This is a 6 week sample schedule to get your horse mentally and physically ready and fit for the more advanced dressage work. Do this program twice to get your horse ready for the dressage work.
What this program does is prepare a horse and rider with little or no background in dressage for working a horse in rhythm and contact. Once you and the horse get familiar with the program you will be ready to start learning dressage.
Why bother?
Because this way it will be safer, feel more beautiful and will allow you and the horse to be more versatile and to serve the children better. It’s also FUN. Think of it all as a game and also as a series of keys to various doors that will eventually take you into some extremely cool stuff. Doing it this way is stress free.
Once you get to the end of this program, you’ll need to start working with an instructor but these exercises can be done solo. Think of it like learning basic cords on a guitar or basic grammar of a language. At a certain point anyone learning a new skill needs a mentor. These exercises will help you and the horse be ready when that mentor appears.
Before you begin any of this, stand in a relaxed pose put your arms straight out then bring them in to your body so that you hug yourself. As you hug yourself, say ‘I’m really cool for wanting to learn some complicated stuff. And I’m brave to begin.’ Promise yourself that you won’t beat yourself up if it takes a bit of time to learn these exercises. Promise to be kind to yourself and that if it starts to go a bit wrong to simply stop, give yourself some compassion and start again. It will come. Don’t worry; we are only monkeys sitting on zebras. Make a deal with yourself to be kind to yourself and to not mind if it takes a while to learn something new.