If you are looking for something interesting and fun to add to you and your horse’s rides to get you through to spring and summer when the chance to hack out and use fields more returns, pole work is the answer! 💪🏻 They are very easy to set up and there are so many variations you can use to benefit your horse. I know a few people who think that pole work is just for those who jump or event their horses, but I think it has benefits for horses in all disciplines - it encourages your horse to become more rhythmic and balanced and helps you improve your timing and balance (it does for me at least! 😁)
One of my favourite pole work exercises is the magic square ⬛️ It's a great exercise to teach your horse to remain as straight as possible when riding along the diagonal. The other reason why it's one my favourite exercises is because it really doesn't take long to set up this exercise - with four poles you just make a perfect square that is aligned properly with both diagonal lines, which means you can ride a figure of 8 without having to stop at all. It's an easy exercise for the horses, but not too easy as the two poles means your horse does actually have to pay attention to where it's feet are going! The main thing to focus on is to not speed up, to let the poles do the work and to let the horse think about what is happening. You need to trot straight through the square, and not lean and cut corners, ensuring that you use your leg and rein aids properly.
So there you go, my recommend riding exercise for next month is this quick but effective magic square pole work! 💪🏻 Get those hind legs working! If you tried this, let me know how it went!
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