Learning the posting trot is something we do pretty early in our riding careers and once we’ve mastered that rhythmic rise and fall with the beat of the trot, it’s like riding a bike, and it can’t be forgotten. In this week’s video, I’m going to show you the exact mechanics of how to post correctly, and also how to use your leg effectively while you’re posting!
Why do we post the trot?
- Posting lets us stay in balance on the horse’s back in what would ordinarily be a very bouncy gait!
- It gets us up and off our horses’ backs and gives the horse more freedom and ease of movement
- It’s very important in the warm-up, especially if you’re riding a young horse who hasn’t developed the muscles to carry us in sitting trot for longer periods yet.
The things people mainly struggle with are how to post correctly, and how to use the leg while doing so! Here are some key points to know that will help you understand the movement and execute your best posting yet!
PIVOT! First thing’s first, your seat has got to pivot around your knee. Imagine your femur extends out past your knee, and push your knee forward and downward into the thigh block (or just the front of your saddle if you’ve no block). This gives you a pivot point from which your seat is raised up and down.
LOWER LEG: This stays still. Your leg should be identical from the knee down whether you are posting or sitting.
ELBOWS: Your elbows need to be supple and elastic. They should bend and straighten as you rise up and down in order to maintain the same position.
TIMING: If you want to give a leg aid, you need to time it. The only time you can put your leg on is when your butt is in the saddle.
LEG YIELD: Posting trot in the leg yield calls for a little rule-breaking. In order to be most effective and communicate with the inside hind leg, you need to post on the wrong diagonal, to coordinate your sitting moment with the moment the inside hind is about to leave the ground.
Finally, if you feel your horse is lazy, rather than kicking excessively, just add some trot-walk-trot transitions to get them coming off your leg more effectively.
Watch the video where I go through this in more detail and demonstrate on the super patient Mercurio and let me know in the comments if you find it helpful or have any comments or questions!
