Alright, I have rules too...

On Thursday, I posted Tessa's rules for riding. I thought about it and I think it's only fair that I post my rules for riding as well. Outside of the ones related to her rules, here are my rules:

1) Be patient! with myself and Tessa.
After troublesome rides, I sometimes come home worrying that I am not cut out for riding and that maybe I am doing more harm to Tessa than good. Even though I feel this way, I have to remember that the good rides far outpace the bad rides and that the bad rides are really just learning opportunities for next time.

2) If I don't understand something, ask someone about it or look it up.
In my 14 year absence from riding, I have forgotten things. Sometimes the instructor will ask me to do things that I just don't remember doing 14 years ago. For example, I did not know what the instructor meant by the left rein or the right rein. Turns out it means the direction in which you use the left rein cues or the right rein cues.

3) Stretch after every ride!
I didn't do this the first few months. I probably should have because I was building up muscles in my legs and core that I hadn't used a very long time. I think they would have benefited from regular stretching after rides, although, I did go to Yoga class once a week. Ever since I started stretching after my rides, my recovery time has improved and my muscles don't get fatigued as quickly.

4) Get rid of my banana back!
The technical term appears to be Lordosis or Anterior Pelvic Tilt. Over my many years of school and work, the muscles that keep my lower back straight have weakened and become imbalanced. According to End your back pain now, I need to add a few new stretches and strength building exercises to my after ride routine. Of all the rules, fixing my back is where I am slacking the most.

5) Read!
I have 4 horse magazines on the go right now. Plus, I am listening to The Horse Radio Network and reading various articles posted on twitter. I want to learn all that I can about horses whenever I can. So far, reading about riding and reading about working with horses has given me a tonne of new ideas for improving my riding and horsemanship.

6) Keep my elbows at my side.
One of my instructors describes me as a water skier on a horse! It's embarrassing! I want to keep my reins short to maintain control and I have developed this bad habit of releasing my elbows to allow Tessa more room to stretch her neck. I have noticed that my water skiing arms also cause imbalance because I have no more give if she suddenly drops her head. If I lengthen the reins and put my elbows at my side, I forget to keep them there and lose control because the reins are too long. I have been practicing keeping my elbows close to me at a walk and I think I am improving but I have a long way to go.

Like Tessa, I have some tough things to work on. Acknowledging that I have problems is the first step, right?