Today, I’m excited to share one of my all-time favorite exercises, the Leg Yield Staircase. This is a fantastic way to introduce your horse to the leg yield, helping them understand the aids while encouraging balance and responsiveness. If your horse tends to lose impulsion or fall out through the shoulder during leg yields, this exercise will be especially helpful!
Before we get into the exercise, I wanted to quickly tell you about my Leg Yield Workshop. Inside the workshop, I break down each step of teaching the leg yield and include exercises to refine your practice. My favorite strategy is to start teaching leg yields from the ground, which helps your horse understand lateral movement before adding the complexity of the rider’s weight. Check out the course here.
Okay, let’s get into the exercise!
In the Leg Yield Staircase Exercise, you’ll leg yield a few steps, then go straight, repeating these segments in succession. This exercise has several key benefits:
- Improves Balance: By alternating between yielding and going straight, your horse learns to stay upright and balanced through each movement.
- Encourages Responsiveness: Switching between leg yield and straightness keeps your horse attentive and quick to respond to your aids.
- Addresses Common Challenges: If your horse tends to fall over the shoulder or loses momentum in the leg yield, the staircase pattern helps them stay aligned and maintain impulsion.
In this video, I’m working with my student Kirsten, who is practicing the Leg Yield Staircase. Here’s what I have her focus on (and some important things you should keep in mind as well!):
- Establish a Good Trot: Get your horse moving forward with energy and tempo and round before you start the leg yield.
- Turn Up the Centerline: Make sure your horse is straight between your aids before starting the leg yield.
- Begin Leg Yielding: Use your inside leg and outside rein to ask for a few steps of leg yield.
- Alternate: Ride straight for a few steps. Keep alternating between leg yield and straight, creating that staircase pattern.
This exercise gives your horse a moment of straightness to reset balance before moving laterally again. The exercise also helps to control the outside shoulder, helping to prevent it from drifting out, a common issue with leg yields.
Troubleshooting Tips
If your horse is struggling, consider slowing things down to a walk. This gives both of you a chance to refine the aids and allows your horse to better process the movement. In Kirsten’s ride, we worked at the trot but took time to review the movement at a walk, which helped her horse become more coordinated and responsive.
For horses who hesitate or struggle with lateral movement, consider adding groundwork exercises, like a turn on the forehand. This groundwork reinforces the idea of moving off the leg and creates a solid foundation for leg yields in the saddle. In the leg yield workshop, I teach you how you can and should teach the leg yield from the ground first.
Remember, training takes time, so be patient with your horse as they build strength and coordination. I hope these tips help you and your horse! Let me know in the comments if you are going to try this exercise in your next ride.
Happy Riding!
Amelia
P.S. If you need help with your leg yields, check out my Leg Yield Workshop, where you will find specific exercises and step-by-step training to help you master leg yields. Learn more here.
P.P.S. Did you know that the leg-yield is a FANTASTIC exercise to improve your canter? And in other news, my 30-Day Canter Challenge just opened for enrollment this week! Inside, I’ve put together everything to 1) Improve your Canter or 2) Prepare you for Cantering if you’re not there yet. Check out the Challenge here.
