’ll add your “stilled” or “retarding seat” to your outside hand aid. If your horse ignores your light aid to slow down, don’t pull harder. Instead, make a correction. Correct your horse by halting sharply. Sit deeply in the saddle and give a firm, upward pull on the outside rein. Then go forward again. Within the first stride or two, RETEST with the original polite squeeze and release on the outside rein. If he slows down immediately, PRAISE him. If he doesn’t react immediately, repeat the steps above. Note from Jane I want to thank all of you who wrote in asking how we fared during Irene. I truly appreciate your concern and am so grateful that personally we didn’t suffer from this horrific hurricane. 2012 George H. Morris Horsemastership Training Session Presented by USEF 2011 George H. Morris Horsemastership Training Session. Photo: USEF Archives. Lexington, KY – The sixth annual George H. Morris Horsemastership Training Session presented by the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) will take place January 3-7, 2012, at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center in Wellington, FL. An opportunity not to be missed, Morris, the legendary horseman and Chef d’Equipe of the U.S. Show Jumping Team, will again lead top young riders in a comprehensive program including mounted sessions, with other experts teaching stable management, veterinary care and nutrition. Riders will assume sole responsibility for their horses during the Training Session, the goal being to develop a pipeline of young “horsemasters” for future U.S. Equestrian Teams. The invitation system for the participants will be announced in September, but auditing of the mounted and educational sessions is free and open to the public; however, a donation to The USET Foundation will be greatly appreciated. More information will be available at www.USEF.org. For additional information on the 2012 George H. Morris Horsemastership Training Session, contact Lizzy Chesson at lchesson@usef.org. |
