If you can scramble eggs, you can get your horse supple and soft! In this week’s video, my husband, Germán, is going to walk us through how to use his scrambled eggs analogy to help us get our horses bending and soft in our hands.
But before we jump into the video, I wanted to let you know about my FREE Contact and Connection Webinar and Worksheet that is available. This webinar and worksheet combo teaches you how to assess your horse’s frame and contact. By the end of this 30-minute webinar, you will understand contact, connection, and roundness so you can ride with balance and harmony! Get your Free mini-course here.
Okay, now back to this week’s video.
A few years ago, Germán came up with this analogy while scrambling eggs for breakfast one morning and noticed how it allows you to keep a nice soft forearm which is needed to maintain a steady, soft contact. He then passed it on to some of his students, and they had great light bulb moments with their horses using this concept. Eventually, I started using this analogy with my students, and since then, the scrambled eggs analogy has helped hundreds of students!
Since this exercise has helped so many students we thought it was time for Germán to do a video on it! Here are a few tips from Germán on how to properly “scramble eggs” and get your horse supple and soft:
· Use the Wrist – Make sure that you are using you fingers first, then your wrist to make the scrambling eggs motion. Think of your pinky finger making tiny circles. Scrambling with your whole arm will cause you to pull, and breaks the line from your elbow to your horse’s mouth, causing your horse to get stiff and confused. As with any aid, you want to give/release the aid when your horse softens.
· Following Elbows – Make sure that you keep your elbows by your sides and following your horse’s motion of their neck. If you try to keep your hands still, that will cause your horse to be stiff as well, and scrambling won’t work!
· Turning Your Horse – Often riders try to turn their horses with their inside rein and forget about their outside rein. While using the scrambled eggs technique can help you get your horse looking around the turn, don’t solely rely on the inside rein to turn or allow your hands to cross over your horse’s neck. Instead, as you supple the inside rein, use your outside rein to guide your horse around the turn.
I hope these tips help you and your horse!
Happy Riding!
Amelia
P.S. Need more help getting your horse soft and accepting the contact? Remember to check out my Free Contact and Connection Worksheet and Webinar for more tips!
