Strides for Success

Tag: habits

  • Securing Your Swinging Lower Leg in Trot and Canter

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    Have you ever glanced down mid-trot or canter and seen your lower leg doing a full-on windscreen wiper impression? You’re not alone. I see this all the time. Novice riders trying to figure out how to stop that swinging lower leg from distracting their horse (and them!).

    The issue is that so often, trying to ‘fix’ your lower leg won’t work. This is because your lower leg is not the issue… It’s just the most visible side effect of something else that’s going on in your riding… 

    Whether you ride with a sensitive horse who thinks you’re asking for more speed. Or a fairly laid-back horse who simply tunes you out, this issue can quickly throw a spanner in the works. So today, let’s get right to the root of it, and more importantly, figure out how to fix it in a way that works long term.

    What Is a Swinging Lower Leg

    First off, let’s be clear on what we’re talking about here. A swinging lower leg is when your leg below the knee moves excessively while you ride. It often swings or flaps forward and back like a pendulum. Or a windscreen wiper! It usually shows up during trot (especially rising/posting) or canter.

    It might look like:

        • Your leg shooting forward when you rise, then swinging back as you sit.

        • Your lower leg losing all contact during canter and flapping uselessly.

        • Your aids becoming inconsistent—or even unintentionally sending the wrong signals.

    And while it’s easy to focus only on that swinging lower leg, the truth is this: the lower leg is rarely the actual problem. It’s a symptom of something else going on in your riding.

    The Real Reason Your Leg is Swinging

    Here’s the hard truth that most riders miss; your lower leg is swinging because something else is out of sync. It’s not about gripping harder or squeezing your leg tighter. In fact, doing that will very often make things worse.

    Instead, think of your body like a kinetic chain. When one link (your seat, your core, your shoulders) is unstable or misaligned, the result often shows up in your lower leg. So rather than treating the symptom, we’re going to dig deeper and fix the actual cause.

    To do this, first you have to figure out when your leg is swinging…

    Step 1: When Does It Happen?

    Get curious about when this is happening for you in your riding. Become a bit of a detective! If you ride alone, the only way to really know for sure is to capture your riding on video.

    First, check what happens in the trot. Particularly the rising trot. For many riders, the swinging lower leg pops up when they are posting. You’ll see that your lower leg (below the knee) shoots forward every time you rise. Instead of being underneath you (as in the Click Your Fingers Rule), it will be somewhere up at your horse’s shoulder or elbow. Then, as you sit back in the saddle, it will swing back under you again.

    I then suggest testing yourself in the canter. You might find that things are fine for you in the trot, but as soon as you transition into canter, that swinging lower leg makes itself known!  It’s like your leg develops a life and mind of its own! Doing its own thing! And, unfortunately, usually either causing your horse to increase speed or tension, or completely ignore you altogether!

    So grab your phone, whip out your Pivo, or get a friend to record you riding. Look closely. When exactly does the swing begin? Is it the trot? Or maybe it’s the canter for you…

    Fixing the Swing in Rising Trot

    Let’s start with trot. If you’ve got a swinging lower leg here, chances are your rising or posting technique needs to be revisited and updated. Most riders learn to post by being told “up-down, up-down.” Combine that with “heels down,” and what you get is standing up on your stirrups. That forward push causes your leg to swing because you’re using the wrong parts of your body to post.

    Instead, here’s a better way to think about it:

        • Imagine squeezing your glutes (your bum cheeks!)

        • Let your belly button travel forward and slightly upward towards your horse’s ears

        • Focus on moving diagonally with the horse, not up and down like a piston

    This subtle shift changes everything. Now, you’re not standing up on your stirrups, you’re moving with your horse’s motion. Your seat stays connected, and your lower leg stops swinging like it’s trying to escape. This also allows your lower leg to become an effective aid when you need it.

    Fixing the Swing in Canter

    Now, if you’ve got a swinging lower leg in the catner, there are a couple of different reasons this is happening.

    1. Are You Gripping with Your Knees?

    Gripping with your thighs or knees turns you into a human clothes peg! And not only does this cause your lower leg to swing, it can also cause your horse to feel uncomfortable.

    Instead, allow your thigh and knee to stay soft and open. Think of your legs ‘draping’ over the saddle. Let your seat move with your horse. And keep your lower leg gently against your horse’s side. No clamping, just resting against your horse’s side, ready for when you want to use your aid.

    2. What Are Your Shoulders Doing?

    This one surprises a lot of riders. But I’ll say it; your shoulders and your lower leg are very often just doing their own thing in the canter! And this is an issue, because it actually STOPS your seat from moving with your horse.

    If you’re doing any of the following in the canter:

        • Circling your shoulders

        • Rocking back and forth like you’re on a swing

        • Collapsing through your upper body

    …then guess what? That movement is disrupting your balance, and your lower leg is paying the price.

    Instead, keep your shoulders steady and aligned. Think tall, soft, and grounded. Let your seat follow your horse, and trust that you don’t need to ‘ride the canter’ with your shoulders. Let your seat do the talking.

    In the canter, your shoulders and lower leg remain ‘consistent’ while your seat and hands move with or follow your horse… 

    Why Holding Your Leg Still Won’t Work

    A quick reminder here: you can’t force your leg to be still by gripping harder or focusing solely on it.  That approach kills suppleness, flow, and the energy that needs to move through you and your horse.

    Instead, your goal is to create consistency through your upper and lower body, while allowing your seat to follow your horse’s movement.

    How to Train a Secure Lower Leg – Without Burning Out

    Like any new habit, improving your leg position takes time and consistency. But it doesn’t have to be overwhelming.

    Here’s how to start smart:

        1. Break it into short, focused blocks. Choose two 8–10 minute sessions within your ride to specifically focus on your lower leg.

        2. Start in the walk. Then move to trot or canter – not both. If both gaits are an issue, focus on trot first until that improves.

        3. Use video. Every few rides, film yourself again. You’ll be amazed at the progress once you train your awareness and refine your feel.

    This is not about “riding better for the whole ride.” That will come. Riding now, if you have a swinging lower leg, you need deliberate, short bursts of effort. This will help you to rewire the habit. To upgrade this ‘basic’ in your riding so that it serves you as the rider you are now.

    It’s a simple (but not always easy) swap. Change the old basic that got you this far, and replace it with a more refined basic that takes you to the next level.

    If you’re dealing with a swinging lower leg, don’t just accept it as something you have to deal with forever. Your swinging lower leg is simply a signal that it’s time to upgrade some of the foundational skills that got you started – but aren’t serving you anymore.  The good news? This is fixable. And it starts with consistent, intentional focus during your rides.

    3 Action Steps for a Swinging Lower Leg

        1. Record yourself riding this week – identify exactly when and where the swinging leg appears

        2. Tweak your rising/posting in trot – aim diagonally forward with your seat, not straight up

        3. Check your shoulders in canter – be consistent with your shoulders and lower leg, and let your seat follow and move with your horse

    If you’re ready to take the next step and refine all those basics that are holding you back, pop over to www.returningtoriding.com and join the waitlist for my free training. I’ll help you make sense of it all so you can go from frustrated passenger to confident rider.

    Happy Riding
    Lorna

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  • 3 Shortcuts You NEED to Stop Taking in Your Riding!

    3 Shortcuts You NEED to Stop Taking in Your Riding!

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    Instant gratification.  It is a very real thing in the world we live in.  People see the thing they want and, without doing a whole of anything, expect to have the same thing.  Equestrians often suffer from this same issue.  Instead of being on a path to better riding, they are guilty of taking shortcuts… And then wonder why, after time goes by, they never really get anywhere.

    The shortcuts are more like little circles.  They feel like they’re taking you forward initially, but then you will inevitably end up back in the same place all over again. 

    Following a tried and a trusted path takes time.  Doing the work and putting in the effort also takes time.  And yet, it is the riders who are willing to start slow and then, over time, speed up, that see the results.

    What Shortcuts in Riding Look Like

    There are things that take time to develop and strengthen.  Suppleness, straightness, impulsion, contact…  Now, I realize that these are all steps on the training scale, but many shortcuts are based on trying to short circuit the results when it comes to one of the above.

    The reality is that, when you take a shortcut, you begin crumbling the foundations…

    I believe that the foundations of all horses and riders are relaxation and rhythm.  Take a shortcut, and look for one or both of the above to disappear.  Excess tension, choppy steps, increase in speed, heaviness, and so many other things are the symptoms of lack of rhythm and relaxation.

    Commit to doing the work and taking the time when it comes to improving yourself and your horse

    Shortcut 1:- Wheelbarrowing Around Bends

    A few episodes ago, I created a podcast episode titled “Turning Your Horse Versus Asking Your Horse to Turn“.  If you think you might be guilty of ‘wheelbarrowing’, go back and give it a listen.  For me, the definition of wheelbarrowing is when you use your reins to turn your horse.

    Recently I was in the arena with a rider who tried to do exactly this.  While in canter.  The result? A close encounter with the edge of the arena.  You see, when you use your reins to turn, firstly, you are only focusing on your horse’s head.  You are failing to take into account everything from the withers/shoulders back.

    And, the bulk of your horse is made up of the body mass from the withers/shoulders back; so it makes sense to try and influence the ‘bigger part’, doesn’t it?

    The second part of wheelbarrowing is when riders assume they must actually turn the horse.  Again, the above-mentioned rider was guilty of this.  She physically tried to turn the horse.  Rather than setting things up to ‘ask the horse to turn‘.  They are very different things.  Give THIS EPISODE and blog post a listen for more.

    Shortcut 2:- Forcing Your Horse On the Bit

    Ah, the good old Holy Grail of horseriding; on the bit.  There is this massive misconception that in order to get your horse ‘into a frame’, you must force him there.  I see riders, the world over, sawing their horse’s mouths and pulling the jaws of their horse with all their might.  And it just doesn’t work!

    On the bit is like contact (they are related, after all), in that it is the result of other things happening or being present.  

    Another way of thinking about ‘on the bit’ is to imagine it as being like baking a cake.  There are all these different ingredients (forwardness, responsiveness, consistency, suppleness, relaxation, rhythm, communication, to nae a few) that get mixed together to make the full cake.

    If the ingredients are mixed incorrectly, or if there are any missing, you simply won’t the desired result.  And the only way to get the result is to gather the ingredients, mix them correctly, and then wait for it to bake. 

    I have a Daily Strides Podcast episode & blog post HERE all about contact and another one HERE focusing specifically on ‘On the Bit’.  Both will help you to begin identifying the ingredients you already have, understanding what’s missing.  And, they will also help you then begin to mix it in order to achieve true ‘on the bit’.

    Shortcut 3:- Confusing Impulsion for Speed

    The final shortcut I see all the time is how many riders think ‘faster’ will help.  “Oh, big jump ahead; must go faster”.  “I want to canter in the next corner; must go faster.”  “My horse won’t go past the scary thing up ahead; must go faster”.

    Now, like most things, there are some different times and places in your riding where speed might just be the answer. However, most of the time when you are a novice, it is definitely not!

    There is a reason impulsion is in the ‘top tier’ of the training scale… It takes a great amount of physical, mental, and emotional development from both horse and rider to maintain it for any period of time.  Speed, however, is different.  And, I am willing to say that a lot of the times, the ‘speedier’ things are, the less developed horse and rider usually are.

    If things are not working the way you want, slow down.  Identify exactly what is not working and then work on fixing or improving that thing.  Then speed up again if you must… 

    I have a Daily Strides Podcast episode & blog post HERE about True Impulsion Versus Running In Your Riding that goes deeper into all of this. I also chat (and write) about Developing Strong Hind Quarters HERE, which leads to greater impulsion.

    What Shortcuts Have you Taken?

    Okay, over to you… I can bet that, if you are honest with yourself, there have been times where you took a shortcut, knowing it was a shortcut but did it anyway.  Probably because it gave you the feeling of a quick win.  And you might have even thought afterward, “well that wasn’t too hard!”.

    And yet, if you have been there, you will know that taking this ‘easier route’ rarely leads to long-term success. As soon as more pressure is applied, the wheels begin to fall off and you very quickly end up back at square one. 

    This week, I would love for you to take a little time and identify your shortcuts.  Where are you looking for instant gratification?  And, if you were to change that, what would taking the ‘longer route’ look like for you and your horse?

    Happy Riding
    Lorna

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